Latest Posts by xevrq - Page 4

your big brother kazuha hcs were so cute 😭 i was wondering if you could also do hcs for either kaeya and diluc as big brothers

autophobia.

# — characters: gender neutral reader, kaeya, diluc, crepus

# — summary: “in family life, love is the oil that eases friction, the cement that binds closer together, and the music that brings harmony.” –friedrich nietzsche

# — warnings: mentions of death, fighting, panic attacks, anxiety

# — tags: hc/drabble format, slight canon divergence, hurt/comfort, LOTS of fluff, but also LOTS of angst, found family, implied (romantic) albedo x reader

# — notes: i know you liked the kazuha one because it was cute but because this concept with kaeya and diluc specifically actually crosses my mind a lot.. like a LOT a lot, this is a long one, so buckle up! as always, reblogs and reactions are appreciated, and i really really hope you enjoy!

# — tag list: @marius-z @the-gayest-sky-kid @kkiryus @keiq0 @favonious-captain

wanna join the tag list?

✧ — ❄ +🔥 — ✧

so i'm assuming you meant diluc and kaeya separately, buuuut... it's hard to put them separate when they are brother, though they behave otherwise

so let's say, for the sake of this post, you are their adopted younger sibling!

crepus took you in along with kaeya since you two were abandoned in the same place at the same time

however, you two were abandoned by completely different people, so no, you have no ties to khaenri'ah

(but, if you want smth that's like.. kaeya and the reader being sibling spies for khaenri'ah, i can make a whole 'nother post. i digress.)

as children...

you three were inseparable

kaeya and diluc bonded well to begin with, but with you added to the mixture, they may as well have been joined at the hip

diluc is the oldest amongst the three of you, and sort of gets saddled with caring for you and kaeya in subtle ways, even if crepus is present in your lives

he's kind of like the "leader" if that makes sense? he's fine with you and kaeya having opinions or dictating what activities you do for the day

but neither you nor kaeya can refuse diluc whenever he asks for something or makes a demand

(he will deny, as an adult, that he ever made demands as a boy. it's true that he didn't, but you and kaeya will sometimes tease him about it anyways.)

"kaeya, can you stop spinning them around like that? you two might break something and dad would have a heart attack if either of you got hurt." a young diluc peers over the top of his book at you and kaeya, who have been horsing around while he reads something about knighthood.

he's been taking his studies seriously these days in order to fulfill your father's dreams of becoming an esteemed knight of favonius. since crepus couldn't do it himself, diluc took it upon himself to do it in his stead. he's an overachiever in every sense of the word, and you thought he was the coolest brother in all of teyvat.

kaeya sets you down on the ground gently. "yes sir!" he salutes his brother, snickering when you copy his actions.

diluc snorts and rolls his eyes. "that's not even how the knights salute, kaeya. you'd know that if you studied more."

kaeya scrunches his nose. "hey, i take my studies very seriously, thank you very much. i just gotta make time for my siblings, unlike some people." he leans over and uses your head as an arm rest, not budging when you try to shake him off. "it's called time management, diluc. look it up."

your brothers bickered like this rather often, but there was never any bite to their words. you could always see them fighting back smiles as they went back and forth, trying to keep the upper hand on the other. a lot of the time, you were caught in the crossfire, be it physically or verbally. you didn't mind much, but sometimes they would get annoying.

you manage to shove kaeya's arm off your head. "for the record, neither of you are good at managing your time." you grumble. "diluc studies too much and kaeya studies too little."

"what, are you supposed to be goldilocks, then?" diluc closes his book, smirking at you. "are you supposed to be the perfect kid?"

you cross your arms over your chest. "well, duh. i studied for a little while today, and i'm playing with kaeya now. i'll study some more later. that's how you do it."

your brothers share a look of defeat and then turn their eyes back to you. kaeya ruffles your hair. "ah, our youngest is growing up so fast," he muses, "soon, they'll be the grand master of the knights and we'll have to follow their every command."

you sputter and try to push kaeya off of you again. when you fail, your struggling turns into an all-out wrestling match, with kaeya beating you in record time thanks to his longer limbs. "on second thought," your brother pants, "maybe i'd make a better grand master? what do you think, diluc?"

"sure, kaeya." diluc answers dismissively. "you'd be the greatest."

it's a respect thing, mostly.

never once has diluc lorded his title as eldest over the two of you, so you and kaeya came to respect and love him naturally.

diluc takes after crepus in more than just appearance.

even as kids, he was mature and responsible, but still maintained his boyish behaviors whenever you or kaeya were involved.

he's the older brother you ran to during stormy nights, since you knew for a fact that he would be awake anyways.

he's the older brother you went to for silent comfort

if you had a nightmare, diluc was the brother you went to.

(kaeya can pout about it all he wants.)

if you wanted to cry, diluc was the brother who would hug you silently until you've let it all out. he won't ask questions or push you for answers; he'll just sit there and be your rock.

i suppose in a literal sense, he's the warmth of your childhood. diluc is the sturdy, resilient, ever-burning flame that you use for comfort in times of need.

also, don't tell anyone, but diluc was definitely a hugger. a HUGE teddy bear.

kaeya was definitely the more tactile sibling

but if you denied diluc a hug or went to kaeya instead of him, he'd get all mopey and then deny it until you cuddled with him.

"you were pouting earlier."

"i don't pout. can you get out my room?"

you giggle. "i came to give you a hug, since i didn't give you one earlier."

diluc sits up with a groan, his hair wild. "is that why you're here at..." he peeks at the clock on the wall. "two in the morning?"

he sounds exhausted, but you can tell he's not going to reject you. he never does. you don't say anything -- you just stand there and wait for diluc to ask for what he clearly wants.

"you're gonna make me say it, aren't you?"

you nod.

diluc sighs and scoots over in his bed. "get over here, you brat. i'm sleepy." when you climb in beside him, he tosses the comforter over you and hugs you close. he smells like cinnamon and you sigh contently. "can't believe you woke me up for this." he grumbles.

you snicker. "love you too, 'luc."

"whatever."

as the resident middle child, kaeya took it upon himself to balance being a big brother and a little brother all at once

i know it may sound easy to people without siblings, and maybe even some actual middle children may say that it's not that hard

but middle child syndrome is very real, and when you step back and think about it, it's really hard when you're kind of overshadowed by your older and younger siblings.

he doesn't feel any sort of negative way about it, but kaeya is a smart boy -- he knows that he put himself in a difficult position by behaving the way he does

he babies you, even though the age gap between you two isn't very large.

kaeya is the older brother who seeks you out instead of the other way around.

and for some reason he never makes noise when he moves?

(is it related to his mission? find out next time on the next episode dragon ball z)

it's something he LOVES using to his advantage, by the way.

"shit!"

kaeya makes an accusatory noise. "what would father say if he heard you say something like that?" he leans on the doorway, a playful smirk on his lips. "did i really scare you that badly?"

you clutch at your chest in an attempt to slow your racing heart. "would it kill you to make a little noise when you move? for barbatos' sake, i could have died just now."

kaeya's expression falters for a moment, but he glosses it over so quickly, you think you may have seen incorrectly. "dramatic as always. anyways," he extends a hand out for you to take, "our dearest older brother is heading into the city and wants us to come with."

"it's not a request, is it," you ask, taking your brother's hand. you roll your eyes when kaeya tells you that no, diluc actually did ask. but because neither you nor kaeya can say no to him, you two were already going along. "figured as much." you sigh.

i'd like to think that by the time kaeya was in his late teens, he had adopted a particular manner of speech

specifically, the one he uses as an adult

it's corny to you, but you secretly think it makes him even cooler than he already is

because kaeya is exactly the kind of cool protagonist-like boy you read about in stories

he's always had his eye covered ever since you two met, and he's always carried himself with grace

now that you're an adult who knows of his past, it makes sense

but little you just wanted to be like their big brother

and honestly, kaeya did what he could to mold you in his image

not to say he told you his secrets, but whenever he saw his habits in you, it made his heart break and swell at the same time

truly, the most painful parts of his childhood was realizing how much he loved you and diluc

"...why are you wearing an eyepatch?" diluc raises a brow at you. "is there a secret costume party in the mansion that i don't know about or something?"

just as you're about to explain why you're wearing it, kaeya comes stumbling into the room, his hand covering his right eye. "there you are!" he yells.

diluc snorts so loud he has to cover his mouth. so that's why you had an eyepatch on -- you took it from kaeya. from the frantic look in his eye, diluc thinks you may have just taken it off of kaeya in his sleep or something.

you shriek and duck behind diluc, who's failing at masking his laughter. "don't hurt me!" you yell from behind your brother. "i just thought it looked cool!"

kaeya growls. "then you should have just asked to try it on, you dirty thief! who takes shit off someone's face like that?!"

diluc actually barks out a laugh and kaeya fixes him with a glare capable of freezing over anything. "sorry, sorry." he tries to apologize as he makes a face in an attempt to school his expression. "it's not funny, i'm sorry."

"you're still smiling." kaeya deadpans.

"to be fair," diluc snickers, "you've got sticky fingers as well."

it's true; kaeya definitely has a habit of taking the belongings of others -- yours in particular, actually -- and hiding them in the most absurd places. he must have never thought someone would return the favor like this. he sighs, the fight and frustration leaving him.

now that he's looking at you from behind diluc, kaeya can't help but feel proud of the fact that you're acting like him. it was an amateur heist on your part, but with some more practice, you could be just like him someday. he sighs fondly at the thought of it.

"fine, you got me." he concedes. "but can you give it back now? i kinda need that."

kaeya will forever be grateful to have you and diluc as siblings, because even though you were all young and curious, neither of you asked why he wore an eyepatch -- or at the very least why he worked so hard to keep it hidden from view. you step out from behind diluc, the cloth still over your eye, and kaeya feels his heart stop for just a moment. he loves you so dearly, his precious little sibling, but...

remember your purpose, something hisses at him. don't get too attached.

it's too late for that, he thinks. kaeya hold out his other hand, thanking you when you place the eyepatch in his hand. "don't do that again, yeah?" he says softly.

surprisingly, kaeya's gentle tone makes you feel scolded -- mostly because he doesn't speak like that often. you duck your head and murmur an apology.

"hey." kaeya flicks your forehead. he's wearing his eyepatch again, and that warm, brotherly smile that makes you feel safe. "it's okay. i'm not mad at you; never have been, never will be. it's okay."

you nod shyly. if kaeya says it's okay, you think, then surely, everything will be as he says.

to you, kaeya was the brother that helped you with everything

for example:

while diluc helped you master your swordsmanship, it was kaeya who taught you the basics

from stances to defensive maneuvers, kaeya covered everything

he even taught you the basics of other weapons as well -- somehow he was adept with all of them, and he didn't hesitate to share his knowledge with you

it's kaeya who uses you as an arm rest and uses his height to keep things away from you

it's kaeya who steals from your plate when you aren't looking

it's kaeya who teaches you how to swear

but it's also kaeya who stays up all night whenever you say you feel unsafe

it's kaeya who doesn't judge you when you ask him to check under your bed or in your closet for intruders or hilichurls

it's kaeya who shares everything with you and diluc

it's kaeya who helps you catch and bottle crystalflies in the vineyard during sleepless nights.

it's kaeya who braids crystalflies into your hair, and let's you do the same to his as gets longer.

(it's also kaeya who manages to rope diluc into these crystalfly braiding sessions.)

it's kaeya who comes to you when he's having a bad day -- kaeya who asks you to just hold his hand and say nothing while he calms down

"having another moment?" you ask quietly. you were in the middle of painting something for adelinde's birthday when kaeya suddenly walked in and sat beside you, dropping his head on your shoulder.

you never knew what it was that tormented him so much. you hated whatever it was that turned your brother into a shadow of himself, but no matter how much you wanted to fix all of his problems, you couldn't. kaeya wouldn't talk about it, and you knew better than to pry.

so, you did what you could.

kaeya nods silently. you can feel him shaking ever so slightly. you move to put the paintbrush down so you can hug him, but he shakes his head.

"don't mind me," he chuckles despite himself. he sounds fine, but you know better. he takes your free hand in his, tangling your fingers together. "do what you're doing. i'll be fine soon."

every time. every single time kaeya has his moments, he pretends like it's nothing or like it's bothering someone. you have to swallow back the comforting words.

kaeya's always preferred physical comfort, anyhow.

you give his hand a light squeeze and keep painting. "remember the breathing exercise diluc taught you." you murmur. when you feel kaeya nod again, you hum.

your brother dozes off on your shoulder after half an hour. at least he's calm for now. you glance down at your fingers.

even in his sleep, his grip is still tight.

so... what changed?

you all know what happened the day crepus died.

if you don't, allow me to paraphrase:

when your father died, your brothers' respective personalities took a hard left.

diluc, having watched crepus' life come to an end right before his eyes, became vengeful after the knights of favonius instructed him to hide the truth.

as for kaeya, it was as if all of the traits that you admired so much in him became amplified in all the wrong ways.

you always knew he was keeping a part of himself locked away, but you didn't realize just how much until he came clean about it.

and you... well.

kaeya and diluc weren't the only ones to receive their visions that night.

but, for the sake of brevity (and accuracy), allow me to share some of kaeya's lore with you:

and this is verbatim, mind you.

"if khaenri'ah and mondstadt went to war, which side should he support? to whom should he offer his assistance: his birth father, who had ruthlessly abandoned him? or his adoptive father, who loved him and raised him?

"for the longest time, kaeya had agonized over these impossible questions, caught between the opposing demands of loyalty and duty, faced with an impossible choice between truth and happiness.

"but now, crepus' death upset this delicate balance. he felt liberated, but also ashamed of how selfishly he was responding.

"as an adopted son, he should have saved crepus, but he had arrived moments too late. as a brother, he should have shared in diluc's grief, and yet as their father lay dying on the ground he had hung back behind his brother, that ancient plot running through his mind."

- kaeya's vision lore.

so where do you fit into all of this?

you were somewhat like kaeya -- a child ruthlessly abandoned by their parents during a stormy night to fend for themself

unlike your brother however, you had no internal strife. you had no attachment to a destroyed nation -- no questions of loyalty to follow through your adolescent years into early adulthood.

you were just... you. another grieving child of the ragnvindr family.

but because you weren't like kaeya -- because all you knew was the dawn winery, diluc, kaeya, and crepus -- it might have been you who felt the fight between your brothers the most

you shouldered most of the pain from their separation, probably even more so than your brothers would ever admit out loud

because they were your only family. you may have been too young to understand the concept of abandonment when it happened, but as you grew older, the fear only grew with you

you fought so hard to keep your brothers and father close to you -- to keep your family intact

what you fear most isn't hilichurls or abyss mages or even the fatui

it's abandonment.

i'm sure you've asked this at some point, but what does the title of this request even mean?

autophobia (n.) - the fear of being alone.

your knowledge of khaenri'ah isn't very expansive.

all you know of the fallen nation is what's been taught to you through history books, but even then, there wasn't much to cover. as kaeya speaks, you try to remember all that you could from your history lessons as quickly as you can.

khaenri'ah, as you recall, was godless nation. not because they were abandoned by one, but because they had no need for one. the nation was thrown into ruin by monsters and gods alike, and as far as you knew, there was nothing left of it.

so, at first, you reach out to kaeya to comfort him for his loss. he's lost so much in his life, hasn't he? but as you're reaching for his arm, he jerks away from you, regret and shame pooling in his eyes. "kaeya..?" you whisper brokenly.

your brother's expression is pained as he tells his story to you and diluc.

none of it makes sense to you. you can't seem to wrap your head around the idea that your brother was sent to destroy mondstadt from the inside out. he would never do that -- he couldn't. as tough as he seemed, kaeya was just a big ball of fluff on the inside. the boy you grew up with wasn't capable of being a--

"traitor." diluc's voice is hoarse and low, coming out as a growl. you snap your eyes over to your brother, glaring at him to shut him up, but he pays you no mind. he looks furious enough to kill, and all three of you can feel the hostility that rolls off of him in waves.

kaeya doesn't help the situation as he opts to provoke diluc. gone is the remorse he once had written all over his face; in its place is a false sense of amusement. you'd think he was seriously enjoying diluc's anger if you didn't know him any better. kaeya shrugs nonchalantly. "if that's what you wanna call me, so be it." he says.

diluc's hackles rise and you instinctively place yourself between your brothers. "you lied to us," he seethes, "for decades, you've been lying! to me, to our family, to-- to mondstadt!"

kaeya has the gall to chuckle. you feel diluc surge forward, but you force him back. "honestly," he tsks, "our poor father is dead and that's what's got you upset? you really do take your job as cavalry captain seriously, don't you?"

you feel your jaw drop. this entire time, you've been trying to convince yourself that this conversation wasn't actually happening -- that kaeya was just playing a really poorly timed joke to lift your spirits. but the longer it goes on and the angrier diluc gets, the more it sinks in that this... this isn't a joke.

your father wasn't the only one to die that stormy night.

diluc shoves you to the side seemingly with all his strength as he lunges for kaeya, his weapon materializing his hands. you crash into the wall hard, but when you groan, disoriented by the impact, neither of your brothers stop to help you. you're strong enough to handle pain like that on your own, but kaeya and diluc vowed to never harm you -- or each other -- on purpose many years ago.

you're forced to watch as the vow dissolves into nothingness as diluc stabs the floor where kaeya had fallen.

"is that the best you've got, captain?!" kaeya taunts. he's light on his feet and his eyepatch is missing, allowing you and diluc to see what he's been hiding since he was a boy. his right eye glows an ethereal shade of yellow in the dim lighting of the hallway. he looks unhinged and hysterical, a wild, carefree grin marring his once gentle features. "you won't be able to stop me like that!"

"stop it!" you scream. "please, don't do this!" the words come out so loud, they manage to rip your throat raw in an instant. your brothers pay you no mind as they mercilessly attack each other; if someone didn't know they were brothers, they'd think they were fighting to the death. belatedly, you realize that they are.

"we took you in," diluc shouts as he parries kaeya's blade, "fed you, cared for you, loved you, only for you to stab us in the back?!"

"to be fair," kaeya grunts in response, "i haven't stabbed you in the back just yet. stay still, though, and i will."

you watch helplessly from the side as your family crumbles before your eyes. you give up on trying to stop your brothers. in terms of strength, they've got you beat; if you were to try to insert yourself in this battle, they'd likely do more than just injure you. the very thought of them accidentally killing you instead of each other makes you gag.

your childhood shatters with every clash of the swords that you hear. with every clang, another part of your relationships dies. all at once, your lungs stop functioning. you can't breathe -- it's as though someone is stepping on your chest with no intent of letting up. your stomach is about ready to rid itself of its contents as one thought becomes clear.

you're going to be left all alone again. left to fend for yourself in the same storm you were abandoned in all those years ago.

suddenly, a searing heat and a biting chill overtakes your senses, forcing you to take a deep breath. the shock of the temperature change makes you look back at kaeya and diluc, whose weapons are now encased in cryo and pyro elemental energies respectively.

you're struck with a sinking feeling of dread as their swords press against each other with diluc's flaming claymore starting to overtake kaeya's broadsword. kaeya's fingers are slowly being frosted over as his elemental energy spirals out of control, and you see diluc's hands starting to blister and peel with the heat of his pyro.

at this rate, they're likely going to kill themselves.

you're on your feet and holding your own weapon before you can even stop and contemplate the consequences. you understand that diluc and kaeya have you beat in terms of strength.

but your strength, however, comes from your speed.

your brothers are blown off their feet in opposite directions with the force of your slash. the three of you remain motionless for a moment, each of you panting with exertion and emotion. you stare down at your trembling hands, amazed by the power you had, and nearly faint at the sight of an anemo vision resting comfortably in your palm.

you'll process this later, you decide. right now, your brothers were more important.

"enough!" you cry. "that's fucking enough!"

diluc scowls at you, but it's weak. he must be exhausted from having burnt out so much energy so quickly due to the vision activating on its own. "you heard that asshole," he growls at you. "he would've killed us all a long time ago! and now you're stopping me from killing him?"

"the cavalry captain of the knights of favonius doesn't kill people, diluc." your words are punctuated by embarrassing sobs, but you don't care. "especially not their siblings. can we just--"

diluc spits out some blood, interrupting you. "if you're going to stand here and preach to me the value of a family that no longer exists," he pushes himself to his feet with the help of his weapon, "then we're done here."

"diluc fucking ragnvindr, don't you dare walk away from this." you try to threaten him, but it doesn't work. diluc starts walking and you swing your sword in his direction, leaving a clean slice in the wall he was leaving on. your anemo energy is unstable and volatile, but you have enough control over it to use it at will. you hate that that is what gets your brother to stop and listen to you.

"look," you pant, "we're all hurt in more ways than one. c-can we just... i don't know... try to heal together? please, i-- diluc, you never explained what happened to father, a-and," you turn to kaeya with tears on your cheeks, "you were there. you never explained either! why?!"

for a second -- for just a split second -- you see the kaeya you grew up with. "i..." kaeya catches himself, ridding himself of any vulnerabilities. his face darkens, and your stomach twists at the sight of this stranger wearing your brother's face.

"i don't owe you any more explanations." he says. he jumps to his feet with ease, but it's obvious that he's in excruciating pain. "i told you everything you needed to know. do with that information what you will." kaeya's voice is so distant.

on the other side of the hallway, diluc glares murderous daggers at kaeya. "i'll handle you someday. mark my fucking words."

you don't think you can take much more of this. "diluc," you try, "we're siblings! could you just--"

"i have no siblings."

you go completely still. every part of your body halts and stumbles as it tries to start again. you let your weapon dissolve as your lips begin to tremble. "w-what?"

"are you deaf?" diluc's crimson eyes burn right through you. this isn't the man you grew up with. you're not sure who you're looking at. "i said i have no siblings." he groans as he stumbles away. "whatever. i need to prepare for my father's funeral."

you don't put up a fight as you watch diluc hobble away. you turn to kaeya, still unsure if you heard correctly. maybe you were so overloaded that you were having auditory hallucinations. "k-kaeya," you stammer desperately. you don't even know what to say to him. "please."

the last glimmer of hope is extinguished as kaeya turns on his heel and walks away without a word.

for the second time in your life, you are abandoned.

this time, though, you know you will never forget it.

so... what happened? what now?

diluc buried himself in work and set off to travel the nations in search of answers for crepus' death

and a few years after that... well, we all know the tale of mondstadt's beloved "darknight hero".

you ran away from home about two days after the fight, joining the adventurer's guild and wandering the nations at a leisurely pace

which meant that diluc had the dawn winery to himself.

kaeya went on to become cavalry captain of the knights of favonius. diluc never did rat him out.

he's notorious for his reckless, yet clever and cunning behavior, his charm, and his super high alcohol tolerance

you make a point to avoid the city of mondstadt at all costs. there's no point.

there's nothing there for you anyways.

but the story doesn't exactly end there.

things don't get better as the years go by, but your brothers do mature.

they're... cordial with each other. sort of. enough so that they can hold conversations with each other, even if they do escalate into super passive aggressive arguments

they each hold enough regret to fill an ocean about the night you all separated.

kaeya is less conflicted about his choice between mondstadt and khaenri'ah, but he wishes he chose a better time to say it all.

he regrets brushing you off when you tried to unify them when you needed each other the most.

diluc lies awake at night thinking about how crushed you looked when he denied having siblings at all. your face haunts him well into his adult years.

he wishes he had listened to you -- if only he just listened.

as for you... you don't hate them.

at least you don't think you do. you haven't seen your...

you haven't seen kaeya or diluc in years. you don't know how you'll act if you ever come across them again.

you've mastered your vision and perfected a style of swordsmanship that you created based off of what kaeya and diluc taught you all those years ago

maybe someday, you'll be able to show them how much you've grown.

you wonder if they'll be proud of you the way they used to be.

will you ever see each other again?

inevitably, all roads lead back home.

after completing a difficult bounty in dragonspine, you make your way into the city of mondstadt for some much needed rest and relaxtion without much thought. it's a lot more... desolate than you remenber it to be. perhaps the quiet will do you some good; you just want to relax for a while, anyways.

after collecting your rewards and locating an inn to stay in during your time here, you decide to wander the streets. mondstadt is certainly less lively than you remember, but there are a few new and familiar faces that you come across during your stroll.

you run into aether, the blonde traveler who took a liking to you when you met in inazuma. he felt indebted fo you since you were the only person in inazuma who made a genuine effort to get him connected to the raiden shogun without trying to involve him in internal political affairs.

