#genshin impact Oneshot

[refeverie]

hardest bargain.

fluff. gn!reader × kinich. wc 489

summary. flower picking !

generally speaking, kinich is not the type to do things he deems meaningless and fruitless; unconditional, non-transactional. although, it is a different story when it is you, who proposes an activity.

when the first february day in the everlasting land of palmy days broke out with the brightest sun, you did not hesitate to seek kinich out to ask him to make flower crowns with you. one for him and one for you to match.

as it was said, kinich would not consider flower picking nor weaving of value; it seems way too idle and dull for his own worth. but not when it comes to you. he grumbled a bit, nevertheless, he persisted by your side all the same.

or rather, right up there, lying on the huge white chestnut oak tree's branch—while you were by its roots—in his usual manner. sometimes he closed his eyes, even so, kinich kept on listening to your ramblings the entire time.

“hey, kin, what flowers do you like?”

“kinich, do you think this one is pretty?”

“say, kinich, what is your favorite color?”

“kinich! look at this one!”

later on, he slowly positioned himself from lying to sitting. you can not expect him to go stiff from being in one position continuously, can you? it has been minutes to hours after all. he only stayed because it was you down there, collecting flowers you thought were the most beautiful ones.

after a while, he swinged branch after branch down. in complete silence.

and then, as you turn to your right, kinich is holding a palm extended to you. you giggle, loking at a lone feeble flower he just plucked out without any stem left to it. he does not understand your reason to laugh at all. cute.

“no, silly! you have to pick the flowers like that.” you squat down again and delicately show the correct way. “we need the stems to make the flower crowns. but it is okay, we can figure out the place for your little blossom too.” you smile.

“why? it is just a random plant i picked out, yours are better.” he looks at you confused.

you do not take any time to think before answering, “this flower is special because you gave it to me.”

if you did not know any or, well, kinich, better, you would expect a blush dyeing his cheeks. instead, he puts that same puny flower in his pocket.

“then, if you say so, i will keep this one until you find me a special flower for exchange too,” he says in a soft, muted voice.

ah, even now, he finds a way to carry out a perfect deal between two people once again. still, kinich knows, the feelings he holds for you require much more of his time and effort to give for you to accept it wholly.

it is by far his hardest and most priceless bargain.

[tetsuskei]

⟣ kiss it better - tartaglia [nsfw]

synopsis: your boyfriend sees you wear makeup for the first time and reacts accordingly

warnings: oral (male receiving), face fucking, facial, ajax is a pervert :/, he cums a lot, childe is called by his birth name, self indulgent, russian pet names, reader is implied to be from sumeru, fem reader, one small chomp from childe

word count: 2k

its evening in your comfortable abode, and often a sight is you sitting in front of your vanity taking care of yourself. whether it be brushing your hair or doing your skin care routine for the night, the methodical way you go about your business brings comfort to your boyfriend, ajax. the domestic nature of it all brings a sense of normalcy to his unpredictable and dangerous life. you’re the purest piece, and he wishes to keep it that way.

but this time, he notices a plethora of different cosmetic items. all unfamiliar with him. he doesn’t remember seeing you buy them the last time he went out shopping with you.

the harbinger pauses, watching you in front of the mirror. “what’re you doing?”

“my makeup.” you answer as if it’s an everyday occurrence. you never really wore it before, normally barefaced or at the most, a little mascara and lip gloss, but that’s it. so to see this is…interesting.

the ginger is now looming over you into your space. one would think he’s too close, but you’ve grown accustom to him always invading it. making it his space, too.

“you don’t usually wear that stuff, though.” he notes, watching you paint glittering eye shadow on. “why are you wearing it now? is there…a special occasion?”

you flinch at his words, and he flinches in reaction to your reaction.

“i’m going out tonight with candace and dehya. they’re the ones who recommended me these things, and so i just wanted to try something different.” you explain.

ajax attempts to diffuse the situation. “i see…you know you don’t need all of that, right? you look fine as you already are. in fact, i think you look better without it!”

you glower. “last time i checked, i’m not wearing it for you.”

he panics, “of course not! you’re allowed to wear and do what you want. you look very beautiful—as you always do!”

a small hum in response makes him relax and he lets out a small sigh. he would live another day.

you, on the other hand, sense your boyfriend still hovering, and your mild irritation continues to grow inside of you.

“…do you still need something?” you ask, focusing now on your eyeliner.

he shakes his head rapidly. “no. i’m just…curious! i’ve never seen you do this before, you know.”

but you know ajax. it’s one thing to be curious, but another for someone to be leering. and with the way your boyfriend’s dull eyes bore into your very being, for once—it puts yourself on edge.

you sigh, not bothering to look at him. “just spit it out, ajax.”

“c-can i cum on your face?” he blurts.

it’s silent and the unreadable expression on your face makes him nervous. you’re quiet—much quieter than usual, and the last thing he wants to do is offend you (more than he already has).

admittedly, he can’t help himself, though. the mental image of him standing over your pretty face would not leave his mind, unfortunately. he can’t get over the idea of you kneeling, doe eyes looking up at him with anticipation as he jerks himself to the very sight of you. is he wrong for thinking of that?

“i-i mean, when you’re done wearing it? not right now of course!” he laughs nervously, and you don’t know whether to feel sorry or amused as he explains himself.

“you’re disgusting.” you finally respond, but there’s not a single hint of malice behind your words as you speak. the corner of your painted lips is tilted up in a quirk, and he wonders how you were ever so shy before when meeting him. but it is all attributed to how truly hot you look right now. you know how good you look and what it does to him. “that’s what you’re curious about?”

ajax’s cheeks flush and he looks really bashful, scratching his head and looking at the tiles on the ground. “sorry.”

you both know he’s not sorry.

“you’re the one who said i didn’t need this, yet you want to cum on my face?” you hum, straightening up once you’re finally finished. walking towards him, you note how frozen in place he is.

putting a manicured hand on his shoulder, you look up at him. “what are you thinking about now?”

he laughs, ignoring the feeling of his cock stirring from smelling your perfume and shampoo. his hands twitch. “ahh, not much.”

you kneel in front of him, hands messing with the belt and zipper to his pants. there’s a bigger smile on your face as you eye his bulge. “‘not much’?”

fuck. he really wants to make a mess out of you. to wipe that smug look off of your face.

“n-no, not—shit, baby—really.” you’re already unbuckling and unzipping him, pulling both pants and briefs down in one go as you grasp him.

there’s absolutely no point in him lying anymore with how hard he is. practically begging for release, his purpling tip dribbles copious amounts of pre. bobbing and twitching eagerly and craving release. like a jewel shimmering diamond, his thick cock has never looked prettier.

the smallest whine leaves ajax when the cold air hits him, bringing greater sensitivity to his skin.

on the other hand, he isn’t really lying. the sight of you has his mind running blank. you look gorgeous and he wants to stare at you for hours. is that really so weird?

“really?” you’re stroking him now, single hand moving leisurely as you stare up at him through your thick lashes.

“well now you’re teasing me.” he says, averting his gaze from your sinful stare.

“i’m only trying to give you what you want, ajax.” you laugh, painted lips kissing his tip. you hear his breath catch as you continue to plant kisses but on his freckles and scarred skin. every inch of his thighs are caressed and touched with care, and his cock weeps with jealousy.

“c-can’t you just? ugh��“ he’s whining, face completely flush, “put it in!”

you pinch his thigh in warning. “ask nicely.”

your boyfriend groans. “mila, you’re…you’re killing me here. please.” he whines, trying to move, but you hold his hips still.

“i’ll give you what you want if you’re honest with me.” you bargain, kissing the pretty freckles that decorate his pale thighs once again.

he’s hiding his face in his hands now, and you never thought he’s looked cuter. “i just…can’t stop thinking about what you’d look like…covered in my cum.”

at his words, your kisses move up towards his balls. they’re heavy and taut, sensitive to the warm, plush feeling your lips share against his skin.

“is that it?” your tongue sweeps out, bathing itself in his musk. he shudders.

“and…how jealous i am, because other people are going to see how beautiful you are…when i just want to keep you for myself.”

ahh. there it is.

“to yourself? well you know i’m my own person, right?” you inquire, raising a brow.

“of course you are. but you’re mine, too.” he breathes, eyes darkening. “and there’s only so much i want anyone else to see of you.”

“so that’s why you said i looked better without makeup on? you’re cruel, you know.” you sigh, leaning back.

the lowly laugh that comes from your boyfriend makes your hair stand up on its ends. “you haven’t seen cruel yet, lisichka.”

you chew on your lip, challenging him, “hmm. i’m sure it’s not that bad.”

ajax’s resolve snaps, his large hand coming behind your head before gripping your hair.

“i’m sorry, you—“ he moans loudly, sliding himself fully to the back of your throat, “you look so fucking pretty i can’t help it. wanted to be between these pretty lips of yours so badly.”

his pained expression relaxes once he claims the inside of your mouth. small moans and whimpers leaving him once he starts rutting himself within the wet cavern.

you should be mad at how abruptly he’s slid his dick in your mouth, mad at the way he’s taken control, but the sight of him stops you. the pure look of ecstasy on his face is one to behold. so you grip his legs and let him have his way with you. let him use you as he pleases. you were never really in control anyways. he was just letting you have your fun.

“you feel so good. ‘is s’good…” he praises, snapping his hips at a harsher angle and speed. you gag around him and he only groans in response, legs trembling.

“always take me all so well, hmm?” his dull eyes look down at you with adoration, thumbing your cheek where his tip is nestled.

you nod to the best of your ability, humming quietly. there are tears brimming your eyes, and a few spill over, painting your cheeks with an inky residue.

something stirs within your boyfriend.

he pulls back, eyeing your face and now ruined makeup.

“ahh, i think you look even prettier now. you’ll forgive me for ruining your hard work, won’t you?”

you cough, catching your breath. “so shameful.”

ajax slaps his cock on your face, dragging the lipstick stained appendage over your face.

“aww, mila, don’t tell me you’re not enjoying this.” his familiar sinister smirk is plastered on his face as he nudges your slobber covered lips.

solemnly, you part your mouth before taking him as far back in your throat as you can. another pretty moan leaves him before he swears in his mother tongue.

“you minx. if i didn’t know any better, i’d think you’re trying to kill me.” he falters, grasp tightening on your hair.

you moan around him, eyes rolling back as your nose digs into the tuff of hair on his lower abdomen. every part of him smells like home, like love and affection. like your soul, since you will always be apart of each other.

finally, ajax pulls back from you, and you don’t hesitate to take the next move. you waste no time taking him back into your mouth, this time using your hand to jerk the parts of him that don’t make it all the way in.

the noises are lewd and excruciatingly loud. drool and precum are basically painted and glistening on your chest, dripping down in between your breasts.

“good girl. good fucking girl…you always suck my cock so well. maybe i should…keep you locked up forever.” he praises.

“you can try.” you grin, leaning down to capture his balls in your mouth again, sucking and nursing them while your hand works his shaft.

he’s laughing now, tone bashful as he tries catching his breath, “i-i’m not going to last—“

you hum, pulling off and kissing his tip and swirling your tongue along the underside and frenulum. “go ahead, baby.”

your boyfriend gasps and then whines at the unexpected use of the pet name. it causes him to abruptly shoot his load sooner than he would have thought.

nothing could possibly have prepared you for how much ajax cums as it hits your face. your eyes squeeze shut, and every time you expect for him to be done, more spurts hit you.

his moans are unapologetically loud and fizz out into small groans as he fists himself.

eventually you crack your eyes open, glancing up at him as you suckle on his sensitive tip, lapping up any remnants of his cum.

the harbinger shudders, heaving as he looks at you. he’s never felt more glad to be right, the mess on your face spread all the way down to your chest.

it turns him on a little too much knowing he’s the only one who’d ever see you like this.

gently, he pushes you away, standing back from you.

“just know you can put whatever you want on your cute face, but you’ll never be any prettier than you are with my cum on it.” ajax breathes.

you hum appreciatively, blinking slow as you swipe up his cum and taste it. “you taste so good, ‘jax.”

a dark look swarms your boyfriend’s cerulean eyes. “it’s a shame, mila. i’m afraid you’re going to have to cancel your plans,” he grabs you like a ragdoll, tossing you back on your shared bed.

“wha—! what’re you—“

he grins before he licks your cum covered cheek, biting the flesh. “i’m not done having fun with you.”

end note: bro just licked up cum and foundation. i guess when you survive the abyss, you’ll eat anything /hj

[kinichval]

haiiii ;3 can i request kinich and a reader who’s like half siren? like in h20 where when they’re dry they have legs and mualani finds her injured and keeps her in the springs and one night when he goes to see her she’s singer and he like falls in love? i’m not the best with ideas but ignore if you don’t want to lol

hi !! ty for requesting :3 i love the idea so i gave it a shot. i'm not deep into the siren mythology so i switched the lore and tried my best writing this one < 3

"you can't just take in a random stranger in your house just because they're injured, mualani."

"but they were suffering and needed urgent help!"

"then, you should've taken them to the clinic. who knows how severe their injuries are or if they have good intentions."

the conversation of your savior and a stranger stirs you awake from your slumber, eyes fluttering open as your mind gradually processes that it is time to get up. well, maybe if your legs weren't a bit impaired then standing up would've been useful.

except you're not in the best shape as you found yourself tangled in washed-ashore seaweed causing you to trample over rocks and bruising your legs; this means that you can not transform back to your siren appearance (and vice versa if your tail was injured). thank archons, your ridiculous situation ended soon when a kindhearted mualani decided to tend your injuries.

you were honest with your true self with mualani, believing in your instincts that she is as kind as she shows herself to be. like you, she was one with the waters, a soul that's tied to the flow of the oceans and destined to live freely just as the waters liberty to just be.

in the silence of mualani's shelter where you rest and heal, there's the envy creeping up in your heart that you desperately want to repress. but no, it makes itself known for you are not like mualani.

mualani is a free-spirited surfer, an adventurer of the seas; while you were a siren shunned out by society, viewed as a menace and a threat to the land's safety. kill a siren on sight before they destroy your life is what the people would say.

but you do not have the heart to decline her kindness, rather you want to see her heart as a chance to be seen by humans in a different light. because if mualani can, then why can't they?

still, you uphold the value that your mother had instilled in you; there's no point in proving your kindness when they do not believe in your existence. so you remain hidden within the confines of mualani's home, waiting for your injury to subdue until you're able to become siren again.

"kinich, this is yn. yn, this is 'malipo' kinich." mualani introduced you to a trusted friend of hers with enthusiasm high enough to reach the heavens. simply, you give the dendro user a nod and a gentle smile, he returns the gesture with a civil nod of acknowledgement. kinich's reserved attitude is intimidating, given that mualani is the only human you had ever interacted with, you're confused how human relations work and whether the land culture is different from those who reside under the waters.

you trust that mualani hasn't let a word out about your identity, yet it doesn't assure you when you feel the man's skepticism clawing at your skin as if he's ready to capture you the moment he confirms your true nature.

or maybe you're just overthinking.

kinich never intended for his lingering stare to feel like a dagger pointed at your neck, on the contrary, he harbors the curiosity to learn about you. he often finds how his mind wanders off to mualani's newfound friend whenever the usually occupied space in his head is vacant. who is she? why is he so subconsciously adamant on knowing her? only he fails to grasp a clear picture of reason as to why the voices inside his head are telling him to seek at least a fragment of her soul.

"mualani, thank you for taking care of me."

as a parting token, you granted mualani to experience your siren form. the two of you are within the privacy of the springs that only a few ever come to visit under the moonlit night sky.

your heart sinks at the thought of returning back to the deep, uncertain if you shall ever come up to the surface once your clan learns about your predicament knowing that despite you were well taken care of, they will only emphasize the what-ifs and assert the dangers of a siren caught on land.

natlan's springs are peaceful. you requested to have time in the waters for yourself the next night; promising that when morning comes, you are off to return to the ocean where you belong. but right now, you are neither your ascribed identity or whom you want be, you are just part of the waters.

cold air hits your skin, you lightly splash the water with your luminescent tail and softly smile at the quietness. sometimes, the water doesn't have to be constantly flowing, staying still is alright.

in the midst of your solitude, you hum a tune that your mother used to lull you to sleep when you were a young siren. your voice mimics the gentleness of a mother's love, a cradling feeling of tenderness and comfort. slowly, it shifts to a song, your voice becoming louder and alluring.

and just like a serenade, your song had captivated a certain saurian hunter's attention, he stands on the opposite edge of the spring right across where you were situated in. your eyes still closed and immersed in your enchanting euphony.

"i believe i'm not under a spell, but allow me to compliment your melody. may i stay here and listen?"

kinich fixes his composure, hiding the nervousness inside his pocket. but oh, the moonlight acts like a spotlight on your figure, your true nature completely open for him to realize that you are not human at all.

but kinich isn't fazed, neither does he yield the urge to capture you in exchange for the prestige that comes with catching a siren alive.

"are you not afraid?"

instead, you were the one afraid, wrapping your arms around your torso as if it's any help in shield your true form from his green and amber eyes.

"i'm fascinated. you are a beauty."

at this point, kinich does not intend to supress his longing need for you. he's conscious and sober, implying that a siren's song is not all about luring prey into the waters.

sometimes, just like yn, a siren's song is an open book to her innermost thoughts and heartbeat's poems. it doesn't need to hold words for kinich to depict the sentiments carried into the wind as she sings; to be known, to be understood.

"may i stay with you for tonight?"

this time, you wish for the moon to stay in its place, for time to pause, and for kinich to stay in the springs with you.

[seaspringangel]

a place along the flowers — tartaglia

summary: you give your loving boyfriend the greatest birthday gift of all time in a field of flowers.

word count: 1.9k

content warnings: fem!reader ✦ reader wears a dress ✦ childe is called by his birth name ✦ outdoor sex ✦ fingering ✦ biting ✦ creampie ✦ some possessiveness ✦  pet names (love / good girl / baby) ✦ childe is a needy feral freak but that’s why we love him 

notes: belated bday gift for the ginger-haired menace <3

In the summer haze, Ajax laid his head in your lap and breathed you in.

Flowers surrounded the both of you, but to him, you were the meadow's loveliest one, a perfect bloom for his flaming, hungry teeth to tear into.

Because for every berry he ate from your fingers, Ajax was determined to leave behind a small, stinging nip with his teeth, soothing each little nick with nectar-sweetened kisses.

“If you keep on doing that,” you grumbled down at him, his long legs stretched out in the long grass without a care, “I’m shoving these berries down your throat and leaving you here.”

Ajax grinned up at you then, his smile as saccharine as the berry juices staining the corner of his mouth, a celebration of summer blotted much like blood.

“Sorry,” he murmured, but his tone was as light as the summer breeze playing in his hair. “Guess I’m too hungry.”

You squished his face, making his freckles bunch together like a cluster of starry apples. Ajax only peered up at you innocently, his eyes sparkling. He truly was as adorable as he was irritating, and you thought about taking a bite out of him as revenge, but you knew doing that would only thrill him into acting up even more. 

“And annoyingly spoiled. You’re lucky it’s your birthday,” you snapped, but you still dutifully lowered a berry to his lips, waiting. Ajax wasted no time, darting his tongue out and licking the treat from your sticky fingers—no better than a starving dog that wanted nothing more than to shred your flowered dress into pretty ribbons and clutch the ruined tatters as a prize between his salivating teeth. 

But even when your boyfriend acted this greedy, you couldn’t help but feel something unspooling inside you—something syrupy and warm, as if you were laying in a patch of cozy sunlight.

Until you felt his damn teeth nip at you again.

You quickly retreated your fingers from his maw and clamped a hand over his mouth. You glared down at him. “Next birthday, you're getting a muzzle.”

But Ajax knew how to soften you up just as he knew how to agitate you. He pressed a kiss as soft as petals to your palm, and you felt yourself unfurl, warmth spreading sweetly and slowly like honey through your veins. 

Ajax then grabbed your hand and kissed the inside of your wrist, feeling the lively thrum of your pulse against his lips. “And keep me from kissing you everywhere? I didn’t know you could be so cruel.”

You roll your eyes, but that doesn’t stop the blood from rushing to your cheeks; that doesn’t stop him from peppering more kisses on your arm, looking up at you adoringly. “You know, there’s a certain gift you could still give me before it gets dark and we head home…”

Heart fluttering at his suggestion, you watch the sun sink behind the hills, slowly blanketing the world in silky shadow. “And what makes you think you deserve that?” you scoffed.

One second you watched the sky brighten with the glitter of lantern lights; the next second your world was blurring over, and your boyfriend was hovering above you, trapping you beneath him. 

Backlit by the fading golden light, Ajax’s eyes were clouded with devotion and desire for you, bluer than the sky he mounted you under. You felt his hardness against your thigh, felt his cock throb against you, and your stomach became alight with a thousand crystalflies. “I think I can work for it,” he said, smiling down at you and you feel yourself warm instantly.

When Ajax smiled at you, it was like the sun shining beyond the white fleece of clouds. 

Dimpled, warm, and sweet, he had that boyish smile that leaves golden dust over everything like a ray of sunshine, making the day much brighter and your heart so much warmer. 

But he also had a smile that could burn hot enough to start a forest fire—flickering and wild and unrestrained, but still so beautiful that you couldn’t help but lift your palms to feel the scorching heat kiss your flesh. 

When he looked at you with that kind of reverence blacked by the flames of his hunger, you didn’t have the strength to deny him what he wanted; so when he requested to eat berries from the palm of your hand, you indulged him, and when he began to stroke you from your knee up to your thigh with bruising fingers, you let him; and now, when he yanked at the ribbons that tied the bodice of your dress together in his fervent quest to fuck you in the warm, darkening air of the meadow, you had no choice but to grant him his wish.

After all, he was the birthday boy, and who were you to keep the present he yearned for the most away from him?

Ajax's kisses left a fire trail, open-mouthed and searing, from your collarbones to your neck to your lips. You moaned as he roughly palmed your breasts through your dress, and you felt his urgency, his utter hunger, burning beneath his skin like an inferno. 

“I’ve been waiting for this all day,” Ajax groaned against your mouth, a desperate, sultry hymn that made your heart race and heat rush to the aching place between your thighs, already weeping with your desire. “I’ve been wanting you all day.” 

Trapped in the arms of your wild lover, the one who’ll scatter your sweetness among the grass like petals, Ajax tore your dress down, exposing your breasts to his mouth. It was like a feast, with him latching onto one nipple and sucking and biting until it bruised plum purple like the night sky before repeating the same action to the other. Pain and pleasure sparked to life in you like the lantern lights up above, twinkling gemstones encrusting the night sky.

When his fingers slid into you, you gasped into his mouth; his strokes were fast and vicious but electrifying, pushing deep inside of you and hitting that heavenly place that yearned for his brutal caress the most. You felt hot all over as if you had swallowed the sun. But Ajax was the sun, igniting you from within, his touch and kisses spreading like wildfire over your body. You desperately wanted to be consumed; you wanted to be razed down, leaving nothing behind but shifting ash at his feet. 

And you did melt away to nothing beneath him, your vision flashing white and bright when your body shook as you came undone upon his fingers, pearling them with your wetness. You clung to him, trying to catch the breath that he stole. 

“Ajax, please, please,” you whimpered, and Archons above, you wanted him inside you; you wanted him to sink so deeply into you that you didn’t know where he ended and where you began, entwined forever with each other in this hazy summer dream.

Ajax chuckled, nuzzling against the crook of your neck. "Please, what, love? What do you want me to do to you?” 

You were not above begging at this point. “I want you to fuck me, please. I need you.” You ground your hips against him in need, but Ajax just looked down at you, his sunny smile edged with something darker. 

“Wanna clean me up first?” He said, brushing the fingers that were inside of you against your lips, urging your mouth open, your wetness shimmering on them, an opalescent string catching the light from the moon, much like precious dew drops clinging to a flower.

You opened your mouth and took in his fingers, your essence coating your tongue with its husky sweetness. Ajax groaned as he felt your tongue wrap around them, hungrily licking him clean with grazes of your teeth. You were no better than him from moments earlier; you both were wild, wanton things that desired nothing more than to bite the hand that fed you. 

