#genshin one shots
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kayaani · 17 days ago
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LOVE IS MORE THAN THAT (ft. Kazuha)
cw: sfw/fluff, possibly OOC, insecurities, Fem! reader, modern settings, flat chested reader.
wc: 3.2k words
۶ৎ Your room wasn't quiet today, it never was. The room of your favourite band could be heard in every corner of your little — but the cheapest you could afford —apartment.
You have always liked music, and for real, who doesn't? Music can bring you such strong emotions and express your feelings in the most poetic and metaphoric way, the rhythm could make you cry, dance, ease your mind...
You weren't even hearing the song that played from your CD player. It was a little habit of yours that you started the past month, putting music to drown the bad thoughts that invaded your mind, seeking for your tears. This time it didn't help, as you were looking at your own reflection in your bedroom's mirror, staring at the top you bought last week without thinking twice.
Why didn't you try it in the fitting room? You were so stupid, and it didn't matter how many times you re adjusted the fabric of the cloth, it would still look the same. Oh, yeah, because you were with your boyfriend that time, reassuring you that it would fit you perfectly and beautifully. But looking at it now, you regret believing in him so easily.
You took it off, you couldn't stand the feeling it brought to your chest looking how unfitting it looked on you, thinking you were not the kind of person that should buy it.
You returned to the comfort of your baggier clothes, the ones that used to divert attention from your torso. "It's better this way" you muttered to yourself, but couldn't shake completely the self-doubt you felt.
You could still hear the voices of your classmates in middle school. Some guys making jokes, other girls talking about "you're so lucky, I wish I could have a flatter chest" and others just being your own voices of your head comparing.
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The bell rang, it was him, you looked one last time at the mirror to check how your hair looked, and then hurried to the door, opening it to reveal your sweet lover, Kazuha.
He took in your appearance and smiled at you with his calm and peaceful demeanor.
It didn't take long for him to, when you guys were watching something on the comfiness of your living room, bring up the subject of the top.
"I noticed I haven't seen you yet with the t-shirt. It wasn't to your liking, perhaps?" He asked you, sipping on his hot coffee you prepared together. Your hands instinctively tightened its grip on the mug. You didn't want to talk about it, not now, now any time soon. It was something terrifying, not your clothes, but what was under there.
"It's nothing like that, really" you were quick to reassure, smiling, or rather forcing your smile to him.
Of course he wouldn't fall into your trap, he was smart, too smart sometimes. A concerned frown formed on his gaze, his eyes were quick to look for any signs of discomfort, of sadness, something. You seemed tense, and that wasn't something that happened around him, when he was so caring and loving towards you.
"Is something bothering you? It's okay, you can tell me. You know I want nothing but the best for you"
That made your stomach flip. You knew him, you knew how genuine his words and actions were, the fact that he loved you and would never think of you as disgusting... But your insecure thoughts were faster than those reassuring ones. It was inevitable that one day he would see or notice the flatness of your chest, but how would he react? Would he be disappointed? Would his steady, soft gaze falter? If only you were born with more.
Kazuha brought you out of your trance with a single word, your name being called. You were quick to glance his way, he was a bit closer and he cautiously and gently put a hand on your shoulder to let you know it was okay and he was there for you. "I can see something is wrong tonight, please, don't be afraid of showing yourself"
"It doesn't matter, really" you tried to change the subject to something else
"It does if it upsets you" he said back
Sometimes it was irritating how caring he could be, how his words were laced with pure concern. You looked into his eyes, the shade of red looking back into your own. You hesitated, but finally expressed yourself.
"I'm afraid you'll feel disgusted or turn your back on me" she faintly explained.
Kazuha looked at you, the weight of your words in the air, but he didn't change his expression to one of pity, if anything, it just softened and looked at you in understanding. "How come? Why would I even think like that towards you?"
You sighed, it was time, wasn't it? And his words, his gaze, it just made it easier. You took off your hoodie, underneath was your top with that neckline that haunted you.
He didn't seem to understand, it was like you were showing him something only you could see. Little did you know, it was true. That your insecurity, your fear of the rejection, your hatred towards the size of your chest, was something only you could see, only you could ever feel bad about.
"I feel like a little girl" you murmured to yourself, then looked into his eyes in search of a reaction. You could only find pure love and admiration. "Aren't you... Disappointed? I know most men like girls with more than this..." You started to talk, but were cut off by him, your name in his lips.