"not my home, not my business," you told him with a shrug. "the same goes for you. you're an outsider and people love to remind you of that, so use that to your advantage."

paimon tells you with a mouthful of food that aether started running into more trouble since he took your advice, but that he's stronger because of it.

"if you ever need my help again, you know you can commission me, right?" you nudge aether before you two part ways.

the traveler raises a brow at you. "are you asking me to pay to hang out with you?"

you whistle quietly. the aether you met in inazuma wasn't this brazen. you laugh, impressed. "i gotta make a living somehow." aether punches your shoulder lightly and you wince jokingly. "okay, okay! your presence is payment enough. happy?"

"extremely so." the traveler grins. you two part ways after that, with you laughing at paimon's enthusiastic waving. you continue your trip down memory lane as you walk the streets of mondstadt.

you come across amber, eula, and lisa, who you've met in passing before that day; you greet jean, who welcomes you with open arms; you even happen across albedo, who actually hesitates to speak to you.

you stayed with the chief alchemist for a few weeks up in dragonspine, basically helping him clear out any dangerous spots so he could conduct some research. during that time, you two grew quite close, and only three days before your departure did you two realize that there was something more than just snow in the air.

eventually, your trip ends at the angel's share. you're not much of a drinker, but something light wouldn't hurt, would it?

it would, you realize once you step inside. most of the patrons are off to the side, far away from the stools. but, there's a knight with long, blue hair sitting on the stool teasing the red-haired bartender on duty.

"welcome to the angel's share," the bartender sighs, seemingly on auto-pilot. "can i... oh."

"yeah. oh." you shoot back on impulse. too many years have passed for your biting tone to be interpreted as a joke, because both diluc and kaeya flinch.

what were you thinking, coming in here?! you knew you weren't a drinker, but you just had to pick now to try and start?

you weren't mentally prepared to look these two in the face -- not after what happened. you tried your hardest not to blame them, but no matter how many times you looked at it, they were in the wrong every time. bitterness grew old and sour deep inside you -- it was the main reason why you and albedo were stagnant at the moment; your fear of abandonment was too strong for you to commit to something like a relationship.

the chattering of the bar patrons continues in the background, but as the three of you stare at each other, it all seems to fade into silence.

"you're home," diluc speaks after a long pause. he's a lot bigger than you remember him. if you weren't so pissed at yourself, you'd tease him about when he was a scrawny boy. he looks almost relieved to see you -- did he think you were dead or something? "it's... been a long time."

you blink at him and hold your tongue. if you speak, you fear you may say something you regret.

"you're all grown up now." kaeya speaks next. you see the same regret start to swim in his blue eye, only this time, it's been amplified by time. he sounds so fond and proud -- he sounds like a brother. "i see you've got control of your vision."

you hiss internally. all three of you are in control of your visions. why did he feel the need to bring that up? and why did he sound like that? the time for praising one another has long since passed.

"are you two done pretending like you care?" you snap. diluc and kaeya wince, but don't answer. you march over to a table in the furthest corner of the bar and put your head on the wooden surface.

all the enegy you thought you had for the rest of the night pretty much bleeds right out of you after that. you don't have what it takes to face them, and you certainly don't have what it takes to walk anymore. you doze off, exhausted by your thoughts.

when you come to, you're in a familiar bed. the panic that rises doesn't last very long. you know exactly where you are, and you have a pretty good feeling you know who brought you here.

the sun is pouring through the floor-to-ceiling windows, filling your room with its light. judging by its height, you'd estimate that it's about midday. were you really that tired? you bury your face in your hands and groan loudly. if your hunch was correct and diluc and kaeya brought you here -- brought you home -- last night, then that meant they were planning on talking to you today.

either they were going to talk to you when you left the room, or they would come to you.

the latter ends up being true when you hear knuckles rap an old rhythm on your door. bitter as you may be, you can't help the smile that crosses your face. that was your code when you were kids. "what's the magic phrase?" you manage to say after a while.

kaeya's voice comes through the door. "would you believe me if i said i forgot?" he cracks it open and sticks his head inside. "it's been so many years, you can't blame me."

you shake your head fondly. "get your ass in here before you piss me off." kaeya slips through the door but doesn't close it. you raise a brow. "diluc, i know you're out there. weirdo."

your eldest brother pushes open the door and strides inside. neither of you speak for what feels like forever. the two of them have spoken to each other over the years, but with you back in the loop, they feel as though they're back where they started. you fix your eyes on your hands as you try to organize everything that's flooding your brain.

"i'm sorry." diluc finally says. he's sitting on one side of your bed and kaeya's sitting on the other, and both of them are looking at you with so much sincerity that it makes your chest tighten.

you narrow your eyes. "do you even remember what you're sorry for?"

diluc swallows thickly. "how could i forget? it's only been in my nightmares for about five years."

nightmares? you look away, suddenly ashamed by your callousness. "is that so." you mutter.

"i think it goes without saying that i'm sorry too," kaeya says next. "to both of you. i don't.. i don't think any of us would be in this position if it weren't for me."

neither you nor diluc answer right away because in a way, he's right. if kaeya had just waited a little longer, or delivered the news a little more delicately, things may have played out a little differently. you sigh through your nose.

"it's... not okay." you answer bluntly. you could never lie to them -- not then, not now. "it's never going to be okay."

"i understand." diluc nods stiffly, his voice tight. "truthfully, i don't know how to apologize properly. for years, i thought about how i'd reconcile with you two, but.. nothing ever came to mind."

"i wasn't finished." you level your brother with a glare. "it's never going to be okay, but... i don't mind talking to you guys." your brothers start to look hopeful for a second, but you shake your head. "it'll take a very long time to forgive you, and even longer to trust you again, assuming that i choose to do that at all."

kaeya reaches for your hand slowly, tapping his fingers on yours experimentally. when you don't pull away, he intertwines your fingers with his the way he used to when you were kids. a fresh, unwelcome set of tears rushes to your eyes. you hate it -- hate being so emotional after all this time, but...

sitting here before your brothers makes you feel like a kid again. you feel smothered by the amount of love you once received and gave them in return. you curl your fingers, tightening your grip on kaeya's hand. he's so much colder than you remember, but there's an unmistakable warm that's seeping through.

"i could never handle you crying," he chuckles shakily, reaching over to wipe the tears that escape. "especially if i was the one who made you cry."

diluc grabs your other hand. he doesn't say anything; when you look at him, you see that he's got his other hand covering his face. "i don't even know what to say to you." he says, his voice muffled. "you shouldn't even be giving me the time of day -- not after what i said."

you sniff. "you're right, i shouldn't. but," you squeeze his hand twice. "at the end of the day..."

at the end of the day, you were still siblings, whether diluc believed it or not. your experiences together were too real, too fresh in your mind, even now, to be fake.

"at the end of the day, we're family." you sigh.

you were going to need time -- a lot of time -- to heal and to forgive. it was going to be a slow, painful process as you try to heal a wound that's long since scarred over, but you were still willing to do it. you weren't going to let this final glimmer of hope slip away from you -- not again. and neither were your brothers. deep down, you still trusted and loved them, and they, you.

clinging to that faith, no matter how small, you decide to take the first step.

✧ three hours.. no proofreading (nothing is ever proofread on this blog LOL)... im going to bed now, gn <3

Guys nvm, im opening request. Go on request stuff though im very picky at picking one

BROO WE'RE ALMOST AT 1K HOLY SH-

Shut up

Ft. Childe & Scaramouche

Cw: mm yes kissing, probs ooc, the reader can be seen as a harbinger, childe and scara real name. Short on scara part

Reader pronoun: Not mentioned

Summary: Your partner have been talking about a certain topic for what seems like hours, and you couldn't get yourself to finish your work. So what will you do to shut them up?

—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–

Ajax aka Childe

How long has it been? Since this certain ginger haired guy or you could say your own boyfriend rambles about how his days in liyue went, you would love to hear him rambles about his liyue days but.... the problem is you couldn't get yourself to finish your work. Especially your report card.

And the way he keeps repeating the name Zhongli for some reason. "And then i met this guy named zhongli-" "he never brings his wallet nor checks the price tags when i was buying him stuff!" "And then Turns out he's the rex lapis himself?!".

You kinda wanna laugh at his statement until you looked at your report card with a written Zhongli in the end of a sentence, it seems that you accidentally written his name eh?

sighing up, you tried to cover the mistake you did only for the ink to end up smudged.

From afar, you could see your boyfriend figure who is still rambling about how his days went in liyue while leaning his back on the wooden door frame. You were thinking about a way to get this ginger headed boy to shut up so you could do your work peacefully, until a certain idea flew over your head.

"Hey ajax" you called him, no response. "Hey!" This time a bit louder, still no response. "CHILDE HELLO??" you finally yelled. And he snapped out of his thought "AH.. uhm sorry, what is it?" He turned his gaze at you, he could see that your expression were somehow pissed.

"could you come here for a second? I need your help with something" you said organizing the stack of paperwork.

"What do you need my help with hm?" He smirked while walking toward your working desk.

"This" you stated showing him some paper with a rather small writing, "and bend down you can't see it"

"Whose papers is this? The handwriting is rather small reminds me of— Oomph!" Just before he could finish his own sentence you pulled his shirt collar for a rather harsh and deep kiss. Too bad, It lasted only for a few moment before you pulled away gasping for air.

"And that will shut you up." Returning your gaze to the report card and paperwork again. leaving your boyfriend standing there looking at you. dumbfounded.

—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–

Kunikuzushi aka Scaramouche

Scaramouche or kunikuzushi himself is rather hard to fluster, but.. today is a bit different he seems rather pissed. Just without asking you could already know what he's up to.

From your desk you could already see his sour expression, how he's grumbling about how his subordinate was being annoying or uncooperative, And then to how his days went.

You, yourself was stuck in an endless paperwork and a report card to fill.

You would've want to shut him up but... its scaramouche, you know how it'll end up right? So you tries to think if there's any way to shut this gremlin mouth up.

"And then this one agent tries to issue his own order, such a nuisance"...."and tartaglia, that ginger. He keeps annoying me about my big hat!" and so on and so on.

Giving up on your paperwork, you stand up and walked toward the sofa your boyfriend was sitting in.

"What?" He said, "nothing.. im just, tired. Need a rest right now" before sitting down on the sofa.

"Wanna know an efficient way to shut someone up?"..."what?" He turned his gaze at you

"You do this" you abruptly grabbed (softly) him by the chin and pulled him for a kiss. Too bad due to your tired body and mind you can only give him a soft tender kiss. It lasted for a few second before you pull your face away from him.

"Now if you'll excuse me, im going to rest" plopping yourself comfortably on your boyfriend lap. "Stay... here.. okay?" Before drifting into an slumber.

You failed to notice his flustered face and the little smile on his face. Guess his day got better then?

—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–

Finally finished, sorry if its short lmao. Anw wish me luck, gonna have my math exam soon<3

Red Carnations

Pairing: Childe x GN! Reader

Warnings: it’s just angst

A/N: i’m exhausted but i really wanted to write this. slightly based off Olivia Rodrigo’s song Driver’s License

Word Count: 3,127

Another letter, another batch of lies. The crisp pale paper sat on the table, delicate letters that spelled your name staring up at you. The red wax stamped with his insignia burned into your mind, filling every thought in your head, despite trying to go on with your day. Was it really worth it to open the parchment? Every letter that arrived on the doorstep, with the same handwriting scribbled onto it felt like another push out of his life. Paragraphs describing the beautiful blonde outlander traveller that had caught his heart made your chest hurt with every word that he wrote. How long had it been since you had last seen the young ginger Harbinger whose lopsided smile made your heart skip a beat. Though he had been sent away on a mission to Liyue, you stayed behind to manage your parent’s business in Snezhnaya. Everything could only go downhill from there. You took the seat in the back as you watched letters arrive at your doorstep with pages of Childe’s handwriting describing the new nation he was exploring and the people who he met. But in every letter, he never failed to mention the golden eyed beauty who was Lumine. In the darkest parts of your heart, you wished that Childe would stop sending you letters, that he would just forget about the best friend who remained smitten by him. Rapid knocks on your door interrupted you from your thoughts. A chorus of giggles erupted from behind your door and you bit back a sigh, knowing exactly who was standing out in the cold.

“Did big brother send you a letter too?!” Teucer greeted you the moment your door cracked open, his bright blue eyes looking up at you with excitement and curiosity swimming inside of them. Tonia apologized for the lack of courtesy from her brother, but you could tell that she too, wanted to know if you received anything. A part of you wanted to lie to the two young children, and tell them that Childe didn’t send you anything. But there was no way to deny the two pairs of ocean eyes that twinkled with curiosity. You could tell Tonia was hiding something behind her back yet you didn’t pry, instead, forcing a smile to your face and admitting that their elder brother had sent you a letter.

“Have you read it yet?” Tonia giggled and pulled out the object behind her back. It was another letter, but addressed to her instead. You opened your mouth to reply, but the young ginger haired girl was already speaking rapidly, explaining all that her brother had written in his latest letter. You watched in silence as Teucer stood up on his tiptoes to peak over at the words his sister was reading off and your breath caught in your throat. Teucer was almost exactly like Childe, in his actions and looks.

Keep reading

Happy Birthday, Diluc!

"Paimon, if you stand there, I'm afraid the wind will blow you away..."

"One last place to clean! Traveler, after we finish cleaning the leaves, let's go to..."

"Master D—Diluc!"

Happy Birthday, Diluc!

Thank you for your gift, it's beautifully packaged. That's very kind of you.

Things are pretty quiet at the Guild today. I'm not sure if it happens to be an idle day or if they set aside the day for me.

Well, let's go then. It happens to be the fresh fruit season and there is a beverage recipe I would like to try. Please do me the honor and join me for a drink. What you think always matters to me.

Happy Birthday, Diluc!

Hi!

Can I request: Childe

Prompt: "It's not time for us to say Goodbye" Type: Hurt/Comfort.

Scenerio: Reader gets injured, maybe taking a hit meant for Childe? They're hurt pretty badly and he has to get them to a healer/doctor. As he's carrying them, the reader tries to tell him how they Love him so much, and getting ready to say goodbye but he won't let them. Happy Ending please? Thanks So Much!

Goodbye - Childe

Word count: 1.0k

Genre: Hurt/comfort

c/w: blood, mentions of his real name

No one will disagree that Childe is a bloodthirsty warrior who was meant to be dressed in blood. He belongs to the battlefield with a blood-streaked face. But your blood was one that he would not want even a pint of, yet it begins to taint his grey jacket from its tips.

Childe carefully moves your head from his forearm to the grass. He yanks his jacket off and drapes it over the wound on your torso to cover it from the rain.

With a weak voice, you quip, “Wow, you’re so hot, especially with that drenched hair of yours.”

The drizzle starts to become heavier. There’s a tinge of annoyance in his voice.

“Cut it out.”

He helps you up onto his back, afraid to move whenever you wince.

You force out a laugh, making jabs at him, “Seeing fear all over the eleventh harbinger’s face is a once in a lifetime sight to behold.”

“Archons, [name], enough!”

It’s a downpour at this point but the rain doesn’t hide the distress that his voice contains. You finally desert the forced smirk on your face.

You reach up to his face but his hand squeezes it before your fingertips touch his cheek. He lifts you onto his back. He doesn’t let go until you’re fully on his back.

He stands up and commits the mistake of looking back behind him. A patch of grass stained red where you lay churns his stomach and turns it upside down. He runs.

Mount Aocang is a distance from Liyue Harbour and while he’s usually cocky about his abilities, his confidence wavers. He doesn’t think he can make it there in time.

“Childe.”

With the blood that trickles down his bare back, he knows where this is going.

“Ajax.”

He bites the inside of his cheek.

“Don’t talk. It’ll worsen the injury.”

The water droplet pelts his eyes and he curses under his breath. You take a deep inhale. “Ajax, please don’t blame yourself. No one saw that coming.”

After a moment of silence, you say, “I love you and g-”

Your words reach him even before it falls off your lips. He snaps, voice a little loud, “Please. I don’t want to hear any of it.”

It startles you, but it doesn’t do much to drive away the temptation of closing your eyes. He apologises to you, choking on the last syllable of his ‘I’m sorry’.

The rhythmic movement of your breathing against his back becomes faint elicits anxiety from him.

“[name]?”

Taking his eyes off the path ahead, he turns to see your eyes flutter open. You give an almost inaudible hum. He almost slips on a puddle and he clenches his jaw.

He contemplates whether or not he should tell you all that he ever wanted to say to you. That he should have been warier of the hilichurls while he was clearing the camp. That he thought that he never deserved love, yet the blood on his hands never stopped you from giving him all that you could. That you are the brightest star he’s ever seen since he fell into the abyss.

But he bites back his words. Saying them would be equal to admitting defeat. If you couldn’t hear it in this life, then he’d carry the words to his next.

Instead, he repeats your name over and over with increasing loudness, even when you stop responding to him. He says it as an assurance. As a plea for help. As a prayer.

The torrential rain stops as his feet step on the wooden bridge into Liyue Harbour. You hear ragged breaths and desperate cries for help just before you black out.

You wake up to warm hands that envelope yours. Childe sleeps on the seat by the bedside. He wears a grey Liyue tangzhuang that fits him just right. Your eyes trail up his arm that was usually concealed, to his faintly red, tear-stained face.

Herbalist Gui walks into the room with some medicine and makes his way to your bedside. He keeps his voice hushed not to wake Childe as he gives you a rundown of your condition. You shoot glances at your boyfriend, expecting the light sleeper to awaken.

But Childe doesn’t and Herbalist Gui catches on your worry.

“He’s having a slight fever due to the rain and exhaustion. He sat outside the operating room and refused to budge when we told him to take a shower and get changed. When he comes to, please try to persuade him to take his meds and rest in the bed right beside yours.”

You nod and he leaves you to rest. As you are about to drift off to sleep, Childe stirs in the chair. You force your eyes to open and you squeeze his hand.

His grip on your hand loosens and one of them cups your cheek.

“Don’t you dare pull that shit ever again.”

You’re about to protest that he would protect you from danger any day, so he shouldn’t tell you not to. But he doesn’t let you continue.

“It’s not time for us to say goodbye,” he mumbles, “Not now. Not in the near future. Not in our next lifetimes.”

“Alright, there’ll never be goodbyes between us. Only ‘see you’s.”

Both of you don’t realise that he’s been holding his breath until he lets out a long exhale. You get him to eat his medication and persuade him to get some proper rest. But he ends up wrapping his arms around one of yours, whining about how he doesn't want to be separated.

You think about teasing him for the big baby he is, but you spare him due to your fatigue. Without trying to aggravate your wound, you shift your body to make space for him. You pat the small space you’ve made on the bed and he climbs onto it.

Both of you shift around a little more to make some space for each other on the tiny bed meant for one. You finally settle in his arms around your body. Not long later, his breathing steadies and you figure he’s finally gone into a deep sleep.

Resting your other arm on his side, you drift off to sleep. Bodies flushed against each other, the thought parting ways distances itself from your mind. Neither of you will admit it, but a ‘see you’ would hurt all the same too.

a/n: to the anon who sent this, I'm sorry I took a while and I hope you'll see this :">

Taglist (open): @tiredzephh @rxspbrrry @almondoufu @bluexiao @yeetmeoffjueyunkarst @chichikoi @bookuya @under-a-starry-night @mikachuchu @serenenation @shxnosuke

Please fill in the taglist form on my pinned post to join the taglist

CHAPTER THREE // GOLD RUSH

SYPNOSIS (of chapter). in which you decided to spend your day reuniting with old friends and encounter an old flame.

SYPNOSIS (of series). breaking up with your first love was heartbreaking, but not as heartbreaking as getting invited to his wedding after years of not seeing him. that is, until things seem to be easier when you encounter a certain guest, who could end up being more than just a blooming friend to you.

CHARACTERS. kamisato ayato, (later) diluc ragnvindr

CONTENT. fluff/angst, modern!au, mentions of death (minor), mentions of break-ups, mentions of car accident

TAGLIST. @scaraslover @dawgimsohot @kazu-topia @aqualesha @mrkamisato @serami00 @serenareiss @hiqhkey @emperatris-rinaka @bystander36 @irisxiel @coleluuviida @034ven @dear-dairiess @luv3rxcha @hadesaedes @chiro-chiro-kun @hersscherofyatta @mariusvonhangme @yuzuricebun @nejibot @hoshikistarlette @solaaresque @crowbird @lordbugs @estelwrld @giyusimpsassemble @irethepotatosblog @elychee @rion-s @denkineptune @franini @sophisticatedleslie @thedivinepriestess @smashsubs @httpmitsuya @cottonkendi @uchihaeirin @abvolat @kokushiboswife @kyomihann @jiyujinsstuff @durptwit @elegantcecile @crowbird @mnemosyneechan @s-adidass @belovedxiao @deimmortales99 @veyu002

WORD COUNT. 5.1K words

NOTE. please make sure to check the end of the post for extra notes by the time you’re done reading (just to clear certain things up !!)

SPECIAL NOTE. was gone for a few days and came back to life. i will be gone again after posting this probably. have fun with this meal <33333

EVERMORE MASTERLIST \ MAIN MASTERLIST

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You felt sick to your stomach. 

Yesterday, as soon as you and Zhongli returned to the Grand Goth Hotel after buying the wedding gift, you suddenly came across Ei and Yae Miko, who were about to leave the hotel for an unexpected reason.

“...You guys were looking for me?” You asked with furrowed eyebrows. “You guys should’ve texted me instead, I was busy finding a wedding gift.” 

“We wanted to tell you in person rather than messages since it’s important. Besides, we wanted to spend our dinner somewhere outside since the food in this hotel’s not to our taste, or Ei’s specifically.” Yae explains casually, her mouth curving up. “Do you mind if we could talk in the lounge area? We want to talk about something related to tomorrow.” 

Hence how you found out that you’ll be meeting with your old college friends today. 

“Are you still uncomfortable, ( Name )?” Zhongli asks with a concerned look as he watches you staring at your food down in deep thought. 

Right now, the both of you decided to try and eat in Goth Grand Hotel’s finest restaurant area for breakfast. Although you’ve enjoyed the foods the hotel provided, the thoughts of what will transpire in your reunion has never faded away.

“I wouldn’t say I’m uncomfortable,” You spoke up. “Just… nervous, that’s all.” 

Don’t get yourself wrong, you’re truly happy that you’ll get to reunite with your dearest friends after being away from them for so long, but you couldn’t help but feel nervous due to the fact that you haven’t talked to them ever since you went to Liyue after one year of graduating. 

Maybe you should just pretend to be sick and try not to go to this meeting–

“You’ll be okay,” Zhongli assures you, cutting your thoughts off with his calm voice. In all honesty, his smooth voice never fails to soothe you no matter what he’s saying. “I’m sure your friends would be delighted to reunite with you after being away for so long. Besides, you have your boss and your colleague with you, am I correct?”