Letting go of him with a lewd pop, Ajax’s fingers were shining bright with your saliva, and he reverently rubbed his lips against them, leaving behind a gleaming shine of your essence on his mouth. 

“Good girl,” Ajax murmured, kissing your forehead softly. “You taste sweeter than berries.” His fingers gently caressed your wet folds, his eyes dark with wonder. “You’re already so wet for me. You want me that badly, huh? Do you know how much I want you?”

He grabbed your hand and pressed it firmly against his crotch, making you feel the hardness of his cock beneath your palm, the precum dampening the fabric of his pants. With his guidance, you unbuckled and pulled down his pants, revealing what you craved most—his cock, red and weeping at the tip, desperate for the sweet relief only you could give him.

Lifting your legs onto his shoulders, Ajax’s grin burned bright, full of ravenous, flaming need. “I want everything to hear how much you want me,” he growled, lining himself up at your entrance. “From the sky to the trees to the flowers, I want everything to hear how much you need me.”

Ajax thrust into you abruptly, roughly, passionately, and you arched your back at the intense pleasure of finally, finally being filled to the point of breaking. His body covered yours, pinning you beneath him like a pressed flower, attempting to envelop you completely.

“You feel so good,” Ajax breathed deliriously against your neck, thrusting as deep as he possibly could into you, bottoming out before pulling back to go even deeper. “You’re so fucking tight.”

His name escaped your lips in strangled gasps as you sank your nails into his shoulder blades, overwhelmed by the warm air licking at your burning flesh, the pleasant friction of the flowers and grass scratching your back beneath you, of Ajax’s cock thrusting ruthlessly into the depths of your slick walls as you rocked against his brutal rhythm. 

The lewd sounds of wet skin against wet skin created a beautiful, sinful harmony with the wind whistling through the trees, filling you with a brightness that outshone the lantern lights sailing through the sky above, a destructive flame roaring to life within as you hurdled toward your climax.

Ajax growled a dark, thundering sound that sent shivers through you, making your walls clench even tighter around him. You could feel he was close, too—his muscles stiffening, his pace becoming more erratic and desperate. 

“Cum, baby, cum,” Ajax breathed in your ear as you babbled incoherently, your stomach tensing and tensing with pleasure, “Let yourself go, I got you, I always got you.”

And so you let yourself become undone. 

Vibrant, blinding colors spotted your vision as your orgasm seared through you, your bones melting away with what was left of your senses. Ajax unraveled too, long ropes of his cum coating your walls in its warmth and he bit down on your shoulder, burying the sounds of his release into your skin as his rutting into you slowed down. 

You vaguely felt the pain, but you might as well be weightless, your soul soaring away with the lanterns floating in the sky.

You felt Ajax’s love weep out of you, dribbling languidly down your thigh, wetting the earth beneath you. Ajax’s face swam into view, lovingly flushed. He collected his seed seeping from you with his fingers, spreading it around on your battered folds. “You’re so beautiful like this,” he whispered, entranced. “Beneath me where you belong, all my cum leaking out of you…”

Through the haze of your vision, you could see your blood blotted on Ajax’s mouth like a crimson cloud, and he licked the ichor from his lips as if were berry juices. 

tags: @tetsuskei ✦ @houseofsolisoccasum ✦ likes and reblogs are very much appreciated, i hope you enjoyed <3

[fanfictwins]

SAGAU Liyue - Holiday Special 2024

Summary: “A Christmas surprise party with a Liyuean twist — the perfect gift planned for you by the two young girls who wanted you to feel more at home. How could you NOT have fun with it?”

Word Count: ~10.4k

The pleasant fragrance of mixed herbs, similar to the bunches of purple and white ones held in your arms, hit your nose as you stepped through the doorway of Bubu Pharmacy, the figures of two small girls by your side. With the variety of medicinal herbs stored within its walls, it was no surprise that it smelled great whenever you visited, no matter whether morning, noon, or night.

“Your Grace…? Why, I certainly hope you’re not here because you require my aid?”

Your gaze rose from the herbs to see Baizhu with a smile on his face, subtle surprise etched into his expression. Changsheng matched his gaze, raising her head up to better look at you.

“Oh, I’m fine, doc. I was just helping Qiqi with her wildcrafting.” You lifted your arms up just so, showing off everything you gathered with a proud smile, as the aforementioned zombie raised her own arms up to place the batch of herbs she collected on the counter. “I had to climb along so many cliffs and mountain peaks, but I got ‘em! I didn’t let a single one I saw go unplucked!”

Baizhu seemed to get more surprised, but it quickly melted into a calmer smile. “You needn’t exert yourself like that, Your Grace, but I thank you for your assistance. It’s much appreciated.”

You handed the herbs to Herbalist Gui, who visibly jolted when your hand brushed against his during the exchange. He excused himself so quickly after that he almost tripped and dropped the bundles everywhere, but managed to get away with everything held tightly in his arms and a flustered look on his face. It wasn’t anything that you weren’t already fully used to at this point.

“Aw, there’s no need to be so formal with me. In fact, if you ever need some rare or hard-to-get ingredient, you can always ask me. It’s no trouble at all! I like helping you and Qiqu out, honest.”

“Hmm… then I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Your Grace, you worked really hard today!” Yaoyao piped up, drawing your attention to her and her bright smile. “I think you deserve a break! We can handle anything else that comes up.”

You lightly exhaled. “Huh? I know I said I did a lot, but I’m actually not that tired-”

“I insist! In fact, I’m sure my master would love to sit down and have tea with you. It’s been some time since you’ve personally visited her, right? She still talks a lot about the last time!”

“I… guess I can go see her, then?” You were still smiling, if a bit confused now, but you waved off the four as you began to leave. “I’ll see you all around. Don’t get into too much trouble, ‘kay?”

The moment you were out of sight, down the pharmacy’s stairs, Yaoyao turned to her friend.

“You got everything written down, right?”

“...mmm, yeah.”

The zombie slowly took out her notebook, flipping it open to the newest page, which was filled with scribbles. Her handwriting made it hard to make out some words, but a closer look made most of them legible enough to read; some of the words were bigger than others, emphasizing their importance, but the biggest one was centered almost in the middle — “Christmas”.

Yaoyao smiled brightly, gently taking the notebook out of Qiqi’s hands and holding it up as she looked at it. “Perfect! Now we can make sure to tell everyone about everything we learned!”

“And what’s this about?” Baizhu peered down at the girls from his spot behind the counter. “Scheming behind Their Grace’s back after getting Them to leave? That’s not very nice.”

Changsheng scoffed. “It’s downright rude!”

“It’s for a good reason! Well… sort of.” Yaoyao turned the notebook around to show the doctor its pages. “While we were gathering herbs, Their Grace started telling us about Their home, and They mentioned this one celebration… “Criss-miss”? That’s how They pronounced it. And, They seemed a bit sad when talking, so I’ve decided that we should throw Them a “Christmas party”!”

Qiqi raised her arms in the air, mimicking Yaoyao. “Party…!”

“Oooh…” There was a hint of interest in Baizhu’s smile. “That sounds quite nice.”

“Yeah, and everyone can help make it a big surprise!” Yaoyao closed the notebook and gave it back to Qiqi. “So forgive me, Dr. Baizhu, but I have to borrow Qiqi for a bit. We’ve a lot to plan!”

“Very well, but stay safe, you two!”

The doctor called out as the two girls set out, hand in hand as they took the first step towards their goal — throwing the Divine Creator a surprise “Christmas party” with the other vessels.

- - - - -

There was always one thing on the top of your to-do list whenever you visited Liyue, and that was making a trip to Wanmin Restaurant. Even when the other restaurants tried to catch your attention, you usually passed them by; they weren’t bad at all, by any means, but there was just something about Wanmin that dragged you back in for a meal whenever you were in the harbor.

And Chef Mao never complained about the big boost of business he got after one of your visits.

“Chef Mao!”

You smiled at the man as you approached, the delicious scents wafting from the restaurant’s kitchen already invading your nostrils from half a street away. You were able to identify some of the restaurant’s dishes by scent alone, but there were also new ones you weren’t familiar with.

“Your Grace, it’s an honor!” Chef Mao smiled at you from his spot behind the counter. “Are you having your usual today? I always stock up on extra ingredients whenever I hear you’re around.”

You let out a long hum. “Maybe… but I’m also feeling kind of adventurous today…”

The sight of a familiar panda-esque bear poking his head out around the corner of the doorway to the kitchen cut off your train of thought, your smile reappearing as you turned towards him.

“Oh, Guoba! Hello!”

The bear flinched at being spotted, hurrying back into the kitchen and leaving you staring at the spot he had just been in. You couldn’t ignore the clanging of metal that soon followed from inside the kitchen, before hearing a familiar voice exclaim, “They’re here?! Right now?!”, which in itself was followed by the restaurant’s head chef stumbling out of the kitchen, Guoba on her heels.

Xiangling looked a bit unkempt, dusting herself off before looking at you with a smile.

“Your Grace, it’s an honor!”

Like father, like daughter.

“Xiangling, are you…” You gave her a once-over, taking note of the various splatters of colorful spices and sauces decorating her from head-to-toe, like an abstract art-piece. “...okay?”

Her smile became sheepish as she followed your gaze, looking down at herself briefly before looking back up at you. “Aha… yeah, I was just… surprised you’re here. I wasn’t expecting it.”

“Oh… sorry for the surprise. I just wanted to get some lunch.”

Xiangling nodded. “Then I’ll get right on that! The usual?”

“Actually, something smells really good in the kitchen. What’re you cooking?”

“Uh, it’s… um… I’m kind of just working something new out, I…”

Xiangling averted her eyes, her gaze looking at everything but you before it ended up on Guoba, asking him for help. The bear lightly flinched, his own eyes widening as he babbled incoherently.

“Oh, Your Grace.”

The cool tone of Shenhe’s voice cut through the air, cutting off Guoba and almost forcing your attention to shift itself over to her. Her hands held a large wooden crate that leaned against her body, the contents no doubt too heavy for any mere mortal to lift despite the ease at which the woman in front of you was handling it, and you watched as she calmly looked at Xiangling.

“Here. I gathered everything you said you might need for your secret dishes.”

That made you look at Xiangling again. “Oooh, secret dishes?”

The head chef looked ready to pass out, before she quickly shook her head and calmed down.

“W-Well, you see…” Xiangling fidgeted before she sighed, only to perk up moments later as an idea entered her head. “Actually, I could use your help. Yaoyao recently told me that you told her about this thing called “Christmas”...? And she mentioned a few dishes that are supposed to be made for it, but I’m struggling to figure them out since all I’ve got are the names of the dishes.”

“You’re… trying to make Christmas dishes?”

Xiangling nodded. “Yep! Because, you know… it’s food from another world! Your world! I’d really like to learn how to make dishes from your home, Your Grace! I’m sure they’re super tasty!”

That made perfect sense to you.

“You don’t need to be nervous asking for help, Xiangling. I’d be glad to give you a hand.”

“Thank you, Your Grace!”

You ended up sitting down at one of the nearby tables — even though it wasn’t necessarily a quiet hour for business, one table quickly became cleared up once you needed it — after your order was made with Xiangling right by your side, the chef eagerly listening as you told her all about some of the more common Christmas dishes that came to your mind between bites of your lunch. You tried your best to explain the dishes as much as you could, sparing no detail.

The variety was wide, from baked ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, candied sweet potatoes… even if you never personally had some of the dishes you listed out, you still named them and described what you had heard they were like.

“Oh, and there’s usually a roasted turkey.”

Xiangling blinked, an interested glimmer in her eyes. “Turkey?”

“Yeah, it’s… a kind of bird. I don’t think Teyvat has anything quite like them, though… oh!” You raised your utensils up, pointing at Xiangling. “There’s this one dish called a “Turducken” that some people have, where you stuff a chicken into a duck, then stuff that duck into a turkey.”

“So it’s a… three-bird roast?”

“Yep!”

“That sounds interesting… and I could do the chicken and duck part, but without a turkey…”

“I think some people use a goose instead of a turkey.” You lightly tapped your chin with your utensils. “Even in my world, turkeys are only available and easy to obtain in certain areas.”

Xiangling thought for a moment, before a smile returned to her face and she nodded.

“Alright, I think I can do that… no, I definitely can do that! I’ll make the best Christmas dishes ever! I can’t wait to try them myself! Thank you so much for all of your help, Your Grace!”

“It’s no problem.” You laid your utensils down on your empty dish, wiping your mouth off with a napkin before you stood up. “I just hope you allow me to taste-test them when you’re done.”

Xiangling let out a slight laugh, looking away nervously. “Y-Yeah, of course you’ll be able to!”

You gave Shenhe a word of thanks as she collected your empty lunch dishes, and gave Chef Mao and Xiangling a hearty wave goodbye as you left, only making it past the neighboring shop before a horde of people rushed by you. You glanced over your shoulder to see them all queuing up at the restaurant, and sighed from knowing that you were the sole reason for the lunch rush.

Xiangling loudly exhaled the moment you were out of sight, her whole body relaxing at the same time. Guoba copied her movements, before smiling up at the young girl and babbling briefly.

“Shenhe!” Xiangling’s cheeks puffed out a bit as she looked up at the tall woman. “Please be more careful! I’m lucky I was able to get some advice out of it and that Their Grace didn’t catch onto the plan, but it would’ve been super bad if They found out! It would’ve ruined the surprise!”

Shehne blinked. “...ah, my apologies, but I did state that your new dishes are a secret, didn’t I?”

“You’re not supposed to say that it’s a secret out loud!”

“Ahem, Xiangling! Shenhe! I could use a little help here!”

The two ladies — and Guoba — looked over to see Chef Mao overwhelmed at the restaurant’s counter. They could hear most of the customers asking for “what the Divine Creator ordered”.

“Sorry, dad! We’ll be right on it!”

Xiangling and Guoba hurried back into the kitchen, the clanging of metal starting up again as they began to prep food to serve, and Shenhe returned to the dining area to clean the tables so that some of the customers would have a place to sit when dining on the day’s “popular dish”.

Chef Mao sighed. “...and this is why I make sure to order extra ingredients.”

- - - - -

Even with many pairs of eyes staring at you for almost the entire time you were passing by, walking around Liyue Harbor was usually a peaceful and pleasant experience; the stares you received from the locals were mostly of awe, and they never tried to get into your actual space, instead always keeping a respectful distance that allowed your walk to go without a hindrance.

But those were just the behaviors of the normal folk.

Your vessels were of a completely different sort.

“Your Grace…!”

You had been strolling near the docks, admiring the ships out at sea, only to look in front of you to see Xinyan — who had called out to you — and Yun Jin coming to a stop before you. The two had to take a minute to catch their breath, Xinyan even having to place her hands on her knees.

“Xinyan? Yun Jin?” You looked between the two performers with a concerned frown on your lips, your eyebrows furrowed. “Are you two alright? Why were you running? Is something wrong…?”

The rocker stood up straight with a smile on her face, shaking her hands out as she shook her head. “It’s nothing bad, Your Grace. Whew, I just finished up a real blazin’ performance, so-”

“Halt!”

Your head swiveled in the direction of the shout, seeing the two girls follow suit from the corner of your eye, just to see a couple of Millelith soldiers with gazes solely focused on Xinyan. They came to a stop next to you and the performers, not having to catch their breath like the latter.

The rocker frowned. “Shoot.”

The two soldiers stared Xinyan down, one tapping his polearm on the ground. “Miss Xinyan, you have been charged with multiple fire code violations. You can’t just keep running away from us.”

“The only thing that got burned was the stage I built myself…”

“That’s not an excuse. Someone still could have gotten hurt.”

“Oh, okay… that makes sense.” You smiled at Xinyan. “You were running from the law, huh?”

The sound of your voice, your tone a bit amused, made the soldiers finally take notice of your presence, and the way they were taken aback to realize that it was you made your smile grow just a little bit more. Their eyes went wide, and they seemed to lose any and all strength in their stances — if only for a moment before they corrected themselves, their faces now a light pink.

“Ack- the Divine Creator?”

The soldiers fumbled with their weapons before bowing to you.

“Forgive us for not acknowledging you, Your Grace. It was rude of us!”

“It’s not a big deal, guys. You two are just doing your jobs, focusing on handling crime-”

Your attention briefly shifted itself back to Xinyan, who was clearly trying to tell you something through just her gaze and body posture. Her head made wide turns as she looked between you and the Millelith soldiers, the sparkle in her eyes conveying a plea as dramatic as a rock opera.

“BUT…! You can leave Xinyan to me.”

The rocker pumped a fist at your words, smiling wide once you received her signal.

“I’m sure you have more important matters that take precedence over this situation? I can make sure that Xinyan receives a punishment befitting her fire code violations. Consider it dealt with.”

The soldiers blinked a few times, before glancing at each other.

“Is… is that allowed?”

“It’s the Divine Creator. They should be able to handle it… right?”

They looked back at you after a quiet moment of deliberation amongst themselves, giving you a nod in affirmation. “Very well. We shall leave this matter in your capable hands, Your Grace.”

You continued to smile as you watched the soldiers hesitantly leave, casting glances over their shoulders at you before they disappeared out of your sight, before you looked at the performers.

“...I’m surprised that that worked. I didn’t think they’d accept that I have any authority for this.”

“But it’s a good thing it did!” Xinyan smiled. “Thanks for helping me out, Your Grace!”

Yun Jin hummed as her head tilted. “What kind of punishment would you even give Xinyan?”

You thought for a moment, putting a finger on your chin, before you smiled again.

“Eternal banishment?”

“Aw, shucks.” Xinyan continued to smile brightly, even as faux disappointment laced itself into her voice and a small chuckle escaped her lips. “Ain’t that just a bit too harsh, Your Grace?”

You snorted, rolling your eyes before focusing on the rocker again. “I suppose so. Just be more careful, okay? I doubt you’d actually end up hurting someone during a performance, but still.”

“Since you’re the one saying to, Your Grace…”

You shared another small laugh with Xinyan before noticing Yun Jin perk up, her eyes widening as if she had just had a sudden thought, and you found her red eyes looking right into your eyes.

“Oh, Your Grace, if you have the time, we actually require some of your help-”

“Well, now, what’s with all the commotion here?”

With the suddenness of a cheap indie jumpscare, a familiar figure popped up from between your little trio, springing onto her feet with her usual smile plastered on her face. The question of when she had snuck so close was wholly forgotten as Xinyan, Yun Jin, and you reacted appropriately.

“Wha- Hu Tao!” You clutched a hand to your chest. “Are you trying to give us all heart attacks?”

“Oh, no, no no! It’s far too early for you three!” The unwavering smile of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor director did little too soothe you, especially when she winked. “But… if you’re ever feeling unwell, Your Grace, I hope you’ll choose our humble business to make your exit a smooth one!”

“Director Hu, I highly doubt Their Grace will require our services anytime in the near future.”

“Hehe, you can never know~!”

The director was, of course, accompanied by the parlor’s consultant. His golden gaze moved from his boss to you, a hint of fondness softening the stoic expression displayed on his face.

“Zhongli!” You smiled at the sight of the consultant, Yun Jin and Xinyan greeting him with a bow and a wave respectively. “Am I to assume you two are currently on another advertising kick?”

“Yep, yep!” Hu Tao nodded. “New clients are always guaranteed, but we still must make sure all potential clients know exactly where all their farewell needs will be dealt with the proper respect.”

You hummed before looking at Zhongli. “And how many future clients have you two convinced?”

“The director… managed to get plenty of attention towards our business.”

Hu Tao playfully laughed. “Hey now, only time will tell how many clients take up our offer.”

You snorted and shook your head. “You… are certainly a handful, Hu Tao.”

“Mmm-hmm! But enough about me! What’s been going on with you three? While passing by, I couldn’t help but notice that you three all seemed to be having quite an interesting time together.”

“Just saving Xinyan from the Millelith, I suppose- oh!” You swiveled on your heel to face Yun Jin once more. “Right, you were asking for my help with something? What do you need from me?”

Yun Jin perked up again, seeming to remember she was about to request something before the shock of the funeral parlor’s staff arrival interrupted her, and nodded. “That’s right, Your Grace. I was just going to ask you about… I believe it’s called “Christmas” music? Yaoyao told us about it recently, and we were interested in learning more about it. We hoped that you’d help with that.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah!” Xinyan sported a brief look of confusion on her face before she also nodded, a smile appearing on her lips. “It sounds mighty interesting, Your Grace! I’d love to learn enough to perform music from your world! I’m sure there're plenty of rockin’ tunes you could tell us about.”

It took you a moment to process what they had said.

“You guys… want to learn about Christmas music?”

“Oooh!” Hu Tao leaned over your shoulder. “Music from Their Grace’s world? Count me in!”

Your gaze moved between the three ladies — the rocker, the opera singer, and the poet — who all stared back at you with interested gazes, before it flickered over to Zhongli, whose demeanor was more alert than it usually was around you… which you honestly should have expected; that he of all people would be interested in learning more about you in any capacity was no surprise.

“Uh… I guess I can teach you guys the songs I know? But don’t expect me to write down any of the melodies or anything. I have no skills in musical notation, especially if it’s just from memory.”

Xinyan waved her hand in dismissal. “You can just sing them for us, Your Grace.”

“Wha- wait, what? Me, sing?”

“To hear the Divine Creator sing…” Zhongli mused to himself, arms crossed with a finger held up to his chin. “...that would be quite the honor. It would make Glaze Lilies full-bloom, no doubt.”

You let out a weak laugh. “I-I’m not too sure about that…”

“Aw, come on, come on!” Hu Tao grabbed onto your shoulder, leaning in even closer, her face inches from your own. “Some people would find the chance to hear you sing worthy to die for!”

You took in a sharp inhale as you practically felt the hopes and expectations emitting from the four people around you, and eventually let out a long sigh, your shoulders coming to a slump.

“...fine, but how about we all go somewhere… not so public first?”

- - - - -

The two blue-haired boys in front of you each had a different expression on their face, one of which was a look of concern — though he was clearly trying to keep himself cool at the same time — while the other was fighting to hide the subtle hints of a smirk creeping onto his lips.

Your own face was a perfect display of confusion. “I… I’m sorry? What is this about?”

“Your Grace, I’ve heard rumors of a… a “Christmas” demon! But I’m unfortunately without any knowledge on what type of fiend it may be. I’m going to require your assistance to exorcise it.”

You stared at the young exorcist in front of you for a few seconds before looking to the second son of the Feiyun Commerce Guild, catching him hiding his laughter and disguising a snort that escaped as a cough with a closed fist over his mouth, and you slowly furrowed your eyebrows.

…that explains it.

“Well-” You looked at Chongyun again. “-the only Christmas “demon” I know of is “Krampus”.”

Chongyun raised a hand to his chin. “Such a sinister name… please, can you tell me everything you know about it? I must know as much as I can about the fiend in order to be able to stop it.”

“It kind of depends on who you ask, but, basically, Krampus is a demon who punishes naughty children around the time Christmas is celebrated. You know… the kind of children who cause a lot of trouble for other people, who misbehave and don’t play nice, who lie for no good reason.”

You glanced at Xingqiu, who had gone still with an almost worried smile at your expression.

“He’s covered in dark hair, has horns and hooves and fangs, and a long pointed tongue — oh, and he carries around chains, I think? Sometimes with bells. The punishments he doles out on bad children are stuff like swatting them on the butts with branches… or snatching them away in a basket to who-knows-where. To drown them or eat them… or something along those lines.”

“That… that’s horrible!” Chongyun appeared to actually get a bit heated as you spoke, his hands clenching into tight fists in front of his chest. “I must make sure to stop it before it hurts anyone!”

“Whoa there, Chongyun. Calm down and have a popsicle, ‘kay?” You let your lips curve up into a smile, and put a hand on the exorcist’s shoulder. “Krampus sure is a horrible guy and all… but he’s also fictional; just a character that parents tell their children about to make them behave, to teach them lessons about being nice and stuff. He’s not actually real — well, not that I know of, anyway — and, even if he was, he wouldn’t be anywhere in Teyvat. He’d be stuck in my world.”

Chongyun’s breathing was heavy, his face already flushed, but he managed to take one of his popsicles out and bite into it to calm himself. “Ugh, Your Grace… you could’ve started with that.”