"Is that what you were so worried about?" He asked you, his voice soft. "Why would you think that way? How could I feel disappointed when I love every single thing about you?" He continued, his hand lowered, looking for her hands to hold.
"Please, believe me when I say I don't care about that at all. I love you. I adore every aspect of you and something like this could never change my mind about it." He talked again, pouring his heart in his words and the genuine affection he felt.
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Author note: this was a request I received 6 days ago (I know , I just didn't see it omg I feel so bad). I hope this is for your liking and this was what you expected. I really didn't know how to start and if her thoughts and worries were well-written as I don't suffer from that insecurity.
To whoever is reading this and relates or has similar insecurities as the main character (reader) of this one shot, I hope everything's going well, because believe it or not, it doesn't matter. Those are things we only see. Everyone has their own insecurities and are more fixated on them than yours to even look for them. People won't see you just for your appearance, true people will see beyond that, and it won't matter to them whether you have skinny legs, fatter legs, flat chest, big chest, nose hooked or nose straight, etc. Those things don't matter, those things make you you, you.
Also, I'm truly sorry if this feels rushed, OOC or not what you expected, I'm a bit busy with things but wanted to write something, and the request made me happy. Btw, if you guys have any requests feel free to tell me.
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windwheeler-aster · 2 years ago
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valentine’s absence
summary: even though you and your partner planned a romantic day, you find a letter that tells you there’s been a “slight” change in plans
masterlist
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pairings (separate): thoma, ayato, cyno, alhaitham, yoimiya, yelan, lisa, and shenhe x reader
reader info: uses gender neutral pronouns (they/them)
word count: 255~ words per section (1 and a half minutes~)
genre: romance, (slight) hurt/comfort
format: one shots (letters)
warnings: slightly suggestive, character can’t make it to valentine’s date
a/n: idk why of all things i wrote this. i liked it though, so i hope you do too :) happy valentine’s day, even if you’re all alone like me! we deserve love just as much as those icky couples you see in public. gross. anyway, enjoy this💖
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To My Sweetheart,
Happy Valentine’s Day, honey! 
I’m so incredibly sorry that I can’t spend the whole day with you. The Kamisatos have tasked me with delivering some things around Inazuma to some friends and business partners of theirs. Ayato said it’s to keep up business relationships. But you and I both know that the people of Inazuma won’t see it that way. I can already hear the gossiping citizens following after the two siblings when they go into town. 
But, the good news is that you’ll have me all to yourself when I get off from work! 
I was thinking we could get dressed up and head out to a nice restaurant. Maybe Kiminami Restaurant? I heard they have a sweet deal for couples for Valentine’s. Or maybe you’d like to go to Komore Teahouse…? I don’t mind sticking with something familiar, but I just want to do something different for today. But don’t worry. Whatever you choose, I don’t mind! I just want to make you feel special, baby.
And, I heard Naganohara Fireworks was doing a special light show for tonight. I was thinking that after dinner, we could take a nice stroll through town. We could watch all the beautiful lights and fireworks! Though, I don’t think their beauty could ever compare to yours.
Again, I do hope you’ll forgive me for not being there for the whole day. Please take care of yourself while I’m gone. We’ll definitely talk more when I get home and decide what’s best, okay? 
See you later tonight, babe.
Sincerely yours,
Thoma
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My Darling,
I write to you to apologize. It seems that there was an oversight and I was scheduled to have a meeting with some business partners today. Trust me, darling, this is as frustrating to me as it is to you. I had specifically cleared my schedule of all work and meetings for this day, and yet I still managed to forget something. Please accept my sincere apology. 
Fortunately, it is only one meeting. One surely long, very boring, and pointless meeting. Ugh. I swear, these business officials get something out of ruining my days. As I’m writing this, I already feel a headache coming on.
I should be out by the time it is midday. By then, I’ll fetch you from our chambers myself. It’s not… necessary, per se, for you to be dressed by then. You know I’m more than happy to help you get dressed for the day. I actually have a few items I’d like you to try on, but that can wait for a later time.
I was thinking we could go for a nice stroll on the trail behind the estate, or maybe even venture into Chinju Forest? I know it’s a little spooky, but I think it would be quite tranquil. And, I wanted to bring along a nice picnic for us. We never get to sit down and enjoy our time together, do we?
That’s all I had planned for this special day, but I’m more than willing for other suggestions. You are my heart, my love, and my life. Wherever you want to go to, or whatever you want to do, I will follow wholeheartedly and without question. 