You nodded slowly, your shoulders slowly relaxed. “Yeah.. you’re right…” 

He then moves one of the meals forward with a cheeky smile. The food contains plenty of seafood. “Now go eat your breakfast before it runs cold, a good meal can heal one’s mood after all.” 

You laughed at his attempts in finding a way to not eat the food – that was offered by some ginger-haired man who was for some reason interested(1) in your friend – and grabbed your eating utensils to take a few bites. 

It’s delicious, you admit. The ginger-haired man made a good choice, but it’s too bad that Zhongli despises seafood. 

“It’s good,” You hummed in a content tone. “You should try it, that strange man just offered you free food, you know?”

He continues to smile. “Have you decided what to wear? Or will you be going shopping?” 

He really just changed the topic, huh. You mused.

“I have decided. What will you be doing while I'm gone, if I may ask?” 

“Perhaps it’s not too bad if I explore around the hotel, and maybe stroll around the city if I have the time to do so.” Zhongli answers, patting his mouth with a napkin gently. “Do you need me to escort you? The restaurant sounds pretty far from what Venti told me.” 

You shook your head with a reassuring smile. “No worries, I have Ei and Yae who rented a car, we’ll be meeting by the lobby later at 11:00.” 

The man frowns. “Do you think they’ll be late?” 

You shook your head once more. “I’m sure they won’t. This is a special occasion, after all.” You said confidently. 

If only you knew how you were wrong.

“...Fools.” You mumbled with an irritated look, looking around the lobby to look for the two women. “Why on earth are they late?” 

Then again, you know they always have tardiness, but did they seriously have to be late and keep a person waiting for them?! 

You huffed before pulling out your phone to contact them. 

As you continue texting them, you suddenly hear someone clearing their throat, causing you to flinch slightly and look up at the person in front of you, only for your eyes to widen at the sight of the stranger. 

The stranger turns out to be Ayato. 

“Hello, ( Name ).” He spoke in a gentle tone. 

And somehow, the tardiness of your two friends suddenly became your least of your worries. 

You shifted uncomfortably, now realizing that there are people eyeing at your direction in curiosity due to the fact that you’re in front of a successor of an infamous company that everyone knows of. “Hel.. Hello, Mr. Kamisato.” 

It was clear that the awkward atmosphere between the two of you is strong, but you knew the very reason why it’s like that in comparison to college. 

It was because of how this is your first time having a proper conversation with Ayato after years of not seeing each other. 

Everything went downhill ever since you broke up with Ayato. 

For the past few weeks, you had never seen your ex at all. When you went to the area that connects all the dormitories where you’d walk to the university with your lover, he was no longer there anymore. Whenever you visit the Student Council, he’s either unavailable or usually takes his leave to buy boba tea. Whenever you tried to come up to him in the cafeteria or some areas around the school, he pretended to not know someone was calling him and continued his day. You hated how he even avoided the places you go to daily, something that you thought was once admirable from your ex, who knows you more than any other person in your life. 

It was obvious he was avoiding you.

And it hurts.

“I don’t know what I did wrong..” You spoke solemnly as your friends tried their best to comfort you in your dorm room. “Was I not that good enough for him? Was it because his parents hate me?” 

“Nonsense, ( Name). You’re being too harsh on yourself!” Yae told you, trying to soothe your fragile state as Ei continues to offer you food. While the two women comforted you, your other friends went out to buy something you didn’t manage to understand due to your breakdown. “That foolish brute had no right to suddenly break things off like that.. I’m sure the both of you can talk it out-”

“How can I…?” You whispered. “How can I talk to him when he’s been avoiding me like I’m some.. Some plague!” 

Ei pats your head, unsure what to do to help you. “Whatever his reason is, it must’ve been a bad one if he’s willing to go all out in avoid–”

The pink-haired woman nudges the blunt woman for her words. “What Ei meant to say is… Whatever his reason is, it’s not worth it. Don’t let him see you being so desperate to come to him, just avoid him too and see if he’ll actually be affected by it.” Yae clarified, shooting the purple-haired woman a warning glance.

“I don’t see how this helps..” Ei mumbled, to which Yae managed to hear but didn't bother retort back.

“If he’s affected by it.. Then he’ll eventually come to you himself.” 

You gulped, looking down with a hesitant look on your face. It wouldn’t… hurt to try, right?

Thanks to your friend’s words, you started avoiding Ayato as well. 

It was already obvious to everyone in the university that something happened between the two of you, I mean, who wouldn’t notice how the so-called high school sweethearts who are joined at the hip are avoiding each other? 

This was a good thing for those who had admired Ayato romantically. Everywhere Ayato went, there’s always one or more people trailing behind trying to make a chat with him in hopes of being close with him, but as always, he made sure to cut the conversation short and run away. 

Of course, you felt jealous, but who are you to be jealous of now that he’s no longer yours?

It wasn’t fact that the university knows about your break-up and the fact that Ayato now has admirers didn’t phase you,

What phased you is the fact that your ex did not look affected by your ignorance at all. 

It only took a couple of months for you to understand why. 

“...What…” You mumbled to yourself, staring down at Ayato – who’s in the area that connects all the dormitories for the first time in months – with a disbelieved look on your face. 

It didn’t matter to you that your ex has finally shown up at the place where the both of you always meet. 

What mattered to you was the fact that he’s with an unfamiliar woman. 

You felt chills run down your spine from how he’s looking at her with a gentle and genuine smile on his face, something that he only showed to you and only you. You despised the fact that envy started to grow in your body. 

You weren’t envious of the woman who managed to win his heart. You weren’t envious of the couple who obviously look happier than you and Ayato. You weren’t envious of how they have each other now. 

You were envious of how Ayato moved on.

He continued to avoid you since then.

“What brings you here in the lobby, if I may ask?” Ayato wondered. “Are you perhaps waiting for someone?” 

You nodded slowly. “Ye… Yeah. I’m waiting for Ei and Yae to come back down from their room to have lunch together outside the hotel.” You explained. You didn’t bother adding the fact that you’re reuniting with old friends, since him tagging along will only make things awkward. “And you?” 

“I’m waiting for a photographer who’ll be taking pictures for the wedding.” He answers. 

The two of you then fell silent afterwards. 

Despite the fact that you “moved on”, you can’t even manage to have a proper conversation with the man who ruined your heart years ago. Just being near him made you feel uneasy, as if something bad will happen.

“...How’s… Miss Chisato?” You questioned. 

“She’s fine. She’s currently shopping for her wedding dress with her bridesmaids and father.” 

Before the conversation started to get longer, you felt someone tapping your shoulder lightly. 

“We’re here~” Yae spoke up, smiling at you as soon as you looked at the person who tapped your shoulder. “We apologize for being late, Ei just couldn’t decide what to buy.” She explains apologetically.

You looked at Ei's direction, who holds a paper bag that contains what you assume is her dessert and sigh. "It's alright, I'm just glad you guys made it already."

The two women suddenly noticed another person’s presence, if you looked closely, you would’ve noticed how their eyes slightly darkened. “Oh, hello Mr. Kamisato.” Ei spoke up in a nonchalant tone. 

Ayato continued to smile, but it no longer reached his eyes like before. “Miss Shogun… Pleasure to see you after all this time. How has your business fared?” 

“It’s as smooth as always,” She answered. “I would like to congratulate you once more for your wedding.” 

He hums, placing his hand on his chest as a sign of gratitude. “You have my thanks, Miss Shogun.” 

While the atmosphere with you and Ayato was tense and awkward, the atmosphere with him and Ei and Yae was always intimidating and far from awkward.

In fear of having the situation go longer than to your liking, you immediately intervened in the “polite” conversation. “We should take our leave before we’re late for our reservation. I heard we won’t be able to apply for another reservation for the next few months due to the overwhelming number of customers if we were to miss it.” 

The purple-haired woman clears her throat, her face brightens up quickly. “Ah, right. We shall take our leave then, Mr. Kamisato. I wouldn’t want to let ( Name ) be hungry.” 

“( Name ) must be proud to have a friend like you then.” The blue-haired man commented with a small laugh. “I shall see you three again next time.” 

You gave him an acknowledged nod before the three of you left towards the exit, your smile immediately drops the moment you’re no longer seen by the groom.  

“You guys should’ve been early.” You grumbled. 

Yae laughs. “Yes, yes, we apologize again for being so late. You can tell us all the details on our way.”

As the three of you entered the car, you couldn’t help but glance at where Ayato walked away with a frown. 

Since when did Ayato stop avoiding you?

It felt like you guys had been driving around for an hour.

“...So how was it?” Yae asks as she focuses on the road while driving. It was the first time one of you spoke up ever since you left the hotel, if it weren’t for the music Ei was handling, the car would’ve fallen to an awkward silence.

You knew what the woman was referring to and answered, “He acted as if he hadn't avoided me.” 

“How pathetic,” Ei mumbled with a tsk. “Not even a single apology?” 

“It’s fine, I didn’t expect him to do it anyway.” You said, leaning against the window. “Besides, he’s the last thing on my mind right now.” 

“Are you still nervous about meeting the others?” Ei asks. 

“Of course. I haven’t seen them for so long.” 

“Cheer up, I’m sure things will go well. They miss you more than you think.” Just as Yae said that, the car suddenly stopped, and you realized that you finally arrived at the restaurant. 

Unlike most restaurants you’ve seen, this one had a more home-y feeling and has the kitchen being in the same room as the customers with the chefs being seen cooking. Not to mention how it’s all decorated nicely and suits the atmosphere outside.

Your eyes then land on a certain group whose table is by the window, and you wipe your sweaty hands on your lap with a gulp. Here goes nothing..

“Welcome to Good Hunter.” The guard stationed in front of the entrance spoke as he opened the doors for you and your friends to enter. You quietly thanked the guard in response, and decided to let Yae and Ei walk in front of you first. 

It didn’t take long before the others noticed your presence, and they instantly stood up from their seats and walked towards you three with excitement. 

“Took you guys long enough to get here!” Yoimiya(2) exclaims, giving a hug to the two women first before hugging you next. “I missed you three so much! I apologize that our conversation was so short yesterday, ( Name ).”

You hugged your friend back. “It’s alright, I’m just happy I got to see you again.” 

Suddenly, you felt huge arms wrapped around you and Yoimiya, causing you to yelp in surprise and look at the person, only for your face to beam at the sight of Itto. “Don’t tell me you forgot about me, ( Name )! Why didn’t you hug me first?” He whines. 

“I hugged them first, big guy!” Yoimiya retorted with her tongue out. 

Before the two of them could banter, they were instantly smacked in the heads by a certain woman. “Cut it off, you two. We just met ( Name ) after so long and this is how you’re acting in front of them?” Kujou Sara scolded. 

You laugh in response. “It’s alright, Sara.” You said reassuringly, your shoulders no longer tensed. What was I even nervous about? You thought as you mentally facepalm yourself.

“If you say so, it’s nice to see you again, by the way.” Sara replied. 

“I agree with Sara, it’s been so long since we’ve seen each other, ( Name ).” Kokomi spoke up with a warm smile as Gorou waves at you. “...And Ei and Yae as well, we’re glad you guys had time to come here.” 

Yae hums, copying Kokomi’s facial expression. “We are happy enough to come here even if we’re busy. I must say, you’ve grown taller than before.” She teases, glancing at the brown-haired man’s direction with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

You notice how Gorou flinches from the tall woman’s stare before avoiding eye contact, causing Yae to giggle. “And it’s nice to see you again, Gorou. You’ve grown more handsome than before. If you still remember what I told you, are you still up for cosplaying as a certain writer for my dearest readers?” 

“Wh-What?! No way!” He stumbled. 

Before Yae could continue to tease him more, you heard a familiar voice calling your name, causing you to look at the person by the table and see Thoma waving at you. 

“Ah ( Name ), come sit here! I saved a seat for you.” Thoma said with a smile as he pulled back the chair that’s beside his. “You should come and order your food as well, I’m sure you must’ve been starving the whole time on your way here.” 

Hearing the word food instantly caught Itto’s attention, and he immediately let go of you and Yoimiya before he rushed back to his seat to grab his menu. “Aw man, I forgot what I was supposed to order!” 

Yoimiya lets go of you as well, following Itto in a panic. “I forgot what I was supposed to order too! Was it the Barbatos Ratatouille or Sweet Madames?” 

Your eyes brighten when you see Thoma, remembering that he’s in the reunion as well.  You followed Itto and Yoimiya in excitement to talk with your friend once more after seeing him yesterday. 

“Thanks for saving me a seat, if it weren’t for you I would’ve been unsure which seat I should sit on.” You spoke as you sat down on your seat next to him. “How have you been? Isn’t it great that you’re back in your hometown?” 

The blonde-haired man nods happily. “Yeah, it’s just the same as I remembered! I visited my mother’s side of the family and they’ve all been well thankfully.” 

His smile is quite infectious, you thought, finding yourself smiling as well. “That’s good.” 

“What about you? How’s Liyue?” He asks. 

“Surprisingly well,” You replied fondly. “I made a few friends here and there, and the prices are certainly not as absurd as our home.” 

“I’m guessing that brown-haired man with you yesterday is a friend from Liyue?” Thoma questions, and you nodded in response.

“Yes, he and I are neighbors. He helped me a lot with Liyue’s culture and traditions whenever we hung out in his home. I’m glad I have him as my plus one.” You explained, wondering to yourself what Zhongli is doing back in the hotel. “He’s quite a gentleman too, just like you.” 

Thoma felt flattered. “Y-You think I’m a gentleman–?”

“Hey ( Name ), what did you order?” Itto interrupts. “If your order sounds tasty I’ll order the same!” 

You chuckled in response, opening the menu as well to check the available meals. “I’m not sure, to be honest. There’s a lot of good food here.” Your eyes scan through the numerous names.

Unnoticed by you, Thoma stayed quiet, still thinking of your compliment.

By the time the server has received your orders, all of you have started talking to one another. Whether it’d be college memories, struggles in certain subjects and topics, and love lives–

Ah, how you despise love lives so much.

The moment someone brought up love life, you could instantly tell what the others are thinking thanks to how they’re glancing at your way with a hint of sympathy in their eyes, especially Itto, who’s easier to read than a children’s book. 

“So, ( Name )...” Yae spoke, trying to think of a way to lighten up the conversation. “That plus one of yours seems very interesting, don’t you think so?” She giggles. 

You rolled your eyes with a smile, knowing where the woman is going with this conversation. “He is, but we’re only just friends.” You explained. “Don’t tell me you’re interested in an older man, are you?” 

She immediately laughs. “Oh my… Don’t make this about me, besides, Mister Zhongli is not my type so you don’t have to worry about me snatching up your man.” 

“He’s not my man nor someone I’m interested in that way.” You clarified, crossing your arms. “Besides, I don’t think I’m interested in anyone.” 

“Ooh what about Mister Tartaglia?” Yoimiya chimes in. “I saw him walking towards your table during breakfast, and you seemed like you like the food he offered for free!” 

Your eyebrows furrowed. “You were there?” 

The girl giggles sheepishly. “Sorry I didn’t come up to you, I didn’t want to ruin your conversation with Mister Zhongli since you looked so serious.”

You nodded in understanding. “I see… But Mister Tartaglia gave the food to my plus one, but Zhongli despises seafood a lot so I decided to eat it to not let free food go to waste.” You clarified. 

“Hm.. Mister Albedo seems interesting, have you met him?” Kokomi chimes as well as Gorou agrees with the pink-haired woman’s words. “He has great talent with his art skills, maybe you should try to talk to him–”

Your eyes widened when you realized what the others were trying to do. “Woah, woah, woah! I didn’t ask for you guys to be my wingman and try to pair me up with some guys I don’t even know much!” 

“( Name )’s right, you guys should let them choose who they want to choose.” Thoma joins in, patting your shoulder in a reassuring gesture that he has your back. 

“You guys should mind your business, ( Name ) can choose whoever they want without our help.” Sara interjected, being on your and Thoma’s side as well. 

Unfortunately, your comment as well as Thoma and Sara’s went to deaf ears.

“Mister Albedo? Pfft, please, ( Name )’s better off with uhm…” Itto stops for a moment to think. “Uhm.. Ooh! Why not be with my bro, Xiao?” 

“Isn’t he younger than ( Name )?” Ei questioned with raised eyebrows. “He’s the same age as Kunikuzushi–”

“Ei, they’re both the same age as our dear ( Name ).” Yae corrected.

“Ah,” Ei clears her throat, looking away from the pink-haired woman. “Then.. How about Mister Diluc? I heard from a friend of mine that he knows ( Name ).” 

Everyone suddenly stops talking the moment the purple-haired woman mentions the fact that he knows you, causing your eyes to widen from the mention of the man who paid for your wedding gift. 

Ah shi–

“When did you meet? How did you two meet? What is he like? Is he nice? Is he mean? Is he handsome?” Yoimiya immediately asks, eyes sparkling as everyone curiously tries to hear your answer as well. You honestly forgot how nosey your friends can be, to which you don't mind since they know when to mind their own business.

“Uhm…” You hesitated for a moment, unsure if you should really tell them such unnecessary information. “Well, I guess he and I met when we bumped into each other in the lobby.”

“Then what happened?” Yoimiya asks eagerly, urging you to continue talking.

“...Nothing?”

“Really?” 

You look away from the girl’s gaze, and she gasps. “You’re lying! Something did happen!” 

“I won’t say it!” You said defensively. 

“From the way you look, it’s obvious that something did happen to make you look so embarrassed.” Yae comments with a giggle.

You felt your cheeks warming from being exposed so easily. That woman really can bring out your embarrassed self with just her teases, you can understand why Gorou’s always avoiding her. 

“Well.. either way… I don’t like him, he’s rude.” That was a lie, and you knew it. However, you knew mentioning the fact that you don’t mind him as well as the wedding gift incident will only give them – especially Yae – more reasons to tease you and not bring the topic down at all. 

“That’s just because he looks like it, if anything, I think he’s quite a gentleman like Mister Zhongli based on my first meeting with him for business reasons.” Ei retorted casually as she took a sip of her drink. “You should give him a chance.”

Before you could respond, the waiter suddenly interrupted the conversation with the meals beside him, causing you to sigh in relief. “Your orders have arrived.” 

Thank you, waiter! You thought gratefully, watching as he hands out all the food to your friends, who are all eager to eat the delicious Mondstadt meals that they ordered, the conversation they just had with you had all been forgotten. 

Unnoticed by you, a certain man whose table is beside yours heard the whole thing with his ears flushed. It was a coincidence that he’s in the same place as you once more, and you and your friends are pretty loud enough for him and nearby customers to hear. 

They’re still mad at me? Diluc thought, bringing out his phone before calling someone with a huff. 

“Kaeya you liar, you told me buying an item for a person will make them forgive me.” 

-

As you enter your hotel room, you immediately yawn in exhaustion. 

Thankfully, your friends decided to talk about something else besides your love life. In all honesty, you really appreciated them for helping you find someone you can date, but you sincerely think you can’t fall in love just as easily as before. Nevertheless, the reunion ended on a good note as a smile never leaves your face. 

“How is it? Did it go well, I hope?” Zhongli asks, looking up to your direction from his book as he lies down on his bed. 

You nodded happily. “Yeah.. I don’t even know why I was nervous in the first place.” You answered with a laugh, remembering how you didn’t feel well thanks to your nervousness. 

He hums. “I’m glad you enjoyed your day, care to tell me all about it over a cup of tea?” He asks, gesturing towards the table nearby that has a teapot and teacups on it. 

“...And facial skin care?” You ask with a cheeky grin, imagining Zhongli wearing a face mask with cucumbers on his eyes as he tries to drink his tea.

Besides chatting over a cup of tea and helping Zhongli out with his inconveniences in the apartment, the both of you had also spent the night having a sleepover during occasions when the electricity would go out of nowhere, leaving you to visit Zhongli to have some company and give him a facial skin care routine that he finds himself enjoying a lot. 

Your friend laughs. “And facial skin care.” 

Your eyes brighten. “Alright, Just give me a moment to change my clothes and get my facial products ready for the both of us.”

He nods in understanding, watching as you grab your clothes from the closet and rush inside the bathroom. It was quite amusing to see you so excited over something such as this, but he didn’t mind. As long as you’re happy, then he’s happy as well. 

As soon as you leave, his smile instantly disappears, remembering a certain incident that occurred while you were out with your friends.

“...Good afternoon, Mister Kamisato.” Zhongli greeted, eyes slightly widening in surprise from the sight of Ayato standing in front of the door of his hotel room with an unexplainable look on his face. He doesn’t recall you telling him that Ayato would be visiting. “May I help you?” 

“...Is ( Name ) here?” Ayato asks, smiling politely. 

The brown-haired man shook his head. “Unfortunately not. They’re outside hanging out with Miss Miko and Miss Shogun.” 

He watched as the blue-haired man’s smile slightly dropped at the moment, before regaining his facade once more. “Oh… I see… I was hoping I was going to talk to them about something..” 

Zhongli guessed it was about the break-up that you told him, your tear-stained face haunting his mind. “You can visit again tomorrow. From what I remember, ( Name ) won’t be having any plans in mind on that day.” 

Ayato nodded slowly. “I understand. Thank you for telling me.” 

The man didn’t move at all, still standing in front of Zhongli in silence for a moment. “If… I may be bold to ask, what's your relationship with ( Name )?” 

Zhongli tilted his head slightly. Where is he going with this? “...( Name ) and I are neighbors. We’ve been friends ever since they traveled to Liyue.”

“I see,” He murmured, his shoulders slowly relaxed. “...I take it that they’re doing well in Liyue?” 

“Why don’t you ask ( Name ) that when you try to talk to them tomorrow?” The brown-haired man retorts with a stiff smile. “I’m sure they’re willing to tell you. That is… If you have good intentions when you come up to them.” 

The blue-haired man is taken back for a moment, before he chuckles in response. “You’re a good friend, Mister Zhongli. Rest assured that I don’t have any ill intentions towards ( Name ).” Ayato spoke. “I shall not waste your time any longer, thank you for answering my questions.” 

“It’s no problem, Mister Kamisato.” The older man nods. “Have a good day.” 

Zhongli lets out a small sigh, hoping that whatever the groom intends to do when he visits your room again will be nothing bad like he claims.

He honestly feels conflicted from how Ayato treated you as if he didn’t break your heart and didn’t even explain himself nor apologize for it. Perhaps it’d be good if apologizing was Ayato’s purpose when visiting your hotel room. 

But who’s to say that would be enough to help you officially move on? 

The man could recall certain moments when you still had a sad look on your face whenever Ayato was mentioned, and he could tell that you aren’t as happy as you are back in Liyue ever since the both of you had arrived at the hotel for the first time. Not to mention how Zhongli noticed you having a hard time sleeping when he woke up in the middle of the night to pour himself some water, so seeing you so happy after meeting with your old friends is a relief.

For now, the best thing Zhongli can do as a friend is to make you happy and not get sad over that jerk who broke your heart.

“That is what friends do, you know.” Guizhong once told him as he watches her placing her bags by the trunk of her car. “We make each other happy and care for one another.”

“She’s right,” Azhdaha chimes, carrying two more bags towards the car. “That’s why we’ll make sure to video chat with you once we arrive at our universities. Don’t worry about us, Morax!” 

The man smiles in sadness from the memory, staring down at the book he’s holding as he fondly remembers how Guizhong used to love reading it. 

“I’ll fulfill your promise, my dear friends,” He whispered, trying to forget the image of their corpses inside their car that was hit by a drunk driver as well as the two funerals he had to attend alone.

“I’ll make sure to be a good friend like how you were both to me.” 

DAN'S NOTES !