“I know, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.” You let go of Chongyun’s shoulder. “But how’d you even hear about Krampus? I don’t think I’ve told anyone about him before right now with you two.”

“Xingqiu told me about it.”

The guilty party put his hands up in defense as you looked at him. “H-Hey, I was just having a little fun. I honestly had no idea that there was actually a demon associated with Christmas.”

“An unlucky guess then, huh?” You paused for a moment. “...but how’d you even hear about Christmas? Did Yaoyao tell you about it too? It seems like the talk of the harbor nowadays…”

That innocent line of questioning had a greater chilling effect than his popsicle, it seemed, as Chongyun froze at the moment. Xingqiu stepped in and quickly pushed his friend aside, your hand leaving the exorcist’s shoulder to linger in the air. “She did inform us of it, yes. It sounds like a quaint holiday, so it makes sense that a child such as herself would want to tell everyone she knows about it. I admit, it has even perked my interest too, from everything I’ve been told.”

“...huh, that’s nice. I’m glad everyone seems to be enjoying the concept.”

There was something off about all this, but not in a bad way, so you brushed it off for now.

Xingqiu nodded as he continued to smile at you happily. “But now that that’s settled, we should get going. I’m sure you’ve got a busy schedule, Your Grace. We wouldn’t want to hold you up.”

Chongyun blinked, coming back to reality. “Ah, wait-”

“Tsk, Chongyun, you’re still all red. You should have another popsicle.”

The exorcist didn’t get a chance to speak again before Xingqiu stuffed another tasteless frozen treat into his mouth, the latter then hurriedly pushing his flustered friend away down the street.

“It was pleasant to speak with you, Your Grace!”

The two boys soon disappeared into the distance, leaving you standing there alone.

“Uh… bye, I guess?”

- - - - -

Another day, another surprise.

You blinked a few times, making sure that the lady you were looking at was actually there. You didn’t exactly have a history of having hallucinations, but everything had been… bizarre this last week or so, and it wouldn’t hurt you to just check that you were still all there up in your noggin.

“Lady Ningguang?”

“Your Grace, what a pleasant surprise.”

The Tianquan was calm, politely greeting you with a soft smile on her lips, a smile reserved for you and you alone. Her being was a living display of high-class status, the epitome of luxury…

…and she was currently just hanging out at the docks.

You were not someone who could criticize her for it, though; for some people, it was odd for you to be hanging around Liyue Harbor’s docks so casually, as no one really expected to see one of the gods they worshiped watching the ships or examining the goods of incoming, docked ships.

“Uh… so, what’re you doing here? Taking in the ocean breeze?”

Ningguang chuckled. “I simply have business to discuss with Beidou. It’s nothing of concern, but is important enough that I have decided to come see her myself as soon as she arrives.”

“Wait, the Alcor is docking soon?” You perked up, your gaze glancing between the water and Ninguang, who looked at the water herself. “Wow, my timing’s great! Mind if I wait with you?”

“I’d see it as an honor, Your Grace.”

You got into position beside Ningguang, leaning forward slightly as you looked out at the ships sailing across the nearby waters. The operation at the harbor was always so smooth, orderly, and satisfying — you were embarrassed to admit how much time you had spent just lingering around the docks whenever you visited Liyue, being a bystander to the comings and goings of the ships and the people working here. This time, however, you were trying to focus on spotting the Alcor among the other seacraft, assuming its distinct design would stand out among them.

The moment was quiet, aside from the waves and workers, until Ningguang spoke again.

“Your Grace, I’m planning to do a bit of decorating around the Jade Chamber.”

“Oh?”

“I was thinking about adding a tree.”

You paused for a few seconds, before slowly looking at Ningguang. “A… tree?”

“Yes, a tree. Would you have any suggestions for the type?”

Wow.

You suddenly forgot about every tree you have ever known about.

“Ah, hmm… well, it’s your Jade Chamber. You should choose whichever tree you prefer. I know you’ve got good taste, and will be able to fit anything you choose into your amazing aesthetics.”

“I should choose, you say…? Very well.”

You soon settled back into a comfortable silence, continuing to wait on the docks with subdued excitement pumping through your veins, before finally catching the sight of the Alcor making its way over to the docks. It took a while for the ship to actually dock, having to navigate around the multiple others nearby, but the moment that it had, Ningguang and you made your way over to it.

You passed by some of the crew members unloading various types of cargo, before seeing the captain of the ship walk down the gangplank, who smiled when she saw you and the Tianquan.

“The Tianquan AND Their Grace are here to greet me? Something serious must be up, huh?”

“Oh, no, nothing like that!” You smiled. “I just got lucky to be here as you got back.”

“Haha, you flatter me, Your Grace. I’d typically consider myself the lucky one.”

Ningguang shook her head just slightly, her expression more reserved than yours. “Although it’s not of any major concern, I do have something to discuss with you, Captain Beidou. Shall we?”

“Huh, alright.”

Beidou gave you a nod as she walked off with Ningguang to talk, the two women leaving you on your own. You found yourself curious about what they could be talking about, but figured it would be rude to try and eavesdrop or force yourself into the conversation; that, and your attention was finding itself quickly caught by something — or, rather, someone — else that you noticed nearby.

“Kazuha!”

The lips of the wandering samurai turned up into a smile after he heard you call out to him, your form practically bouncing over to him. His eyes followed your movements as he turned to you.

“Greetings, Your Grace.” He gave you a polite nod. “You appear to be in good spirits.”

You waved your hand to the side, before letting it fall to your side in a loose fist. “Aw, I’m always happy to see you. It’s probably impossible to not be; actually, no, it definitely is impossible.”

Kazuha let out a soft chuckle, his shoulders bouncing with the tiniest movements. “Your words today are as warm as the mid-afternoon sun, Your Grace. I’m glad. How have you been lately?”

“Mmm… normal, I guess. Though it feels like something fishy is going on around the harbor.”

“Oh…?”

You held back a snicker. “Get it? Fishy? But, really, I feel like something’s up.”

“That’s troubling. I can lend you my assistance if you desire?”

“Huh? Oh, no!” You waved your hands in front of yourself, your eyes widening just a bit as you continued to smile. “I’m sure it’s nothing big, and, besides, I wouldn’t want to bog down our time together with worries. I don’t see you often enough since you’re always on the road, traveling.”

“Ah, of course. If you’d like to hear it, I’ve come up with some new poetry since we last met.”

“Oooh! Then go ahead and bless my ears, Kazuha.”

The hustle and bustle of the docks faded away as you chatted with Kazuha, intently listening to each and every one of the poetic words falling from his mouth. You even tried coming up with a few poems yourself, but it was difficult to do it on the fly; the praise Kazuha gave your attempts kept you from being discouraged, though some of the metaphors you tried to use felt a lot more poetic in your mind than when you said them out loud. You were in the middle of thinking up how to describe a certain line in your next masterpiece when you realized a lot of time had passed.

You felt a presence approach from the side, and looked up to see Beidou standing there.

Ningguang was nowhere to be found when you gave your surroundings a quick once-over, her elegant presence absent from the nearby crowds, and that meant she must have left long ago.

The captain looked between you and Kazuha, her smile apologetic when her gaze stopped on you. “Sorry, Your Grace, but I have something to talk about with Kazuha. Hope you don’t mind.”

“Hmm? Oh, well… that’s fine. I should probably be going anyhow. See you around!”

You bid the two farewell, seeing them respond in kind, and started walking away from them.

Beidou kept her eye on you until you were completely gone, and she turned to Kazuha.

“Okay, so, there’s this thing called “Christmas”...”

- - - - -

“Please accept my offering, o’ great adeptus, and bless me with your presence this quiet night.”

“...you don’t have to do that, Your Grace.”

The evening air was cool, gentle breezes rolling in from the distance and brushing against you where you stood on the highest balcony in Wangshu Inn. The lanterns from inside and hanging by the doorway cast a warm glow outwards, giving the balcony a cozy atmosphere despite how it faced the dark landscapes of Bishui Plain, the warm hues of the land hidden within shadows.

Your hands held tightly onto a plate of Almond Tofu — expertly and lovingly crafted by your own hands, you were proud to admit — as you smiled at the familiar figure that appeared before you, the sight of the inn’s resident adeptus never failing to bring you joy. The dim lighting made it hard to tell, as well as his usual distant demeanor, but you swore that he was looking a little flustered.

“Aww, why not? Everyone else does it.”

Xiao crossed his arms over his chest. “But you’re not “everyone else”.”

“Hmph.” You pouted, extending your arms out to present the Almond Tofu to him. “Here, you can at least take this. I made it special, just for you. I worked hard to learn the recipe, from the best.”

He stared down at the plate in your hands for a few seconds, before he slowly uncrossed his arms and carefully took it from you. The adeptus continued to stare at the food you prepared while you stared at him, the faintest hint of a blush on his cheeks — you internally cursed to yourself about the lack of decent lighting in this moment — before he finally took the first bite.

You spent just a moment watching Xiao carefully savor your expert culinary craftsmanship, and then looked out at the water and shadowed silhouettes of the nearby mountains, leaning yourself against the wooden railing of the balcony. The wood was cold and rough within your tight grip.

“...you know, everyone’s been acting really strange lately. Not in a bad way, but still.”

Your lips parted as you sighed, adjusting your arms to have your elbows on the railing.

“Even the other adepti are being weird. I tried to visit Cloud Retainer in Liyue Harbor, but Shuyu told me that she was really busy, even though she’s normally willing to take a break to chat with me whenever I drop by. Don’t even ask me how the other two are doing, I spent a good amount of time looking around their domains but wasn’t able to find them. It just feels like… like I’m being left out of something; like everyone is hiding something from me. Something that feels… major.”

You turned your head to look at Xiao. “Would you have any idea why?”

The adeptus briefly paused, his gaze meeting yours after having seemingly moved to you while you were talking, before wiping off the almond tofu around his mouth with the back of his hand.

“I…”

He hesitated, his eyes shifting away from you.

- - -

“As one of the Divine Creator’s vessels, you HAVE to come.” Hu Tao had a wide smile on her lips, her hands clenched together into tight fists in front of her chest. “Besides, it’ll be totally fun!”

The adeptus looked uncertain, his gaze shifting to the man accompanying the funeral director.

Zhongli met Xiao’s eyes with a soft smile, giving him a nod as well. “Indeed. Their Grace seems to also be quite fond of this “Christmas” business. It would be a shame if you did not participate.”

“Yeah, yeah!” Hu Tao nodded frantically, bouncing into the space between the adeptus and her consultant to direct the attention back to herself. “Come on…! It’ll only be the other vessels and adepti there. There’s no need to be all cautious and standoffish about it, so what do you say…?”

Xiao still looked conflicted, his eyebrows furrowed, before soon letting out a sigh.

“...very well. For the Divine Creator’s sake.”

Hu Tao clapped her hands. “Yay!”

“Just make sure to keep it a secret from Their Grace, if you end up encountering Them before then.” Zhongli looked pleased with Xiao’s answer, although he was much calmer than his boss was. “It’s supposed to be a “surprise party”, so try to avoid spoiling its existence at all costs.”

The adeptus nodded, crossing his arms.

“Got it.”

- - -

You couldn’t say for sure what exactly was going on inside Xiao’s head, but the expression on his face made it look like he was having some kind of internal war with himself, a struggle with the proverbial “rock and a hard place” that left him not looking forward to picking either option he was presented with. This was probably the most readable his feelings had ever been to anyone.

“Uh… hey, you don’t have to answer, Xiao.”

The adeptus appeared to snap back to reality, blinking as he looked at you.

You slightly smiled as you pushed yourself off of the railing. “I can kind of assume what’s going on. I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't going crazy and seeing something out of nothing.”

Xiao’s lips parted, the softest exhale leaving them. “...I can’t lie to you, Your Grace.”

“Then just don’t say anything.”

You winked at him, your tongue sticking out from your lips. “And you should be busy eating the Almond Tofu I made you, anyways. It’s rude to speak while your mouth’s full, don’tcha know?”

Xiao briefly glanced back down at the plate in his hands, before he nodded.

“...okay.”

- - - - -

“Your presence is requested at the Jade Chamber.”

That was what you were told, but you weren’t able to think of any important reason of why that might be. You had always made sure to greatly distance yourself to the extreme from anything major regarding Liyue’s leadership — no political decision-making or “ruling with an iron fist” for you, even if some folks acted like your word was the single most important thing in all of Teyvat.

The Yuheng and the general secretary both knew that about you very well.

“Is… it for something important? Or does Ningguang just want to, like… play chess with me?”

Ganyu and Keqing shared a brief look with each other, before the former looked back at you, a bit of a nervous frown now on her lips. “It’s… nothing bad, but you should go see for yourself.”

“Here.” Keqing gestured for you to follow after her. “We can escort you.”

You looked down at Keqing’s hand for just a moment, before everything clicked.

The stranger-than-usual behavior of everyone lately… the random-but-very-frequent mentions of Christmas… and now you being requested to such a place as the Jade Chamber practically out of the blue. You even thought about how you couldn’t find a single one of the vessels around the harbor today, despite how you walked through the entire city front-to-back and back-to-front and side-to-side, checking each and every nook and cranny with the hope of finding someone.

You smiled.

“Oh, no, that’s okay. I can get us there quicker.”

You grabbed Keqing’s outstretched hand, the warm hue of her face matching Ganyu’s after you had grabbed the half-qilin’s hand too. Your grip was gentle but firm as you stood between them.

“You- Your Grace…”

“H-Hey, wait-!”

Within seconds, you heard the familiar teleporting sound resonate inside your head before you and your two current companions were warped up onto the platform of the Jade Chamber…

…only to hear a muffled thud accompanying a sudden cold, wet sensation that landed on you.

It felt like a worse version of getting an ice cube put down the back of your shirt.

The powdery substance slid off of the upper-half of your face after you blinked your eyes a few times, which revealed to you that what had just covered you was a thick blanket of snow, and it had also trapped Keqing and Ganyu, turning you three into vaguely self-shaped snow mounds.

You were completely befuddled at this situation.

Snow? At this time of year, in this part of Liyue, localized entirely within the Jade Chamber?

You attempted to shift around, eventually managing to catch sight of the cause of the surprise snowfall. There was a strange machine that almost resembled a snowblower from your world, water being poured into one end and snow coming out of an upwards-chute-like exit located on the other end. The snow coming out now fell softly to the ground, unlike what had just hit you.

The one who created the device crossed her arms, pushing her glasses up slightly.

“Hmph. If the Divine Creator wishes for it to snow, then one shall make it snow.”

“Wow, Aunty Cloud Retainer! You’re amazing!”

Yaoyao looked up at the adeptus with awe, clapping her hands with a bright smile.

You continued to look around — as much as you could in your new form as a snowman — and saw several others lingering about the area, all of which had been mysteriously missing today.

The musicians and performers were all gathered near a small stage that had been set up, doing last-minute checks and practice from what you could tell. You took a few moments to take in the sight of it before you snapped out of your thoughts and focused to hear them through the snow.

Gaming shook his hands out, Man Chai following his lead and shaking his whole body out. “Aha, I’ve been practicing for days and everything, but I’m still getting so nervous all of a sudden…”

“Pre-show jitters, huh?” Xinyan stood on the stage, fiddling with her guitar as she looked down at the Wushou dancer with a slight, unsure smile. “Can’t help but have them myself right now too.”

Yun Jin walked across the stage, her head tilted up to check the decorations hanging up. “Their Grace is so kind, there shouldn’t be any reason to worry… but I can understand the feeling.”

“Hey, hey, just don’t get so nervous you have a heart attack.” Hu Tao had the only smile near the stage free of hesitation. “The business would be nice, but it would be way too inconvenient now.”

There was another section where a buffet had been laid out, Xiangling hovering over the spread with her gaze flickering around to all the various dishes, almost like she was looking for anything that needed any last-minute adjustments made. Guoba stood on a chair next to the chef, putting his paws on the edge of the table as he looked between the dishes and at her with a happy aura.

“I had to make a few guesses here and there about the recipes, even with the advice from Their Grace…” Xiangling furrowed her brows before letting out a sigh. “I hope They like everything.”

“I’m sure They will.” Madame Ping had a gentle smile on her face as she glanced at the food the young chef had prepared. “It all looks and smells absolutely wonderful, there’s no doubt about it.”

Beidou nodded and chuckled. “Now, this is what I call a feast! You outdid yourself, Xiangling!”

“It all sure looks… interesting.”

Yanfei tilted her head, her eyes moving down along the long buffet table as she spoke.

“I… I’m having trouble making out what some of these dishes are, though.”

Xiangling smiled at the reassurances. “Oh, don’t worry. I can explain everything, if you’d like.”

Your attention, however, was soon captured by the main centerpiece of the whole occasion: a beautiful Sandbearer tree decorated with lanterns of all colors, all organized to create the most breathtaking sight you had seen all day. There were actually a lot of lanterns hanging around all over, now that you were conscious of their presence; it almost resembled Lantern Rite, in a way.

Well, a Lantern Rite that was being held on a very miniature scale.

“This is very pleasant.” Kazuha looked up at the tree, his hand over his chest. “I never imagined that a “Christmas tree” would look like this. It brings to the mind a kaleidoscope of Crystalflies.”

Ningguang had her arms crossed, also standing nearby to admire the tree she had put up and decorated to a degree befitting her luxurious aesthetics. “I was informed that the tree was to be decorated in lights and ornaments. I believe Their Grace will be quite pleased with the result.”

“Their Grace has some intriguing traditions from Their world.” Zhongli placed a hand to his chin in thought, his eyes briefly breaking away from the tree. “No wonder They spoke of it so highly.”

By this point, you were getting cold. Way too cold. So cold you felt stiff.

You shook the snow off as you took in a deep breath.

“Okay, that was an experience…”

“Your Grace?!”

You felt two dozen pairs of eyes land on your form as everyone’s head snapped towards your direction, the sound of your voice might as well having been a siren to their ears — your arrival had been expected to be normal, after taking the long route instead of the shortcut you chose to take instead, with some semblance of warning. You smiled bashfully, pulling a now-unconscious Ganyu and Kequing out of their snow piles since you were still holding their hands all this time.

“Hehe… guess I’m not the only one surprised at this surprise party, then?”

- - - - -

Today was the day you discovered how good Guoba and Man Chai made for living Warmies, your once-shivering and soaked body able to warm up and dry off after only a short but sweet cuddle session with them. The party couldn’t start until you were comfortable, after all… as well as until Keqing and Ganyu finally regained consciousness and also got themselves warmed up.

…and the start was unforgettable.

“Behold, Your Grace-”

Truly unforgettable.

“-for one has donned the appearance of a Christmas hero spoken of in tales from your home.”

There, standing in front of you, were some of the adepti, and although the three ladies and Xiao were in their human forms at the party, the other two men were not. That included Moon Carver, the one who had spoken to you first when they approached, who proudly stood in front of you in his stag form… with a glowing red nose — likely made possible by adepti magic, you assumed.

You briefly recalled telling Yaoyao and Qiqi about some stories related to Christmas, which, of course, included “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”. Turning slightly away for a moment, you raised a hand to cover the smile slowly growing on your lips as you tried to calm yourself down.

“Yeaaah…” Your voice wavered, you being unable to stop your eyes glancing to and from Moon Carver. “Christmas would’ve been cancelled if not for Rudolph. He’s a… a true hero, alright…”

The snort that slipped from your lips went unnoticed by Moon Carver, the adeptus preening at your approval. The planned festivities luckily continued on before you actually started laughing.

- - - - -

They had only had about a week to prepare, but the musical performance was probably one of the, if not the, best thing you had ever witnessed in your life; most everyone had gathered into a crowd in front of the stage as Xinyan, Hu Tao, and Gaming took their places in the spotlight. You were almost too enamoured with the show to notice how Yun Jin occasionally snuck a couple of glances at you from her spot in the crowd next to you, a smile growing on her lips at your own.

The musicians had taken the songs that you told — or, rather, sang to — them and used them as inspiration to come up with a brand-new Christmas song, complete with Xinyan’s rock guitar and Hu Tao’s iconic rapping. Gaming had even created a special routine to go along with all of it.

“Bravo!” You clapped your hands frantically after the performance finished, a whoop escaping your lips as you cheered. “That was… incredible! I loved it! I’ve never seen anything like it!”

The sense of relief that left the performers’ bodies was noticeable, their forms relaxing as your praise finally casted away all of the tension that had plagued them from their pre-show nerves.

“I’m glad, Your Grace.” Yun Jin smiled. “We only had so much time, but we worked really hard.”

“I can tell.” Your cheeks hurt a little from how much you were smiling, and you tilted your head. “I hope I get to see it again someday. That was way too good to be just a one-time performance.”

Gaming let out a chuckle, a sense of weariness in his tone. “I’d be happy to dance for you again, Your Grace. Just… I still need a moment to calm down from the excitement of the first time.”

“Oh-ho! But I’m ready for round two right now!” Hu Tao pumped her fists as she snickered. “I knew Their Grace couldn’t resist my excellent rhyming skills! I could do this all day, any day!”

Xinyan adjusted her grip on her guitar as she looked back at the stage they performed on. “Uh, I think we may have gone a little overboard with the pyrotechnics, though… even for me, heh…”

You followed the rocker’s gaze to the stage, seeing that it… kind of didn’t exist anymore, with all that remained being a stage-shaped pile of charred wood. Given that three Pyro users had used it for their performance, where they had turned up the heat to give you the show of a lifetime, you should have expected this, especially considering Xinyan’s track record with this sort of thing.

You couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

“Yeah, okay, I think one performance is enough for today, then.”

- - - - -

“Wow, I didn’t know you had such an appetite, Your Grace.”

Xiangling’s eyes were wide as she looked at your plate, which was piled high with servings from the buffet. There was a little of everything, as you wanted to try all of the different dishes that had been prepared by the chef; some looked traditional, and very close to what you had described to her about, while others clearly had creative choices made during their creation. There were also some traditional Liyue dishes being offered — considering how many people were present at the party, Xiangling really made sure that there would be enough food for everyone to have their fill.

You held your plate carefully in front of you. “I can’t help it. Everything looks so good.”

It appeared that many others also held the same opinion, almost everyone filling up their plates with various dishes from the buffet. There were plenty of options; everyone could eat something.

“What is this…?” Ganyu observed a red jam-like substance in one of the bowls, tapping it gently with the small spoon that was provided for folks to scoop it. “It smells like some kind of fruit…?”

“Ah, that’s Valberry sauce!” Xiangling piped up and moved over to the half-qilin. “Their Grace mentioned a dish made with this type of berry called a “Cranberry”, so I had to find a similar substitute. You should be able to eat it, Miss Ganyu. It doesn’t contain any animal products.”

“What I’m more interested in is that!” Beidou pointed to what-could-be-considered the main dish of the whole spread, her eye and smile both wide. “Now that looks like something real special.”

Xiangling smiled as she made her way over to the captain. “That’s a three-bird roast called a “gooducken”. It’s a chicken inside of a duck inside of a goose. I had to do a lot to get it right.”

Beidou let out a long hum. “Oooh, that sounds impressive! I’ll have a big portion, then!”

“I should try something new too…” Keqing looked between her plate and the buffet, a small frown coming to her face. “...but all that I’ve got on my plate is Golden Shrimp Balls so far…”

“Ah! Chongyun! Qiqi! The cold dishes are over here.” Xiangling directed the two over to one side of the buffet table, waving them over while gesturing to the dishes. “There’s plenty for you to try.”

“Here, I’ll help!” Yaoyao scooped food onto Qiqi’s plate. “This looks good. Make sure to eat it all!”

“Okay.”

Chongyun held his plate away from Xingqiu, his eyes shifting between his friend and the food he was putting onto his plate. “Please don’t try to sneak anything spicy onto my plate this time.”

“Why, I would never.” Xingqiu chuckled, a hand held up in defense. “What a random accusation.”

“Your Grace…” Baizhu eyed your plate as you took a seat next to him, his gaze scanning all of the generous portions you served yourself. “I’m not entirely knowledgeable on how much a god can eat, but make sure not to overstuff yourself. I can’t imagine it’d be good for your stomach.”