Forever yours,
Ayato Kamisato
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Hey Babe,
There’s some trouble in the Akademiya and I’ve been called in to handle the situation. Can’t give you many details right now, the situation is still happening as I write. All I know is that there’s some senseless argument between some scholars. Again.
I should be back by supper time, at least. Please be ready by the time I’m back. We have a reservation at Lambad’s Tavern that I’d rather not be late to.
I know I seem curt and cold in this letter, but please understand that my anger is not directed at you. I had a very romantic morning planned for us where I could wake you up with your favorite breakfast. I was going to show you a photo album I had made of us, but sadly I cannot be there to witness your reactions. It’s on my bedside table, the book with a red leather cover. I know it’s not too thick, but I promise you that by next year it will have tripled in volume with the amount of memories we will have made.
I love you with every fiber of my being. I love how your reactions to my jokes, as it always encourages me to find even more. I actually have a few for you that I made myself, but they can wait for our dinner. 
Happy Valentine’s Day, babe.
Sincerely,
Cyno
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Dear Love,
You know that I’m not a fan of Valentine’s Day. To me, it’s all a bunch of marketing and advertising for some pointless and ingenuine romance. The holiday itself leaves a sour taste in my mouth, like some of the cheaper chocolates you get on this stupid holiday. However, after a change of heart, I think I can tolerate this holiday in honor of you, my love.
We both know that I’m not a huge romantic. Despite being a scholar and the Scribe for the Akademiya, words seem to fail me. I don’t know how to compliment you like a flowery poet or bard. Giving compliments and praise is a new experience for me, so please be patient with me. Though, I know you find it amusing when I turn cherry red as I try to maintain eye contact and compliment you. Which is very difficult, by the way.
However, I’m better with actions. Which is why you’ll find yourself alone this morning, as I’ve left a trail of sentimental clues for you to follow. At the end of memory lane, you’ll find me, your beloved. Not an exciting prize, I know, but I thought that it could be a fun experience for you.
Happy Valentine’s Day, my love. I hope you have fun, and I hope to see you soon.
Forever and always yours,
Haitham
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Good morning, my sunshine!
So, there’s a slight change of plans for the day. 
I know we wanted to spend the day together in each other’s embrace, doing a lot of lovey dovey and coupley stuff. But, due to some faulty fireworks, I’ve gotta be in the firework shop trying to fix it. I think my dad accidentally spilt something over them, but I’m not sure yet.
But, that doesn’t mean the day is totally ruined! I was thinking that sometime in the midday you could come over? That way we could at least grab some lunch and still have some romance! Or maybe we could do some shopping? I saw this really cute set of matching bracelets the other day and immediately thought of us. Only if you want to, of course! I’m fine with whatever you want to do!
Listen, I know it doesn’t make up for the disappointment. If it means anything, I’m pretty sad that I can’t spend the whole day with you too. I just wanted to spend the whole morning cuddling with you! And then we could have made breakfast together. I bought some cute aprons and everything! Ugh, silly fireworks…
Anyway, I hope to see you on my break, sunshine. I’m more than willing to do anything to make it up to you, so feel free to suggest something else we can do! Within reason of course. My dad’s hard of hearing, but not deaf, hun. 
Hugs and kisses,
Yoimiya
P.S. - I love you!
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To My Darling Dearest,
I screwed up. 
I know today we had big plans to bask in the romantic and lovey dovey atmosphere, both of us making sure we have the day off to celebrate. I even got you a lovely gift and flowers and— ugh, I’m sorry, my love.
Something came up with work, as always. I can’t say much now, given the nature of my work, but I will let you know that there’s been a major break in our case. My informants and I think we’ll be able to gather enough evidence on our current “client” whilst he’s out with his sweetheart. It’s a long shot, for sure, but I’ll pull it off. I always do, love.
But in regards to our romantic day together, do you think we could reschedule? I know that this is very upsetting— or it is to me, at least— so I understand if you’re frustrated with me. I just ask you that your anger doesn’t sour and turn into resentment against me. Please understand that I love you more than my work itself. Coming home to you is a home in itself, your sweet greeting and soft kisses being the welcome mat. I’ve never felt more comfortable than I am with you, whether it be cuddling in bed or simply cooking together in the kitchen. I love you oh so much, my darling dearest. Please don’t ever forget that.
So, I ask you to think of ways for me to redeem myself. I’ll do nearly anything for you dear… alright?
Yours forever,
Yelan
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Hey cutie,
You may have noticed that I’m not by your side this morning. 