(1) "by some ginger-haired man who was for some reason interested(1) in your friend" - the interest tartaglia has for zhongli depends on how you guys see it, just don't let it boil your blood if you see how some people see it as romantic or however else they see it.

(2) "Yoimiya exclaims" - If you guys wondering why on earth Yoimiya's in the reunion meeting despite being younger and being in the same batch as Ayaka's, it's because of certain circumstances that led Yoimiya and the others to become friends during college.

CHAPTER THREE // GOLD RUSH

SYPNOSIS (of chapter). in which you decided to spend your day reuniting with old friends and encounter an old flame.

SYPNOSIS (of series). breaking up with your first love was heartbreaking, but not as heartbreaking as getting invited to his wedding after years of not seeing him. that is, until things seem to be easier when you encounter a certain guest, who could end up being more than just a blooming friend to you.

CHARACTERS. kamisato ayato, (later) diluc ragnvindr

CONTENT. fluff/angst, modern!au, mentions of death (minor), mentions of break-ups, mentions of car accident

TAGLIST. @scaraslover @dawgimsohot @kazu-topia @aqualesha @mrkamisato @serami00 @serenareiss @hiqhkey @emperatris-rinaka @bystander36 @irisxiel @coleluuviida @034ven @dear-dairiess @luv3rxcha @hadesaedes @chiro-chiro-kun @hersscherofyatta @mariusvonhangme @yuzuricebun @nejibot @hoshikistarlette @solaaresque @crowbird @lordbugs @estelwrld @giyusimpsassemble @irethepotatosblog @elychee @rion-s @denkineptune @franini @sophisticatedleslie @thedivinepriestess @smashsubs @httpmitsuya @cottonkendi @uchihaeirin @abvolat @kokushiboswife @kyomihann @jiyujinsstuff @durptwit @elegantcecile @crowbird @mnemosyneechan @s-adidass @belovedxiao @deimmortales99 @veyu002

WORD COUNT. 5.1K words

NOTE. please make sure to check the end of the post for extra notes by the time you’re done reading (just to clear certain things up !!)

SPECIAL NOTE. was gone for a few days and came back to life. i will be gone again after posting this probably. have fun with this meal <33333

EVERMORE MASTERLIST \ MAIN MASTERLIST

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You felt sick to your stomach. 

Yesterday, as soon as you and Zhongli returned to the Grand Goth Hotel after buying the wedding gift, you suddenly came across Ei and Yae Miko, who were about to leave the hotel for an unexpected reason.

“...You guys were looking for me?” You asked with furrowed eyebrows. “You guys should’ve texted me instead, I was busy finding a wedding gift.” 

“We wanted to tell you in person rather than messages since it’s important. Besides, we wanted to spend our dinner somewhere outside since the food in this hotel’s not to our taste, or Ei’s specifically.” Yae explains casually, her mouth curving up. “Do you mind if we could talk in the lounge area? We want to talk about something related to tomorrow.” 

Hence how you found out that you’ll be meeting with your old college friends today. 

“Are you still uncomfortable, ( Name )?” Zhongli asks with a concerned look as he watches you staring at your food down in deep thought. 

Right now, the both of you decided to try and eat in Goth Grand Hotel’s finest restaurant area for breakfast. Although you’ve enjoyed the foods the hotel provided, the thoughts of what will transpire in your reunion has never faded away.

“I wouldn’t say I’m uncomfortable,” You spoke up. “Just… nervous, that’s all.” 

Don’t get yourself wrong, you’re truly happy that you’ll get to reunite with your dearest friends after being away from them for so long, but you couldn’t help but feel nervous due to the fact that you haven’t talked to them ever since you went to Liyue after one year of graduating. 

Maybe you should just pretend to be sick and try not to go to this meeting–

“You’ll be okay,” Zhongli assures you, cutting your thoughts off with his calm voice. In all honesty, his smooth voice never fails to soothe you no matter what he’s saying. “I’m sure your friends would be delighted to reunite with you after being away for so long. Besides, you have your boss and your colleague with you, am I correct?”

You nodded slowly, your shoulders slowly relaxed. “Yeah.. you’re right…” 

He then moves one of the meals forward with a cheeky smile. The food contains plenty of seafood. “Now go eat your breakfast before it runs cold, a good meal can heal one’s mood after all.” 

You laughed at his attempts in finding a way to not eat the food – that was offered by some ginger-haired man who was for some reason interested(1) in your friend – and grabbed your eating utensils to take a few bites. 

It’s delicious, you admit. The ginger-haired man made a good choice, but it’s too bad that Zhongli despises seafood. 

“It’s good,” You hummed in a content tone. “You should try it, that strange man just offered you free food, you know?”

He continues to smile. “Have you decided what to wear? Or will you be going shopping?” 

He really just changed the topic, huh. You mused.

“I have decided. What will you be doing while I'm gone, if I may ask?” 

“Perhaps it’s not too bad if I explore around the hotel, and maybe stroll around the city if I have the time to do so.” Zhongli answers, patting his mouth with a napkin gently. “Do you need me to escort you? The restaurant sounds pretty far from what Venti told me.” 

You shook your head with a reassuring smile. “No worries, I have Ei and Yae who rented a car, we’ll be meeting by the lobby later at 11:00.” 

The man frowns. “Do you think they’ll be late?” 

You shook your head once more. “I’m sure they won’t. This is a special occasion, after all.” You said confidently. 

If only you knew how you were wrong.

“...Fools.” You mumbled with an irritated look, looking around the lobby to look for the two women. “Why on earth are they late?” 

Then again, you know they always have tardiness, but did they seriously have to be late and keep a person waiting for them?! 

You huffed before pulling out your phone to contact them. 

As you continue texting them, you suddenly hear someone clearing their throat, causing you to flinch slightly and look up at the person in front of you, only for your eyes to widen at the sight of the stranger. 

The stranger turns out to be Ayato. 

“Hello, ( Name ).” He spoke in a gentle tone. 

And somehow, the tardiness of your two friends suddenly became your least of your worries. 

You shifted uncomfortably, now realizing that there are people eyeing at your direction in curiosity due to the fact that you’re in front of a successor of an infamous company that everyone knows of. “Hel.. Hello, Mr. Kamisato.” 

It was clear that the awkward atmosphere between the two of you is strong, but you knew the very reason why it’s like that in comparison to college. 

It was because of how this is your first time having a proper conversation with Ayato after years of not seeing each other. 

Everything went downhill ever since you broke up with Ayato. 

For the past few weeks, you had never seen your ex at all. When you went to the area that connects all the dormitories where you’d walk to the university with your lover, he was no longer there anymore. Whenever you visit the Student Council, he’s either unavailable or usually takes his leave to buy boba tea. Whenever you tried to come up to him in the cafeteria or some areas around the school, he pretended to not know someone was calling him and continued his day. You hated how he even avoided the places you go to daily, something that you thought was once admirable from your ex, who knows you more than any other person in your life. 

It was obvious he was avoiding you.

And it hurts.

“I don’t know what I did wrong..” You spoke solemnly as your friends tried their best to comfort you in your dorm room. “Was I not that good enough for him? Was it because his parents hate me?” 

“Nonsense, ( Name). You’re being too harsh on yourself!” Yae told you, trying to soothe your fragile state as Ei continues to offer you food. While the two women comforted you, your other friends went out to buy something you didn’t manage to understand due to your breakdown. “That foolish brute had no right to suddenly break things off like that.. I’m sure the both of you can talk it out-”

“How can I…?” You whispered. “How can I talk to him when he’s been avoiding me like I’m some.. Some plague!” 

Ei pats your head, unsure what to do to help you. “Whatever his reason is, it must’ve been a bad one if he’s willing to go all out in avoid–”

The pink-haired woman nudges the blunt woman for her words. “What Ei meant to say is… Whatever his reason is, it’s not worth it. Don’t let him see you being so desperate to come to him, just avoid him too and see if he’ll actually be affected by it.” Yae clarified, shooting the purple-haired woman a warning glance.

“I don’t see how this helps..” Ei mumbled, to which Yae managed to hear but didn't bother retort back.

“If he’s affected by it.. Then he’ll eventually come to you himself.” 

You gulped, looking down with a hesitant look on your face. It wouldn’t… hurt to try, right?

Thanks to your friend’s words, you started avoiding Ayato as well. 

It was already obvious to everyone in the university that something happened between the two of you, I mean, who wouldn’t notice how the so-called high school sweethearts who are joined at the hip are avoiding each other? 

This was a good thing for those who had admired Ayato romantically. Everywhere Ayato went, there’s always one or more people trailing behind trying to make a chat with him in hopes of being close with him, but as always, he made sure to cut the conversation short and run away. 

Of course, you felt jealous, but who are you to be jealous of now that he’s no longer yours?

It wasn’t fact that the university knows about your break-up and the fact that Ayato now has admirers didn’t phase you,

What phased you is the fact that your ex did not look affected by your ignorance at all. 

It only took a couple of months for you to understand why. 

“...What…” You mumbled to yourself, staring down at Ayato – who’s in the area that connects all the dormitories for the first time in months – with a disbelieved look on your face. 

It didn’t matter to you that your ex has finally shown up at the place where the both of you always meet. 

What mattered to you was the fact that he’s with an unfamiliar woman. 

You felt chills run down your spine from how he’s looking at her with a gentle and genuine smile on his face, something that he only showed to you and only you. You despised the fact that envy started to grow in your body. 

You weren’t envious of the woman who managed to win his heart. You weren’t envious of the couple who obviously look happier than you and Ayato. You weren’t envious of how they have each other now. 

You were envious of how Ayato moved on.

He continued to avoid you since then.

“What brings you here in the lobby, if I may ask?” Ayato wondered. “Are you perhaps waiting for someone?” 

You nodded slowly. “Ye… Yeah. I’m waiting for Ei and Yae to come back down from their room to have lunch together outside the hotel.” You explained. You didn’t bother adding the fact that you’re reuniting with old friends, since him tagging along will only make things awkward. “And you?” 

“I’m waiting for a photographer who’ll be taking pictures for the wedding.” He answers. 

The two of you then fell silent afterwards. 

Despite the fact that you “moved on”, you can’t even manage to have a proper conversation with the man who ruined your heart years ago. Just being near him made you feel uneasy, as if something bad will happen.

“...How’s… Miss Chisato?” You questioned. 

“She’s fine. She’s currently shopping for her wedding dress with her bridesmaids and father.” 

Before the conversation started to get longer, you felt someone tapping your shoulder lightly. 

“We’re here~” Yae spoke up, smiling at you as soon as you looked at the person who tapped your shoulder. “We apologize for being late, Ei just couldn’t decide what to buy.” She explains apologetically.

You looked at Ei's direction, who holds a paper bag that contains what you assume is her dessert and sigh. "It's alright, I'm just glad you guys made it already."

The two women suddenly noticed another person’s presence, if you looked closely, you would’ve noticed how their eyes slightly darkened. “Oh, hello Mr. Kamisato.” Ei spoke up in a nonchalant tone. 

Ayato continued to smile, but it no longer reached his eyes like before. “Miss Shogun… Pleasure to see you after all this time. How has your business fared?” 

“It’s as smooth as always,” She answered. “I would like to congratulate you once more for your wedding.” 

He hums, placing his hand on his chest as a sign of gratitude. “You have my thanks, Miss Shogun.” 

While the atmosphere with you and Ayato was tense and awkward, the atmosphere with him and Ei and Yae was always intimidating and far from awkward.

In fear of having the situation go longer than to your liking, you immediately intervened in the “polite” conversation. “We should take our leave before we’re late for our reservation. I heard we won’t be able to apply for another reservation for the next few months due to the overwhelming number of customers if we were to miss it.” 

The purple-haired woman clears her throat, her face brightens up quickly. “Ah, right. We shall take our leave then, Mr. Kamisato. I wouldn’t want to let ( Name ) be hungry.” 

“( Name ) must be proud to have a friend like you then.” The blue-haired man commented with a small laugh. “I shall see you three again next time.” 

You gave him an acknowledged nod before the three of you left towards the exit, your smile immediately drops the moment you’re no longer seen by the groom.  

“You guys should’ve been early.” You grumbled. 

Yae laughs. “Yes, yes, we apologize again for being so late. You can tell us all the details on our way.”

As the three of you entered the car, you couldn’t help but glance at where Ayato walked away with a frown. 

Since when did Ayato stop avoiding you?

It felt like you guys had been driving around for an hour.

“...So how was it?” Yae asks as she focuses on the road while driving. It was the first time one of you spoke up ever since you left the hotel, if it weren’t for the music Ei was handling, the car would’ve fallen to an awkward silence.

You knew what the woman was referring to and answered, “He acted as if he hadn't avoided me.” 

“How pathetic,” Ei mumbled with a tsk. “Not even a single apology?” 

“It’s fine, I didn’t expect him to do it anyway.” You said, leaning against the window. “Besides, he’s the last thing on my mind right now.” 

“Are you still nervous about meeting the others?” Ei asks. 

“Of course. I haven’t seen them for so long.” 

“Cheer up, I’m sure things will go well. They miss you more than you think.” Just as Yae said that, the car suddenly stopped, and you realized that you finally arrived at the restaurant. 

Unlike most restaurants you’ve seen, this one had a more home-y feeling and has the kitchen being in the same room as the customers with the chefs being seen cooking. Not to mention how it’s all decorated nicely and suits the atmosphere outside.

Your eyes then land on a certain group whose table is by the window, and you wipe your sweaty hands on your lap with a gulp. Here goes nothing..

“Welcome to Good Hunter.” The guard stationed in front of the entrance spoke as he opened the doors for you and your friends to enter. You quietly thanked the guard in response, and decided to let Yae and Ei walk in front of you first. 

It didn’t take long before the others noticed your presence, and they instantly stood up from their seats and walked towards you three with excitement. 

“Took you guys long enough to get here!” Yoimiya(2) exclaims, giving a hug to the two women first before hugging you next. “I missed you three so much! I apologize that our conversation was so short yesterday, ( Name ).”

You hugged your friend back. “It’s alright, I’m just happy I got to see you again.” 

Suddenly, you felt huge arms wrapped around you and Yoimiya, causing you to yelp in surprise and look at the person, only for your face to beam at the sight of Itto. “Don’t tell me you forgot about me, ( Name )! Why didn’t you hug me first?” He whines. 

“I hugged them first, big guy!” Yoimiya retorted with her tongue out. 

Before the two of them could banter, they were instantly smacked in the heads by a certain woman. “Cut it off, you two. We just met ( Name ) after so long and this is how you’re acting in front of them?” Kujou Sara scolded. 

You laugh in response. “It’s alright, Sara.” You said reassuringly, your shoulders no longer tensed. What was I even nervous about? You thought as you mentally facepalm yourself.

“If you say so, it’s nice to see you again, by the way.” Sara replied. 

“I agree with Sara, it’s been so long since we’ve seen each other, ( Name ).” Kokomi spoke up with a warm smile as Gorou waves at you. “...And Ei and Yae as well, we’re glad you guys had time to come here.” 

Yae hums, copying Kokomi’s facial expression. “We are happy enough to come here even if we’re busy. I must say, you’ve grown taller than before.” She teases, glancing at the brown-haired man’s direction with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

You notice how Gorou flinches from the tall woman’s stare before avoiding eye contact, causing Yae to giggle. “And it’s nice to see you again, Gorou. You’ve grown more handsome than before. If you still remember what I told you, are you still up for cosplaying as a certain writer for my dearest readers?” 

“Wh-What?! No way!” He stumbled. 

Before Yae could continue to tease him more, you heard a familiar voice calling your name, causing you to look at the person by the table and see Thoma waving at you. 

“Ah ( Name ), come sit here! I saved a seat for you.” Thoma said with a smile as he pulled back the chair that’s beside his. “You should come and order your food as well, I’m sure you must’ve been starving the whole time on your way here.” 

Hearing the word food instantly caught Itto’s attention, and he immediately let go of you and Yoimiya before he rushed back to his seat to grab his menu. “Aw man, I forgot what I was supposed to order!” 

Yoimiya lets go of you as well, following Itto in a panic. “I forgot what I was supposed to order too! Was it the Barbatos Ratatouille or Sweet Madames?” 

Your eyes brighten when you see Thoma, remembering that he’s in the reunion as well.  You followed Itto and Yoimiya in excitement to talk with your friend once more after seeing him yesterday. 

“Thanks for saving me a seat, if it weren’t for you I would’ve been unsure which seat I should sit on.” You spoke as you sat down on your seat next to him. “How have you been? Isn’t it great that you’re back in your hometown?” 

The blonde-haired man nods happily. “Yeah, it’s just the same as I remembered! I visited my mother’s side of the family and they’ve all been well thankfully.” 

His smile is quite infectious, you thought, finding yourself smiling as well. “That’s good.” 

“What about you? How’s Liyue?” He asks. 

“Surprisingly well,” You replied fondly. “I made a few friends here and there, and the prices are certainly not as absurd as our home.” 

“I’m guessing that brown-haired man with you yesterday is a friend from Liyue?” Thoma questions, and you nodded in response.

“Yes, he and I are neighbors. He helped me a lot with Liyue’s culture and traditions whenever we hung out in his home. I’m glad I have him as my plus one.” You explained, wondering to yourself what Zhongli is doing back in the hotel. “He’s quite a gentleman too, just like you.” 

Thoma felt flattered. “Y-You think I’m a gentleman–?”

“Hey ( Name ), what did you order?” Itto interrupts. “If your order sounds tasty I’ll order the same!” 

You chuckled in response, opening the menu as well to check the available meals. “I’m not sure, to be honest. There’s a lot of good food here.” Your eyes scan through the numerous names.

Unnoticed by you, Thoma stayed quiet, still thinking of your compliment.

By the time the server has received your orders, all of you have started talking to one another. Whether it’d be college memories, struggles in certain subjects and topics, and love lives–

Ah, how you despise love lives so much.

The moment someone brought up love life, you could instantly tell what the others are thinking thanks to how they’re glancing at your way with a hint of sympathy in their eyes, especially Itto, who’s easier to read than a children’s book. 

“So, ( Name )...” Yae spoke, trying to think of a way to lighten up the conversation. “That plus one of yours seems very interesting, don’t you think so?” She giggles. 

You rolled your eyes with a smile, knowing where the woman is going with this conversation. “He is, but we’re only just friends.” You explained. “Don’t tell me you’re interested in an older man, are you?” 

She immediately laughs. “Oh my… Don’t make this about me, besides, Mister Zhongli is not my type so you don’t have to worry about me snatching up your man.” 

“He’s not my man nor someone I’m interested in that way.” You clarified, crossing your arms. “Besides, I don’t think I’m interested in anyone.” 

“Ooh what about Mister Tartaglia?” Yoimiya chimes in. “I saw him walking towards your table during breakfast, and you seemed like you like the food he offered for free!” 

Your eyebrows furrowed. “You were there?” 

The girl giggles sheepishly. “Sorry I didn’t come up to you, I didn’t want to ruin your conversation with Mister Zhongli since you looked so serious.”

You nodded in understanding. “I see… But Mister Tartaglia gave the food to my plus one, but Zhongli despises seafood a lot so I decided to eat it to not let free food go to waste.” You clarified. 

“Hm.. Mister Albedo seems interesting, have you met him?” Kokomi chimes as well as Gorou agrees with the pink-haired woman’s words. “He has great talent with his art skills, maybe you should try to talk to him–”

Your eyes widened when you realized what the others were trying to do. “Woah, woah, woah! I didn’t ask for you guys to be my wingman and try to pair me up with some guys I don’t even know much!” 

“( Name )’s right, you guys should let them choose who they want to choose.” Thoma joins in, patting your shoulder in a reassuring gesture that he has your back. 

“You guys should mind your business, ( Name ) can choose whoever they want without our help.” Sara interjected, being on your and Thoma’s side as well. 

Unfortunately, your comment as well as Thoma and Sara’s went to deaf ears.

“Mister Albedo? Pfft, please, ( Name )’s better off with uhm…” Itto stops for a moment to think. “Uhm.. Ooh! Why not be with my bro, Xiao?” 

“Isn’t he younger than ( Name )?” Ei questioned with raised eyebrows. “He’s the same age as Kunikuzushi–”

“Ei, they’re both the same age as our dear ( Name ).” Yae corrected.

“Ah,” Ei clears her throat, looking away from the pink-haired woman. “Then.. How about Mister Diluc? I heard from a friend of mine that he knows ( Name ).” 

Everyone suddenly stops talking the moment the purple-haired woman mentions the fact that he knows you, causing your eyes to widen from the mention of the man who paid for your wedding gift. 

Ah shi–

“When did you meet? How did you two meet? What is he like? Is he nice? Is he mean? Is he handsome?” Yoimiya immediately asks, eyes sparkling as everyone curiously tries to hear your answer as well. You honestly forgot how nosey your friends can be, to which you don't mind since they know when to mind their own business.

“Uhm…” You hesitated for a moment, unsure if you should really tell them such unnecessary information. “Well, I guess he and I met when we bumped into each other in the lobby.”

“Then what happened?” Yoimiya asks eagerly, urging you to continue talking.

“...Nothing?”

“Really?” 

You look away from the girl’s gaze, and she gasps. “You’re lying! Something did happen!” 

“I won’t say it!” You said defensively. 

“From the way you look, it’s obvious that something did happen to make you look so embarrassed.” Yae comments with a giggle.

You felt your cheeks warming from being exposed so easily. That woman really can bring out your embarrassed self with just her teases, you can understand why Gorou’s always avoiding her. 

“Well.. either way… I don’t like him, he’s rude.” That was a lie, and you knew it. However, you knew mentioning the fact that you don’t mind him as well as the wedding gift incident will only give them – especially Yae – more reasons to tease you and not bring the topic down at all. 

“That’s just because he looks like it, if anything, I think he’s quite a gentleman like Mister Zhongli based on my first meeting with him for business reasons.” Ei retorted casually as she took a sip of her drink. “You should give him a chance.”

Before you could respond, the waiter suddenly interrupted the conversation with the meals beside him, causing you to sigh in relief. “Your orders have arrived.” 

Thank you, waiter! You thought gratefully, watching as he hands out all the food to your friends, who are all eager to eat the delicious Mondstadt meals that they ordered, the conversation they just had with you had all been forgotten. 

Unnoticed by you, a certain man whose table is beside yours heard the whole thing with his ears flushed. It was a coincidence that he’s in the same place as you once more, and you and your friends are pretty loud enough for him and nearby customers to hear. 

They’re still mad at me? Diluc thought, bringing out his phone before calling someone with a huff. 

“Kaeya you liar, you told me buying an item for a person will make them forgive me.” 

-

As you enter your hotel room, you immediately yawn in exhaustion. 

Thankfully, your friends decided to talk about something else besides your love life. In all honesty, you really appreciated them for helping you find someone you can date, but you sincerely think you can’t fall in love just as easily as before. Nevertheless, the reunion ended on a good note as a smile never leaves your face. 

“How is it? Did it go well, I hope?” Zhongli asks, looking up to your direction from his book as he lies down on his bed. 

You nodded happily. “Yeah.. I don’t even know why I was nervous in the first place.” You answered with a laugh, remembering how you didn’t feel well thanks to your nervousness. 

He hums. “I’m glad you enjoyed your day, care to tell me all about it over a cup of tea?” He asks, gesturing towards the table nearby that has a teapot and teacups on it. 

“...And facial skin care?” You ask with a cheeky grin, imagining Zhongli wearing a face mask with cucumbers on his eyes as he tries to drink his tea.

Besides chatting over a cup of tea and helping Zhongli out with his inconveniences in the apartment, the both of you had also spent the night having a sleepover during occasions when the electricity would go out of nowhere, leaving you to visit Zhongli to have some company and give him a facial skin care routine that he finds himself enjoying a lot. 