“I’ll try, but I can’t make any promises!”

And after stuffing yourself full of Xiangling’s cooking, it felt like a happy mistake in the end.

- - - - -

The party was going well so far; after the performance and initial serving of food, it was nice to see everyone mingling together and having fun. You scanned the area, taking in the groups that the characters formed amongst themselves, before refocusing your attention back on what you were doing: being busy at the “Winter Weather Device” Cloud Retainer built for the occasion.

And snow was actually a lot more pleasant when you weren’t buried under a heavy blanket of it.

“Shenhe, if I ever get into a snowball fight, I’m recruiting you to my team.”

The woman stared at you, seriously. “I would slay all your foes if need be, Your Grace.”

“Aha… snowball fights aren’t that serious, but thanks.”

You continued to pat down the snow you held into a snowball, the cold flakes a higher-quality than what nature ever made. The water used to make them apparently came from the adepti abodes, which, of course, was why the snow was so soft and powdery, like from a fairytale.

“I’m…” Yanfei stood by you, also crafting a snowball in her hands — which shook slightly from the cold steeping into her fingers — at your insistence. “...not sure I see the appeal in this.”

“The appeal is the glory of victory over your foes.”

“...right.”

Yanfei left the snowball she had made in the growing pile by your feet. You watched the younger partygoers play in the snow, stomping around and making vaguely snowman-like structures out of the cold flakes, before you felt someone approach you from behind, and turned to face them.

“Yelan! Hey! I didn’t notice you were here, are you having fun?”

Yelan let out a soft exhale, the warm light of the nearby stone lanterns illuminating her face from below as she faintly smiled. “It’s hard not to have a good time when you’re around, Your Grace.”

“D’aw, you’re just flattering me. I know how you work.”

You snorted as Yelan chuckled at your comment, before a thought struck you.

“Oh! I just realized I haven’t seen you around for a while! Where’ve you been this entire time?”

“Places.”

“Doing what?”

“Things.”

You stared at Yelan for a few seconds, her gaze amused as she stared back.

“...okay, then. Keep your secrets.”

You played with the snowball in your hands, rolling it back and forth between your palms as you briefly pondered all of the mysterious — and probably legally-dubious — things Yelan must have been up to this past week and a half, before you were snapped out of your thoughts by the sight of a wrapped box being held in front of your face. The hand holding it was Yelan’s, the shiny bow adorning the tiny rectangular container bending in the gentle evening breeze that was blowing by.

The box was pushed into one of your hands, the snowball now held in the other.

“Here. For you. I hear giving gifts is a custom for this little holiday we’re celebrating, hm?”

“Where’d you hear about… no, wait, never mind. I’m not gonna get an answer, am I?”

“You know me too well, Your Grace.” Yelan chuckled again, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly as she smiled at you. “If you were anyone else, that’d be a problem. But if it’s you, it’s just fine.”

You had never felt so lucky to be yourself as you did right now.

“I suppose I’ll let you rejoin the rest of the party now. Everyone worked so very hard to put this whole thing together just for you, I shouldn’t keep you from rewarding them with your attention.”

Yelan turned away from you, glancing over her shoulder as she walked away.

“I’ll be watching. May we meet again soon, Your Grace.”

- - - - -

Despite all of the fun you were having, the party sadly couldn’t go on forever.

The daylight soon blended into night, and with it, the guests started to take their leave. The first to go were the youngest of the characters — Qiqi left with Baizhu and Changsheng, Yaoyao with Cloud Retainer, Madame Ping and most of the other adepti. Yaoyao had even started to doze off at that point, requiring her to be carried by Cloud Retainer. Shenhe also left with the latter group.

Then went the next youngest: Xingqiu, Chongyun, Xiangling, Hu Tao, Yun Jin, Gaming… before they left, you made sure to give both Guoba and Man Chai another extra tight hug for the road.

Those who had work the next day soon followed. Yanfei, Keqing, and Ganyu all gave you polite goodbyes as they left, and Yelan vanished into the dark as easily as she had appeared to you.

Beidou left after saying goodbye to you and Ningguang, who simply headed inside of the Jade Chamber after bidding you a good night. Kazhua left with the pirate caption, his farewell another one of his poems that you were unfortunately too tired to think of one of your own in response to.

The harbor seemed to glow below the Jade Chamber as the city’s lanterns lit up in the absence of the sun. You fiddled with the gift from Yelan in your hands, still wrapped up and unopened.

“Your Grace, would I be correct in saying the surprise party was a success?”

You brought your gaze back up from Liyue Harbor and turned to see Zhongli approaching to stand beside you, his arms politely folded behind his back and his eyes focused on your face.

You smiled, giving him a nod. “Oh, yeah! It was so much fun! And I’m definitely going to figure out how to thank everyone for it, especially Yaoyao and Qiqi since they planned the whole thing!”

His lips turned up into a soft smile. “I’m very pleased to hear you say that, Your Grace.”

Your gaze shifted from the man standing next to you to the roof of the Jade Chamber, and you waved at Xiao to come join you and Zhongli. The legendary boy-adeptus had kept his distance from most others during the party, opting to watch from the rooftops as an onlooker rather than an active participant in it, though you were just happy that he was near all the festive energy.

With a sudden burst of green and black wisps, Xiao was at your side.

You looked at the adeptus with an enthused smile. “Sooo… did you enjoy yourself, Xiao?”

“...as long as the party made you happy, then I’m happy, Your Grace.”

You clutched a hand over your heart. “Xiao… you’re too sweet.”

This felt like the perfect ending to a perfect celebration, and as you looked between the adeptus and the Archon, you only felt all warm and fuzzy — it was almost too much for you. Almost.

“Hey, I don’t feel like sleeping just yet. Let’s go for a walk around the harbor together.”

“We’d be honored to, Your Grace.”

[heaven-s-black-box]

Poker Face- Xiao & more x fem!Reader

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Recovery date: December 16th, 2024

Description: Can I request.. Xiao, Venti, Albedo With an fem reader who has Winged-ears? (Like.. small wings as ears, they can move due reader’s emotions)

Notes: CW typical Venti drinking. This work was recovered in conjunction with researcher @darklolita666 , we thank them for their contributions. I did these as drabbles instead of headcanons, hope you don't mind!

Word count: Xiao-333, Venti- 420, Albedo- 298

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Xiao

Xiao is a very stoic man; his feelings are for him alone to know. But Y/n… Y/n, whether she wants to or not, wears her heart on her sleeve. And it’s all because of her wings.

He watches from a distance as they flutter with her laughter when Gaming tells you a joke, or the way they puff up when Xingqiu and Xiangling sneak up on her. He’s seen them up close when she joins him on the roof of Wangshuu inn, the gentle breeze ruffling the feathers as she tells him about her latest adventure. When she’s really into a story, they move around as if emphasizing her words, and when she starts to get tired they droop.

In the winter they fold close to her head to keep warm. Yn’s tried tucking them under a hat but it’s too uncomfortable, too restricting.

It’s one such cold winter day, when he has an idea.

Xiao had joined her on a small commission in Tianqiu valley, just clearing out a camp of hilichurls. Y/n kept him on your dominant side so she could easily draw her sword, and he kept a small distance between them so that they wouldn’t get in each other's way if they were suddenly attacked. This distance though let the icy wind through, and from the corner of his eye he could see the way Y/n’s wings shivered.

“Here,” Xiao announced his movement before stepping behind her and cupping his hands over her ears.

The air in the empty space quickly warmed up, and Y/n could feel her wings thawing as a tingling sensation spread through them. Xiao felt the wings brush his gloved hands as they stretched out, and moved away once they settled again.

“Is that better?”

“Mhm, much, thank you.” Y/n smiled.

Xiao may not have wings to clue her in on how he’s feeling, but his actions do that just fine. Even if they’re not as easy to read.

Venti

“You-You should come flying with me,” Venti slurs, hiccups interrupting the otherwise simple sentence.

Y/n sighs, taking the half empty wine bottle off the table but leaving the half full glass.

“You’ve had plenty to drink,” Y/n sighed. “Keep this up and you’ll out yourself.”

“No one ever believes the ramblings of a drunkard,” Venti pouted, his words becoming strangely coherent.

As if he himself realized the almost sober tone he’d taken, and decided he wanted none of it, he downed the rest of the wine in his glass and tried to grab the bottle back. Y/n pulled the bottle further away, holding it over her head.

Venti continued reaching without standing, and fell out of his chair. The loud THUD that resounded in Angel’s Share drew the attention of Diluc and the other patrons, while forcing Y/n’s wings to curl in and puff up slightly.

“Are you alright?”

Venti laughed, so he either wasn’t hurt or was too drunk to care. It could honestly be either, and that’s what was concerning. The bard may have a reputation for being drunk, but she hasn’t seen him this drunk in quite some time. Y/n sighs.

She sets the bottle back on the table and pulls him to his feet, wrapping one of his arms around her neck and slowly leading him towards the door.

“Diluc, I’ll come back and settle the tab once he’s home safe. Is that okay?”

Diluc sighs. “Sure.”

The air outside was warm, and a little humid making Y/n’s already ruffled feathers start to frizz. Venti’s hair tickled her neck from where he was leaning as they slowly made their way through the streets of Mondstadt.

He must have dozed off, because the next thing he knew he was falling to the ground.

“Hey, Barbatos, I wasn’t carrying you so you could sleep.”

Venti yawned, slowly opening his eyes and looking up at Y/n for the second time that night. The moonlight left her silhouetted, though her wings seemed to reflect the silver light leaving them illuminated. They were downturned. He didn’t need to see her face to know she must have been frowning.

“I’m fine. Just let me sleep here.”

Rarely did Venti leave no room for debate, but this time there was no way she would get a proper conversation with him. So she sighed and took a seat next to him.

Though he may wish for them to be equal in the sky, Y/n was earthbound.

Albedo

Y/n bit back a laugh as Albedo ran his gloved hand along her wing. He looked so focused she didn’t want to interrupt his concentration, but they were sensitive and his gentle touch tickled.

“You can laugh.”

“Sorry,” Y/n breathed out, trying to keep her voice even.

It was futile though as she quickly broke out into a fit of laughter, her wings fluttering as her shoulders shook. Albedo pulled his hand away, not wanting to hurt the delicate structure by holding it still. After a moment she caught her breath and told him he could continue.

The two were lounging in bed as the rain pattered against the window. Klee was out playing with Amber and Eula on their day off, leaving them with no responsibilities for the day. That left them with ample free time to pursue personal projects. Y/nwas making her way through a novel she’d borrowed from the library, or at least trying too, while Albedo explored the wings growing out from where her ears were.

His sketchbook lay in his lap with a rough anatomical hypothesis of how they looked and connected to her head.

Once again, Albedo traced the top bone of the wing in towards her head. This time he made it past the halfway point and began to trace it downwards.

A shuddered raced down Y/n’s spine, and Albedo paused again.

“Your ears, they’re extremely sensitive.”

“I warned you,” Y/n huffed.

She may be staring at her open book, but she’d stopped absorbing the words the second Albedo began playing with her wings.

“May I continue?”

With a sigh, Y/n closed her book.

“Go ahead.”

It was funny, despite the almost technical approach Albedo had to examining her ears, the exchange felt rather intimate.

[xxspringmelodyxx]

“𝒫𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓈𝑒 𝒟𝑜𝓃’𝓉 𝐿𝑒𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝑀𝑒!”

┗━━━━━━⊱ 𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒊𝒆 ⊰━━━━━━┛

⊱ 𝑰𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒅𝒆𝒔: 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒆 (𝑨𝒋𝒂𝒙) 𝒙 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓 ⊰

✩⁺₊✩☽⋆Warnings: Angst⋆☾✩⁺₊✩

𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕

✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿✿⋆·˚❀˚·⋆✿

Thank you to @i0fty for this depressing and heart wrenching request! I hope you enjoy! <333

The sun was setting over Teyvat, casting long shadows across the battlefield. The sounds of clashing weapons and the shouts of warriors filled the air, creating a scene of chaos and violence.

In the middle of it all, Childe fought with unyielding determination, his dual blades moving quickly and precisely. His focus was entirely on the battle, each strike and defense perfectly timed. Every enemy that fell under his blades was proof of his skill and relentless drive.

Somewhere nearby, you, his best friend and trusted companion, were fighting your own battles. The two of you had been through countless fights together, your bond strengthened by the trials you’d faced. Today seemed no different to him.

He knew you could handle yourself; he trusted in your abilities. The battlefield was vast, and it wasn’t unusual for the two of you to be separated in the heat of battle. Yet, even in the chaos, a part of him always sensed your presence, a connection that kept him steady even when everything around him was in turmoil.

—

The enemy was strong, but Childe was stronger. He moved through their ranks with the skill and grace of someone who had fought many battles before. Each opponent that fell only made him more determined.

He believed you were doing the same, fighting with the same courage and strength that had always impressed him. He hadn’t seen you for a few minutes, but that didn’t worry him—it was just how things went during a fight like this. He knew you were strong and trusted you to take care of yourself, just as you always had. At least, that’s what he thought.

As the last enemy fell, Childe stood panting, his body drenched in sweat and blood that wasn’t his own. He took a moment to catch his breath, but his mind quickly shifted to you.

His heart began to pound—not from exhaustion, but from a growing sense of worry. He hadn’t seen you for what felt like too long. His eyes started to scan the battlefield, jumping from one fallen body to the next, silently pleading that none of them were yours.

As his gaze swept across the battlefield, a cold dread settled in his chest. Then, he saw you. You were lying on the ground, motionless. The sight of you, surrounded by the aftermath of the battle, hit him like a punch to the gut.

For a moment, everything around him seemed to stop. The world narrowed down to just you and the terrifying possibility that you might not be okay.

Without thinking, Childe broke into a sprint, his feet pounding the blood-soaked earth. Panic clawed at his insides, making each step feel like an eternity. The distance between you, though not far, felt impossibly long, as if the ground itself was trying to keep him away from you. He pushed himself harder, the thought of losing you driving him forward with a desperation he had never felt before.

Childe dropped to his knees beside you, his heart pounding with a mixture of terror and disbelief. Blood was everywhere, pooling around you and staining the ground a deep, unforgiving crimson.

You were clutching your abdomen, where the wound was deep and merciless. Your face was ashen, your breaths coming in shallow, labored gasps. Seeing you like this—so vulnerable, so unlike the strong, unbreakable person he knew, he loved—shattered something deep inside him.

He cried out your name, his voice cracking with raw emotion. He gently lifted you, cradling you in his arms as if holding you any other way might break you further. “Hey, stay with me. It’s going to be okay. I’m here. I’ve got you.” His voice was filled with a desperate hope, as if saying it out loud might make it true.

Your eyes fluttered open, and despite the pain, you managed a faint smile. “Ajax…” you whispered, your voice barely above a breath. You looked down to see the position you were in. “It looks like I won’t be able to walk this one off.” You say with a slight chuckle, but the effort only made you wince.

“No, no, don’t say that,” Childe pleaded, his voice trembling. He pressed his hand against your wound, trying to stop the bleeding, even though the crimson tide was relentless. “You’re going to be fine. Just hold on, okay? Help is coming.” But even as he spoke, the reality of your situation became painfully clear.

You shook your head slowly, every movement draining what little strength you had left. “Ajax… it’s too late. I can feel it. I’m… I’m sorry.” Your eyes were filled with a deep sadness, a resignation that broke his heart even more than your wounds did.

Tears welled up in his eyes, blurring his vision as he clutched you tighter, as if he could somehow hold you here with him. “No, don’t apologize…” His voice cracked, his words thick with desperation.

“I can’t lose you. Not now. Not like this. We have too much left to do… too many battles left to fight.”

Your trembling hand reached up, gently touching his face. “I don’t want to go… but I don’t have a choice.” Your eyes were full of both sadness and a deep, enduring affection. “Thank you for everything. For being my friend, my partner. For giving me a reason to fight.”

Desperation filled Childe’s voice as he begged, “Please, keep your eyes open. You have to keep fighting.” His grip tightened around you, as if holding you close could somehow stop the inevitable. His heart pounded in his chest, each beat a painful reminder of how fragile this moment was. He could feel the warmth of your blood soaking into his clothes, but all he could focus on was the look in your eyes—the fear, the sadness, the acceptance.

He could feel your life slipping away, and the thought of losing you tore at his very soul. “I… I love you!” The words came out in a rush, almost a cry of desperation. His voice cracked as he continued, the raw emotion tearing through him.

“I’ve loved you for so long. Longer than I’ve ever had the courage to admit. Every time we fought side by side, every time you smiled at me, hugged me, laughed with me, I wanted to tell you. But I was too afraid of what it might mean, too scared of losing what we had. But I can’t keep it inside anymore. Not now.”

He started, pouring all of his love into his words. “So please keep pushing. You can’t give up now…Not when I finally have the courage to tell you the truth.”

Your eyes widened slightly at his confession, a tear slipping down your cheek as you listened to the words you had always longed to hear. For a moment, the pain seemed to fade, replaced by the warmth of his love, the love he had hidden away for so long.

“Ajax… I love you too,” you whispered, your voice trembling as you struggled to keep your eyes open. “I always have. From the very beginning.”

The words seemed to give you a momentary strength, a brief spark of life that flared and then began to fade. You reached up, your trembling fingers brushing against his tear-streaked face. “I’m just sorry it took this for us to finally say it,” you continued, your voice growing softer with each passing second.

The love between you was palpable, hanging in the air like a bittersweet melody. It was a love that had been unspoken for too long, a love that was now out in the open, even if it was too late to fully embrace it. The realization that you shared these feelings, that you had both been holding back for so long, only made the moment more heartbreaking.

As your strength waned, the light in your eyes began to dim, but you kept your gaze locked on his, holding on to that connection for as long as you could. “Thank you… for telling me,” you whispered, your voice barely audible now. “I just wish we had more time. More time to live in this love, to explore it…”

“We still can! You just have to stay awake for me, okay? You can do that, right?” He asked, his voice breaking.

Your hand trembled as you caressed his cheek, your touch feather-light. “I wish I could stay, but my time is running out…” You begin, looking lovingly into his eyes.

Summoning the last of your strength, you leaned forward and kissed him, your lips softly brushing against his in a tender, bittersweet farewell. It was the first and last kiss you would ever share—a fleeting moment that held a lifetime of unspoken love.

Childe’s eyes widened in shock, the warmth of your lips burning into his memory, a sensation he knew he would never forget. His heart ached with the sudden, painful realization of how much he had taken for granted, how much time had slipped away without him ever telling you how deeply he cared. “Please, don’t go…” he pleaded, his voice cracking with raw emotion. “I need you. I love you so much. I can’t imagine a world without you.”

You tried to hold onto the warmth of the moment, despite the cold that was creeping into your limbs. “You don’t have to imagine it,” you whispered, struggling to keep your voice steady. “You’ll live on, Ajax. You’ll keep fighting. You’re stronger than you know. You’ve always been the strong one. Just remember, I’ll always be with you. In your heart, in your memories. Watching over you.”

Childe shook his head, his tears falling onto your face, mingling with your own. “It’s not enough,” he said, his voice cracking under the weight of his grief. “I don’t want to be strong without you. I don’t want just memories. I want you. I want to hear your laugh, to see your smile. I want to fight by your side and share our victories. I want to share my life with you.”

“I’ll always be a part of you, Ajax. Every step you take, every battle you fight, I’ll be there. I want you to continue living. Live for me. Live for us. Promise me you’ll keep going.”

His sobs wracked his body, the enormity of your loss crashing down on him like a wave of unbearable grief. “I don’t know how I’ll do it. How do I keep going without you?”

You reached up, your hand trembling as you gently touched his cheek. “One day at a time,” you whispered, your voice barely audible. “And know that I’ll be proud of you, no matter what. You’ve given me so much, more than I could have ever hoped for. And for that, I’ll always be grateful.”

Childe pressed his forehead against yours, his tears falling freely onto your face, mingling with your own. “I love you,” he said, his voice breaking with the weight of his emotions. “More than words can ever say. Please, don’t forget that.”

With your last ounce of strength, you whispered back, “I love you too. Always and forever.”

“And know this, Ajax. In whatever comes next, in whatever life there is after this, I’ll be waiting for you with all the love I have…”

Childe could only nod, his heart breaking as he watched the life slowly slip away from you. “I’ll find you,” he whispered back, his voice choked with tears. “No matter where you are, I’ll find you. And when I do, I’ll never let you go. I promise.”

A small, peaceful smile touched your lips as you heard his words, your hand slipping from his cheek as the last of your strength left you. “I’ll be waiting,” you murmured, your eyes closing for the final time, leaving Childe to hold onto your memory with all the love he had finally confessed.

Childe’s heart shattered, the reality of your death hitting him with the force of a tidal wave. “No, no, no!” he cried, shaking with grief. He held you close, his tears falling freely. The world around him seemed to blur, his mind unable to process the reality of your death.

As the battle ended and the silence settled over the battlefield, Childe remained where he was, cradling your lifeless body. The victory felt meaningless, the weight of your loss unbearable.

——

In the days that followed, Childe was a shell of his former self. The joy and determination that once fueled him were replaced by an overwhelming sorrow. He carried you to a quiet place, a spot where the two of you had often sat and talked, and there he laid you to rest. The grave was simple, marked by a stone that bore your name. It was a place of peace, a stark contrast to the chaos of the battlefield where you had fallen.

Every day, he visited your grave, speaking to you as if you were still there, sharing his thoughts and feelings. The pain of your loss never faded, but he found a strange comfort in keeping your memory alive. You had been his best friend, his confidant, his anchor in the storm of his life, and now, his love.

And as he continued to fight, to live, he did so with you in his heart, carrying the strength and love you had given him, until the end of his days. The battles he fought were no longer just for glory or victory; they were for you, to honor the promise he had made to always remember you.

_____________________

[cafe-mysa]

as fast as clockwork || freminet oneshot

title: as fast as clockwork day 3: accelerated heartbeat // kissing in the snow // "here, take my coat." // "let's hope the snow will make this christmas right." fandom: genshin impact character: freminet wc: 439 oneshot (credit to @12daysofchristmas for the prompt) !!content under the cut!! a/n why the FUCK did this take so long to write jesus christ i'm so sorry for the Very late submission.

just remember to breathe, freminet, lyney had told him minutes prior before slinking off with a sly wink.

they like you, so there's nothing to worry about, lynette added quietly, they'll like it, don't worry. you're good at what you do.

archons, his hands wouldn't stop shaking. all he wanted was to find his diver's helmet, shove it unceremoniously onto his head and crouch in the corner, unwilling to respond or talk to anyone. archons, he knew his rehearsed speech would go out the window - how did lyney do this all the time in front of hundreds of people including their archon? all he wanted to do was to dive into the ocean and find the deepest parts, ones that he was sure even neuvillette didn't know about.

"freminet?"

fuck.

"hello," his voice came out a lot higher than he intended, and he cringed internally, coughing into his fist, "h-hello..."

fantastic start, freminet, you bombed it.

"lyney said you wanted to give me something?"

fantastic.

fan-fucking-tastic.

he made a mental note to (accidentally) break the drainage pipes near lyney's room later.

(a little bit of little brother revenge never hurt anybody, after all.)

he hated everything about this.

he hated how clammy his hands were getting, how they were trembling, how he could feel his pulse fluttering as his hands not-so-subtly hid the gift behind his back.

"freminet?" you peered around him as he squeaked and shuffled away, turning away from you with a small frown.

very subtle.

"i did," he muttered, fiddling with the ribbon, clearing his throat again, "i did want to, ah, give you something, but-but it's-it may not be to-you may not like it."

just remember to breathe, freminet, his brother's damned words echoed in his brain as he cursed under his breath (easier said than done).

"i-"

they like you, so there's nothing to worry about, they'll like it, don't worry. you're good at what you do.

okay.

he could do this.

"i wanted to give you-the-"

well fuck.

"freminet, take your time," you beamed, slightly amused.

he really needed you to stop looking at him like that.

"you're not good for my heart," he muttered finally, reluctantly giving in and taking his hands out from behind his back, timidly showing you the mechanical penguin in your colour.

"aren't i?" you hummed, gently taking it and letting it rest in your hands (it fit perfectly, you noted), "i think i'm perfectly good for your heart."

"it shouldn't be beating this fast," he muttered, "it's not normal."

speaking of lyney...

"do you want me to teach you how to accidentally break a drainage pipe?"

[alatusprinz]

Scaramouche/Wanderer x Fem!Reader

warnings: reader wears a dress, and well, he rips that dress. swearing.

genre: jealousy / word count : 983.

scenario: Scara won't let you off the hook so easily when he sees you preparing to go on "a date".

You don’t remember him looking this livid before, at least never to you. His firm grip on your wrist made you wince in pain, even when you tugged on his hand to let go, it merely encouraged him to squeeze tighter. As if telling, demanding you to stand still, he warningly tightened his hold. 

“What is your problem? Let go” You muttered irritatedly, attempting to drag your hand away once again. Wanderer’s violet eyes narrowed, his anger threatening to burst if he didn’t make sure you were joking when you said “you were going on a date”.

“A date? A fucking date, you said?” He mumbled under his breath. Before you could respond, he forcefully yanked his hold on your hand inwards, making your body crash into him. With a slight struggle to hold your balance, you returned your sharp gaze to him. 

“Tell me you’re joking.” He demanded, his voice dropping venomously, yet he knew from your attire, your dolled up look that you unfortunately weren’t. 

“Let me go, I’m running late because of you.” His fury deepened when you refused to tell him what he wanted to hear. 

“You think I will let you go on a date in that skimpy piece of fabric any weak mortal could tear off in less than a minute?” As if emphasising his words, he let go of your wrist and instead directed his hands to the back of your dress, gripping the sides of the zipper. Your eyes widened when you realised his hand positioning- he was going to rip it.

“No-, what the-” Your words went unheard as he tore the top part of the dress in one effortless pull, the thin fabric tearing with no more than a lift of his finger. You yelped from his aggressiveness and thrashed in his unyielding grip, giving up on escaping his embrace but at least to stop him from completely peeling the only means of covering your body off of you. Though deep inside, you would be lying if his desperation and possessiveness didn’t send a wave of arousal in between your legs. 

His sharp eyes shamelessly travelled over your half exposed upper body, greedily drinking up the alluring sight despite your figure pressed firmly to him. This is it, yes. This is how you looked the prettiest, in his arms. Not getting all dolled up to meet another wimpy lowlife who could never dare hope to compare to how well he could treat you. In fact, give him the word and he would bring the entire world at your feet, burn down nations, cast down Celestia to the inferno of hell if that was what you wished. 

Could he fucking compare? That’s what he thought- nobody could. Nobody could ever treat you as well as he could, and he would let you know that. 

“Have I not made it clear? Do you not see how you have me wrapped around your finger?” He pulled you in closer almost like he intended on suffocating you with his embrace, and finally dropped the malicious edge of his voice. Just before you could respond, your heart skipped a beat as his hold slightly loosened, his embrace turning surprisingly gentle and almost affectionate- a sharp contrast to his earlier words and behaviour. 

“...What?” You managed to reply, your voice barely higher than a whisper from the sudden shift in his actions. 

“I would move mountains, tear my own body limb by limb if need be. I would stop at nothing for you. To have you by my side, to see your stupid smile that makes me feel like my thousand years of suffering had a purpose.” 

“I want you, (name). I want everything about you, I want you by my side.” Stay with me, please- he longed to plead, beg at your feet if that’s what you wanted. 

Before he could do anything to add on, you found your arms hesitantly snaking around his slender waist. You couldn’t find the words to say, nothing came to your mind except the need to hold him close, to feel the sincerity of his devotion you never knew he held for you. 

He swore he tries to be patient with you. In fact, he wasn’t even sure if he was worthy of pursuing your affection, didn’t you deserve to be with someone who was worthy? Someone genuine, someone who hasn't massacred innocents in pursuit of his own selfish greed? And yet all of such apprehension burned away with the rage he felt when his only joy was threatened to belong to someone else, he couldn't bear to see you besides someone else.

“...Say something… anything” His voice weakly shivered, alarmed by your silence in spite of your positive implications of stopping to escape his embrace. Your arms held him so gently, he had never felt such softness, such warmth before. He had been betrayed, tortured, tormented and faced fate worse than death too many times to count- he would have died hundreds if not thousands of times over from the pain he went through in his porcelain body. Heck, Wanderer was sure kindness didn’t even exist before he met you. And your tender embrace was proof that life could for once be good to him, that this cruel world held a place where he could find home in. Never in his never-ending nightmare of a life did he even dare dream of finding someone like you. That’s exactly why held onto you so tight, he would rather perish, disappear this very instant than go back to life without you again. The hollow, the cold and grey world he knew- it all faded when you brought colour to his life. As long as the sun shines, as long as the water runs in the river and as long as the winds blow- he would dedicate his all to you. Fuck, he wouldn’t stop even if all of those ceased to exist, that’s how fierce and unyielding his love was. 

He just hoped you wanted him as much as he wanted you. 

Your heart thumped almost uncomfortably fast in your chest, then leaned closer to him, resting your head on his shoulder. 

[brayneworms]

in your basement, i grow cold.

featuring. il dottore x reader

content. gore (specifically eye gore), relationship isn't romantic isn't platonic but a secret third thing, toxic dynamics, reader is called dottore's pet, scaramouche appearance, reader is mean to scaramouche, reader is generally fucked in the head, alluded kidnapping + medical experimentation, body horror, injections, electrocution

word count. 1.6k

notes. this was an xmas gift for a friend but ummm might as well post it i guess :p this is silly. i'm a certified dottore hater but he's fun to explore psychologically. also used this as gore practise. i don't think it's majorly disgusting but i'm not very squeamish generally so i might be biased.

♪ strangers — ethel cain

There is some peace to be found in ugliness. 

The Balladeer has yet to learn the same lesson. With every session he seethes and hits, he bawls and curses. The Doctor takes it all standing up, though, a flex of his wax-sheen gloves brushing the Balladeer off as though he were no more than an irksome fly. The doll scowls as you strap him in, hook wires and tubes into his artificial body. Sometimes the voltage is too high and he jerks and turns purple in the face, roasting from the inside out. Sometimes you think Dottore does that on purpose, his own small dose of revenge. 

The Balladeer despises you. He calls you Dottore’s little mouse at first, scampering around quietly doing the Doctor’s bidding. He sneers at you, a curled lip of cold command. “I see he’s let you out of the cage for another evening,” he remarks, violet eyes watching unblinkingly as you hurry between operating tables. “Try not to roll over and die with the shock of your newfound freedom. It would be a shame for Dottore to lose his favourite…” He rolls the words around in his mouth for a moment, considering, before flashing a smirk your way. “Pet.”

You get your own small revenges on Balladeer. Dottore languishes in pain, but you like to watch his sadness. When he’s under, he often dreams, and when he wakes he often cries. Sometimes he even cries in his sleep. You wish to bottle his tears whilst he’s unconscious, scrape them up into little crystal vials until you have enough to fill a chest. Then when he begins with his glaring and his remarking, you will open it in front of him and show him cruel, irrefutable proof of his weakness. Tears enough to drown a man. Not him, though, because he is not a man. He’s not even human. And despite how much he looks down on humanity, he bristles each time at the reminder. 

Dottore finds your ugly streak endearing, in the same way someone might find a cat with three legs endearing. Mostly his mask stays on, sinking most of his features into shadow, but sometimes you find his jaw twitching or a smile curling at his mouth. 

What you find exhilarating about helping to operate on the Balladeer is that you had been in his place once. Strapped down to the table whilst Dottore poked and prodded at you with his various instruments. And Dottore had been hardly gentle with his bedside manner. He’s been open about the fact that he expected you to die on that slab. Archon residue was no blood transfusion; it pumped hatred into your body and festered there, under your blood, pickling your veins. The results had not been pretty; an injection into your left eye had resulted in it bursting inside its socket like a red flower blooming too fast. Dottore had knelt, scooped up the residue in his gloved hands, rubbed between his fingers. The scarlet slip-slide of your innards. It felt like being touched for the first time; his lips hung open, parted in a gentle sort of awe. That time, when you spat at him, he only smiled and ruffled your hair. 

Sometimes he lets you wear a patch. Mostly he likes to look, observe how it heals, what irritates it, documents how long until it stops bleeding. He wonders about nerve damage in the area. You have a constant headache in your lower-left frontal lobe now, pressing against your skull like a bruise. 

You’d expected the Balladeer to laugh himself hoarse at the ugly emptiness of your right socket, but instead he went quite quiet. As you were hauling his body into the machine, he reached out, traced the gaping maw with delicate fingers. Your good eye flicked behind him where Dottore stood, finding the twitch of displeasure in his jaw. He didn’t like the Balladeer touching his handiwork. What’s more, you didn’t—the doll’s touch was gentler than you’d had in years, but you’d grown accustomed to Dottore’s clinical coldness. It was precise, even when it did hurt. The Balladeer’s caress feels clumsy in comparison, and you jerk away. He doesn’t try to touch you again. 

Whatever rapport you have with the Balladeer dies quickly. Once you might have sympathised, but as the years wear on, you start seeing him as Dottore does. A doll. A means to an end. And the Balladeer pretty quickly stops seeing you as a mouse. Sometimes, the way his gaze lingers on you out of the corner of your eye, the way he looks away when you catch him at it, you think he’s more afraid of you than he is of Dottore. 

You enjoy fitting the Balladeer’s body into the wires. You stab them through his artificial skin with prejudice, observe the way he tries not to wince. Your fingers brush over the ball-joints in his limbs, skirting under with a nail just to see him shudder and glare. And you love his tears. He rarely cries when he’s awake, especially in front of Dottore if he can help it. But he’s such a willing crier when he’s lost to his unconsciousness. He murmurs words, too. Mother is a frequent one. He calls out for her more than you did for your own in the beginning. But there’s also Niwa and Katsuragi, Tatarasuna and Escher. 

“Poor puppet,” you hum, swinging your legs. Dottore glances over, mouth a thin line.

“Do not bother pitying him,” he muses. “He won’t soon thank you for it.”

You don’t answer, gaze locked onto the Balladeer’s sleeping form until Dottore steps in front of you, obscuring your vision. “Have you tended to your eye today?”

You shrug, trying to peer past him. “I’ll get to it later.”

“You’ll do it now.” His fingers grasp your chin. “What is study and science without consistency? A mad scramble to find pattern, that is all. I’ll do it, if you insist on being stubborn.”

You bat his hand away, snarling. “I can do it myself.”

“Will you?” Dottore says sharply. “It’s been a while since you were tied down to this operating table, but I can certainly make an amendment.”

Your glare is poisonous. “Get your fuckin’ hand off me,” you grunt. 

Dottore smirks. “You’ve grown so bold from the shrinking violet I brought you in as. Some days I miss the subservience of that form.” He pauses. “Then again, most days not.”

Of course. Dottore isn’t afraid to say the quiet part aloud, but he doesn’t have to: he likes violence. He relishes in getting his hands bloody. Poking around your eye socket, fingering the innards, like digging for shrapnel in a wound. He likes the fight back. He likes when you hiss and spit and hit like a feral cat, like a dog who has just learned it has teeth. He likes it even better when you leave a mark. 

Your last appointment before the Balladeer leaves for Sumeru. He sits on the table, spine a gentle slope. His skin is marred with holes and titanium anchors. You run your fingers down the knobs of his back and he shivers. He is unusually subdued, despite how his exuberance over being made into a god had been cumulatively climbing for the past few months. 

“I leave soon,” he tells you as though you don’t know. “I will see a new land, and new people. They will have no idea that they will soon kneel before a new god.” His fingers flex as though physically reaching out to grasp this power. “Will you stay?”

You stare at him and realise you can no longer picture the world outside this laboratory. Your silence seems enough for him; you almost think he pities you. You are particularly vicious with your ministrations that time, reducing him near tears before he’s even slipped unconscious. Dottore watches, the ever-present spectre, smiling and smiling and smiling.

The Balladeer tries one more time before he leaves, in his own way. “Sometimes I miss that little mouse,” he says ruefully. “Now? You’re nothing. You’re worse than nothing. You’re just as bad as him.”

You know you’re beyond saving, because that idea makes your stomach flip. 

You’re under no illusion that Dottore cares for you. Dottore cares for nothing beyond his own experiments and deductions and projects. He doesn’t care about the Fatui. He doesn’t seem to even really care about the Tsaritsa. Only what she can offer him. Dottore is more likely to cut you up and decorate the lab with your insides than confess any sort of love. But it’s alright, truly, because you don’t love him either. You suppose he’s become something of idolatry for you, in the worst possible way. You despise him for what he did to you, but now you cannot picture being any other way. The Balladeer may miss the little mouse, but you certainly do not. Gone are the days of your weakness. Now, in the darkness that Dottore had pumped into you, one injection and cut and fever at a time, there is power. 

Maybe one day you’ll grow to consume him whole. Maybe it starts with spitting in his face and hitting back, but maybe it blossoms to something more. Maybe one day you’d get him down on that operating table, prise that mask of his away to see the way his eyes widen in surprise. Maybe you’d get the scalpel or the wires or the syringe and turn him into the false gods he was so obsessed with puppeteering. And maybe he’d be your little mouse, afraid to catch your eye. 

Idle daydreams. Sometimes you think he can see them in the corner of your eye, because there are days he regards you almost with wariness. But he never exiles you. You suppose, in the way you’ve grown attached to him (as disease grows attached to a person) the same can be said for him. 

You’ll take advantage of it, sometime. You can’t wait to feel his insides on your hands. 

[stellas-et-abyssum-vincite]

4:04 PM ~ *Wriothesley*

Summary: Siegewinne is worried about Wriothesley being sick. So she goes to the surface to ask the kind doctor for help. And you aren't leaving until he takes his health seriously.

Pairing: Wriothesley X Fem!Reader

Genre: Fluffyish Oneshot

Word Count: 1192

Warning: Illness

Masterlist

Everyone in the Fortress of Meropide could tell something was wrong with Wriothesley. Rumors and speculation circled through the cells as to what the cause could be. Only the Melusines knew for sure what was bothering him.

You see, despite every effort to hide it, Wriothesley was sick.

He had a runny nose, a cough and a splitting headache. He tried to cover it up the best he could and continue his work like normal. However, the Melusines were quick to notice that the Administrator was under the weather. For the better part of the morning, they banded together in an attempt to make him feel better, but all of their efforts were in vain. For when Wriothesley got sick, he got grouchy. Any time a Melusine tried to get close in an effort to help, he would order them away and slam the door in their face. 

This led to Siegewinne making a decision for the benefit of all the Melusines and the prisoners in Meropide. She snuck to the surface and into Fontaine to find medicine and warm food to give him. And that's how she wound up in your apothecary.

"Welcome to the Fontaine Apothecary. How may I be of assistance?" You asked her, a sweet smile on your lips.

"Do you have any medicine I can give someone who is sick with a cold?" She asked, her head tilted to the side as she looked at all of your medicine on the shelves behind you.

You nodded. "I have lots of medicine that can help. Can you describe their symptoms to me?"

Counting on her fingers, she listed his ailments. "He's suffering from the sniffles, a runny nose, a headache, and he has a bad cough."

"I see. Sounds like quite the cold. But I have a home remedy that can relieve his symptoms." As you got to work preparing the medicine, you asked another question of the little Melusine. "Does he have an upset stomach?"

She shook her head. "No, I don't think so. He's never complained of one, that is."

"I see. Well, if you don't mind, I'll prepare some warm soup, as well as give you an assortment of teas that should also help."

"Thank you! Thank you very much!"

"It is not a problem at all!" You assure her.

When your work is done, you place the medicine, soup, and tea into a basket to hand to her. However, as soon as she grabs it, you notice her struggling to carry it out the door. Quickly, you emerged around the counter and gently took the basket from her.

"Do you mind if I carry it? It's awfully heavy."

She shakes her head. "I don't mind. I can lead the way."

"Sounds like an excellent idea. I'll follow you."

And you did, all the way to the Fortress of Meropide. You were a little intimidated by its size and the fact that it is a prison, but you would not be deterred. If this sweet little Melusine was willing to go inside, so would you.

Sigewinne knocked once more on Wriothesley's door and he yelled at her to leave him alone. His sharp words and congested voice made you frown. Instead of heeding his orders, you barged into his office.

"What is the meaning of this?" He snapped, glaring daggers into you.

You simply paid him no mind as you laid the items in the basket on a table in his office. "Your dear friend here was worried about you, so she came to me looking for medicine, which I am providing for you."

"I don't need any medicine." He dismissively replied. "I feel fine."

"Have you eaten at all today?"

"That is none of your concern."

You shrug in response. "Very well. I shall take this soup and tea with me. I'd hate for it to go to waste on someone who is ungrateful for its help."

"Tea?" You could see him pause at your words. "What kind of tea?"

You give him a warm smile, although your eyes show a hint of smugness. "A special blend of chamomile that can cure any cold."

Wriothesley appeared conflicted as he mulled over your words. Eventually he sighed and gestured to the two of you. "Thank you for the medicine, food, and tea. You may go now."

Sigewinne nodded and went on her merry way. But you didn't. Instead, you folded your arms over your chest and nodded to the food and tea.

"I want to watch you eat?"

"You, what?"

"I want to make sure you eat everything I've provided and then you take the medicine I made." You reply. "And I won't take no for an answer."

He scowled before taking the cup of tea you made and drank it one go. "You are stubborn."

"As are you." You replied, a challenging smirk curling the corners of your lips. "Now, are you hungry? You need to eat before you can take your medicine."

He ravenously ate the soup and you offered him the medicine. He looked at it skeptically, but you just frowned. "If you don't take it, I'll force your mouth open to take it."

"You're awfully demanding for someone in the presence of the Administrator to this prison."

"Your friend went through a lot of trouble to make sure you are well again." You snap. "I will not have her efforts go to waste. Now take the damn medicine, or so help me Archons..."

"Fine, fine. Have it your way." He choked down the medicine and grimaced at the taste. "There. Happy?"

You nodded with a smug smile. "I am pleased. Now, I'm ordering you on bed rest for the rest of today and I will be back tomorrow with more medicine."

"You can't just order me around!" He shot back. "I am the Administrator of this prison and a Duke to boot. I should be ordering you around."

You roll your eyes at his little temper tantrum. "You are sick and not in the right frame of mind to be ordering anyone around. That is why you must be on rest, so this prison does not fall into disarray because of poor decisions you make when you are sick. Besides, I am a doctor and I know what's best for my patients to recover."

He scoffed and rolled his eyes. "I don't make poor decisions when I'm sick."

"Fine, don't listen to me. Get more sick and infect your whole prison until you're all sick. But don't say I didn't warn you. Cold like this can spread faster than wildfire. And I will not have their illnesses on my conscience." You shook your head and made your way to the door.

"Wait." His voice made you pause. You turn your head to watch him sigh. "Fine. I will rest if you come back with more medicine tomorrow and teach Sigewinne how to make it."

Your smug smile returns. "There. Now was that so hard? I shall return tomorrow morning with the ingredients for Sigewinne. Until then, you are to get into bed and stay there until my room. Understood?"

"Yes doctor."

[refeverie]

superpower.

comfort fluff. gn!reader × lyney. wc 387

summary. insecurities (unspecified)

the clock is ticking. there is not much time left. you keep saying to yourself—you will be late. and yet you can not move away from your full body-length mirror. you can not stop staring at the reflection of yourself. it is weighing you down.

everyone is insecure about something. sometimes it is how your body looks; a certain body part. sometimes it is just how the sun shines the wrong way on your outfit or makeup, so you start overthinking how you dress. sometimes it is not even how you look. but feel. but what kind of persona you are. you can hate your personality, or feel unwanted or unneeded. maybe it is your values. your grades. anything. it can all reflect in the mirror through your eyes.

everyone is insecure about something. some choose to hide it; ignore it. some channels it to confidence—a shield and a spear of sort at once. and then you… you can make it into your own authentic superpower. after all, superpowers are abilities that enhance humans. it makes you superior to others. you just have to learn how to use it. and just like that, be the best version of yourself.

reflection on the mirror slightly smiles. maybe it is because your thoughts took over and gave you faith. or is it because there stands another figure in the background you failed to notice earlier.

you know this insecurity is sitting on your shoulder at the moment—it can easily be seen that you are conflicted. so the person comes closer to you, and carefully spins you around to face one another.

“would you mind a dance?” a question comes from his lips. lyney stretches out the hand for you to take. it is your decision to accept the invitation. ultimately, your choice of how to comfort yourself matters the most.

and if you accept, his violet eyes sparkle with fondness; he keeps whispering soft words into your ears, leaning over you, moving your figure around chest to chest with him. dancing the night away.

so trust me when i say this, you are safe and loved for any faults you would believe you have, whereas there is at least one person who could not care less. because he is infatuated with your superpower.

(i love you!<3)

[tetsuskei]

dew mornings and the bond of eternity – tartaglia [nsfw]

synopsis: your angel of a boyfriend makes sure that you know just how well loved you are

notes: for my favorite harbinger, idk what this is but breaking my fic virginity for him with this :]

warnings: fem!reader, reader is insecure, russian pet names, mating press, childe has a foul mouth, biting and marking, slight possession, praise, childe is called by his real name, slight oral fixation, implied oral (female receiving), he is extremely lovesick

you never learned to what extent someone could go when being attentive and observant until you met your boyfriend.

you hate how ajax is able to notice the slightest changes in your mood. you would say he knows you like the back of his hand, but it’s something more than that. almost like the two of you are fused at the souls. bonded for eternity.

so in the dew morning hours when you’re just a little bit quieter, a little more somber as he makes you both breakfast on one of his rare days off, he’s able to notice right away.

he notices your eyes don’t quite catch his own as he jokes about some silly thing one of his siblings did weeks ago, how your smile falters instead of shining bright the way that he loves to see, how you pick at your fingers and gnaw on your lip in thought.

“ptichka?” he hovers over you, taking your face in his hands and pulling you from your thoughts. his cerulean eyes scan you thoroughly. “did you not sleep well?”

“it’s nothing, it was just a silly little dream.” you wave off, smiling weakly. not a lie, technically.

ajax clicks his tongue. stubbornly, he leans into you, the smell of pine and mint following him. “it can’t be silly if it has you upset like this and you’re losing sleep.”

there is no way of lying to ajax. you know this well. he’s a big brother to three siblings, and he’s too good of a detective to be deceived. but that’s to be expected of a harbinger.

after a long, apprehensive pause, you sigh.

“…i had a dream that you cheated on me.” you confess, lowering your gaze to the floor. “and that you left me for someone better.”

it’s stupid. absolutely and utterly ridiculous. ajax has shown you enough love to spill over into your next life. and the next one after that. you could die and come back a thousand times, and there’d still be traces of him left on you. so to tell him this brings you great shame.

the question is, what caused the dream? guilt? shame? maybe you feel he does so much for you, that you’re lacking as a partner. that you could do better.

you wait silently for him to yell, for some sort of outburst to come. but you’re only met with surprise when you feel his hand on your chin.

“can you please look at me?” his voice is soft, and eyes softer as he finally is able to make eye contact with you. he’s so gentle. warm. he only looks at you with love and patience. “thank you, lisichka.”

“i may not have done anything wrong, and i would never cheat—“ he continues with a stern expression, “but i still need you to understand where my feelings lie with you.”

you start to shake your head, “i already know, ‘jax, you have never made me feel like i need to doubt you. i know how much you love me. i promise. i have no idea why i had the dream…but it just made me sad when i woke up.”

you don’t mean to lie about your hidden insecurities, but it’s not a conversation you want to have at the moment. you’d rather just enjoy the time you have currently with your boyfriend peacefully.

luckily, ajax overlooks your fib. he hums, kissing your temple, “how about after we eat, i run us a bath? and we do one of those face masks that you like? something to decompress.”

and for the first time today you smile and agree.

unfortunately it appears ajax is taking your earlier sentiments much more seriously than you thought.

as all dreams and nightmares are short term memory, you long forgot about what it was that made you upset, back to your usual self after the bath.

ajax swaddled you up in a clean towel, and just like he said, did face masks with you. it always makes you giggle seeing your boyfriend using one of your spa headbands to push his hair back. soon both your faces were shiny and clean. refreshed and replenished, you felt brand new.

but little did you know you were now in the jaws of a shark.

you didn’t make it to the bedroom. well, you did, but you didn’t pick up on the ginger’s ulterior motive the minute he kissed your cheek as you sat on the bathroom counter. he carried you to the bedroom, and that’s where it all fell apart.