Your friend laughs. “And facial skin care.” 

Your eyes brighten. “Alright, Just give me a moment to change my clothes and get my facial products ready for the both of us.”

He nods in understanding, watching as you grab your clothes from the closet and rush inside the bathroom. It was quite amusing to see you so excited over something such as this, but he didn’t mind. As long as you’re happy, then he’s happy as well. 

As soon as you leave, his smile instantly disappears, remembering a certain incident that occurred while you were out with your friends.

“...Good afternoon, Mister Kamisato.” Zhongli greeted, eyes slightly widening in surprise from the sight of Ayato standing in front of the door of his hotel room with an unexplainable look on his face. He doesn’t recall you telling him that Ayato would be visiting. “May I help you?” 

“...Is ( Name ) here?” Ayato asks, smiling politely. 

The brown-haired man shook his head. “Unfortunately not. They’re outside hanging out with Miss Miko and Miss Shogun.” 

He watched as the blue-haired man’s smile slightly dropped at the moment, before regaining his facade once more. “Oh… I see… I was hoping I was going to talk to them about something..” 

Zhongli guessed it was about the break-up that you told him, your tear-stained face haunting his mind. “You can visit again tomorrow. From what I remember, ( Name ) won’t be having any plans in mind on that day.” 

Ayato nodded slowly. “I understand. Thank you for telling me.” 

The man didn’t move at all, still standing in front of Zhongli in silence for a moment. “If… I may be bold to ask, what's your relationship with ( Name )?” 

Zhongli tilted his head slightly. Where is he going with this? “...( Name ) and I are neighbors. We’ve been friends ever since they traveled to Liyue.”

“I see,” He murmured, his shoulders slowly relaxed. “...I take it that they’re doing well in Liyue?” 

“Why don’t you ask ( Name ) that when you try to talk to them tomorrow?” The brown-haired man retorts with a stiff smile. “I’m sure they’re willing to tell you. That is… If you have good intentions when you come up to them.” 

The blue-haired man is taken back for a moment, before he chuckles in response. “You’re a good friend, Mister Zhongli. Rest assured that I don’t have any ill intentions towards ( Name ).” Ayato spoke. “I shall not waste your time any longer, thank you for answering my questions.” 

“It’s no problem, Mister Kamisato.” The older man nods. “Have a good day.” 

Zhongli lets out a small sigh, hoping that whatever the groom intends to do when he visits your room again will be nothing bad like he claims.

He honestly feels conflicted from how Ayato treated you as if he didn’t break your heart and didn’t even explain himself nor apologize for it. Perhaps it’d be good if apologizing was Ayato’s purpose when visiting your hotel room. 

But who’s to say that would be enough to help you officially move on? 

The man could recall certain moments when you still had a sad look on your face whenever Ayato was mentioned, and he could tell that you aren’t as happy as you are back in Liyue ever since the both of you had arrived at the hotel for the first time. Not to mention how Zhongli noticed you having a hard time sleeping when he woke up in the middle of the night to pour himself some water, so seeing you so happy after meeting with your old friends is a relief.

For now, the best thing Zhongli can do as a friend is to make you happy and not get sad over that jerk who broke your heart.

“That is what friends do, you know.” Guizhong once told him as he watches her placing her bags by the trunk of her car. “We make each other happy and care for one another.”

“She’s right,” Azhdaha chimes, carrying two more bags towards the car. “That’s why we’ll make sure to video chat with you once we arrive at our universities. Don’t worry about us, Morax!” 

The man smiles in sadness from the memory, staring down at the book he’s holding as he fondly remembers how Guizhong used to love reading it. 

“I’ll fulfill your promise, my dear friends,” He whispered, trying to forget the image of their corpses inside their car that was hit by a drunk driver as well as the two funerals he had to attend alone.

“I’ll make sure to be a good friend like how you were both to me.” 

DAN'S NOTES !

(1) "by some ginger-haired man who was for some reason interested(1) in your friend" - the interest tartaglia has for zhongli depends on how you guys see it, just don't let it boil your blood if you see how some people see it as romantic or however else they see it.

(2) "Yoimiya exclaims" - If you guys wondering why on earth Yoimiya's in the reunion meeting despite being younger and being in the same batch as Ayaka's, it's because of certain circumstances that led Yoimiya and the others to become friends during college.

I... wtf.

2 left lol, and anw working on some childe fic rn ahahha

Oh look at me and my homework 😍. I have so many shit pending rn wtf

easy.

pairing: kamisato ayato x reader

word count: 5.5k

synopsis: they say that kamisato ayato is a difficult man to serve, but you’ve never once felt that way about him before. 

a/n: prequel can be found here!

It is no secret that Kamisato Ayato is a difficult man.

You’re quite sure that most of the common folk would agree with your assessment, despite never having met the Kamisato clan head face to face before. As the head of one of the most eminent and illustrious clans in Inazuma, surely the Yashiro Commissioner must be a man of high standards and demands, they sympathise with you, shaking their heads in pity. The Yashiro Commission’s festivals and events are all meticulously planned with consideration for the people, but I heard that he only has one personal assistant. Surely he must work you to the bone!

Contrary to what they think, however, Kamisato Ayato is difficult for a completely different reason in your eyes.

It’s only a few weeks from the Irodori Festival, the very first celebration of cultural exchange that Inazuma will be able to enjoy ever since the Raiden Shogun closed the country’s borders years ago. Because of this, the anticipation among the citizens have only been growing ever since it was announced, with many townsfolk passing by eagerly asking after details with bright, excited smiles.

In stark contrast, however, the inside of the Yashiro Commission resembles a swarm of ants on a hot stove, messengers and officials rushing frantically to and fro as you make preparations for the event. And the preparations seem to be only increasing the closer you draw to the date, with your master being called to Tenshukaku more and more frequently for discussions. There is still much work to be done, however, which explains why you’ve been holed up alone in your master’s study for most part of the day with a sore back from hunching over papers and an inkwell that’s fast running out.

Just as you’re about to reluctantly start on a fresh batch of paperwork, you’re interrupted by the door to your master’s office sliding open. Thoma stands in the doorway, just as he has several times over the last few weeks, wearing a guilty grin on his face. While the sight of him used to be a welcome break from work (you are a seasoned taste tester for the fusion desserts he enjoys experimenting with), now you only let out a long, vexed groan and promptly knock your forehead against the expensive Yumemiru table.

“My apologies…” Thoma begins sheepishly, but you don’t seem to be listening.

“He’s got to be doing this deliberately,” you declare in frustration, setting down the pen so that you can massage your temples. “You’re telling me that milord forgot his umbrella again?”

Keep reading

difficult.

pairing: kamisato ayato x reader

word count: 4.3k

synopsis: it’s no secret that kamisato ayato is a difficult man  — both to handle and to please. somehow, he only gets more difficult when sick, but you find that you don’t quite mind

a/n: sequel can be found here!

If someone were to ask you what it’s like serving under the esteemed Yashiro Commissioner himself, your answer would probably be that he is a difficult man.

You’re sure that the Kanjou Commissioner and Tenryou Commissioner would agree with you — both seem as though they have a rather pointy bone to pick with your lord, and knowing him, there is probably a wide variety of reasons with how often he muses about stepping on their toes. The Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine seems to think the same, referring to your master as ‘that Yashiro brat’ or ‘the Kamisato rascal’, whenever you’re sent to deliver missives or letters on his behalf. Although she’s never explicitly mentioned that she’s speaking about your master, it is quite obvious that the one she’s speaking about isn’t your lady Ayaka. Still, the most prominent of all his victims, however, would be poor Thoma — the savoury mizu manju your master had tried making really hadn’t sat well with his stomach, much to no one’s surprise.

For you, however, he’s difficult for a completely different reason.

“I know I’m considered to be quite the conventionally attractive looker,” the source of your current headache says, voice breathless yet still dripping slick with honeyed amusement that makes your irritation flare, “but this is just a little inappropriate, don’t you think, my dear?”

You make a lunge for him over his desk, but he manages to evade you far too skillfully for your liking. If someone were to walk in on the two of you right now, they would surely be stunned by the sight they’re greeted with: the ever composed Yashiro Commissioner with his clothes rumpled, face flushed and collar slipping down dangerously one shoulder, while his personal aide glares at him with an expression brimming over with ire.

“It wouldn’t have to be—” you say flatly, attempting a surprise grab for his sleeve that he dodges, silk fabric slipping between your fingers, “—if you would just sit still and let me take your temperature, milord. This is hardly how any self respecting adult should be acting, let alone the head of the Kamisato Clan.”

Keep reading

Oh look at me and my homework 😍. I have so many shit pending rn wtf

Shut up

Ft. Childe & Scaramouche

Cw: mm yes kissing, probs ooc, the reader can be seen as a harbinger, childe and scara real name. Short on scara part

Reader pronoun: Not mentioned

Summary: Your partner have been talking about a certain topic for what seems like hours, and you couldn't get yourself to finish your work. So what will you do to shut them up?

—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–

Ajax aka Childe

How long has it been? Since this certain ginger haired guy or you could say your own boyfriend rambles about how his days in liyue went, you would love to hear him rambles about his liyue days but.... the problem is you couldn't get yourself to finish your work. Especially your report card.

And the way he keeps repeating the name Zhongli for some reason. "And then i met this guy named zhongli-" "he never brings his wallet nor checks the price tags when i was buying him stuff!" "And then Turns out he's the rex lapis himself?!".

You kinda wanna laugh at his statement until you looked at your report card with a written Zhongli in the end of a sentence, it seems that you accidentally written his name eh?

sighing up, you tried to cover the mistake you did only for the ink to end up smudged.

From afar, you could see your boyfriend figure who is still rambling about how his days went in liyue while leaning his back on the wooden door frame. You were thinking about a way to get this ginger headed boy to shut up so you could do your work peacefully, until a certain idea flew over your head.

"Hey ajax" you called him, no response. "Hey!" This time a bit louder, still no response. "CHILDE HELLO??" you finally yelled. And he snapped out of his thought "AH.. uhm sorry, what is it?" He turned his gaze at you, he could see that your expression were somehow pissed.

"could you come here for a second? I need your help with something" you said organizing the stack of paperwork.

"What do you need my help with hm?" He smirked while walking toward your working desk.

"This" you stated showing him some paper with a rather small writing, "and bend down you can't see it"

"Whose papers is this? The handwriting is rather small reminds me of— Oomph!" Just before he could finish his own sentence you pulled his shirt collar for a rather harsh and deep kiss. Too bad, It lasted only for a few moment before you pulled away gasping for air.

"And that will shut you up." Returning your gaze to the report card and paperwork again. leaving your boyfriend standing there looking at you. dumbfounded.

—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–

Kunikuzushi aka Scaramouche

Scaramouche or kunikuzushi himself is rather hard to fluster, but.. today is a bit different he seems rather pissed. Just without asking you could already know what he's up to.

From your desk you could already see his sour expression, how he's grumbling about how his subordinate was being annoying or uncooperative, And then to how his days went.

You, yourself was stuck in an endless paperwork and a report card to fill.

You would've want to shut him up but... its scaramouche, you know how it'll end up right? So you tries to think if there's any way to shut this gremlin mouth up.

"And then this one agent tries to issue his own order, such a nuisance"...."and tartaglia, that ginger. He keeps annoying me about my big hat!" and so on and so on.

Giving up on your paperwork, you stand up and walked toward the sofa your boyfriend was sitting in.

"What?" He said, "nothing.. im just, tired. Need a rest right now" before sitting down on the sofa.

"Wanna know an efficient way to shut someone up?"..."what?" He turned his gaze at you

"You do this" you abruptly grabbed (softly) him by the chin and pulled him for a kiss. Too bad due to your tired body and mind you can only give him a soft tender kiss. It lasted for a few second before you pull your face away from him.

"Now if you'll excuse me, im going to rest" plopping yourself comfortably on your boyfriend lap. "Stay... here.. okay?" Before drifting into an slumber.

You failed to notice his flustered face and the little smile on his face. Guess his day got better then?

—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–—–

Finally finished, sorry if its short lmao. Anw wish me luck, gonna have my math exam soon<3

I FINALLY FINISHED FIGHTIBG THE RUIN SERPENT (lawd that thing took me like hour 😔, anw barbara carries<3)

Anw um *cough* can i request childhood friends to lover with childe, where yk after a long time childe finally meet with his long lost bestfriend but the reader is a harbinger and so is childe (the reader rank is higher than him). The reason why childe never know that the reader is his long lost bestfriend bcz his identity is very closed (and he always uses his work name like tartaglia ballader etc.)

Anw m!reader since i kinda wanna feel masculine 🏃‍♂️. Ty² i hope the request isn't really confusing ehe

BARBARA IKUYO

Anyways, yeah this was a fun request to write!! I finally get to write a male reader ask!!

I love this one so much i put alot of my fluff abilities on writing it so i hope it actually is fluffy

-ˋˏ✄— Dear Fellow Harbinger

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳ Tartaglia x Reader

Pronouns: he/him

"Alas, we meet again, like the water from the ocean raining down on land."

CW: Childe story spoilers!

.navigation. // .genshin impact masterlist.

Childe recalled a time where he was just Ajax, a curious boy who wished to travel the world with his best friend.

It was an innocent thing, he and the boy who'd once tag along with his antics, sneaking out of their homes to see what the noise by the woods were, or what the Zapolyarny palace looked up close.

It was an innocent thing, their friendship was.

Now, his feet leave bloody footsteps in its wake, as he moved away from the once lively pact of hilichurls that stood in his path.

Blue eyes, dull and half lidded, scanned his surroundings as he approached the Zapolyarny palace.

It looked better afar, he thought. Where you wouldn't be able to feel the harsh cold, colder than the snow and ice.

"Why must I be tasked to this?" He mumbled, scratching his head, scarf fluttering behind him in the wind as he stepped up the stairway. "Harbingers working together? What does the Tsaritsa expect to obtain from such a horrible mix?"

It was true, he had never met the first Harbinger of the Fatui, and even if rumours said he was more bearable than the others, he was still a Harbinger.

Pierro, the first Fatui Harbinger, was just a mere child when the title was given to him by the Fatui. The Tsaritsa had taken him in, trained him and raised him as her own, even letting him play outside, under the watchful eyes of agents hidden around corners.

"You will be woriking alongside Pierro during this task, Tartaglia. He was allowed to choose his ally, and he chose you." He remembered the Tsaritsa's order.

Pierro, "the fool". His title truly matched him.

Why would the first ask for the eleventh when there were nine more above him?

His steps grew heavy, and he'd admit only to himself that he was the slightest bit nervous.

Pierro, the first Fatui Harbinger, asked for his presence.

He neared the door to the first's office, the mark of the Fool embedded high above him.

Pierro, the fool, was right behind this door.

He knocked, knuckles tapping at the door three times, before a voice on the other side granted permission to enter.

He opened the door, entering the room and closing it behind him.

Pierro, the most feared out of the Fatui excluding the Tsaritsa, was behind him.

"Tartaglia," Pierro greeted, and he turned.

Nervous blue met exhausted e/c, and it was like he was Ajax again.

Pierro, the boy who'd once promise him to be by his side for eternity, was there.

His eyes widened, and his breath hitched.

A name echoed in his head.

Pierro, Pierro, Pierro—

No, that wasnt it.

Y/n, he remembered.

Y/n, Y/n, Y/n!

Y/n L/n—!

He choked back a sob.

─𖠄࿐

"Ajax," he greeted once again, a smile brighter than his eyes and softer than his words. "It's nice to see you again."

The man before him stiffened, eyes wide as his hand shakily raised to point at him.

"Y—Y/—" he stuttered, not being able to let word out.

"Come on, Ajax, we've talked about stuttering," an innocent head tilt, as if he wasn't a feared Harbinger, as if he wasn't the Fool of the Fatui, as if he wasn't Pierro.

It was as if they were both eight all over again.

Childe took a step forward, before he found himself sprinting towsrds the shorter/taller male.

A knee on his desk, he leaned forwards, closer to Y/n and—

"Ow!" A slap to the face—

"H—huh?" And arms wrapped tightly around him before ginger hair covered his view.

Childe, leaning over the wooden desk, had wrapped his arms around Y/n, head burried on his neck as if he hadn't slapped him moments prior and wasn't shaking in his shoes.

"I'm getting mixed signals from you," Y/n lightly joked, but reciprocated the hug.

Feeling his friend's arms around him, Childe let out a breathy laugh, holding the e/c boy he'd once dance in the snowy fields with.

"You're such an ass," Childe chuckled, pulling back a bit just to cup Y/n's face, tears streaming down his face.

Y/n's face burned, but he chuckled at Childe.

"How—how long have you been here? Did you know I was here? What—what happe—" a finger to his lips shushed the ginger, and Y/n gave a tired sigh.

"It's a really long story." He glanced shyly at his side, and Childe squeezed his cheeks.

"Ow— hey!"

"Sorry, sorry, it's just that..." Childe slowly neared him.

"Are you alright, Ajax?"

Hushed voices, whispers against each other's lips.

"I haven't seen you in a decade, Y/n," Childe muttered, eyes filled with sorrow and relief. "And now you're here, as the first Fatui Harbinger, as Pierro—"

—as the boy who had given him a makeshift crown of snowy flowers.

"I'm sorry," Y/n whispered. "I'll make it up to you."

"Then promise me," lips an inch apart, Ajax whispered. "Promise me you wouldn't break our promises from years ago. All of them."

"I promise my pinky on that."

"You better."

Gripping his collar, Ajax pressed their lips against each other, his other hand moving down from Y/n's face to squeeze at his side.

It was an innocent thing, their love was.

─𖠄࿐

"Y/n, Y/n!" Ajax called out to his friend. "Let's make a pinky promise!"

"What for?" The boy asked as he sat on the frosty ground.

"Let's promise to stay together forever!"

Y/n smiled, lifting his hand up with only his pinky finger raised.

"Then let's pinky promise!"

"Yay!!"

─𖠄࿐

"Let's get married someday, Y/n." Ajax told him one winter night.

"Huh? What's that?"

"Marriage! Momma said that you marry the person you love the most!"

"Aww, you love me the most?"

"Of course!"

"Then alright, let's get married someday!"

"Pinky promise?"

"I promise my pinky on that!"

"Haha, you better!"

—PATCHWRK !

Im gonna have a math exam tmmrw, instead of studying im writing a scenario w childe and scara, hopefully it will finish tmmrw hshhshhs.

But pls wish me gl for tmmrw👉👈

Im so close to give up the scara part, how am i supposed to write it damn

rating: suggestive cw: sexual tension, badly written includes: gn! reader, fatui harbinger! reader, like stated above- you and diluc have a lot of sexual tension, diluc definitely wears a mask while in his dark night hero persona, you have a geo vision, you're also kinda stronggg (you can imagine how strong), reader likes degrading people and by people i mean diluc summary: you encounter diluc one night, and a fight ensues. while you're fighting, you can't help but tease the dark night hero a bit... y'know, just to rile him up~

the sounds of metal clashing together filled the night air, mixed in with hurried footsteps and pants. you and diluc had been engaged in a fight for the past few minutes now, and neither of you showed signs of slowing down.

“give it up, fatui.” diluc growled. his dark night hero mask was long gone, which was a shame as you had found it rather charming. he swung his claymore at you, but you reacted quickly and dodged.

“now, why would i do something like that?” you readied your sword, taking up a stance that you hoped would provoke the young man. he was smart, however, knowing not to get any closer to you lest he risk his life. you began to walk to your left, and diluc followed after, causing you to begin walking in a large circle- something you had seen a fellow harbinger do in battle.

you swung your sword in your hand, admiring the expensive looking detailing before suddenly dashing forward. diluc’s eyes widened for a split second, as he was caught off guard by your sudden dash. swinging his claymore up, he managed to block your sword- just an inch shy from his pretty face.

your eyes scanned over him. you took note of the sweat rolling down his forehead, and his fiery red eyes bore into yours. your gaze began to wander over his weapon, which was a gorgeous black and red claymore which suited his attire perfectly. “why don’t you give up instead?”

diluc scoffed. he began to push into your weapon a bit more, but you stood your ground. “as if i’d submit to the likes of you.”

you let out a giggle, moving your sword away from him and ducking so you could avoid his claymore. backing up once again, you threw the sword to the side. diluc then took this time to analyze you. you were confident, and your fighting style showed that you were very experienced. 'as expected of a harbinger.' diluc thought.

as much as he hated to admit it, you were quite... attractive. your harbinger uniform and geo vision on your waist suited you perfectly, and your aura of confidence sent off the message that you knew exactly what you (and him, based on your smirk) were doing.

diluc averted his eyes. now wasn't the time to check people out. he had something to do. the dark night hero got into a defensive stance, holding his claymore in front of him as if it were a shield. "we can do this the easy way, or the hard way." diluc spoke calmly, hiding the tiredness in his voice from all the fighting.

he watched as you sighed softly, brushing your hands against each other. bits of dirt fell from your gloves, but diluc didn't think anything of it at the moment. "which shall i choose, hmm..." you looked up, staring at the stars from between the leaves of the cedar trees. from a distance, and if they didn't take a close look at your attire- one would assume that you were just an attractive traveler.

"most would choose the easy way, but the hard way is much more entertaining!" suddenly, a gold like dust flew in front of his face, and diluc found himself spluttering and dropping his weapon as he struggled to brush the dirt off of his face. a pair of hands grabbed at his wrists, and before he knew it, he was pinned up against a tree with a dagger at his throat.

the two of you sat in silence for a few seconds. you could tell that diluc was trying to comprehend what had just happened, and you took the chance to tighten your grip on his hands that were now above his head. 'a rather compromising position,' you thought. 'imagine if someone were to stumble upon you two.'

as you were thinking, you began to notice a soft pink blush forming on diluc's cheeks. how cute...

he began to struggle against you, but you held the dagger tighter to his throat, causing him to inhale sharply and cease resistance. "looks like i win, dark night hero... or should i say, diluc?" the sight of his eyes widening was too much for you to handle, and you found yourself laughing out loud at his expression. "how- how did you?-"

"i have my ways." you smiled, removing the knife from his throat and sheathing it into its designated spot on your belt. once freed from the threat of his throat being cut, diluc began to struggle again- but he quickly found that he could barely move. he noticed that the heat on his face was increasing, and his efforts increased as well, but he still couldn't move his arms more than an inch away from the tree.

"oh diluc, sweet, strong diluc..." you sang slightly in a soft voice, leaning in close to his face. he found himself squeezing his eyes shut, turning his face away from yours. a strange, yet concerningly familiar feeling began to swirl in his chest, and that only caused him to struggle more. perhaps he could kick you, or collapse so that all of his weight was suddenly thrust onto you?

diluc tried pulling his wrists apart, but that was met with your arm squeezing tighter. he began to pant from his efforts, curses leaving his mouth as he was becoming very aware of the amused look on your face. "l-let me go!..." you laughed, and diluc felt his face getting hotter once more.

"you're a man who can swing a claymore with one arm, mister diluc." you teased, your fingers grazing his cheek and neck. your captive held back a groan. "i was sure that you'd easily be able to overpower me, but... it seems i overestimated you~"

you leaned in more, stopping at just the right spot so that your lips were next to his ear. "or perhaps you're enjoying this?" all of a sudden, diluc's struggling stopped, and he let out a strangled gasp. he- he couldn't be... enjoying it, right? he was trying his absolute hardest to get away... right?

"i saw you checking me out," you whispered, as it was only something meant for him to hear. "and i'll admit, i'm a bit interested in you as well." a hand dragged up his thigh, and diluc found himself biting his lip and struggling to keep his moan in. it was hot- too hot, and the thick jacket he wore definitely wasn't helping.

you slipped something into his pants pocket, but let your finger linger inside, resting against the thin inner material that made up the pocket of the pants. just so you could be a bit closer to him as you spoke. as if you weren't close enough.

"tell you what," you absentmindedly began to draw circles into the thin material, and to an extent, diluc's thigh. you listened in amusement as he began to pant softly, squirming against your light touches. strange how this was the man who, not even a few minutes ago, tried to kill you. "i left a card in your pocket. if you meet me at that place next week, i'll give you a little... present. how does that sound?"

diluc nodded quickly, still squirming against you. you breathed out a small noise of affirmation before finally letting go of the man, causing him to let out a small whimper that affected you a little more than you'd like to admit.

you gave diluc a genuine smile as he looked at you, and the look in his eyes reminded you of something you wanted to do the second you saw him for the first time. "here's something to look forward to." before diluc could question it, he felt a pair of lips press against his. and they were gone in a split second.

"see you around!" with a quick wave you ran into the forest, and diluc was left staring after you with a longing feeling in his chest. he let out a long sigh, covering his face with his hands as he slowly slid down the tree he was just pinned against.

the uncomfortable feeling of a thick card in his pocket and a tight feeling in his pants made him groan out loud, and his face became hotter once more.

goodness, this was going to be a long wait.

diluc autocorrected into silicone or folic sometimes from my mistypings when i was writing this on my phone

edit: i also could have sworn that i scheduled this for the 17th and not today but oh well

I finally finished this navigation thingy, doesnt took me that long tho

#. Says Traveller from afar, What do thou seek?

All this information? Really

—–—–—–—

#. About Xevra, the ultimate owner.

Oh? You're asking about me? Well *cough* you could call me by Xevra or azel, and my pronouns is He/They as explained in the links. And my hobby is reading fanfic and drawing!

The basic genshin ar 50 player, and is currently worried about their grade and wellbeing.

&$%

#. About This blog.

This blog? This blog is about me badly writting fic, shitposting, ranting, reblogging others writing and etc.

Oh why of course, the typical private blog that do not accept request duh.. and um i only write for male and gn!reader ehe.

—–—–—–—

What are all this rule for huh?

—–—–—–—

#. Dni

All the basic Dni criteria. Homophobic, racist people etc, all blog are welcomed here. Though if you offend me or just being mean i can always block you.

"Isnt that a bit rude xevra?" no. NO WAIT HUH WAS THAT CONSIDERED RUDE?!

&$%

#. Rules

*drumrolls* I'm Currently Accepting Request, But beware im really² picky when choosing which to write ehehhe.

Request Status : Closed

Anw im reminding u that im not always online on this blog, i could always be busy with my school and my private life ty.

—Again i will say, i only write for male and gn reader. So don't be mad or offended if i diddnt wanna write for fem aligned reader :/

Xevra out_

Extra: Masterlist_

amusing beginnings.

premise: the dramatic prelude of a tale spun by the workings of fate, weaved with strings of scarlet linking futures untold. this is a story of innocence, of unforeseen encounters offering no clue of a romance that will blossom much, much later — this is how you begin together, yet there is no telling if there will ever be a proper conclusion for the prose you call love.

or, plainly speaking, a series of meet-cute scenarios i am far too lazy dedicating individual fics for. i just wanted to sound smart about it.

includes: xiao & itto !

xiao, a friend from an mmo game

moving to a different town and entering a new school in the middle of the year... are inconvenient. friend groups within the class had already been established, and badgering your seatmate to put up with your presence during lunch break or free time outside of lessons when you just don't click together as friends doesn't sound very appealing.

it doesn't help that you aren't extroverted, bumbling and awkward as you try to interact with others more. but if you don't want to feel like a loser for the entire year, you'd have to exert some effort to make friends.

so when you hear about a multiplayer game everyone's been raving about, you thought that was your chance to fit in — after all, if you had common interests with your classmates, couldn't you invite them to play together or something?

thus, you download the game, lament the astronomical numbers of space it took up in your storage, and experiment with the controls until you get more familiar with them.

except some high-leveled assholes who have nothing better to do keep killing your poor level 1 in-game character, armed with a dull sword, starter equipment, and flimsy armor that had no way to defend against level 41 fire blasts, and wait until you respawn to do it all over again. with this hindering your progress, you couldn't complete the main quest in order to advance to the next area.

they taunt you in the world chat, too obnoxiously prideful for someone miserable enough to pick on amateurs, and that's when he appears:

geared in what looks like expensive armor, equipped with rare weapons retrieved from the highest difficulty of dungeons, his name written in bright front and his level, 174, just above it. alatus, his ID reads.

it takes him no more than one move to wipe them all out.

what are you doing? he types in the world chat. hurry up and go before they respawn.

thank you so much!!!!! you reply with a flurry of exclamation points and emotes, shocked that you'd run into someone so high leveled right off the bat. the other players in the server watching the spectacle seem to think he's intimidating and steered clear of him, making a wide circle around you.

though he told you to hurry up, he lingers by your side, almost like he's guarding you. he escorts you all the way until you finish the main quest, not speaking a word and only silently killing surrounding enemies too high for your level.

you wonder if it would be too cheeky of you to send a friend request; he's one of the best in the server, boasting all kinds of achievements and artifacts in his player profile. why would he be interested in befriending a newbie like you?

you're terrible at this, he sends in the chat. this is the first i've seen anyone flubbing basic attacks. don't just press any button you see.

you cringe. his words are harsh but truthful. you kept pressing the wrong buttons to dodge and always receive the brunt of the attacks.

however, you pause when a notification flashes on your screen: player alatus has sent you a friend request! accept or decline?

jolting, you scramble to click accept, lest he take it back last minute. can he even do that? whatever. following that is a present from a friend sent to your mailbox, a pair of level 50 dual blades and defensive armor. they pale in comparison to his current gear, but they're plenty powerful for normal players, especially for an amateur who barely just reached level 7 after grinding some missions (and with help).

old equipment. needed to clear out my inventory, he adds, as if he doesn't want you to get the wrong idea.

you've lost track for the amount of times you've thanked him in the past hour or so, and you try to send more exclamation points and different emotes so you wouldn't appear like a broken record. though i appreciate everything, can i ask you why you're helping a new player like me? you ask tentatively, eager to hear his answer.

there isn't much else you can do at this level. that's all there is to it. and you were pitiful.

...kind of pretentious, but okay...

can i play with you again some other time? you type before the thought of wanting to do so even registers in your mind. not just so you can help me. it's been really fun spending time with you!!!

three minutes of silence pass. your confidence to reach out and make friends shriveled up and died.

sure.

then, later, i usually play at evening or at midnight. our schedules might not line up.

there's no problem! i stay up most nights, too!

then i'll see you some other time. i'm logging off.

relief crashes over you, only dwindling when alatus has gone offline. he was fine with being friends... and promised to play together again in the future... well, maybe not promise, but something like it, and that's enough.

--

the months fly by, and opposed to your prior concerns, you fit in class just fine. playing the mmo game to have a common interest with your classmates was the right move, and it had opened ways for you to connect with others more through other similar hobbies.

but even after you achieved your goal, you didn't drop the game. you're not the most avid player, but you grind dungeons a normal amount, clearing time-limited events if you find them entertaining enough.

it's mostly just to spend time with alatus, though.

alatus, or xiao as you later learned after you exchanged your real names, is quite the charmer. not that you've ever seen his face; he is just... cute, in general. he appears gruff and intimidating, but really, he's an awkward guy who can't act soft because it's “undignified.”

you think he is sweet and kind, though you'll never say it to his face since it'll only make him feel embarrassed. not only does he come to save you each time you tell him you're having a hard time defeating a boss in your private chat, and he gives away precious weaponry and potions to you exclusively as if any other player wouldn't willingly hand over all their gold just to get a piece of it, he makes a great listener.

you have a bad habit of rambling and getting immersed in your thoughts at late hours of the night. you speak of your insecurities, your weaknesses, your fears, and he listens even if he doesn't type a reply all throughout your flood of messages. he keeps his response concise, but they're thoughtful advice, ones that you take into heart. he's a comforting figure, regardless of being a stranger behind a screen.

sometimes, you like to think you're sorta the same for him. xiao isn't as straightforward as you when he wants company, but he asks if you can stay online longer than usual, just to talk or to do the more relaxing tasks in the game. he trusts you to an extent, enough to offer exchanging real names at least.

enough to ask you to marry him.

your in-game character, of course! what else could that possibly mean?! okay, so you may have nearly fallen out of your chair in shock when he sent you a marriage proposal through chat of all things, but that's all it means! nothing more!

there was a couples-exclusive event dungeon, and the loot was desirable. some beautiful skins for pure cosmetic, and also a power-enhancing ring that you couldn't find anywhere else. xiao, the game nerd that he is, couldn't pass it up.

so yeah. technically, you can say you married him.

it was a hot topic at some point. alatus was one of the best players in the server, notorious for his aversion to cooperating with others, and he hadn't married anyone despite all the rewards you could reap with the marriage function.

then there's you, level 47, not especially skilled in anything, not especially appealing in your character's outward appearance, and not especially... notable. the very meaning of an average player, so to speak. he specifically chose you, but nobody could understand why.

well. whatever. the marriage is old news already. the present hottest news is the huge gaming convention to come in two weeks. fans are hyping it up and you'd be lying if you said you weren't excited too. in fact, your friends already made plans with you to come on a weekend.

when you talk to xiao about it, there's a rare moment of hesitance before he types out a reply, almost like the times where he gets nervous before asking you a favor.

are you going too? you ask, grinning to yourself.

yeah, he answers back. a minute and a half of silence.

then, startlingly, do you want to meet up?

you've always doubted the feasibility of choking on air before, but after experiencing it firsthand, you learn that anything really is possible. including meeting the elusive guy you've had a massive crush on, no matter how unlikely it seemed.

--

you are severely late.

but! for good reason! you'd hate to look like a hobo, so you made sure to dress nicely! ...maybe too nicely for a gaming convention where everyone will be sweaty and icky, but better prepared than sorry!

somehow, i'm not even surprised, reads xiao's text — yes! you exchanged numbers! — and you can picture him scoffing at the other end. don't rush and trip in the middle of running. i'm not going anywhere.

you ignore the way your heart skips a beat at that and focus on getting there safely. he said to do just that, after all. but while waiting at the crosswalk, you wonder what xiao really looks like... would he be tall and scary? or unexpectedly soft and cute?

in all honesty, you should've sent pictures of yourselves to identify each other easier at the venue, but against your better judgment, you suggested only describing your attire and keeping your appearances a secret because the mystery is “fun” and it'd be nicer to see each other for the first time face to face. (you've only been trying to prolong your inevitable death, because whatever he looks like, you're bound to fall deeper anyway.)

i'm here, you text to him, beginning to anxiously look around your surroundings. he said to meet up at the entrance, and there are more people than you expected...

i'll find you. stay by the first advertisement banner at the front.

alright!

you bite your lip, clammy hands holding your phone tightly. you're a lot more nervous than you thought you would be. did you look okay? you've asked your friends over and over again if you looked presentable, enough times to annoy them, probably. you styled your hair differently too... you wonder if it looks weird. xiao said he would be wearing a green jacket and dark pants, and he had piercings in his ear, and then you can't remember what else because oh my god, what does xiao look like with piercings in his ear.

you snap out of your thoughts when a path opens up in front of you. first, there are disgruntled noises from people being pushed away, then they disappear like wisps of smoke the second after. quiet gasps of surprise come from the group of girls nearby, and if you had to guess, it would likely be a good-looking cosplayer passing by.

the figure stops in front of you, sneakers in your line of sight where you stare blankly at the floor. slowly, your eyes rake up — dark fitting jeans, a trail of silver chains disappearing under the hem of a green jacket, a white shirt printed with dragons...

you're reluctant to glance anywhere higher above the line of his neck.

“[name]?”

fuck.

it's him.

you take a deep breath, squeezing your eyes shut. then you look up, properly.

you see golden eyes, specks of stars glittering in his irises.

his skin is pale, pink from the warm sun. his lips are pink too, a traitorous part of your mind marvels, slightly parted in surprise and shaped around an o. his hair is dark, tied up into a messy ponytail, sharp tips dyed in teal poking his cheek, framing the sides of his face.

oh no. he's hot.

he is so hot.

and he's staring at you.

“x... xiao?” your voice comes out strangled. embarrassingly. oh god. you are so fucked.

his face grows redder, and he scratches his cheek. “...that's me.”

silence.

you have to say something.

“do you... want to go outside?” he coughs into a fist. “the event has already started.”

“uh, yeah! sure! of course!” you ramble, walking past him in the hopes you wouldn't make a bigger fool of yourself. your face looks weird, surely. “i can't wait to see the cosplayers! they're also announcing a new chapter for the main story today, aren't th-”

“wait.”

he catches your wrist. you stop breathing, at risk of choking on air again.

“it's crowded.” his hand curls tighter. oh no. “don't get lost.”

“i won't, what are you talking about?” you laugh awkwardly. seeing him, hearing him, touching him, is such a strange thing.

“i wouldn't be surprised if you did.” his fingers dip lower, fitting in the spaces within yours. properly holding your hand. oh. oh. “so don't wander off without me.”

“yeah.” you're positively breathless. “yeah. i won't.”

he squeezes your hand. you're not looking at him directly, but you see him tilting his head at the corner of your eye. “...no complaints about this?”

“none at all.”

“okay.” he squeezes again. carefully, tenderly. his palms are sweaty. at least that tells you you're not the only one nervous. “if you say so.”

itto, a delinquent in the downpour

arataki itto is an idiot.

an idiot who keeps picking fights with people he can't beat, and kujou sara tells him off for it. an idiot who grabs the last piece of fried chicken on the table, agrees to thoma's proposal for a battle of rock-paper-scissors to get it, only for itto to lose each time. an idiot who bets on his entire deck of trading cards in his beetle fights, never truly realizing the risk until he'd already lost everything to kamisato ayato.

but arataki itto doesn't regret.

he doesn't regret trying to beat kujou sara even if it's his loss in the end, because she doesn't look down on him for losing and his friends are always there to patch him up. he doesn't regret doing rock-paper-scissors with thoma, because thoma would end up sharing the piece of chicken anyway. he doesn't regret betting on his deck, because ayato is never greedy, and he will always, always give it back to itto and tell him to try better next time.

arataki itto doesn't regret it this time either, even if he doesn't gain anything. even when he's battered and bruised, drenched in the rain, slumped against a wall in the middle of a dark alley. even when the boy he just saved from money-grubbing hooligans didn't spare him another look nor gave him any word of thanks, left him to fend for himself when the men's hostility had already been directed at him. never called for help, either, just allowed him to be outnumbered in a fight, and as strong itto is, there's no way he can beat five bulky guys on his own.

he doesn't regret, but it stings a little.

his entire body prickles with hurt, but at the same time he's unfeeling, numb in the cold rain. his line of sight is getting blurry, too, blobs of color instead of people darting past, streetlights small bright spots like fireflies.

he tries to open his mouth to ask for help, but that stings too. a busted lip, maybe. his voice is feeble, silent in his own ears. it can't be heard over the pouring rain. he tries to sit up straighter, but the effort to nudge his shoulder back exhausts all his energy. he wants to reach out a hand at least, but before he can even try, his body won't listen to him. his eyes close against his wishes.

he knows for sure he isn't too deep in the alley. can't anybody see him? or are they deliberately ignoring him because they don't want trouble? there's nothing wrong with that, really. not everyone has the time to help, or the bravery to approach a big guy covered in wounds. he understands. but he still hopes anyway.

ah, it's cold. the brick wall behind him is rough. his clothes are uncomfortable, sticking to his skin like this.

he forces his eyes open. there, he sees a pair of shoes, forming ripples across puddles when they step closer.

they halt.

they turn the opposite direction.

they leave him alone.

(he doesn't notice the umbrella they leave behind.)

--

he wakes up to someone patting his cheek. someone is speaking, but everything is muddled. it's still cold, and his back is still resting against the brick wall. but there's no rain anymore, only the pitter-patter sound when it hit the pavement.

he wonders how long he'd been shielded away from it.

“...llo... can... stand...”

stand. do they want him to stand? he's afraid that's too much to ask for.

the rain covers him again, icy drops falling on his skin. warmth overlaps with the frost, grabbing his arm, curling it around... something. he's being lifted up. not very effectively, but they're trying.

so he tries his best too. shifting his weight, blinking his eyes open, staying awake. they take him somewhere. it's dry, and when they push him over, it's to a plush seat. they don't complain when he leans his head on their shoulder, possibly soaking their clothes with his wet hair. he has to apologize, but sleep overtakes him.

itto doesn't remember much after that. just a hand on his forehead for some time, parts of his body wiped and wrapped in gauze. a blanket tucked carefully around him, fingertips brushing by his shoulders before they leave.

--

when he fully comes to, the first thing that registers to his mind is a room full of white. white sheets, white ceilings, white curtains. then a head of blue hair, standing by the window.

“oh, you're awake!” ayato exclaims, beyond relieved. “i was surprised when i picked up your call and it was someone else speaking. good thing they rushed you to the hospital, huh?”

“someone took me here?” itto asks, sitting up. “where are they?”

“they took off after i arrived. said they were late to an interview because they had to stay here... ah. that must've meant they probably didn't get the job...” he murmurs, grimacing. “i should've asked for their number so we can thank them properly. no point trying to find them now, though.”

but itto saw them. not very clearly, but he remembers kind eyes glazed in worry, a shirt partly soaked through, and a silver star hanging from their necklace.

arataki itto was never especially smart, but if anything, he is stubborn, and if he put his mind to it, he can do anything.

--

“isn't there any part-time job out there that doesn't pay minimum wage?”

“what? you saving up for something?”

“summer vacation is coming, you know! vacation trips aren't going to pay for themselves,” you sigh, burying your face in your folded arms.

“it's not like you have a boyfriend to spend it with.”

“can't i go on a vacation with friends?”

“and who are these friends you speak of? everyone is dating somebody. they're probably too busy,” she retorts, looking envious. “even xiao has someone when all he does is play games everyday.”

you scrunch your nose. “damn those happy idiots...”

“that aside, i thought you found a good part-time job? you didn't get it?”

hearing that, you turn even gloomier. “i didn't tell you? i blew it. i came late on the interview, and that didn't make a very good first impression. plus i looked horrible from the rain.”

“hm. find a rich boyfriend, then.”

“like who...?”

“kamisato ayato from the other department?” your friend suggests, grinning. “he's good looking. his sister is pretty too, i saw them walking together once.”

you snort. “way out of my league. i'm better off not hoping.”

“don't be like that~ i heard he was going to attend the next mixer. thoma told me himself-”

the door to the lecture hall opens, interrupting your conversation. “is [name] here?” a voice queried, rough and a tad bit too loud.

“right he-”

your friend slaps a hand over your mouth frantically, turning you away from the door. “what are you doing?!”

“what?” you blink up at her, whispering, “he's asking for me, isn't he?”

“didn't you see who it was?” she hisses, shielding you from view. “arataki itto! the one who beat up a senior on his first day as a freshman, remember?!”

arataki itto?

doesn't ring a bell.

“come on, that's just a ridiculous rumor, isn't it?” you wave her off, laughing. “wasn't kazuha rumored to have a criminal record at some point? you should know better than to believe them. so don't worry and let go of me, i'm sure he's not-”

your eyes flit to his sharp eyes, gleaming with intent, and his muscular build that could probably crush your skull with a single hand.

“...going to kill me...” your voice trails of too a whisper, face paling in horror. “on second thought, please be my meat shield?”

“[n-name] is over there!” a terrified classmate points in your direction the moment itto turns to glance at him inquisitively. a snitch! a tattletale! you're never lending him your notes ever again. given that you live another day, that is.

“oh. thanks.”

how polite! thanking him for his contribution in your likely murder!

“wait wait wait, what does he want with me?!” you shrink further behind your friend, but there is no escape. he can see you peeking over her shoulder.

“shouldn't you know that?! did you piss him off or something?!”

“i don't know! i've never seen him before!” you cried. you really haven't! you swear you have nothing to do with him! you don't deal with people who look like trouble! sure you might have dragged a delinquent to the hospital a few weeks before, but he was unconscious and defenseless! he could barely stand! this guy can punt you off to mars!

“you're [name], right?” his eyes sparkle with recognition, just an arm's width away from you now. your friend, traitor that she is, silently moves away.

an involuntary squeak is punched out of your lungs. “y... yes, that's me,” you respond meekly, attempting a wobbly smile. “did you need me for something?”

itto clears his throat, expression similar to that of a constipated man's. “well... that is... i was... how do i say this...”

the deafening silence stretches for what seems like hours. the back of your neck prickles at the attention, everyone's eyes focused solely on the pair of you. you can't read him at all. what kind of offense did you do that he had to come to you like this?

“ah, dang it, 'm not good at things like this...” he grumbles, scratching his head.

eh? what is he not good at? public execution? no, no, he wouldn't go that far right?

“so, what i'm trying to say is-!”

he flails about, thrusting out the hands he'd been hiding behind his back. a bouquet of pink roses, delicate and small, is curled within his grasp. your eyes widen, taken aback, turning even wider when you see the way his cheeks redden, entire face aflame, fingers trembling nervously. his face, pinched tight with restless energy, is nothing but earnest and sincere.

“i admire you a lot! i...” he takes an intake of breath. “i would like to court you!”

and, ever so eloquently, you respond with, “wuh?”

—   ( SUMMER RAIN )

˚ SUMMARY. two unlikely students are paired together for a documentary — but sometimes love finds us in peculiar ways ( aka an our beloved summer au. or also in other words high school unlikely match / rival au )

˚ FEATURING. ayato, albedo, childe, kaeya, thoma, xiao x gn! reader

˚ WARNINGS. mentions of “pretty” in albedo’s. mild swearing. usage of mx

˚ LINKS. masterlist

˚ NOTES. im posting this even though it technically isnt valentines day yet for me but by the time i post this tmrw it wont be valentines for most people so … enjoy !! all fluff :D

( interlude )

“a documentary,” you say, slowly.

“yes,” the cameraman says. “it’s only for a month. we’re pairing up the [pair] and we’ll basically filming you throughout the month. just pretend we aren’t there — it’s just a documentary about youth life, and you just go on about your day-to-day lives.”

you hesitate. this sounds like a mistake.

it’s one month, a voice in your head whispers. you can do one month, can’t you?

you clear your throat. “so who’s the other person going to be?”

ayato: most proper and least proper

kamisato ayato has a rep around inazuma high and it isn’t necessarily a bad one

the only thing you know about him is that his family practically runs the town

and apparently, an asshole

he has a rep for being closed off – you never see him hang out with anyone other than his sister and thoma. and you’re on good terms with thoma - but you’ve never talked to ayato

you’ve never had reason to; you’re never in the same class as him, and he always seemingly disappears every time you approach thoma

stuck up ass, is basically what you’ve always thought of him; he often had an air to him that said he’s too good for everyone

you think he looks down on you because you’re not as prestigious as he is - he’s proper, he comes from a rich family. he probably doesn’t even need the money from the documentary

still, at first, in the documentary, you try to be friends with him.

it goes horribly wrong.

on the first day of the documentary, you buy yourself a coffee at the local coffee shop. and you end up buying him one as well

however, when you try to give it to him, you end up tripping it and spilling it all over his business project that he’s stayed up all night to work on

there’s a beat of absolute silence as he slowly looks up to stare at you. you swear his eyes are burning holes into your head

and then he slowly looks back down, grabbing his water bottle, unscrewing the top lid, presumably to take a drink.