“‘j-jax—“ you hiccup, gripping tightly onto his bicep. your figure is trembling against his, skin damp with sweat and glued impossibly closer to his.

so much for the bath.

“s-slow down…”

your boyfriend has been at it for awhile now, pummeling your poor insides with his fat cock over and over. the room reeks with the smell of sex, wet sounds imprinted into your mind. you can never forget just how great he makes you feel.

“no,” he huffs, fingers digging into your hips, “you’re not leaving this bed until i’m sure of it.”

confusion resides in you. what exactly is ‘it’?

he’s already worshipped you plenty with just his fingers and tongue. but you don’t dare challenge the primal look in his eyes. he’s absolutely greedy, not even letting you move to take care of him in return in anyway.

you yelp once feeling your lover’s teeth nip into your skin. his tongue laves over the offended area before he kisses the skin.

“how could i find someone better, when there’s not a single person more beautiful or amazing than you?” he pants, pulling away to look at you. his thumb traces your cheek tenderly and his cobalt eyes are trained on your fucked out expression.

“especially when your pussy feels this good? that’s just a bonus.” he rambles, groaning. his hips knock into yours more harshly and you wail.

“you’d have to kill me to separate us.” he admits darkly, but something tells you that even death wouldn’t stop him.

“‘dun want that, want you forever.” you say, clinging impossibly tighter to him.

ajax coos, kissing your nose, “and you have me. because you’re enough. you always will be. you’re perfect.”

his answer satisfies you and you’re kissing him again, nearly having tears permeate at the ducts of your eyes.

he laughs, grinning against you mouth, “milaya, you’re about to cum, aren’t you?”

“i-i” your words still fail to completely return to you but you nod rapidly.

understanding, he taps your bottom lip.

“open,” he commands.

falling in line, ajax pushes his fingers in your mouth. you feel your face heat up from how you taste yourself on him.

“good girl,” he praises, “always so sweet for me, hmm?”

you’re drooling on him, nodding and humming around his fingers with a hazy look in your eyes.

there’s a certain light in his own eyes that only appears when he’s with you, and with the way he is looking at you with complete adoration, you feel absolutely special.

“oh, look how much you’re quivering, you’re almost there. come on.” your boyfriend studies your movements, fucking you with slower, deeper thrusts.

the breath from your lungs nearly escapes you, and you feel a burning feeling in your chest. you’re creaming so much on him that it’s impossible not to hear the lewd noises coming from between your legs.

every sound seems to drive the ginger crazier. “one more, just one more for me, angel and i’ll let you be.” he coaxes, fingers moving again.

“i’m…i’m tired.” you sniff.

“i know, but you look so pretty when you cum. just one more? pretty please? can’t get over how you look. so beautiful…”

his constant praise is enough to make you cum once more, so hard that it blinds you. your mouth falls open in silent awe.

ajax groans, watching you come undone and hissing at the way you’re clamping up on his cock. it should be a crime how good you feel, because he could ever get enough of it.

there’s only a moment before he remembers he still needs to cum, and then he’s pawing and begging.

“fuck, let me cum in you…please…” his face is buried in your neck and a small whimper escapes him once he grabs your hand, lacing your fingers together.

he’s shivering and hot, and his cock is extremely sensitive. every drag of himself against your walls drives him insane. he’s dizzy, nearly delirious with how much he’s holding back.

“wanna fill you up so badly, please lisichka.” he continues, pressing searing kisses to your shoulder. “want you leaking with all of my cum…want all of it in you.”

you don’t think he’s looking at you while he babbles and pleads to breed you, and you shiver at how predatory he looks at your lower abdomen. you lock your legs tighter around him, ignoring the overstimulation creeping up in you.

“yes, ajax. please. w-want all your cum. want you to fill me up!” you whine, a sound that makes his heart and cock swell all at the same time.

your next words startle him even further.

“i love you.”

and he snaps.

“hah—ah, fuck!” ajax curses, hips stuttering in their pace. he groans loudly, feeling himself spill into you. there’s spots in his vision from how hard he’s cumming and he wonders if this is what celestia is.

you gasp, jerking when warmth spreads throughout all of you. you can feel the throbbing of your boyfriends cock and his heavy load.

coming down from both of your highs, the two of you laugh.

“you surprise me every time.” you tease quietly, eyeing a bite mark on your thigh.

the ginger looks bashful, hiding his face in your shoulder. “sorry…didn’t mean to be so rough…”

“if i wanted you to stop at anytime, i would’ve told you.” you reassure, petting his head.

he plants a kiss on your skin. “good. and for the record, i love you too.” he murmurs. “feel better?”

“i felt better after the delicious breakfast you made, but you took it a couple of steps further like you always do.” you giggle, leaning into his chest.

ajax grins, kissing the crown of your head, “well, i could tell something else was on your mind, but you weren’t telling me.”

“you know me way too well. it’s terrifying.”

he puffs his chest out, “what can i say? i can and will only provide the absolute best for you.”

“i don’t like leaving you alone for as long as i do…i will try to get them to let me take work closer to home.” he adds, playing with your fingers.

and the beam on your face is all worth it. “really?”

“really. i’m not around a lot for you to do things for me, and i get why you may feel that you need to be better. but i adore you just how you are. i’m sorry for not being more present.”

“it’s okay, i understand.” you hum, kissing his chin.

ajax hums with appreciation before leaning down and chasing your lips, hungrily wanting to taste you all over again.

his demanding presence has you melting into him as you mesh together, tongues locking to consume the taste of yourselves.

suddenly he’s dragging you by the hips to the edge of the bed.

“w-what are you—“

“m’not done with you. far from it.” you barely can form another question before ajax is sliding back into you. a crude squelch follows.

the harbinger kisses your bare ring finger. “say, i think we should elope. what do you think about starting a family?”

key: ptichka = ‘little bird’, lisichka = ‘little fox’, milaya = ‘my dear’

[kinichval]

when our paths cross again

missing your flight to inazuma and crashing your ex's place for the holidays is certainly not in your 2024 bingo card, nor is it your ideal way of celebrating the year-end. but here you are anyway.

content. ex!scaramouche x fem!reader, modern!au, angst, tension, YEARNING, profanities. | 3.1k words.

december 23rd, 20:34.

“i deeply apologize, ma'am. however, the earliest available flight to inazuma is 72 hours from now.”

great. great.

is the world punishing you for splurging the past three days before coming home to inazuma for the holidays by miscalculating your estimated time of arrival at the airport?

not only did you not have a place to stay, your wallet is tight on cash, and also the fact that you're basically stuck in sumeru for the rest of december unless you wait a whole three days ‘til you're flying back to inazuma. it wouldn't be a problem waiting if you didn't have businesses to resume after the twenty-fifth.

sighing in defeat, you could only offer your gratitude to the lady behind the desk for accommodating your concern. neither does she hold any power to twist your situation favoring the happy ending of eating a delicious buffet with your family, drinking wine all night, and unwrapping the gifts that were held in secret for who knows how long.

now, you sit by the window of a small cafe near the airport. a cup of warm americano accompanying your bummed out ass on this extra cold winter night. there's no snow blanketing sumeru city, but tonight puts you on the border of frostbites with this god awful truth that you won't be home for the holidays.

and then there's that additional layer of coldness that hits your skin when you stood up and was about to exit the cafe, destination still in progress, but all thoughts are cut off when you look up and find sickeningly familiar purplish, cool-toned irises staring at you with wrinkled nose bridge from that scrunched up expression that makes you want to slap the hell out of him.

what a fucking self-entitled bastard to be the one looking all disgusted at this displeasing predicament when he was the one saying “we should break up.” four years ago on a just as cold monday night in december.

“are you not going to apologize for spilling cold water on my shirt?” you hiss, shivering underneath as the multitude of glaciers penetrate your skin.

“why would i apologize if i meant for it to spill?”

an asshole he is, scaramouche is a fucking asshole.

except you're in this asshole's passenger seat because apparently you're too broke to afford a few more days of ‘vacation’, so you're—not by choice—accepting his offer to spend christmas with him at his place.

considering the menacing scheme he pulled, you're wary of other ill-intent motives he has tucked in under his visage of kindness.

you grit your teeth. great. this is not what you wrote to santa, sadly there's no return system and you have to endure whatever bullshit this man is envisioning in his mind.

december 23rd, 22:08.

so far, scaramouche is acting strangely kind after purposely tipping his glass of ice cold water on you. the drive to his apartment was quiet, except for the series of korean r&b songs he hummed along to; he opened the car door and brought up your luggage to his unit; and he asked if you wanted a meal or snack.

“you're being weird. what do you want from me?” your cold tone mirrored the air of december, your eyes narrowed in disbelief and pursued to unveil the mischief playing in his head. “you're in a situation, i offered help, you accepted.” he simply responds as if it's a common thing to do for exes, for exes who have never seen each other for four years.

“how are you so casual about this? we're exes.”

“would you rather get hypothermia out in the city looking for a cheap and open place to stay?”

“i—”

“if you did, you wouldn't be here right now. but look at us.”

he has a point. he only offered, it was you who accepted.

part of you wanted to walk away out of pettiness and embarrassment because you knew if this reaches your best friend's ears, you'd be sitting down and earning an earshot of a lecture from her about not reconnecting with exes regardless of the situation.

“okay fine, you win. i'll just sleep here tonight and i'll be on my merry way tomorrow.” exhaustion is already catching up to you, a yawn escapes past your lips. “you can sleep in my room, i'll be in the other bedroom.” there's that casual reply of his again, words spill out of him like this was just a normal, platonic conversation.

“it's even weirder sleeping in my ex's room, i'll just stay here.” you pat down on the soft cushion on his sofa, scaramouche shrugs and accepts your decision.

how odd of you to expect that he'll insist on having you sleep comfortably in his room?

december 24th, 2:21.

it's even odder and definitely out of character that scaramouche is still within your sight after declaring that you'll be sleeping a few hours ago.

but what the hell are you doing chatting and bickering with an abandoned christmas movie in the background?

somehow, you don't find it in yourself to push him out of your sight.

all those hours of biting back and forth had you writing notes of his life after you—the life that consisted of him being eligible for an exchange student here in sumeru city to which he proved he deserved that he was offered a scholarship to transfer in the esteemed akademiya, scaramouche will be graduating next year.

and you want to slap yourself for that one second of thinking what would be a nice graduation gift.

you also learned that scaramouche shares this apartment with a guy named sethos, he's currently on a holiday vacation which cancels out the wandering thought of why does scaramouche's apartment have two bedrooms.

and about his little stunt, he admitted to swearing to himself that when he sees you, he will pour water all over your top—with high hopes that you're wearing your favorite shirt—and see that horrified expression that he believes will satiate his reasonable amount of hate towards you (no, he doesn't hate you but he won't admit it.)

on the other hand, scaramouche now knows why you're stranded in sumeru and why your wallet forces itself shut in your pocket.

as one of the well performing employees in the company, your boss included you in his entourage for this business trip in sumeru. the schedule was a hassle, it was an almost three week business operation because christmas was in the middle of the whole thing so there's four free days to which your boss decided to go back to inazuma then return on the twenty-sixth. you followed his plan, come home for the holidays—you even spent the morning of the twenty-third buying presents for your family and peers—then fly back on the night of the twenty-fifth to continue your job.

but alas, you were late to arrive at the airport. underestimating the christmas rush in the center of the city, traffic clogs the road causing frustration as everyone was thinking of the same thing: it's christmas.

and you were old enough to know that santa wouldn't give you a miracle that someone was willing to give up their seat in the next flight to inazuma, not that the thought didn't give you a flicker of hope. but you end that idea with a bitter chuckle.

“why didn't you come home for the holidays?” you wonder, your mind traveling back to the last few christmas if he ever flew to inazuma to celebrate the winter holidays back home.

“i don't come home during vacations.” he avoids your curious stare when he answers, seemingly having more words stuck in his throat that he swallows. 

you don't press it further, you know that scaramouche makes up his mind whether or not the reason behind a decision is substantial. 

“is sumeru better than inazuma?” curiosity is getting the best of you, it's an innocent query to anyone. maybe you were just trying to gain insight because of migration plans or vacation ideas. “well, i like it here.” his response has you tilting your head, a subtle sign of wanting to know more.

“i don't know, i'm surviving here so i guess it's not that bad.”

“are you coming back to inazuma after you graduate?”

“no.”

the zero second gap between your sentences startles you. it intrigues you, a quiet voice telling you to find whatever truth he keeps inside his heart.

because despite scaramouche doing most things according to the law of just because and how he wants things to be, this one seems to bear a reason that he dares not to tell a soul.

there's a weighted silence draped over you, but you feel the tempting force to keep scaramouche here overpowering the former.

december 24th, 12:49.

the afternoon rays of the sun pierces through your skin as the wind gently blows the curtains allowing the sun's presence to grace over your slumber.

rubbing your eyes, you try to recover the memory of last night. oh, right, you and scaramouche… in his apartment on christmas eve, what a totally normal ex-lover reunion, truly.

hell no—

“how long are you sleeping? it's afternoon already.”

scaramouche's voice rings through your ears and suddenly you want to deactivate your sense of hearing. your brain cogs were turning, processing a remark that will hopefully crush his soul, his whole life, his dreams, his—

“lunch is ready. get up while (favorite dish) is still hot.”

and you're bolting to the kitchen, accidentally bumping on the corner of the wall, but all is well as you hide the pain in your knee under the dining table.

“you cook now?” you raise your eyebrow. four years ago, scaramouche only knew how to heat up food and modern era's favorite instant noodles. 

“how do you think i survive?” he retorts back, handing you an ice pack before sitting down across you. “that must've hurt. deserve.” he strikes, you squeeze hard on the ice pack which quickly returns your pressure with the coldness it possesses.

four years later, scaramouche changed, but somehow you still feel the same scaramouche you loved lingering. you wonder if who you were four years ago would believe that this is what happens four years later—that you'll break up on a december night and find your ex lover again on a december night.

albeit the second night feels much more colder than the first fall of snow. ironic, because sumeru doesn't experience a snowy weather.

you flinch at the contact of the ice pack to your poor knee, your face contorts. scaramouche fights back a laugh, you hear the slipping sound of him swallowing it down, “just hold the ice pack, i'll feed you.” your brain freezes, unable to wholly process his words and he's already moved to sit beside you, grabbing the spoon and put in front of your lips.

you comply anyway, parting your lips to let him feed you. it's your favorite, you didn't want to pass up the opportunity even though your face is already heating up because why the fuck is scaramouche so close—you're already in his apartment, if that's not already an invasion of personal space (as exes) then you're at loss with the chaotic beating of your heart clouding your perception.

scaramouche continues to feed you, alternating his own portion in between. scaramouche is kind, but he hasn't pulled any mean gimmicks, there's the unfriendly remarks and triggers of annoyance—but he's not acting up. not yet, you suppose.

maybe he'll pull tricks on you on christmas.

a gift of revenge, you thought he would think of it as such.

december 24th, 17:31.

you're unable to read what exactly is going on in scaramouche's mind. is he carefully watching your steps align with his plan and waiting for that go signal to surprise you with the ultimate revenge or is he secretly still in love with you and he's trying to win you back through the little things he knows would matter to you?

either way, you couldn't reject his offer to drive down the city on the evening of christmas eve.

“is this how you spent christmas since you moved here?”

scaramouche pursues his lips into a thin line, eyes still on the road, he takes a few moments to respond.

“depends, last year i just slept through the whole thing.” he shrugs it off, your shoulder drops and a deadpan replaces your anticipating look.

“but i drive a lot at night.” he says, your eyebrow raises, “you're not from here so might as well make this a free vacation.” he finally glances at you, albeit teasingly.

“what kind of ex does that?”

“your ex.”

air gets stuck in your throat, why the fuck did it sound like he's still giving you the right of ownership? your ex. yours, even if he isn't.

“did you not date anyone in the akademiya?”

“why would i?”

“i don't know. did no one seem interesting or did you get rejected?”

“they're not you.”

scaramouche is charged guilty after all.

december 24th, 18:00.

scaramouche opens a can of carbonated soda, the fizz loud enough to turn your attention on him. the stars are twinkling bright over your heads and they hear your longing.

the stars know about your yearning.

the breeze of the night grazes over your skin, you flinch at the coolness, wrapping your arms around yourself. the two of you sit inside his car, windows rolled down; scaramouche brought you to where edge of sumeru.

the coastal highway, a familiar scenery.

ah, right, scaramouche has always been expressive of sitting down staring at the ocean beside the road.

“so—”

“i—”

eyes nervously look at each other, the enemy-esque banter is out of the window when you realize that the both of you aren't trying piss the other off.

scaramouche gulps, heaving a sigh.

“i'm sorry, yn. i'm sorry for leaving you.”

you're confused, why would he apologize after four years? you remember vividly how his last words before he turned his back against you was “let's break up, i'm sorry.”

your heart sinks, unable to yield a thought. it seems you're paralyzed as if all the suppressed feelings that you buried were resurrected and has you on chokehold.

“are you sorry because you still love me?”

scaramouche is silent, he doesn't look at you.

“i'm sorry because i didn't know what to do and breaking up seemed to be the only less damaging route.”

he reasons as his head lowers down, eyes fixate on the can in his hand, “i love you, but it didn't take rocket science to see that we were ruining each other.” you notice the bitter smile curve on his lips.

“yn, i know you were sacrificing too much for us. i know that any more of it will break you.”

“no—”

“you can't tell me otherwise when i saw it in your eyes that you needed to breathe.”

well, curse the fucking tears for ruining your supposed composed being. you hate believe his words.

“i needed you, scar.”

you did, you desperately needed your scar to save you from the chaotic world.

“but i needed me too, yn. and you needed yourself.”

oh.

“then, why do you hate me?”

your voice cracks.

“if i hated you, i wouldn't have looked your way back in the cafe.” he chuckles, “if it's because i spilled water on you, that was just me trying to get your attention.” he admits, your heart tightens.

“four years since we broke up and i still love you, yn.” he chugs down his soda, doing all that he can to avoid seeing your teary eyes, “it's not that i didn't fight for us, i did. but how can i let you suffer like that when i'm already short of what i promised you? i was compromising both you and my future.” he hears you sob and he breaks, his heart equally as broken as yours.

after all, you two truly were in love.

but love as it is will never be enough.

“if we stayed, i'm afraid i'll lose you in the worst way.”

“losing you is already the worst, scar.”

time is a lousely doctor, because until this moment, there's a silent plead for the other half to come back—to love again.

“i'm sorry, scar.” you cry, reaching out to hold him but fall mid-way. your memories flash before your eyes when the nights leading to the break-up consisted of more sincere apologies than the warmth of ‘i love you's.

it kills you to hear more ‘i'm sorry’s.

well, the last blow, the ultimate death was when you heard ‘let's break up’ because after then, you won't be hearing his voice.

you bitterly laugh to yourself, you realized it would've been more painful to hear apologies like it's your routine, a cycle of missteps that muttering a sorry is also part of the egg shells.

you knew no one was to blame, but someone had to cut that cycle. if it had to be scaramouche, then so be it, even if he had to suffer knowing that you suffer because of his loss from your life.

and he knows that if you had realized it sooner, it would've been you who saved your individual lives.

now, silence envelops you, the high tide moves the waves further to the shore allowing its crash to be heard from your position.

december 24th, 23:11.

you and scaramouche still love each other, there's a mutual hope for things to fall back into place. but time isn't the same as four years ago, neither are you and scaramouche.

for all that it's worth, you lay in his arms, his chest heave behind your back.

for what love can allow you to be, scaramouche settles his chin on the crown of your head.

for what you know should just be, yours fingers are intertwined and small bits of laughter blend in with the air as you share moments in your life that made you thought of the other.

you wish for scaramouche to come back as your lover and for you to love him unconditionally, without the constraint of losing yourself.

because you and scaramouche changed over the past four years, and if love allows a second chance,

“i will get to know the newer versions of you than ever think of meeting someone else.”

but alas, things won't be that easy for love alone can not hold a lifetime.

and so, as the seconds inch nearer to christmas, you only have one wish that you hopefully will come true the next year—

“i want our paths to cross again, and maybe then, we can start anew.”

“i'll catch up to you, yn.”

december 25th, 00:00.

merry christmas, please find me again.

[fanfictwins]

SAGAU Mondstadt - Holiday Special 2023

Summary: “When you told the Spark Knight about holidays from your home world, you never expected it to turn into such a big deal. But who are you to argue with having a holly, jolly time?”

Word Count: ~9.8k

“Master Jean! Master Jean!”

The door to the Grand Master’s office was shoved open, almost slamming into the wall, as the Spark Knight burst into the room, excitement radiating off of her form like heat off of flames. She came to a stop in the middle of the office, almost toppling over from the weight of her backpack.

“Can we please have a “Christmas” festival? Pretty please?”

“Klee…!” Jean looked up from her desk, her eyes widened. “You shouldn’t be-”

Her words were cut off at the sight of you appearing in the doorway to the office, your demeanor a lot more calm than Klee’s. You entered the room, an apologetic smile displayed on your lips.

“Oh, Your Grace!”

“Sorry for the intrusion, Jean.” You looked at the Acting Grand Master for only a moment before you shifted your attention down at Klee. “Hey, I know you’re excited, but you shouldn’t just barge into Jean’s office without knocking first, Klee. Remember what I told you about good behavior?”

“Oops. That’s right… sorry, Master Jean.” Klee looked down at her feet for a moment, before a smile returned to her face as she looked up at Jean. “Klee’s just super excited about Christmas!”

Jean furrowed her eyebrows, confusion appearing in her frown. “Christ… mas?”

“Mmm-hmm!” Klee nodded her head. “It’s something Their Grace just told Klee about!”

Your smile shifted into something more sheepish when Jean looked towards you again. “I was just talking to Klee about some… winter festivities from where I’m from, and she seems to have gotten a bit excited about Christmas, in particular. I honestly should’ve expected this, heh…”

“It sounds really, really fun!” Klee began bouncing on the balls of her feet. “There’s a big tree, and lots of presents under it, and this old man named Shanty Cloths who likes eating cookies!”

“His name is Santa Claus, Klee.” You stifled a chuckle at the excitement on Klee’s face, before looking over at Jean again. “But, yeah, she wants to experience the magical joys of it herself.”

The Spark Knight took a step closer to the desk, looking up at Jean with hopeful eyes.

“Oh, can we please have a Christmas festival, Master Jean? It’ll be so amazing, and fun!”

Jean blinked a few times, an unsure frown on her face, before she shook her head. “I’m sorry, Klee, but we can’t just put on a whole new festival that we know nothing about, especially with such short notice. It’d likely be a complete disaster, and I’ve already got a lot on my plate as is.”

The smile on Klee’s face slowly vanished, her form appearing to deflate. “Oh…”

You looked between the Spark Knight and the Acting Grand Master, your own smile fading as you focused on Klee — her crushed enthusiasm didn’t sit well with you — before you spoke.

“...you know, it’s not impossible. You can still experience Christmas, Klee.”

Jean looked at you with confusion. “Your Grace…?”

“Can Klee really?” The Spark Knight perked up as she turned towards you, her eyes widening with hope again. “It sounds so fun! And I want all of my friends to experience Christmas too!”

“Your Grace, I don’t mean to doubt you, but…”

Jean placed a hand on her chest, looking at you with worry in her gaze.

“It really would be near-impossible to put on a festival like this.”

“It’s okay.” You chuckled, and shrugged your shoulders. “Christmas is actually just a one-day holiday. Sure, there’s usually a build-up of festive energy a few weeks before it, but it doesn’t actually last more than a single day. While Klee keeps calling it a festival, it’s not really one.”

“Oh…?”

“So, Klee, do you think this would work for you?” You looked down at the Spark Knight, a smile on your lips. “We take part in a few traditional Christmas activities together over the next couple of weeks, and then finish it all off with a big ol’ Christmas party at the end. What do you think?”