“sorry” you say, hurriedly. “i was trying to give you coffee, because i know you always stay up-”

he dumps the water over your head

a small shriek gets stuck in your throat, as you get soaked from head to toe

“i said sorry,” you say. your voice isn’t angry, still in shock. but the anger rises in your chest all the same

“oh.” he looks back down at his project. his voice is nothing short of sarcastic. “sorry.”

and then, at that moment, you decide that you hate this kid. with a burning passion

and of course he never gets into trouble because nobody would ever suspect ayato of doing something bad

the only person who sympathizes with you is thoma who just shrugs with a crooked grin and says “he’s sly. there’s a reason he’s never gotten caught.”

you’re forced to sit in the same classes, next to each other, for the sake of the documentary

but even through the filming, you’ve never been afraid to tell the camera how much you dislike ayato

“oh things i hate?” you ask, staring at the camera. “kamisato ayato.”

he doesn’t turn his head to you but you can see his scowl all the same. “funny, i was going to say the same.”

your arguments are equivalent to a child’s argument — often times, when arguments spark, they’re accidents like the coffee; it only gives him more fuel to dislike you, and you to dislike him

once, he decides to give you coffee with a “sorry :(“ sticky note attached to it

and like the fool you are, you decide to drink it

he watches from outside the door, not being able to resist a smirk

salt floods your taste buds, but instead of spitting it out, you make eye contact with him in the door and continue to down the entire thing

ayato also basically has this claim to a parking spot in the school - it’s not technically his, but everyone’s agreed it’s ayato’s spot

you stole it as soon as you could

it becomes a competition on who can get to school first to steal the spot. and that leads to both of you being to school two hours earlier

which means you actually spend a lot of time together ! and soon, your dislike for him, melts into something softer

you like spending time with him. in fact, you look forward to it

and you don’t miss how his smiles become fond - sometimes, when you’re on the verge of falling asleep in class, you see him smile softly as you rest your head on his shoulders

or sometimes, when you wake up, you just find his jacket over your shoulders

and there’s this one time when someone else makes an off hand comment about your clumsiness

the next day, the kid doesn’t show up to school. and when he shows up again, his face is bright red and his hair has been dyed green

when you turn to ayato, he just gives you his signature smirk with a shrug. “i don’t get caught.”

you two end up terrorizing your teachers. they never figure out who has been leaving alarm clocks around the building to disturb class, and ayato always turns to you with a fond smile

“how do i feel about y/n now?” he breaks into a soft smile. “i love them — i couldn’t ask for a better partner in crime. but don’t tell them i said that. i will never hear the end of it.”

albedo: smart & smart

you’ve never talked to albedo before this - but you’ve noticed him from afar

you’re both top of your class - both of you competing for number one spot

he’s never had many feelings towards you, other than the fact that you’re smart. he notices your name on the top scorers of exams, but knows nothing of you other than that

you never see albedo hang out with anyone - he has a few people he talks to, but none that he ever seems to be friends with

and it’s not for a lack of trying either - you ask kaeya about him once, wanting to get an idea of who albedo was

and kaeya just says “albedo — a strange one. he’s nice. but don’t interrupt him while he’s working. or ask him to hang out. he will always say no. it’s quite embarrassing.”

but when you talk to albedo, he’s actually quite nice! he’s never been anything but kind to you

you work together on a lab, and he’s always been patient with you. you’re able to bounce ideas off each other, and you’ve never worked with someone better

the rivalry doesn’t kick in until the second day. and then oh boy

but you also work at a daycare after school hours — and there, you take care of a child named klee

and you love klee ! klee’s the best !

sometimes, you help klee make these little water bombs as pranks to help her terrorize this “big bad brother” she complains about in daycare

and you share all your knowledge with her

and then, one day, when klee decides to set off her bombs on “big bad brother” albedo asks klee where she learned to make these new kind of bombs

klee — the absolute icon she is — isn’t able to keep a secret. “mx y/n helped me,” she says, sheepishly, swinging back and forth

albedo stops. “y/n l/n?”

klee shrugs. “i think. they says they’re your age. i like mx y/n more than you. they let me go fish blasting!”

so the next day, albedo, naturally comes to ask if you work in a daycare and you know klee

“yeah, i know klee.” you chuckle, thinking about her. “the other day, i helped her make mini water bombs — not a dangerous kind, don’t worry — to prank her brother. she’s amazing.”

he gives you a deadpan look. “klee’s my sister.”

oh. oh shit.

“and by the way,” he says, “i make better water bombs than you.”

and if to prove it, the next day, you find a container on your desk. and when you open it, water sprays in your face

and next to you, albedo is chuckling

oh it is so on.

you do most of your pranks through klee, bribing her to prank albedo. and albedo does the same

you both compete to be klee’s favorite — and whenever albedo comes pick klee up, you both have to tone down on the swearing

but you two are never mean to each other - it’s always been fun little pranks, with no mean intentions behind it, something you both know

“how do you feel about albedo?” the cameramen ask you, once, for the documentary.

“albedo?” the cameras don’t miss the small smile that spreads across your face. “he’s kind. a little closed off, but an absolute menace.”

but even though your words don’t say the whole truth, the cameras catch it

the cameras catch every time when you’re working late in the lab and he brings snacks for you

or every time either of you don’t understand something, you’re always patient, while explaining it to the other

or sometimes, during class, if you’ve pulled an all nighter, he’ll let you rest on his shoulder as he takes a little more notes as usual that way you’ll be caught up in class

and one day, when you’re taking of klee, she tells you

“my brother says he likes you.” she grins from ear to ear. “he says you’re very pretty.”

needless to say, you played a clip of your documentary at the wedding

“how do i feel about y/n?” albedo hums. “don’t tell them i said this, but i’m happy klee likes them. i want to make them apart of our family.”

more undercut !

Keep reading

hey vinny, dom said you're a simp / windbreaker

— Likes to pretend he's this broody, independent, need-no-woman badass. But if he woke up and your side of the bed is empty, he will get up to search for you around the house. Even outside of the house if needed. Honestly, if you're not in bed because you're cooking, he will abandon his sleeping endeavour altogether to spend time with you.

Will be a little pouty because you could've been in bed cuddling, but instead, here you are. He won't be annoying for long though, not when the smell of your cooking chases away much of his bad moods.

— His eating habit is a little... atrocious, to say it nicely. If his mom doesn't cook, then he will sustain himself with whatever he can find. If you cooked for him and prepared homemade lunches for him, he will love you forever. Honestly, the best way to surprise him is getting groceries and cooking with his mom. It warms his heart to see the most important people in his life getting along.

Hearing you calling his mother as “mom” ... not only it makes his knees weak, his eyes burn, his cheeks warm, it also causes him to be so embarrassed that he doesn't know what to do with himself. Can he really chastise you for doing something he doesn't even have the gall to do? (Admitting that he want to spend the future with you?)

— Not... good with emotions, he cares, you know he cares. But when you are in an emotional turmoil, he freezes. Moatly because he doesn't know what to do, he's a problem solver, when there are troubles, he expects to deal with it. However, he can't fight your demons, not when they exist in your mind.

It's ridiculous because he expects himself to fight his own demons without anyone's help, yet when it comes to your troubles, he wants to do it for you. The best he can do is being there for you when it matters, even if he can't find the right words, him being there at least helps you calm down.

— He's a bit troubled with understanding what you want, in general. Being a relationship is not easy for him, it's a completely new territory. It requires him to be emotionally vulnerable and rely on another when the time comes.

There will be times when Vinny shut down and try to recuperate from events from real life. All you need to do is being there for him and gently coaxing him to let you into his mind. This is necessary because he often gets self-destructive when his mind became clouded. Having you there to ground him would help him immensely.

— Not openly affectionate in normal terms, at least, not in front of others. Will hold your hand if you initiated it, sometimes he'd reach out for your hand on his own terms, too. Stands close to you whenever possible, it's mostly a protective thing. Nobody would mess with you while Vinny is around, at least, no one who knows better.

Will let you kiss him on the cheek if you want, but be warned that he will blush all from the moment you asked him to bend down and at least five minutes afterwards.

— Honestly, Vinny will mesh with your life perfectly once he got comfortable with sharing your living spaces. One day you'd come home to seeing him using your makeup headband because his hair was bothering him. He is a bit resistant to self-care things at first, but if you want to do it, who is he to say no?

He will have this moment of existential crisis after he saw how clean and smooth his skin became, but he improved for the better so he can't even compain much himself. Really, he even wore your cutesy house slipper with the rabbits on them when he can't find his own.

— He can get playful sometimes, even if it's only when you initiate first. At least, he knows to hold himself back whenever the two of you play-fight. However, if you somehow managed to tussle and had him pinning you down, you'd get the chance to witness Vinny devious grin. Even if his bastard days are long over, the reminder of it can send a shiver down your spine.

Until, until, he realizes how promiscuous your positions were. And he comes to notice your expression, the blush on your cheeks, the way your lips slightly parted. Cue Vinny jumped away from you like a spooked cat.

— He likes to walk you home, okay, let him do the gallant thing. You don't go to the same school, which is one of his grievance, but he never minded the walk back and forth even if your house is in the opposite direction of his. Since his bike makes the way back less tedious, he has even more reasons to go see you.

He likes knowing you're safe, and on a perverse note, likes being the reason you're safe. Secretly, he likes it when you greet him with a hug whenever you see him at the school's gate, too. Gives him a little peck before you get inside your home, and if he's feeling bold, he'll keep you there for a deeper kiss before letting you go.

— Don't think because Vinny is bashful sometimes that he's reserved. Not really, he's simply shy in the beginning since he's far rougher than you, he doesn't want to accidentally spook you away. Once he overcame his shyness, expects him to be far more intense whenever he kisses you. If he allowed himself to let go, you'll be left with your lips swollen and eyes glazed.

He knows he's a lot to handle, so he doesn't expect you to take all of him. This is why he always gets pleasantly surprised whenever you readily accepted him after his lips left a trail of evidence on your neck and shoulder.

— He has accepted the fact he is simply not... academically gifted, okay. Being badgered again and again that he has no future damaged what motivation for studying left inside him. Since he had accepted long ago that there'd be nothing awaiting for him, seeing you actively trying to help him stirred a weird feeling inside him.

At first, he got mad because he thought it was pity, but with times he learned that you did all of it because you cared. You had to talk him out of thinking the worst, but once his mind cleared, he acquired a newfound appreciation for your determination and loyalty.

— He really be like, I'm not cute, I don't do cute, then goes around and uses a cutesy phone case because you bought it for him. You changed his wallpaper to a picture of you two together? It's going to stay there forever, he will never change it. The password of his phone? Your birthday. His password in general? Your name and birthday. His lockscreen is basically one of those silly pictures of you which was sent to him earlier.

No, he's not changing it, he likes it as it is. Your name in his contact list might have been left as is, but if you changed it into something adorable? He's not changing it back, you can live with your decision. Will still blush when he sees the copious amount of heart next to his name in your contact, though. Because he can dish it but he can't take it himself.

— Everyone pretty much know he always saves a seat for you in group settings if he arrived first. But honestly, that doesn't happen enough because Vinny always shows up with you. Somehow, the two of you always know why the other is absent. You're pretty much an unit together at this point, he'd not have it otherwise.

Having you around during the competition always makes him extra motivated to do his best, too. Can't really blame him for wanting to show his best side in front of his girlfriend.

— Although it doesn't happen, it's always funny for the group to see the two of you fight. Since he can never stay mad at you for long, it's always you that drag out the cold war period and whatever he does afterwards is mirroring you. So if you're ignoring him, he's ignoring you back but he always looks so miserable. You would, too, but pride, pride.

The funniest would be when you eventually reconcile because neither of you can handle the distancing period well. You can stick to him like glue afterwards and you'd hear no complaint from Vinny because he wants to make up for lost time too.

— Once showed up to a group meeting with others in the Humming Bird while carrying a huge teddy bear that he saved up to buy for you. It's meant to be an anniversary gift and he knew you had been eyeing it since forever. It's big enough that him holding it was an inconvenience, but you holding it simply looks comical.

Everyone else, including Jay, had to suppress themselves from laughing when the bear swallowed you from view. But the smile you made when seeing it really made Vinny's entire month, so definitely worth it.

— Never makes empty threats when chasing away guys who hit on you. He's an intimidating presence to everyone when he wanted to be. However, if anyone even crossed the line to harass you, suddenly his name is Fearless Hong and he's ready to go jail for, not physical assault, but murder.

He'd get extra physically affectionate after these occasions, too. Mostly in how he holds you and keeps you close to him, would have an arm on your shoulder at every chance possible for a while afterwards.

Ong helo again, i want to req reverse streamer au w childe when the reader acc dies at the golden house where the traveller aka childe fight them amdjjsjsjs, i kinda wanna see how his reaction is. (Lets just say the liyue harbor osial attack was done by another hsrbinger)

Just this and if yoi dont write for angst or you dont wanna write this feel free to delete thsi req. (I got the request idea when j was reading your latest work, it was really good 🤸‍♂️)

Yeah give me that angst baybee im a sucker for sadness

I may be a bit bad at writing angst tho, its not my strongest in writing

Also i know you cant see in game bruises/scratches but lets just pretend they exist even out of cutscene

Lets pretend Y/n's little sibling in game is also named Teucer

-ˋˏ✄— Fallen Harbinger

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳ Tartaglia x Reader [ Reversed + Streamer AU ! ]

Pronouns: they/them

"Farewell, Fallen Harbinger."

CW: Angst! Death! Mentions of blood!

.navigation. // .genshin impact masterlist.

'Go to the Golden House,' the quest read.

It had just been another regular day for Childe. Wake up, do his morning chores, then do his regular, messily scheduled streaming.

And, as per usual, he had been streaming Genshin Impact, a well known game in the streaming community.

"The Golden House? Uh, okay then..."

He stole a glance at his chat, who were telling each other to shut up, while some only asked what would happen in confusion. Spoilers were probably deleted by his mods.

"Chat, you're scaring me, chat. What the hell is going to happen? No, no, don't tell me, I don't think I want to know yet."

Something in his head screamd at him, as a cutscene played. His chosen traveller looked around the Golden House before stepping closer to the Exurvia of the former Geo Archon.

And then, in stepped familiar h/c hair, their e/c eyes devoid of light despite the golden mora shining within the Golden House.

"Hey! The lil skrunkly!" He whispered, low enough to not desturb the cutscene.

They conversed for a bit, before the cutscene ended and a battle began.

"Surreder is a valid option, I promise I'll be gentle."

Childe swallowed his saliva, laughing quietly to himself.

"Oh I am going to have fun. Maybe."

─𖠄࿐

The fight ended, and Childe was shaking in his seat. He had barely finished phase 3, getting disracted many times.

Another cutscene played, revealing a tired, worn out traveller. But Y/n was no better, not even on his level.

Standing across the traveller, now out of their Foul Legacy form, was same old Y/n, shaking in their place as scratches and bruises littered their skin.

"Hah, you've bested me. How... intriguing. You truely are...as strong as they say."

Childe, having a chill run up his spine, stared intelty at his screen, deathly quiet.

"La Signora has even praised you for your strength, even if she had not faught you herself, yet. Hah, to get a Harbinger's attention and praise... You sure are a special one, huh?"

─𖠄࿐

Having none of their energy remaining, Y/n collapsed to the floor, on their knees. They could see the traveller hesitate to approach them, but they spoke before he could move.

"Well? What are you waiting for? I may have overused Foul Legacy, and it wont be too long."

They spared a glance at the traveller, and even in their weakest moment, a competetive and mischievous glint shone in their once dull eyes.

"Go on. Aren't you going to kill me?"

The traveller's breath hitched, before they chuckled once again.

"Haha, only joking... Unless you're up to it, of course. I'm not quite a fan of dying to Foul Legacy, but after a fight with the oh so great traveller? It was a fight worth dying for, I guess."

Coughing, blood trickled down their chin, and they wiped it off with the back of their hand.

"May I be able to hope to see you again? To have another battle? Perhaps in the far future, perhaps never again at all..."

Taking a step forward, the traveller ceased his motion as the Harbinger raised a hand.

"No need. Whatever healing you might try to do would not work. Foul Legacy takes my energy, decreasing my life span. Perhaps I wasn't meant to live long, perhaps my only purpose was to serve the Tsaritsa."

A chuckle, breathy and tired and solemn and...happy.

Happy to have someone to pass one last message for them.

"Before you leave," they spoke. "You'll probably be able to find one or two of the Harbingers here. One of them would be summoning a god banished to the depths below. You cannot stop them. Or maybe you can. But, before you leave."

They looked up, and despite the scratches and blood on their face, their half lidded eyes shined a thousand times brighter than all the mora in the Golden House.

"My siblings... My mother, my father... Everyone..."

They smiled, brighter than their eyes. It was soft and kind and solemn and genuine and sad.

A million words spoke through that smile. A million messages, a million apologies, a million grateful thank yous. Directed to their family, their parents, their siblings.

A million farewells. Directed to everyone.

Directed to the traveller. To Childe.

"Give them one last goodbye for me, will you? A hug, for everyone. A kiss on the cheek, for mum and dad."

A smile, solemn and bright. But never remorseful, never faux.

"Tell Teucer I'm sorry."

Falling to their side, they collapsed on the ground with a thud, and the Golden House was deathly quiet.

─𖠄࿐

Childe stared at the screen. Eyes wide, mouth agape. If you looked close enough, you could see his shaking form as the cutscene ended.

Another quest popped up.

'Bid Y/n L/n a final goodbye.'

And he wailed in his seat.

Tears streamed down his cheeks, and he made it seem more dramatic to make people assume he wasn't really badly affected by their death.

"I— what— NO! My skrunkly! My little meow meow!"

He moved his character to stand in front of Y/n, an interact button popping up.

'Bid your farewells.'

He did so, seeing his character change to the traveller, who kneeled down beside Y/n. Paimon floated down to the ground, placing a hand on their head.

"...We promise you, Y/n. Your family will be alright."

Taking a flower, a Cecilia from Mondstadt, the traveller gingerly placed it atop their head.

"...We'll be going now, Y/n." He said, and stood up.

Childe had been quiet the whole time, and he could see his chat going wild on the corner of his eyes, all screaming 'NO' or 'o7' or anything alike.

"What the fuck!?" He exclaimed, not touching the game. Rolling his chair backwards a bit, he turned his head to chat, hands intertwined in front of his face, covering his mouth.

He wiped his teary eyes and wet cheeks, trying to find his voice.

"That was too early! I thought I could ignore the death flags until further!!" He exclaimed, staring directly at his face cam. Running a hand through his hair, he dramatically slouched on his chair, groaning loudly.

"Nooo! I would have protected them!"

Suddenly springing up from his seat, he wailed even louder.

"THEIR FAMILY!! THEY'RE GOING TO BE FUCKING DEVASTATED! And— and— their siblings! TEUCER!" He exclaimed.

"I'm sueing Mihoyo Hoyoverse what the fuck."

─𖠄࿐

@Tartaglia Tweeted!

WHAT THE FUCK WHAT WHY I— NOOOO

@ScaryMouche Tweeted!

@Tartaglia do u know how loud u are wailing up there??

@Tartaglia Tweeted!

THEY KILLED THEM SCARA THEY KILLED Y/N

@ScaryMouche Tweeted!

WE KNOW YOUVE BEEN FUKIN CRYING ABOUT IT FOR THE PAST HOUR

@ScaryMouche Tweeted!

Honestly if u didnt pay most of the rent Dottore probably would have kicked u out before you lasted an hour in this house

@Tartaglia Tweeted!

Guys who wants to come with me lets make a personal shrine for Y/n in our backyard

@IlDottore Tweeted!

@Tartaglia Do that and I will burn you and the shrine.

—PATCHWRK !

Diluc, teaching Y/n how to drive: okay, you're driving and see both Childe and Lumine on the road. Quick, what do you hit?

Y/n: oh, definitely Childe

Y/n: i can never hit Lumine

Diluc: the breaks. You hit the breaks.

A LIFETIME IN REPEAT / kamisato ayato ( genshin impact ) ( WHAT WILL SURVIVE OF US IS LOVE ) a/n: reincarnation au. quote by philip larkin. title from eden - circles. for @yelans spring serenades event w/ the theme being rebirth. thank you for arranging this !!

i. under the cherry blossoms lies love eternal, wistful and tranquil in existence. under the cherry blossoms there is the blooming of flowers in spring reborn, the sun brilliant in her ways as she blesses the earth with warmth once more.

under the cherry blossoms is a promise of tomorrow in the way ayato holds you, bodies pressed closely together, his hands resting on your hips. you sway together, side to side, in temporary respite ; the quickening and slowing of time blurs -- and it doesn't make sense, but it does : the way you could find sanctuary in his arms forever, the way it’s over in the blink of an eye and you find yourselves missing each other all the more.

“relax, love.”

ayato whispers the words softly into your ear and laughs when you tense in response. your cheeks heat up, but you tell yourself it’s from the weather and leave it at that. you’ve never gotten used to his endearing terms and you’re sure he plays it to his advantage.

“i don’t slow dance-- and when were you so romantic, anyway?”

“i’ve always been a romantic at heart,” comes the matter-of-fact answer, though you sense underlying amusement in it, “now, relax. you can always lean on me.”

your lips part with the intention of a ( hopefully ) composed reply, but his smile is all too gentle, so the words fade into oblivion. instead, there is a feeling of happiness that dwells deep within the heart. you let out a sigh of defeat, pretend you didn’t hear him chuckle, wrap your arms around his neck, and lean your head against his chest.

“the flowers are beautiful this season.” you half-heartedly murmur, face still ablaze as you seek distraction elsewhere. ayato knows this, kisses you on the head in quiet comfort. you feel him smile against your skin and you do not think you will ever get tired of the sensation.

“yes, they are.” he says, and somewhere in the tidal waves of the soul, there is a bittersweetness that invokes itself in the thought of a future known. “they are beautiful.”

( under the cherry blossoms is serenity and devotion and everything birthed from love. under the cherry blossoms there are lovers who will grow old and gray together, hand in hand.

under the cherry blossoms, in yet another spring, will lie love eternal after days long passed. in the roots of tomorrow, it will be found again. always again. )

ii. the colors blur, window to window, view by view. the subway hums, floods itself with life as passengers travel to and from, and here you are, gaze distant, vacant. waiting. you live this life now and it’s all you know. it feels weird, empty-- but you think that’s kinda how it goes nowadays : learn what it means to be an adult, or rather, function as one, have a crisis, think you’re taking all the wrong twists & turns, and learn to fake it like everyone else.

it is exhausting. you are exhausted.

you sigh, discontentment transparent on your visage. the subway buzzes again, but all the sounds twist into background noise, automatically blocked out from your senses. you fail to notice the stranger that appears before you until he gets a little too close for comfort-- and that’s when you’re suddenly all too aware of how crowded it is. you try to step back, take maybe half a step, really, and that hardly does much, but he senses your discomfort and offers a wry, apologetic smile.

you know that smile, is your immediate thought, but you don’t get to reflect on it too much before someone shoves him into you. he wraps an arm around you, staggers for a moment before finding stability, and here you are, one hand on his shoulder and the other desperately hanging onto the overhead handle.

“i deeply apologize.” are the first words you hear, and there is something about his voice that soothes the anxiety that brews in your chest. “are you hurt?”

your breath hitches in your throat. your eyes sting suddenly and your vision goes unclear, and that stupid, stupid, lump in your throat is too noticeable and bothersome. this is ridiculous and dramatic, you joke to yourself, and you want to find rationale, reason-- something -- to explain this whirlwind of emotions that sweeps you off your feet.

you nod because that’s all you really can do; you want to say sorry when you see concern adorn his features, but he smiles, he smiles and you’ve seen it before, somehow, and you think you are crying now.