“Yay! That sounds perfect!” Klee smiled brightly. “Klee can’t wait! There’s so much to do!”

You turned your attention over towards Jean. “Would that be okay, Jean?”

“That… should be fine, yes.”

“Great!” You clapped your hands together as you looked at Klee. “Then let’s get started!”

- - - - -

There were crayons littering the table as Klee readied herself, the young girl in red practically vibrating with excitement where she sat, and she held a crayon tightly in one hand with a piece of paper laying in front of her. She looked up at you, her eyes wide and sparkling with pure joy.

“Okay, first things first… I suppose we need to actually figure out what to do.” You looked down at Klee with a smile. “And who to include. As fun as it would be to have the entire city celebrate Christmas this time, it’s not very realistic, so… we’ll need to figure out a smaller list of people.”

“Oh! All of Klee’s friends have to experience Christmas!” Klee began to draw, switching crayons when in need of a different color.  “Like Big Brother Albedo, and Master Jean, and Kaeya, and-”

Klee continued to list people as she drew on the paper, before she lifted it up to show it to you.

“Is this okay, Your Grace?”

It was a cluttered drawing, filled with Klee’s artistic interpretations of people you knew well: the playable characters of Mondstadt — your “vessels”, as they often described themselves to be.

You nodded. “That seems good. Those are the people that I’m also closest to in Mondstadt.”

Klee set the drawing aside, before she grabbed another piece of paper and one of the crayons closest to her on the table. She tilted her head to continue looking up at you with a bright smile.

“Okay, but… what do people do for Christmas, Your Grace?”

“People do a lot of things. There’s no one right way to celebrate Christmas, Klee.” You grabbed a piece of paper and a crayon for yourself. “I’m pretty sure that you’re already familiar with some winter activities that align with Christmas, such as playing in the snow and making sweets, eh?”

Klee nodded and turned her attention to her paper, beginning to draw some winter scenes.

You twirled the crayon in your fingers a bit, before you chuckled. “And, since you’re helping to bring the joy of Christmas to everyone, I suppose that would make you Santa’s Helper, Klee.”

“Santa’s… Helper?” Klee blinked, curiosity flooding her widened eyes. “What’s that?”

“Well… it’s a person who helps Santa Claus spread Christmas cheer. Santa’s only one person, and he has the big job of delivering gifts to all the good children of the world, so he relies on his helpers to make sure that everyone is having fun during the weeks leading up to the big day. As this is the first time Christmas is being celebrated in Teyvat, Santa’ll appreciate all of your help.”

Klee let a wide smile appear on her face. “Whoa! So Klee gets to help Santa?”

“Yeah! And I just know you’ll do a great job, Klee!”

“Oh! And Dodoco too, right? She can also be Santa’s Helper?”

“Of course! The more, the merrier!”

“Yay!”

The Spark Knight clapped her hands in delight before she continued drawing, and you found yourself glancing at her pointed ears, your smile softening, before you started to draw as well.

Ah.

How fitting.

- - - - -

It felt crowded, having so many people in one area.

The playable members of the Knights of Favonius — from the Acting Grand Master to the Knights’ maid — lined up before you inside of the Knights’ headquarters; most had a look of curiosity or confusion on their face, and some even had concern painting their facial features.

But Klee was bouncing on the balls of her feet, standing next to you with a big smile on her face.

“Oh, Klee?” Albedo looked at the Spark Knight as he noticed her behavior, the curiosity in his eyes growing just slightly as he did. “You seem to be in rather high spirits about something…”

Klee nodded. “Uh-huh! ‘Cause it’s time for “Secret Santa”!”

The concern present in the audience was fully replaced with confusion and curiosity.

“...”Secret… Santa”?”

“Yeah! It’s gonna be part one for celebrating Christmas!”

Noelle put a finger to her chin. “Oh? I’ve never heard of “Christmas” before…”

“If it’s something to celebrate-” Amber looked up at Eula. “-then it’s gotta be a holiday, right?”

Eula nodded, crossing her arms over her chest. “Yes, it must be some kind of festivity.”

“So…” Mika placed a hand on his chest in relief. “...it’s not an emergency? Thank goodness…”

Lisa let out a hum as she looked over to Jean, who had a lack of surprise on her face unlike almost everyone else present. The librarian let her lips turn up into a subtle smile. “Well, you seem to have an idea of what Klee’s talking about, Jean. Mind enlightening the rest of us?”

Jean looked from the Knights towards Klee, and then looked at you. She looked a little stressed out — which was, unfortunately, normal — so you decided to explain the situation in her stead.

“Amber, Eula, you’re both right!” You smiled as you looked over all the Knights. “Christmas is a holiday from another world. I told Klee about it, she wanted to celebrate it, and so here we are!”

“A holiday from another world…” Kaeya had a look of interest in his eye. “How intriguing.”

Amber raised her hand, bringing attention to herself as you looked at her. “What’s it like, Your Grace? It’s probably different from any of the holidays that we have here in Mondstadt, isn’t it?”

“Eh…” You thought for a moment, putting a finger up to your chin. “...Christmas is mainly just a time to gather with loved ones to give gifts, eat good food, and… well, just spend time with one another. That’s the simplest way I can explain it, at least; does that make sense to everybody?”

Lisa chuckled, the smile on her lips softening. “Sounds like it shares quite a few similarities with some festivities we have. I think everyone here gets the picture that you set up, Your Grace.”

“Good! So, as Klee said earlier, she wanted to do something called “Secret Santa” with you guys.” You looked over the group of Knights, taking in all of their faces. “It’s an activity some workplaces do around Christmas, so having the Knights — well, the Knights that’re vessels — participate in this particular one seemed pretty obvious, especially when I told Klee about it.”

“What kind of activity is it, Your Grace?” Jean still looked a bit frazzled. “As much as I’d like to help Klee and you celebrate Christmas, having so many Knights occupied at once would be…”

“Don’t worry, Jean.” You sent a smile to her, hoping to reassure her worries and sooth her stress even a little. “This activity won’t take long. Basically, everyone participating will have to pull out a name from a hat — all the names of the participants will be written on slips of paper — and have to get them a present before the Christmas party that’ll take place in a couple of weeks. Oh, and you can’t tell anyone else the name that you pulled. That’s the “Secret” part of “Secret Santa”.”

“We…” Mika averted his gaze nervously. “...need to get a present for someone else?”

Sucrose fiddled with her fingers. “Based on a random drawing…?”

Amber smiled, her hands clenched in front of her. “Oh, that sounds like it could be fun!”

“Yes, but it could also be quite a difficult task-” Eula glanced around at the other Knights before looking at Amber. “-if you happen to draw someone that you’re not that well-acquainted with.”

“Well… I know that I just said you can’t tell anyone else who you pulled, but since I won’t be participating in the actual activity, you can come and ask me for gift ideas if you struggle with coming up with your own. I’ll be able to keep the secret.” You scanned the Knights with your eyes, a smile still on your lips. “So… is everybody in? You don’t have to participate if you don’t want to, but the more people that do, the more fun it’ll be. Just don’t feel pressured to, okay?”

The Knights glanced around at each other briefly before looking at you and Klee again.

Albedo nodded. “Very well. I see no reason not to, especially if Klee wants us to participate.”

Sucrose glanced at Albedo, before giving a short nod towards you as well. “O-Okay…”

“You can count on Eula and me to join too!” Amber smiled at Eula, the Spindrift Knight giving a slight nod, before she looked at you again. “It sounds like a lot of fun, so we couldn’t miss out!”

Lisa hummed. “...I have no objections either. This doesn’t seem like it’ll be too much work…”

Noelle straightened her posture when your gaze traveled over to her, her hands folded politely in front of her. “If that’s what you desire, then I’ll join as well. It… does sound like fun, I admit.”

“A-Ah…” Mika still looked a bit nervous as he nodded. “Alright, I can do it. I’ll try my best…”

“I suppose that if everyone else is joining, it’d be a downer if I didn’t.” Kaeya had a smile on his lips, a glimmer of amusement in his eye. “So you can include me as a participant, Your Grace.”

Jean let out a sigh. “...okay, I’m in too.”

“Yay!” Klee clapped in delight, smiling brightly. “All of Klee’s friends are joining!”

It took no time at all for the slips of paper bearing all of the Knights’ names to be created, all of which were then dumped into Klee’s hat, the Spark Knight having offered it to you happily. You tossed it like a salad for a few seconds, mixing them together, before handing it back to Klee.

“Alright, everyone. Make sure to choose one slip of paper, and keep the name a secret.”

The sight of Klee going around to each of the Knights, each one reaching a hand into her hat and grabbing a slip of paper, was heartwarming, in a way; the young girl in red was giggling as she received smile after smile from the Knights when she offered her hat to them, and the air in the room felt lighthearted as everyone received their targets for the activity. Some of the Knights were quite good at keeping who they got a secret — looking straight ahead with poker faces or a casual smile — while you noticed some of the others glancing around, likely at their targets.

“Everyone has a slip?” You saw everyone nod in response to you, a piece of paper in one of their hands that they put away safely. “Good. Then you’ve all got until the party to get a gift for whoever you pulled, and don’t be afraid to ask me for help if you need it. You’re all dismissed!”

Your attention was pulled away from Klee putting her hat back on by two figures you noticed approaching in your peripheral vision, and you looked up to see they were Mika and Sucrose.

“...need help, you two?”

Mika and Sucrose looked at each other for a moment before focusing on you.

“Yes, please, if you will.” Sucrose adjusted her glasses as she averted her eyes from you, her ears twitching a bit. “I’m afraid that I’m… not quite sure what to get for who I pulled, s-so…”

“Neither am I.” Mika rubbed the back of his head, also averting his gaze from you. “I’ve never really interacted too much with the person I pulled, and I’m afraid I might make a bad choice…”

“It’s okay.” You smiled and glanced between the both of them. “We’ve got plenty of time before the party, and I’ll make sure to help the both of you pick out good gifts for your respective pulls.”

Sucrose let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks so much, Your Grace. I’m sorry if this is a bother…”

“Yes, thank you very much.” Mika smiled slightly. “I hope that I’m not being a bother, either…”

You let out a chuckle, placing your hands on your hips. “Don’t worry, you two will never be a bother to me, and I offered to help with picking out gifts for a reason. It’s what I’m here for.”

The sensation of someone tugging on your sleeve caught your attention, and you looked down to see Klee looking up at you. You smiled at her before you looked at Mika and Sucrose again.

“I’ll meet up with you guys later to pick out gifts, okay? Just try and give it some thought by yourselves first, and then I’ll go over it individually with each of you in a few days’ time, okay?”

Mika and Sucrose nodded, looking a little relieved, as you let Klee drag you to the next activity.

- - - - -

“J-Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle… all the… way…?”

“It’s okay, Barbara. There’s no need to get so stressed.”

You were both amused yet concerned as you watched Barbara try to memorize the Christmas carols you told her about; you could see how tense her shoulders were, and could hear how her voice shook ever so slightly as she gave the carols a go, the melody enchanting yet unsteady.

“Your singing’s the best, Miss Barbara!” Klee sent a bright smile up towards the shining idol of Mondstadt, her eyes sparkling. “The Christmas carols sound so pretty when you sing them!”

“Ah, do they…? I feel like I’m singing them all wrong…”

“Don’t worry, you only just learned them.” You smiled at Barbara, trying to reassure her, even just a bit. “And caroling is going to be a group activity. You won’t have to sing them alone, ‘kay?”

Barbara blinked a few times, her eyes widened with surprise. “Huh?”

“Yeah! Like me, for example. I’ll be singing with you!”

“...h-huh?!”

That somehow seemed to be the wrong thing to say, as evidenced by how Barbara clasped her hands together, the nervous aura around her only growing instead of lessening. Her form began to tremble a bit where she stood, your smile faltering as her breathing began to quicken as well.

Klee tugged on the deaconess’s frock. “It’ll be okay, Miss Barbara! Klee will be singing too!”

Barbara snapped out of it as she looked down at Klee. “Oh, you’ll be singing as well?”

“Mmm-hmm!” Klee nodded, letting go of Barbara’s frock and instead placing her hands on her hips. “And all of our friends are going to too! So you don’t have to be scared, Miss Barbara!”

“...you make it seem so easy.” Barbara’s eyes flickered towards you for a second, before she closed her eyes and let out a breath. “I can’t help but feel nervous, but I’ll try to get it together.”

Klee giggled before turning towards you. “How many Christmas carols are you gonna teach us, Your Grace? Klee isn’t sure how many everyone’ll be able to learn before we have the party…”

The Spark Knight had a point that you thought about for a moment; there was only so much time before the Christmas party, and everyone had a limit to how many carols they would be able to memorize before then. It would be best for you to just stick to a few of the simpler ones this year, especially since you were the one who had to teach them to all of the party guests.

“About… three or four, I think.” You nodded to yourself, and refocused your gaze down on Klee, who was still smiling up at you. “I’ve taught you guys “Jingle Bells”, so… maybe I can also teach you guys “Deck the Halls”, “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”, and… also “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. I think that’d be a good selection for Mondstadt’s first official Christmas celebration.”

You looked over at Barbara, who appeared to be a little calmer now as she did a few breathing exercises. “They’re all on the simple and repetitive side, so learning them should be very easy.”

“That sounds fine.” Barbara nodded, determination in her gaze. “I’ll do my best, Your Grace.”

Klee bounced on the balls of her feet happily, her hands raised. “Yeah, we’ll do our best!”

“Ah, keep your voice down, Klee.” You chuckled. “We’re outside, but still near the Church.”

“O-Oh, right, hehe.”

- - - - -

The kitchen smelled like heaven, the countertop covered in several types of Christmas goodies of varying quality; it was like a dessert buffet with all kinds of cookies, cakes, candies, and more.

“Thanks again for helping us, Noelle.”

“Oh, it’s my pleasure, Your Grace.”

Klee overlooked the counter from the step-stool that she stood on, an excited glimmer in her eyes. “Wow…! There’s so many treats! Do people really get to have all of this for Christmas?”

“Of course!” You picked up a chocolate chip cookie, which was still warm. “Sweets are a huge part of Christmas, like leaving out milk and cookies for Santa on the night before Christmas.”

“Is that like sharing wine with Barbatos during Weinlesefest?”

You paused for a moment, taking a bite of the cookie in your hand before you shrugged, a smile on your face. “Yeah, I guess it’s similar to that. Santa loves cookies like Barbatos loves wine.”

“Your Grace, will this be satisfactory?” Noelle’s soft voice guided your attention back over to her, her posture being straightened just slightly when your gaze landed on her form. Her hands were politely folded in front of her, bringing some of your focus to her apron, which was unsurprisingly as clean as it had been at the start of this baking session. “I can continue baking if you’d like.”

“No, no… this’ll be good for now. I just wanted Klee to see what some Christmas goodies were like.” You finished the chocolate chip cookie in your hand, and wiped your hands on your apron, dusting off some of the flour that was on it. “But, since we’ll definitely need these sorts of treats at the Christmas party later this month, would you be up to make more when the time comes?”

“Anything for you, Your Grace.”

Noelle gave a small bow, before she turned her attention to cleaning the kitchen.

“Hey, Klee… do you think we should build gingerbread houses at the party?”

“They make houses out of gingerbread for Christmas?” Klee looked up at you with wide eyes, her mouth open in awe. “Wow, that must take a lot of gingerbread. Do people live in them?”

You held a hand up to your mouth, stifling a laugh and taking a moment to compose yourself before you shook your head. “No, Klee, they don’t. Gingerbread houses are small, kind of like dollhouses, and decorated with icing and candy. Building them is half of the fun, and then eating them afterwards is the other half of the fun. Oh, showing off your house to others is also fun…!”

Klee turned to look at the wide array of handmade candies on the counter, clearly contemplating how she could use them as decorations. Her focus was only broken when you began picking up plates of the goodies you made with Noelle, her gaze moving to the smile you kept on your face.

“Come on, Klee. Let’s clean up. We don’t want to make Noelle do all the work, right?”

“Okay!”

“H-Huh? Ah, Your Grace! That’s not necessary!”

- - - - -

“So, you’re saying that I’m supposed to write a letter to some strange old man that I don’t even know and just… get what I want?” Diona scoffed, placing her hands on her hips and turning her head away. “That sounds totally ridiculous, like some scam that a boozehound would fall for.”

“Aw… no, it’s really true!” Klee clenched her hands in front of her chest. “Their Grace said so!”

Diona looked at you from the corner of her eye for a moment, before she let out a “hmph”, and turned her head to face you and Klee. “Well… I guess that Their Grace wouldn’t lie, so… fine.”

The sounds of cats lazing about and cards being shuffled surrounded you and the two children as your group settled at one of the tables in the Cat’s Tail, though it was considerably less lively than normal due to it being around noon. Klee and Diona both had paper and crayons sitting in front of them, as well as an envelope for each of them to seal their letter when they were done.

“So…” Diona furrowed her eyebrows. “...what exactly are we supposed to do?”

You looked between the two young girls, chuckling with a smile on your lips. “Writing a letter to Santa is easy. All you have to do is write down what you want; just… list it all out on the paper.”

“And this “Santa” guy will make it happen?”

“...eh, try to keep it small-scale, Diona. Santa gives gifts, he doesn’t destroy anything.”

Diona grumbled to herself, her tail thumping against the cushion of her seat in annoyance, but she eventually started to write on the paper in front of her. The Spark Knight also got to work on her own letter, filling her paper with color as she scribbled out what she wanted for Christmas.

And, after they were done, they folded their letters and put them into their envelopes.

“Alright, now you just need to address them to the North Pole.”

Diona and Klee looked at you, curiosity in their eyes, before Diona raised an eyebrow.

“...to where?”

“The North Pole. That’s where Santa Claus lives, and where his workshop is located.”

Klee began to write the address on her envelope — simply “The North Pole”, in big bold letters — while Diona continued to stare at you, an unconvinced frown making its way onto her face.

“How exactly are these gonna get to Santa, anyway? He’s in a completely different world.”

“I’ll deliver them myself.” You carefully took Klee’s letter once she handed it to you, your fingers clasped around the envelope. “No postal service in Teyvat could get there, but I can handle it.”

“...okay.” Diona scribbled on her envelope and handed it to you. “But I still have my doubts.”

You held the two letters carefully, and chuckled again as you looked between the two kids.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure Santa will deliver!”

- - - - -

The gloves on your hands did little to keep out the cold, already covered in a layer of snow as you patted the icy substance thoroughly in your quest to form the base of your future snowman.

Dragonspine was a scary place — you would never traverse it alone in your current state — but the scenery at its edges was just the right amount of “winter wonderland” for you, and the sound of the younger Mondstadtian characters in the surrounding area only bettered that atmosphere.

“Your Grace, you should be careful. Sheer cold can be harmful, even to you.”

Albedo was standing by your side, completely unfazed by the cold; this place was pretty much his natural habitat at this point. His voice held slight concern, though his face remained calm.

“Huh? Nonsense, I’m fine. I ate some goulash before coming here; it’ll keep me warm.”

“You’re shivering, Your Grace.”

“...okay, fine.”

You moved over to the small fire that was built nearby, noticing that Bennett and Fischl were already there; the former was completely drenched and shivering as he huddled close to the fire, while the latter and her night raven familiar were completely fine. You reached your hands out to the fire to warm yourself, your fingers feeling a bit better, and looked over at Bennett.

“What happened to you?”

“Ah…” Bennett smiled, a hint of embarrassment laced within it. “Well… I just, uh…”

“He who has been born the most unfortunate suffered a great moment of slither-” Fischl caught your attention, her tone of voice confident. “-and was plunged into the beck of this biting berg.”

You stared at Fischl for a moment before shifting your gaze over to Oz.

“...the unlucky fellow had slipped on the snow and fell into the river.”

“Oh…!” You raised a hand to your mouth, covering the growing smile on your lips as you stifled a laugh. “Yeah… I guess your bad luck would spring up like that. Are you having fun, though?”

“Huh?” The adventurer tilted his head. “I… guess so?”

“Then that’s all that matters!”

Your attention shifted to Klee and Razor when you noticed them approaching the fire, sticks and stones in their arms. You even spotted some pinecones sitting within Razor’s stash of materials.

“We got the things for the snowman, Your Grace!” Klee bounced with each step, only coming to a stop in front of you. Her feet slid a bit from the snow. “And I found this really cool stick! Look!”

Klee adjusted the items in her arms, before holding up a stick with one hand.

You had to admit: it was a really cool stick.

“This good?” Razor held out his stash of materials to you, allowing you to look over all of it; he had a lot more in his arms than Klee did. “We hunt for what you said, and… this is what we find.”

“Of course!” You nodded, looking up at Razor with a smile. “You both did great!”

“Ah… good.”

Razor looked pleased with your praise; if he had a tail, it would definitely be wagging right now.

With a supply of materials now at your disposal, you began to work with the others to decorate the snowman; the base was all your doing, so you stepped back to let the others take the lead.

“Ore of the darkest night shall make quite a pair of eyes, would it not, my dear companion?”

“Klee’s stick can make a good arm! Oh, it’s hard to reach…”

“Let me, Klee. And this other stick can complete the pair.”

“I… do like this?”

“A pinecone for the nose? Neat! Gah, the rocks for the buttons keep slipping out of my fingers.”

The smile on your face grew as you watched the others work together to form a masterpiece.

“Wow… it looks amazing, everyone!”

It was a jumbled mess, but it was a real product of togetherness; each part was placed on by a different person to make a whole creation — small chunks of iron for the eyes, a pinecone as a nose, sticks for the arms, and rocks for the buttons. It was a shame that you didn’t think to bring any clothes for the snowman to wear, though, but that didn’t hinder the final masterpiece at all.

You and the others took in your combined creation in silent glory for a bit, and then you spoke.

“...so, has everybody had enough snow for today?”

There was a resounding “yes” from the group, and you shifted your gaze over to take note of their current conditions: Bennett had icicles starting to form on his damp clothes, Razor kept his arms close to his body as he shivered like a wolf pup, Fischl denied feeling cold — although Oz pointed out that she had complained earlier about not bringing warmer clothing to this outing — and Klee mentioned that the snow dampened the effect of her bombs. Albedo just appeared to be ready to go whenever everyone else was; he was clearly the one least affected by the cold.

“Then let’s head back to the city for some hot cocoa! Who wants whipped cream and sprinkles?”

“Oh! Oh! Klee does!”

- - - - -

“I’ll take a Gray Valley Sunset, Master Diluc!”

“You… do not need to address me as “Master”, Your Grace…”

“Aw, why not? Everybody else does!”

You planted yourself onto one of the barstools as you watched Diluc get to work behind the counter, the tavern being just as lively as it was most nights; luckily, most of the Angel’s Share patrons were too drunk to pay any attention to you, granting you a rare moment to just relax.

“My, you look rather tired, Your Grace.” Kaeya was sitting on a barstool next to you, leaning on his elbow. “I assume Klee has been dragging you around in her excitement this past week?”

“Yep!” You nodded, immediately grabbing your drink when Diluc placed it in front of you on the counter. “But I don’t regret telling her about Christmas. I’ve been having a lot of fun with all of it.”

The barstool on your other side squeaked as someone sat upon it, and you noticed a bard clad in green leaning into your peripheral vision, a smile set on his lips and a twinkle within his eyes.

“Oh? “Christmas”? What might that be, Your Grace?”

“A holiday from another world. I told Klee about it, and she’s been absolutely obsessed.”

“Ah, so that’s what you’ve been doing these past few days.” Rosaria was sitting on the other side of Kaeya, an alcoholic beverage already securely in her hand. Her expression was set in her usual disinterested frown, though the way she kept her eyes on you showed otherwise. “I heard that Barbara almost passed out when you requested her to sing… “Christmas carols”?”

You let out a short nervous laugh, before starting to drink your juice; it was cold and sweet.

“Oho?” Venti’s interest peaked as he leaned closer to you, the twinkle in his eyes having grown at the mere mention of your musical exploits. “If you need someone to sing for you, Your Grace, you’ve got the three-time winner of the “Most Popular Bard of Mondstadt'” title at your service.”

“If you want to carol with us, you’re totally free to, Venti!” You smiled at the bard before letting out a sigh, and you set your drink on the counter. “But, even though it’s been fun, we’ve still got to tackle the issue of preparing the Christmas party. Klee’s been looking forward to it since day one of our festivities, but I’m not sure where to begin with it. We’d need a place big enough for all of the guests, and we’d need to decorate it. Then there’s the food too. It'll be a lot of work.”

“So you need a place for the party?” Kaeya took a hold of his own drink, bringing the cup up to his mouth. “I’m sure the Knights would let you use their headquarters for the party, no problem.”

“The Knights of Favonius Headquarters…?” You thought for a moment, before you shook your head. “No, that wouldn’t work. Plus, I’d feel like it’d be… distracting to the Knights not invited.”

Rosaria sipped her drink. “Perhaps the Church, then? I doubt the Sisters would refuse you.”

“Absolutely not.” You hardly hesitated as you answered, and shook your head again. “The idea of having a Christmas party in the Favonius Cathedral… doesn’t exactly feel all that right to me.”

“Agreed. The Church is a bit too serious a location for such an occasion.” Venti nodded, placing his empty cup on the counter; if you were keeping count correctly, he had just downed his fourth drink. “I’d say this tavern is home to a much more suitable atmosphere for a joyous celebration!”

“...well, while Angel’s Share would be able to serve as a good space for the party-” You let your gaze wander around the tavern, taking in the sight of the many customers already drunk at their tables. “-it’s not really the type of place for a Christmas party to be held. I mean, maybe it would work if it was an adult-only event, but this party is gonna have people of all ages in attendance.”

The sound of Diluc clearing his throat caught your attention, and you looked towards him.

“Your Grace… if you’d so like, you may use Dawn Winery’s manor for your party.”

You perked up as you listened to Diluc, your lips turning up into a bright smile.

“Oh, that’ll be perfect! I love you, Master Diluc!”

The sound of glass shattering rang out from behind the counter, the remains of a glass on the floor as alcohol seeped into the wood. Diluc stood by the mess, a cleaning rag held in one hand and emptiness in the other; the warm tavern lights made you uncertain of the flush on his face.

“A-Ah! I’m sorry, Master Diluc!”

You continued to apologize to Diluc as he bent down to clean up the broken glass, his face now hidden by his bangs as he kept his head tilted down. Kaeya was trying — and failing — to hold back a chuckle, and Rosaria just silently sipped on her drink, her gaze averted from everything.

Venti let out a whine, his hand tightly gripping your sleeve as he tugged it. “Oh, that’s just not fair, Your Grace. You can’t say something like that without blessing me with such words too…”

“I-I just got excited by what Diluc said!” You glanced at Venti briefly, your eyes widened, before you looked at Diluc again, your face warm. “It’s just… thanks for letting me use the manor…?”

“It’s fine, Your Grace.”

Diluc stood up after he finished cleaning, his head turned away from you as if to allow him to continue hiding his face; even so, it was still obvious to you that he must still be embarrassed.

“I appreciate your enthusiasm, but just be more careful next time.”

You let out a relieved sigh and nodded, smiling at him.

“Will do, Master Diluc!”

- - - - -

You couldn’t help but take in a deep breath as the pine tree was set up in the manor, your hands on your hips as your chest expanded. You took a moment before you finally released the breath.

“Ah, the sweet smell of nature…”

It was a few days before the Christmas party was scheduled to take place, and you were doing some early decorating — namely, the big stuff that couldn’t wait until just before the big event.

And that included the tree.

“So…” You looked over at Diluc, who stood beside you. “I’m assuming that there aren’t already ornaments available to decorate with, but we can make do. Oh! Maybe we could have everyone make ornaments at the party and then decorate the tree together? That’d be super festive! But, in the meantime, we could at least put some popcorn on it right now to start, so it isn’t just bare.”

You were met with nothing but silence as Diluc looked from the tree to you.

“People put… popcorn… on trees for Christmas?”

“Wow! It’s so tall!”

Klee ran up to the tree, her head tilted all the way back as she looked up at it.

“Of course! The bigger, the better!” You walked up to Klee and gently nudged the Spark Knight away from the tree. “We’ll have to keep any and all fire hazards away from it, though. Okay?”

“Okay! Klee will be super careful!”

You looked back at Diluc. “Thanks again for letting us have the party here. It’s really so perfect!”

“It’s no problem, Your Grace. Just let me know if you need anything else.”

You felt as if you were a kid again as you ran around with Klee and got things set up, sharing the experience of choosing what should go where and what looked best with the young girl in red. You even decorated some of the exterior of the manor, not just the interior, though, due to the size of the building, you and Klee could only really work with the entrance outside the door.

In lieu of strings of Christmas lights, lanterns and Crystalflies were used to light up the desired area. The lanterns hung up on the wall, blending into the natural look of the manor — when the daylight faded, they would definitely stand out more — and the Crystalflies were caught in the vineyard, just to be gently guided to rest on the poles near the front door, their wings fluttering.

“...we’ll probably need to guide these little guys back here just before the party.” You watched as the Crystalflies fluttered their wings again, unable to stay still for long where you placed them. “I don’t think they’ll just… stay here for the next few days. They’re itching to fly again, that’s clear.”

There was a Crystalfly resting on Klee’s cap, only flying away as she tilted her head up.

“Do you think we’ll be able to find them again?”

You nodded. “Of course we will! These Crystalflies like Dawn Winery as much as the people of Mondstadt do. You can always find them around here somewhere, fluttering about the grapes.”

The Crystalflies resting on the wooden poles flew off into the vineyard, one by one, as you and Klee continued decorating. You wrapped ribbons of different colors — red, green, and white — around the poles, and draped some down from the balcony above, trying to make it coherent.

“...this place definitely says, “there’s a party here”, at least.”

“It looks great! And it’s so pretty!” Klee bounced on the balls of her feet as she looked up at the ribbons, before she looked at you. “Is there anything else to do before the party, Your Grace?”

You thought for a moment.

“Well… I think we’ve done everything we can right now. The tree’s main decorations can wait until the party, and the popcorn will be prepared tomorrow, but, besides that, everything else is ready. The manor’s staff are helping to take care of the food — and being compensated for their time by Diluc, of course — and Noelle will take care of the desserts for the party later. We’ll help her with that when the time comes, but, for now, we’re done. Why, still want to decorate more?”

Klee put a finger to her chin, before she began walking around to inspect the work you and her had done. The Spark Knight took in the sight of all the decorations you had put up, everything in the interior and the exterior of the manor, and her eyes sparkled as her gaze scanned over all of it. The decorations were a bit generic to be honest, only the presence of the — currently bare — pine tree making it clear that Christmas was what was being celebrated, but it was a good effort.

You worked with what you had, and during the party, it was sure to come together fully.

“Klee thinks it’s perfect, Your Grace! …but, um… maybe we could hang up more ribbons?”

Yeah.

This would all come together nicely.

- - - - -

“I’m so sorry I’m late! I had some trouble getting here…”

Bennett had an embarrassed look on his face, his form slumped over as he stood in front of you. His hair was ruffled up, some sticks and leaves poking out, and his clothes were slightly burnt, which made the water dripping off of him to form a puddle under him more noteworthy.

You smiled slightly at him. “I can see that… but, don’t worry, you’re not late at all.”

“H-Huh?”

“Ah, the man cursed with misfortune has arrived before the Prinzessin?”

You and Bennett turned to look at Fischl as she approached, Oz and Mona accompanying her.

“Hmph, this is truly a most unexpected eventuality, though not one unwelcome.”

Mona looked at Bennett with interest, her gaze scanning everything from his singed clothing to the water at his feet. “I must admit, it’s very unusual. I’d say you had a rare stroke of luck, but…”

“...what?”

Bennett looked between them and you, before rubbing the back of his head with his hand.

“I’m so confused… my invitation said that the party started an hour ago.”

The adventurer dug through his pockets until he eventually pulled out his invitation; the paper was completely drenched, though the ink was just legible enough to still be able to be read.

“But our invitations say the party will start soon.” Mona pulled out her own invitation, and took Bennett’s to compare the times. “See? Your invitation shows it starting a whole hour early.”

Bennett took his invitation back. “That doesn’t make any sense, I…”

You gained a slight sense of pressure as everyone turned to look at you. “Oh… I put an earlier time on Bennett’s invitation to account for his bad luck. You know… so he’d get here on time.”

There was a slight pause, everyone staring at you as you stared back at them.

And then Bennett let out a groan.

“Ugh, that’s so embarrassing…!”

“But it’s also quite smart.” Mona smiled at the unlucky adventurer. “You’d likely be suffering out in the wilderness right now if Their Grace kept the correct time on your invitation, wouldn’t you?”

“...y-yeah, you’re probably right.”

“Hey, I’m just glad you’re here on time, Benny.” You smiled and gestured towards the manor’s entrance. “Why don’t you all head on inside? There’s some refreshments set out already, and it seems like everyone else will be arriving soon enough. I’ll be out here greeting them, of course.”

Fischl looked at Bennett, whose embarrassment was still cooling off. “Let us continue forward, accursed companion. It would be wise to preen thyself before the rest of the due guests arrive.”

“Right.”

The two members of the Adventurer’s Guild headed inside the manor with Oz following behind them closely, the familiar taking care when he flew past the ribbons that adorned the entrance.

“Um, Your Grace?” Mona caught your attention, a hesitant look in her eyes. “If there… happens to be any… leftovers at the end of the party, will the guests be permitted to take some home?”

“You can take as much as you can carry.”

“Oh, thank you ever so much, Your Grace!”

- - - - -

“A party held at Dawn Winery… with no alcohol? You’re so cruel, Your Grace.”

Venti had slight disbelief on his face, even with his lips turned up into a smile, while Diona had hers turned up into a smug grin, her hands on her hips in triumph as she stood next to the bard.

“Well, I think Their Grace is only showing how great They are by keeping that stuff away. Why do you boozehounds always need alcohol to have a good time, anyway? It’s funner without it!”

“Diona’s right. At least, when it comes to this occasion.”

The bartender let out a chuckle at your approval, her smug grin growing towards the bard.

“Besides, this’ll be the first Christmas you’ll experience. You should experience it sober.”

“...not even a drop, Your Grace?”

“You’re gonna have to go dry tonight, Venti.”

Diona walked into the manor with a proud gait, her tail and head held up to the sky, as Venti let out a whine, his shoulders dropping. He only lasted like that for a second before he perked up.

“Alright, Your Grace. I suppose going through a party without wine won’t be so bad…”

“Oh, is this a “no alcohol” kind of festivity?”

You turned to see Kaeya making his way up the path leading to the manor, a trio of his fellow knights — Albedo, Klee, and Sucrose — walking right behind him until they stopped near you.

“Yep. There’s non-alcoholic apple cider and grape juice instead.” Your gaze wandered down to the wrapped gifts in each of the Knights’ arms. “You can go and put the presents under the tree for later. The gift-giving will happen after everyone arrives and gets settled into the jolly vibes.”

Venti eyed the gifts. “Oh-ho? I wasn’t aware that there’d be presents at this party.”

“It’s for “Secret Santa”!” Klee held her gift up for Venti to see. “All the Knights are doing it!”

“And, don’t worry, all the non-Knights will also be getting gifts too-” You put a hand to your chest and smiled. “-courtesy of me. It wouldn’t be fair for some to get presents here and others to not.”

Sucrose adjusted the wrapped box in her arms. “W-Wow…”

Albedo hummed. “A gift from the Divine Creator would be quite an honor. I’m almost jealous…”

“Oh, there’s no reason to feel that way.” You shook your head slightly at him, the smile on your lips softening. “All the gifts you’ll find under the tree are labeled from “Santa”, not me, so nobody is really getting a gift from the “Divine Creator”, okay? Now get on inside and enjoy yourselves.”

- - - - -

There were a few more greetings you got through — Barbara and Rosaria who arrived together, and Razor who arrived alone — before the last guests arrived: the other invited members of the Knights of Favonius — sans Noelle, who arrived hours before the party began to help prepare.

“I hope you’re all feeling merry!” You greeted them at the entrance to the manor, a smile still on your lips. “Because with all of you here, the party can finally start! Oh, it’s gonna be so fun…!”

“Apologies for taking so long, Your Grace.” Jean shifted the presents she carried in her arms, putting a hand to her chest. “I had some last minute duties that I had to attend to before being able to leave for the evening, due to so many of the Knights having to attend this party tonight.”

“It’s fine, no biggie.” You waved Jean’s concerns off. “I’m just glad you’re all here at all!”

Amber held up the wrapped gift she was holding to bring attention to it. “And we brought our “Secret Santa” gifts with us. Is there someplace that we should put them for now, Your Grace?”

“Under the tree.”

“Under the…” Eula raised an eyebrow in question. “...tree?”

You nodded. “There’s a pine tree set up inside; it’s called a “Christmas tree”. You put gifts under it until it’s time to hand them out and open them. It’s a classic Christmas tradition, a real staple.”

“Oh my, how quaint.” Lisa didn’t have a gift in her hand, which explained why Jean was carrying two in her arms. “Everything you say about Christmas just makes it more and more interesting.”

“I’m glad!”

Jean, Lisa, Amber, and Eula went inside at your gesture, with Mika tailing them.

Mika looked at you with a bashful smile, his present held carefully in his arms, and he glanced between you and it before his gaze settled on it. “T-Thanks again, for helping me, Your Grace.”

“Of course.” You lightly patted Mika on the back. “Now, come on. Let’s join the others.”

- - - - -

‘Twas the night of the party And all through the manor, The atmosphere was hearty And it was quite banner.

…and that was enough rhyming for now.

Though it took everyone a quick moment to familiarize themselves with what a Christmas party was like, it didn’t take long for the party to really start. Klee’s enthusiasm was a driving force for everyone else’s, especially anyone who might still have been hesitant about the whole thing.

The tree was finally decorated aside from strings of popcorn, the ornaments the product of a group activity where you helped everyone make their own; the branches were filled to the brim with unique creations that would last to the next time that a tree would need to be decorated.

You could hardly compliment Noelle and the manor’s staff enough for all their work on the food, and neither could anyone else. You swore Noelle would faint from how red her face had gotten from the praise, the Knights’ maid continuing to be modest about all the effort she had put in.

The various gingerbread houses were fun to see; everyone had varying ideas on what it meant to build a gingerbread house — some went with a more “normal” appearance with their designs, while others took more creative liberties with their edible materials. Diona had even based her’s on her own house, with little gingerbread people of herself and her dad put on the frosting lawn.

And then caroling was an experience.

Barbara and Klee helped you teach everyone else the carols you had picked out. Venti picked them up quickly — which you expected — and Rosaria opted out of caroling altogether — which you also expected. Diluc also preferred not to sing, as did Mika and Sucrose, but everyone else laughed their way through the carols, the sound of their voices together being not too shabby.

The most anticipated event of the party, the gift exchange, happened when everyone was finally settled in, and the Knights went around to give each other their gifts. The anonymous part of the identities of the givers fell apart during that part, the receivers gaining surprise at learning about who had served as their Secret Santa alongside the gifts themselves, though the biggest of the surprises had to be Mika’s and Sucrose’s when they realized that they were each other’s Santa.

The remaining party guests got a gift handpicked by you.

You kept your mouth shut as they all tried to figure out who had actually gotten them the gift — Kaeya, Albedo, Klee, Sucrose, and Venti also keeping quiet about it for you — and just let them question each other. The joy among the confusion was what really made it feel special to you.

When the gift-giving came to a close, you surprised the younger Mondstadtians with stockings to hang over the fireplace. Klee, Diona, Razor, and Fischl each got to put up their own stocking, but you helped Bennett with his, as having it accidentally get caught on fire would be a downer.

You still had extras, though… just in case.

And when the sun began to set in the distance, the party soon came to a quiet end… kind of.

“We gotta leave milk and cookies out for Santa.” Klee guided the other younger characters to the table that had been set up near the fireplace, where they set down a plate of cookies and a glass of milk upon the wooden surface. “It’s sorta like sharing wine with the Anemo Archon.”

“And then our hosiery hung above the embers shall be filled with his largesse on the morrow?”

“Yep!” Klee nodded towards Fischl, a smile on her face. “That’s what Their Grace told Klee.”

“But it won’t happen unless you’re all asleep.” You looked between the five youngsters. “Santa doesn’t come when you’re awake. He only comes to leave presents in the middle of the night.”

Diona’s tail flicked behind her. “That sounds kind of fishy, but if that’s what you say, then okay.”

“So…” Razor thought for a moment. “...Razor and friends go to sleep now?”

“That should be easy.” Bennett rubbed the back of his head before he stretched his arms out above his head, a smile on his face. “It’s been pretty exciting all day, so I’m a bit tuckered out.”

“Diluc’s been kind enough to have prepared rooms for you guys tonight.” You gestured towards the staircase and towards the second floor of the manor. “So feel free to get settled in, okay?”

“Yay!” Klee clapped her hands together. “Let’s go to sleep so Santa will come!”

You watched as the younger characters headed upstairs, disappearing from your sight, before you turned your attention to the other guests. The adults were all getting ready to leave, either gathering up the presents that they had gotten or grabbing leftovers to take home with them.

“I’d say have a safe trip, but I’m sure your group is the safest it could possibly be.”

The characters not staying at the manor — meaning everyone but the youngsters who were staying the night, Diluc who lived here, and Noelle who was staying to help clean up — were going to be heading back to the city, the majority of the group being comprised of vessels that were members of the Knights of Favonius. You knew anybody would feel safe with all of them.

Jean looked at you, her eyes tired despite her smile. “Apologies for not staying for longer.”

“It’s okay. I know you guys can’t just all be away from the city for long at the same time.”

“But we should definitely do this again sometime!” Amber had a smile on her face, still full of energy despite how late it was. “It was so much fun, Your Grace! This holiday was a blast!”

“I agree.” Eula held both her and Amber’s gifts in her arms. “It was quite the get-together.”

You waved to the group as you watched them leave the manor and start their journey towards the city, the Knights forming the edges of the group. Barbara was within the protective circle of the group with Mona right by her side, the astrologist carrying much more than she arrived with in terms of food. The only one not in the group was Rosaria, who left a bit earlier on her own.

The group soon vanished into the dark of night, the manor now much quieter than before.

You let out a small sigh as Venti approached you, and briefly glanced at Noelle and Diluc as they — and the manor’s staff — got busy cleaning up the party before focusing on the bard.

“Well, Your Grace, I’d say this party of yours was a huge success!”

“I’m glad it was!” You gestured for Venti to follow you. “Now, mind helping me fill the stockings?”

“Oh?” Venti raised an eyebrow as he followed you over to the fireplace, an interested glimmer in his eyes. “I thought Santa was supposed to be the one to fill those once everyone was asleep?”

“Spoiler alert: Santa is more of an… idea, rather than a real person. Don’t tell the kids, though.”

“So, that’s how it is, huh…?”

Noelle handed you the bag of prepared goodies as she passed by, the action of it exchanging hands seeming like more of an instinct as she focused on gathering discarded wrapping paper.

The bag was like a smaller version of Santa’s bags in your eyes, and you sifted through it to begin sorting the items into each stocking, taking great care to divide everything in it equally.

“Of course. The magic of Christmas is all about children’s hopes and beliefs… oh!”

You grabbed a cookie from the plate near the fireplace and stuffed it into Venti’s mouth.

“Here, eat a few. It’s “proof” that Santa visited.”

Venti grabbed the cookie out of his mouth, coughing a bit before he chuckled. “Thank you for this honor, Your Grace. Though you could be a bit more gentle when feeding me, you know.”

“Less talking, more eating, Venti.”

It didn’t take you too long to fill the stockings with treats and items tailored to each youngster’s interests, and along with the Christmas tree, the stuffed stockings hung over the fireplace made the perfect little holiday scene, something that felt so foreign in this world yet so familiar to you.

So the party was done, with the kids into bed, And the Creator’s smile was on their face, spread. For a spoken last joy, with the bard to their right— “Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

[heaven-s-black-box]

Normal- Lyney x Neuvillette's child!Reader

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Recovery date: April 27th, 2024

Description: Hello it's me, sorry if this is a bad time, but I got inspired by Arlecchino's story quest, and I wondered about combining that with my previous two requests about the reader being Neuvillette's child, this is mainly just an idea so if you're not comfortable with writing this that's completely alright.

Notes: This work was recovered in conjunction with @crystalkat6747, we thank her for her contribution. Ahh, I actually finished the story quest the day before you sent this request, lol.

Part: 1 2 3 4 (Can be read alone)

Word count: 810

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Lyney watches the moon’s light drift across the ceiling. Lynette is curled up against one side and Freminet is curled up against the other, both sound asleep after their return to the house. He watches their lashes flutter against their cheeks, eyes flicking back and forth behind their eyelids as they dream. Pleasant dreams, he hopes.

He turns back to the ceiling and chokes down a breath as Lynette’s head presses against his ribs awkwardly. His wounds from their fight with father were mostly healed, but still tender. She shifts off him again quickly, eyes opening briefly as if she could sense his distress.

The long shadows continue to dance above them as Lyney's thoughts drift back to the fight.

As for whether to take them, the choice is yours.

Carefully, Lyney slips his arms out from under and around his siblings and inches towards the foot of the bed. Almost as soon as he’s climbed out, Lynette and Freminet roll towards each other and grab on to each other's hands. It makes him smile, the way they take comfort in each other, like a family.

The streets are empty and dimly lit as he makes his way through the court. He eventually finds himself in front of a familiar house and rounds the side to climb up to Y/n’s window. Their curtains are tied back, and he just sits in the tree for a while watching them.

On their bedside table, he sees the rainbow roses he’d given them on their first date a week ago. Next to those is a little penguin, an otter, and two cat mechanisms that Freminet had gifted them for their last birthday. They looked like a little family.

A clicking noise and the swishing of the window opening startled him.

“Ly-Lyney?” Y/n yawned. “What are you doing here?”

He blinked owlishly.

“I…”

Y/n stared back at him for a moment before backing up and waving him in. They sat back against the headboard of their bed and Lyney crawled next to them, curling against their side.

“You wanna talk about it?” They whispered, arm wrapped around Lyney’s shoulder.

“We can’t have a normal life,” Lyney said, staring at the mechanisms on their bedside table. “I mean, I can’t have a normal life. Not as a member of the house of the hearth, and that means that we- OW!” 

He hissed as Y/n pinched his arm. They cupped his chin and forced him to look up at them.

“I love you. I don’t care what our normal looks like, if it doesn’t look like everyone else's then so be it.” Lyney blinked up at them, cheeks turning red. There was a small frown tugging at the corner of their lips as they continued. “What brought this up anyways?” Lyney chewed at his lip. “Is this about that proposal for former House of the Hearth members?”

The magician’s eyes widened in surprise.

“How did you-”

“My father wanted my opinion,” they shrugged, letting go of his chin.

Lyney slumped back against their shoulder and laced his fingers with theirs. In turn, they hooked one of their legs through his so they were wrapped up in eachother.

“The House of the Hearth is my family, but the other day… it gave me a lot to think about. I could leave at the cost of my current self, not that I want to but it’s never seemed like an option before.We’re preparing for a dangerous mission with other Harbingers, and father wants me to be the next king. I know this was never going to be normal but for just a moment I imagined what it would be like if we were.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Y/n offered again.

Lyney squeezed their hand.

“If I left the house, would you come find me again?”

“Always.”

“And if I die on this mission, would you miss me? Would you be there for Lynette and Freminet?”

“Dying, will not get you out of this relationship, and bold of you to assume those two will let you die without them.”

Lyney let out a snort of amusement while Y/n smirked.

“And if I became the King of the house?”

“Lyney, I’m not leaving you.” They leaned their head against his. “I may not know what exactly is going on, but I love you, and I’ll stand by you no matter what you decide. I never expected you to leave the house, and part of what I love so much about you is your dedication to your family.”

Y/n looked down, finding Lyney’s eyes and offering him a loving smile.

Lyney’s eyes caught once more on the little family diorama on their bedside table before he looked back at them and squeezed their hand again.

“Then will you marry me?”