“‘m okay.” you whisper. “i’m okay. thank you.”

“you’re welcome.”

the subway hums again. longing fills your heart. you want to know why.

the stranger clears his throat, lets go of you, and you stand before each other in silence.

“my name is ayato.” he tells you. he offers you a handkerchief. “i believe we’ve met before.”

tears trail down your face. it is three in the afternoon. you are on the subway with a stranger. you do not remember something you should.

“i don’t remember you.”

ayato’s smile almost falters, but he is used to masking such emotions, so he maintains it ever so perfectly, hoping that you will not feel guilt for something that is not in your control.

( you don’t remember him. that’s okay, he thinks. he will wait for you until the end of time. it’s okay, even if it hurts. )

iii. with an aching heart made of uncertainty, you fall asleep to peaceful dreams that night. it takes place in a regal estate, splendid and grand in its decor. you wonder how you find yourself in such a setting. it’s busy-- chaotic and calm at the same time, moving constantly at a steady pace as voices and faces flood the halls. you recognize these voices, hear yourself among them.

the faces are blurred. all of them.

this is where you belong. these are days you’ve experienced before ; nostalgia lines itself in the hollows of your ribs, wraps its knowing around your lungs. you have lived and breathed this life.

you can’t remember.

you wake up. the ache grows deeper, burrows itself in fragile heartstrings. you fall back asleep, vision engulfed in pink hues of cherry blossoms and ayato’s name lingering on your tongue.

iv. you don’t remember anything, not really. you know you dreamt of something strange and significant and it bothers you, horribly so-- but these things will come in time, you suppose. so you move on with your day, hope you can find solace in falling back to your daily routine.

you enter the cafe, inhaling deeply when the aroma of coffee overloads your senses. there’s comfort to be found in the little things, you remind yourself, ordering your regular drink. it’s not long before you’ve settled into the corner of the cafe, set up your laptop and stationary. your focus goes into your work for an hour or two-- maybe longer-- until you see a familiar face before you again.

“what a coincidence.” ayato muses, curiosity in purple eyes. “i did not expect to see you here.”

you stare at each other in silence for a moment-- you, more so out of shock, ayato, truthfully, in amusement at such a reaction to his presence.

“you must have missed me, finding me already.” comes your response, a forced lightheartedness in your voice meant to disperse the tension in your body.

“i did, in fact. may i sit with you?”

you almost want to think he’s joking with you, but the way he looks at you is too tender, too knowing, and somehow, it breaks your heart.

( ayato spends hours with you at that cafe. it feels like home, feels right. feels like something is missing and it shouldn’t be. )

v. you don’t ask ayato what he meant back then, where he recognized you or how he recognized you. you didn’t ask when you first met on the subway, didn’t ask at the coffee shop, didn’t ask during any single encounter you’ve had in these past few months.

you are frightened of the unknown, and perhaps you are a coward for that.

( because you want to know, but there’s something in the nagging feeling you carry that makes you want to run away from all of this. but you don’t because you know you shouldn’t. because in all the time you have spent with him since that fated meeting, maybe there is a place in your heart for him that grows larger and larger and maybe that scares you. )

you walk along the quiet streets, side by side with ayato. the storm has long passed, puddles of water reflecting gloomy skies. it is nearing the end of fall but the weather does not let up, always unpredictable in its path.

“i enjoy the rain when i am aware of its incoming presence.” ayato mumbles, gaze cast upwards at the clouds.

“you don’t like getting caught up in it and getting your beautiful hair ruined?”

“i don’t.” he laughs at your teasing tone. “you find my hair beautiful?”

“i do.”

“how generous of you.” he hums, and there’s an extra little skip in his step now. “i find you beautiful, as well.”

your face gets hot. how embarrassing.

“so romantic.” you mumble, clearing your throat. you can’t help but feel familiarity in such exchanges. “what’s your favorite season, anyway?”

ayato’s gait comes to a standstill. you pause, watch as a sorrowful and hopeful smile rests on the curve of his lips. he glances up at the sky once more before he looks at you, his hand brushing against the back of yours.

“i have always been fond of spring.”

“why’s that?”

you don’t move your hand away. he notices this, remains cautious, gentle, and laces his fingers with yours. it’s warm, comforting.

“it reminds me of someone i love.”

you freeze, see the way ayato looks at you-- like there’s something more, like he has known you in a life past-- and you want to speak, but nothing can register or come to mind.

the rain pours again, but neither of you move.

“you told me that we’ve met before.” your voice quivers. “so why don’t i remember you? i know you. i dreamt about you once, i think. i don’t know. why don’t i know? where have we met? what do you know?”

panic arises with each word spoken. you’re crying again, just like you did the first time you met. you feel like an idiot, your chest tightening with anxiety. ayato squeezes your hand. it would be so easy to tell you everything, to bring the memories back all at once. but such things take time, he kindly reminds himself, so he will wait until it all comes back.

“you’re not going to tell me.” you whisper. he shakes his head, places an umbrella over your heads. “then tell me this: the person you love-- is it me? and did i love you once, before?”

ayato smiles, just as he always does, and the tears run rampant.

( you both know the answer already. you know this, don’t you? )

vi. you dream again that night. it’s a different dream, but almost the same-- the hustle and bustle surrounds you, overwhelms you. you’re not entirely familiar with this environment yet. you only know some of the voices-- a bright, cheerful one that always seems to bring a smile to your face. a soothing one that always brings reassurance. you hear a bark and playful laughter, and in your heart there is relief.

you’ve done this before.

“daydreaming again?”

you recognize that voice. you are quick to turn on your heel, though reluctance fills the corners of your mind. you are afraid the faces will be hidden again, obscure just like last time, but they are not.

ayato stands before you, almost entirely the same with exception of attire. maybe you are daydreaming-- this is a dream, after all, and the boundaries between what is real and what is not are too chaotic to distinguish. but that doesn’t stop you from hoping, from thinking this could be what you were trying to remember after all. in the realization of such, you cry again. you cry again and again because you hope that this is it, that it’s not just a dream, that you’ve finally come to understand ayato’s words and what that emptiness meant.

“what is it? what’s wrong?” ayato asks, dabbing the tears away with a handkerchief. you know that one, recall it from the subway.

“nothing’s wrong.” you laugh in disbelief, shake your head as his thumb grazes over your cheek. “i’m okay. we’re okay.”

( you wake up the next morning. you remember it all. )

vii. it is spring now. you have not seen him in a long while-- perhaps out of avoidance or a clash in schedules, neither of you are sure. you weren’t ready to tell him once you awoke from that dream, more so because you couldn’t comprehend it all-- thoma, ayaka, ayato--

you spent a lifetime with him before. you were married to him and you loved him. you danced under the cherry blossoms on the first day of spring and you told him you didn’t slow dance, that you weren’t good at it, but he didn’t care, as long as he could hold you close.

you sit on the park bench with him now, quiet. children play in the distance, their laughter filling the silence that rests heavily in the air. your hands wring nervously in your lap, words unspoken lodged in your throat. you want to tell him, but you don’t know how. you want to tell him that you know, and you’re almost sure he knows this, too.

“have you been well? it’s been awhile.”

he starts off slowly, treads carefully on thin ice.

“i’ve been...thinking. i dreamt about you again.”

“oh?”

“i cried a lot in the dream.”

“you do that often in reality, too.”

you laugh for the first time that day, feeling your body relax against the bench. your hand rests at your side now, brushes against ayato’s. wanting. waiting. hoping.

the cherry blossoms are in bloom now, the wind casting the petals along the sky. they fall gently, gracefully, and it reminds you both of that day.

they’re beautiful, aren’t they?” ayato asks, taking note of the closed distance between you two. he swallows hard, curious as to why he hesitates now- because maybe you truly do remember now, and maybe this is the moment he’s been waiting for all this time-- the reunion of two lovers. his hand finds yours. you do not pull away.

“they always have been.” you smile faintly, intertwining your fingers. you ignore the way your voice trembles and you hope he does, too. you inhale deeply, close your eyes. “can i lean on you, ayato?”

you know. you have to, he thinks, and he cannot help the surprise that appears in purple hues. you look at him, countenance riddled with apprehension, and there’s that familiar curl of the lips you have seen many times before. he nods in confirmation, so you rest your head on his shoulder.

pink petals fall onto your laps-- delicate, loved, and seen.

“i remember you.” you whisper. the wind almost drowns out the words, but his grip on your hand tightens. “i remember our life back then-- being married, spending time in the garden when it was the beginning of spring. i-- i took so long ayato. i took so long to remember you.”

in your voice there is regret, but in his eyes there is understanding. you want to apologize, but you know he would tell you there is no need for such things.

“i knew you would, in time. i would have waited for you, nonetheless.”

ah. you’re going to start crying again. you laugh when he pulls out that handkerchief again, but when the tears come, he kisses them away ever so gently before murmuring words of comfort. his arms wrap around you, hold reassuring and filled with ardor.

“i missed you.” you whisper against his lips, and how lovely it is to feel him smile against them once more. “i love you.”

“i love you, too.” he tells you, once, twice, a million times-- as many as he needs to until it is known. “i will love and find you in every lifetime, my love.”

( under the cherry blossoms is rebirth and reinvigoration of life. under the cherry blossoms, there is love lost and love found.

under the cherry blossoms, there is you and the one you love, reunited at last. )

A LIFETIME IN REPEAT / kamisato ayato ( genshin impact ) ( WHAT WILL SURVIVE OF US IS LOVE ) a/n: reincarnation au. quote by philip larkin. title from eden - circles. for @yelans spring serenades event w/ the theme being rebirth. thank you for arranging this !!

i. under the cherry blossoms lies love eternal, wistful and tranquil in existence. under the cherry blossoms there is the blooming of flowers in spring reborn, the sun brilliant in her ways as she blesses the earth with warmth once more.

under the cherry blossoms is a promise of tomorrow in the way ayato holds you, bodies pressed closely together, his hands resting on your hips. you sway together, side to side, in temporary respite ; the quickening and slowing of time blurs -- and it doesn't make sense, but it does : the way you could find sanctuary in his arms forever, the way it’s over in the blink of an eye and you find yourselves missing each other all the more.

“relax, love.”

ayato whispers the words softly into your ear and laughs when you tense in response. your cheeks heat up, but you tell yourself it’s from the weather and leave it at that. you’ve never gotten used to his endearing terms and you’re sure he plays it to his advantage.

“i don’t slow dance-- and when were you so romantic, anyway?”

“i’ve always been a romantic at heart,” comes the matter-of-fact answer, though you sense underlying amusement in it, “now, relax. you can always lean on me.”

your lips part with the intention of a ( hopefully ) composed reply, but his smile is all too gentle, so the words fade into oblivion. instead, there is a feeling of happiness that dwells deep within the heart. you let out a sigh of defeat, pretend you didn’t hear him chuckle, wrap your arms around his neck, and lean your head against his chest.

“the flowers are beautiful this season.” you half-heartedly murmur, face still ablaze as you seek distraction elsewhere. ayato knows this, kisses you on the head in quiet comfort. you feel him smile against your skin and you do not think you will ever get tired of the sensation.

“yes, they are.” he says, and somewhere in the tidal waves of the soul, there is a bittersweetness that invokes itself in the thought of a future known. “they are beautiful.”

( under the cherry blossoms is serenity and devotion and everything birthed from love. under the cherry blossoms there are lovers who will grow old and gray together, hand in hand.

under the cherry blossoms, in yet another spring, will lie love eternal after days long passed. in the roots of tomorrow, it will be found again. always again. )

ii. the colors blur, window to window, view by view. the subway hums, floods itself with life as passengers travel to and from, and here you are, gaze distant, vacant. waiting. you live this life now and it’s all you know. it feels weird, empty-- but you think that’s kinda how it goes nowadays : learn what it means to be an adult, or rather, function as one, have a crisis, think you’re taking all the wrong twists & turns, and learn to fake it like everyone else.

it is exhausting. you are exhausted.

you sigh, discontentment transparent on your visage. the subway buzzes again, but all the sounds twist into background noise, automatically blocked out from your senses. you fail to notice the stranger that appears before you until he gets a little too close for comfort-- and that’s when you’re suddenly all too aware of how crowded it is. you try to step back, take maybe half a step, really, and that hardly does much, but he senses your discomfort and offers a wry, apologetic smile.

you know that smile, is your immediate thought, but you don’t get to reflect on it too much before someone shoves him into you. he wraps an arm around you, staggers for a moment before finding stability, and here you are, one hand on his shoulder and the other desperately hanging onto the overhead handle.

“i deeply apologize.” are the first words you hear, and there is something about his voice that soothes the anxiety that brews in your chest. “are you hurt?”

your breath hitches in your throat. your eyes sting suddenly and your vision goes unclear, and that stupid, stupid, lump in your throat is too noticeable and bothersome. this is ridiculous and dramatic, you joke to yourself, and you want to find rationale, reason-- something -- to explain this whirlwind of emotions that sweeps you off your feet.

you nod because that’s all you really can do; you want to say sorry when you see concern adorn his features, but he smiles, he smiles and you’ve seen it before, somehow, and you think you are crying now.

“‘m okay.” you whisper. “i’m okay. thank you.”

“you’re welcome.”

the subway hums again. longing fills your heart. you want to know why.

the stranger clears his throat, lets go of you, and you stand before each other in silence.

“my name is ayato.” he tells you. he offers you a handkerchief. “i believe we’ve met before.”

tears trail down your face. it is three in the afternoon. you are on the subway with a stranger. you do not remember something you should.

“i don’t remember you.”

ayato’s smile almost falters, but he is used to masking such emotions, so he maintains it ever so perfectly, hoping that you will not feel guilt for something that is not in your control.

( you don’t remember him. that’s okay, he thinks. he will wait for you until the end of time. it’s okay, even if it hurts. )

iii. with an aching heart made of uncertainty, you fall asleep to peaceful dreams that night. it takes place in a regal estate, splendid and grand in its decor. you wonder how you find yourself in such a setting. it’s busy-- chaotic and calm at the same time, moving constantly at a steady pace as voices and faces flood the halls. you recognize these voices, hear yourself among them.

the faces are blurred. all of them.

this is where you belong. these are days you’ve experienced before ; nostalgia lines itself in the hollows of your ribs, wraps its knowing around your lungs. you have lived and breathed this life.

you can’t remember.

you wake up. the ache grows deeper, burrows itself in fragile heartstrings. you fall back asleep, vision engulfed in pink hues of cherry blossoms and ayato’s name lingering on your tongue.

iv. you don’t remember anything, not really. you know you dreamt of something strange and significant and it bothers you, horribly so-- but these things will come in time, you suppose. so you move on with your day, hope you can find solace in falling back to your daily routine.

you enter the cafe, inhaling deeply when the aroma of coffee overloads your senses. there’s comfort to be found in the little things, you remind yourself, ordering your regular drink. it’s not long before you’ve settled into the corner of the cafe, set up your laptop and stationary. your focus goes into your work for an hour or two-- maybe longer-- until you see a familiar face before you again.

“what a coincidence.” ayato muses, curiosity in purple eyes. “i did not expect to see you here.”

you stare at each other in silence for a moment-- you, more so out of shock, ayato, truthfully, in amusement at such a reaction to his presence.

“you must have missed me, finding me already.” comes your response, a forced lightheartedness in your voice meant to disperse the tension in your body.

“i did, in fact. may i sit with you?”

you almost want to think he’s joking with you, but the way he looks at you is too tender, too knowing, and somehow, it breaks your heart.

( ayato spends hours with you at that cafe. it feels like home, feels right. feels like something is missing and it shouldn’t be. )

v. you don’t ask ayato what he meant back then, where he recognized you or how he recognized you. you didn’t ask when you first met on the subway, didn’t ask at the coffee shop, didn’t ask during any single encounter you’ve had in these past few months.

you are frightened of the unknown, and perhaps you are a coward for that.

( because you want to know, but there’s something in the nagging feeling you carry that makes you want to run away from all of this. but you don’t because you know you shouldn’t. because in all the time you have spent with him since that fated meeting, maybe there is a place in your heart for him that grows larger and larger and maybe that scares you. )

you walk along the quiet streets, side by side with ayato. the storm has long passed, puddles of water reflecting gloomy skies. it is nearing the end of fall but the weather does not let up, always unpredictable in its path.

“i enjoy the rain when i am aware of its incoming presence.” ayato mumbles, gaze cast upwards at the clouds.

“you don’t like getting caught up in it and getting your beautiful hair ruined?”

“i don’t.” he laughs at your teasing tone. “you find my hair beautiful?”

“i do.”

“how generous of you.” he hums, and there’s an extra little skip in his step now. “i find you beautiful, as well.”

your face gets hot. how embarrassing.

“so romantic.” you mumble, clearing your throat. you can’t help but feel familiarity in such exchanges. “what’s your favorite season, anyway?”

ayato’s gait comes to a standstill. you pause, watch as a sorrowful and hopeful smile rests on the curve of his lips. he glances up at the sky once more before he looks at you, his hand brushing against the back of yours.

“i have always been fond of spring.”

“why’s that?”

you don’t move your hand away. he notices this, remains cautious, gentle, and laces his fingers with yours. it’s warm, comforting.

“it reminds me of someone i love.”

you freeze, see the way ayato looks at you-- like there’s something more, like he has known you in a life past-- and you want to speak, but nothing can register or come to mind.

the rain pours again, but neither of you move.

“you told me that we’ve met before.” your voice quivers. “so why don’t i remember you? i know you. i dreamt about you once, i think. i don’t know. why don’t i know? where have we met? what do you know?”

panic arises with each word spoken. you’re crying again, just like you did the first time you met. you feel like an idiot, your chest tightening with anxiety. ayato squeezes your hand. it would be so easy to tell you everything, to bring the memories back all at once. but such things take time, he kindly reminds himself, so he will wait until it all comes back.

“you’re not going to tell me.” you whisper. he shakes his head, places an umbrella over your heads. “then tell me this: the person you love-- is it me? and did i love you once, before?”

ayato smiles, just as he always does, and the tears run rampant.

( you both know the answer already. you know this, don’t you? )

vi. you dream again that night. it’s a different dream, but almost the same-- the hustle and bustle surrounds you, overwhelms you. you’re not entirely familiar with this environment yet. you only know some of the voices-- a bright, cheerful one that always seems to bring a smile to your face. a soothing one that always brings reassurance. you hear a bark and playful laughter, and in your heart there is relief.

you’ve done this before.

“daydreaming again?”

you recognize that voice. you are quick to turn on your heel, though reluctance fills the corners of your mind. you are afraid the faces will be hidden again, obscure just like last time, but they are not.

ayato stands before you, almost entirely the same with exception of attire. maybe you are daydreaming-- this is a dream, after all, and the boundaries between what is real and what is not are too chaotic to distinguish. but that doesn’t stop you from hoping, from thinking this could be what you were trying to remember after all. in the realization of such, you cry again. you cry again and again because you hope that this is it, that it’s not just a dream, that you’ve finally come to understand ayato’s words and what that emptiness meant.

“what is it? what’s wrong?” ayato asks, dabbing the tears away with a handkerchief. you know that one, recall it from the subway.

“nothing’s wrong.” you laugh in disbelief, shake your head as his thumb grazes over your cheek. “i’m okay. we’re okay.”

( you wake up the next morning. you remember it all. )

vii. it is spring now. you have not seen him in a long while-- perhaps out of avoidance or a clash in schedules, neither of you are sure. you weren’t ready to tell him once you awoke from that dream, more so because you couldn’t comprehend it all-- thoma, ayaka, ayato--

you spent a lifetime with him before. you were married to him and you loved him. you danced under the cherry blossoms on the first day of spring and you told him you didn’t slow dance, that you weren’t good at it, but he didn’t care, as long as he could hold you close.

you sit on the park bench with him now, quiet. children play in the distance, their laughter filling the silence that rests heavily in the air. your hands wring nervously in your lap, words unspoken lodged in your throat. you want to tell him, but you don’t know how. you want to tell him that you know, and you’re almost sure he knows this, too.

“have you been well? it’s been awhile.”

he starts off slowly, treads carefully on thin ice.

“i’ve been...thinking. i dreamt about you again.”

“oh?”

“i cried a lot in the dream.”

“you do that often in reality, too.”

you laugh for the first time that day, feeling your body relax against the bench. your hand rests at your side now, brushes against ayato’s. wanting. waiting. hoping.

the cherry blossoms are in bloom now, the wind casting the petals along the sky. they fall gently, gracefully, and it reminds you both of that day.

they’re beautiful, aren’t they?” ayato asks, taking note of the closed distance between you two. he swallows hard, curious as to why he hesitates now- because maybe you truly do remember now, and maybe this is the moment he’s been waiting for all this time-- the reunion of two lovers. his hand finds yours. you do not pull away.

“they always have been.” you smile faintly, intertwining your fingers. you ignore the way your voice trembles and you hope he does, too. you inhale deeply, close your eyes. “can i lean on you, ayato?”

you know. you have to, he thinks, and he cannot help the surprise that appears in purple hues. you look at him, countenance riddled with apprehension, and there’s that familiar curl of the lips you have seen many times before. he nods in confirmation, so you rest your head on his shoulder.

pink petals fall onto your laps-- delicate, loved, and seen.

“i remember you.” you whisper. the wind almost drowns out the words, but his grip on your hand tightens. “i remember our life back then-- being married, spending time in the garden when it was the beginning of spring. i-- i took so long ayato. i took so long to remember you.”

in your voice there is regret, but in his eyes there is understanding. you want to apologize, but you know he would tell you there is no need for such things.

“i knew you would, in time. i would have waited for you, nonetheless.”

ah. you’re going to start crying again. you laugh when he pulls out that handkerchief again, but when the tears come, he kisses them away ever so gently before murmuring words of comfort. his arms wrap around you, hold reassuring and filled with ardor.

“i missed you.” you whisper against his lips, and how lovely it is to feel him smile against them once more. “i love you.”

“i love you, too.” he tells you, once, twice, a million times-- as many as he needs to until it is known. “i will love and find you in every lifetime, my love.”

( under the cherry blossoms is rebirth and reinvigoration of life. under the cherry blossoms, there is love lost and love found.

under the cherry blossoms, there is you and the one you love, reunited at last. )

genshin characters being hot pt.3 ✦ ayato

📄 : just a new series about genshin characters and how they’re hot and you have a crush on them and they are hot, and also some cuteness and soft stuff, and also did i mention they’re hot? ✧.*.:｡ gn reader / modern!au ✧.*.:｡ warnings: slightly suggestive, making out, other than that expect lots of flustered fluff ✧.*.:｡ ✉️ : you must have seen this coming hehehe i can’t do this series without him involved. this one has some fluffy boyfriend!ayato as well, but yeah ayato is hot and imma go ham when he’s finally out :D (lowercase intentional)

yep. this man. whew. 

okay for starters, he’s definitely the student council president/student representative, type of person. without a doubt. 

when you joined the council though, you didn’t expect someone so stupidly hot to be in charge. 

honestly, even aside from his outer beauty, you still couldn’t look away. his voice carried through the room, and his words would keep your attention glued to him. he was meant to lead, he’s elegant, poised, and carries himself with such charisma that it’s no wonder everyone follows him. 

you somehow became the secretary, according to ayato your qualities you had written when you applied were perfect. another guy named thoma was the vice president and honestly both of them looked so hot, you understood why you heard such rumors and a few dirty “not-so-secret” secrets that other people would whisper around campus about them. 

you couldn’t blame anyone, thoma was definitely hot, there’s no denying that, but ayato?! 

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★ 【Darkavey】 「 Winter Coat 」 ☆ ✔ republished w/permission ⊳ ⊳ follow me on twitter