But don’t panic, I’m alright. The knights didn’t schedule me for patrol or anything else like that. I’m just in the library for this morning, as I was asked to cover a shift at the last minute. Ugh. The things I do for these people…
In better news, I’m actually preparing your Valentine’s day gift as you read this. Now, now, don’t get too excited. It’s not as extravagant or wonderful as you imagine, but it is something simple yet heartfelt. Nothing as lovely as your gift to me, I imagine. You did get me a gift, right…?
No bother. Gift or no gift, I love you regardless, cutie. You’re one of the most interesting people I’ve met throughout my life, adding a new flavor to my life amongst stern knights and boring scholars. You always know how to console me after a crappy day at work, and I am forever grateful for that. When you help me with work, even the small things like book returns, it makes me fall in love with you all over again. My special little helper, haha.
I’ll drop by the house by midday. If you wouldn’t mind preparing some food, I would love to take you out for a picnic. I always find the cliffs around Mondstadt to be especially romantic. And, more importantly, scheduled.
I’ll see you later today, love.
Xoxo,
Lisa
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To My Love,
I’m writing to you because I am worried.
This is my first Valentine’s with a partner. You already are familiar with my… lack of experience, when it comes to romance. Even when I suppress my stronger urges— the other ones, dear— thinking about you can make my passive and docile personality break. Cloud Retainer teases me that I turn pink and “smile like an idiot in love.” I think she’s just jealous. 
But to keep on topic, I’m worried that I’ll ruin this romantic day for us. I know we made plans to do some hiking around the cliffs of Liyue and then have a picnic, but do you want that? You already know that I find traditional romantic traditions on this day strange, but I never thought to ask you if you wanted to do that instead.
I really appreciate you being understanding and accommodating to me, but I want to give you something too. So, I was thinking that we could just walk down to the streets of Liyue and… do some shopping, maybe? Last time I was there, I saw some nice jewelry that would look really pretty on you. Oh, and there were some nice smelling pastries in the shop one over! You’re sweet and you like sweet things, right? Maybe we should go get some goodies and candies instead of eating the herb-central dishes I made for the picnic…
We’ll talk more once we see each other. But I want to do something you want to do, too. Not just because I wanted to, but because it was your idea. I really value your opinion and suggestions, darling. So don’t hold back, alright?
Your love,
Shenhe
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thank you for reading 💖 all forms of interaction to my posts are appreciated 💖
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holybananaoafshoe · 1 year ago
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Modern AU: Halloween 🎃 1/2
It’s way after Halloween, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT?? I’m happy you guys are here, and what would the spooky season be without a, hastily written, one shot? Here’s the first half for you guys!
Pairing: Kaeya and Wriothesley  :)
TLDR: What’s Halloween without a party, a ghost hunt, and some well-meaning shenanigans?
“Please, Albedo, it’ll just be for tonight!”
“No.”
“I’ll do anything,” Kaeya pleaded, “I’ll do all of the taste testing for the next month.”
The man in question was lounging languidly on the couch of their shared apartment, feet propped up on the coffee table, and absentmindedly watching some kind of documentary on cryptids across the United States. A large bowl of candy sat on the round end table next to the couch, a few discarded wrappers laying on Albedo's lap as he watched the documentary. 
The living room was dark, the only source of light coming from the various lit candles around the apartment and the glowing TV. Small pumpkins that were crudely carved by Kaeya and Klee littered the counter top, while the more intricately carved ones Albedo had carved (as well as a few he carved for Klee) were displayed on the balcony. 
Their neat apartment had a few cobwebs strewn about and rubber bats hanging from the ceiling. Their kitchenette had some small test tubes and beakers with water and food coloring in them. A few had smoke drifting from the tops to pool on the counter--courtesy of Albedo, who took a few leftover dry ice chunks from work. Ghosts hung in the hallway that led to their bedrooms and the bathroom. They had painstakingly hung up their fairy lights on the ceiling of the hallway in an attempt to make the ghosts seem a little less scary. Poor Klee had gotten quite the scare late one night while she was sleeping over because she forgot they had hung them up, that is until a passing car's headlights cast the ghosts' eerie shadows on the wall. 
Kaeya liked to dub the hallway “Specters Crevice,” but it seems others did not share his sentiment as they’d wrinkle their noses or roll their eyes at the cheesy name. All, besides Klee, who had giggled and hung up a small ghost that looked a lot like Dodoco. The name, lights, and the ghost resembling Dodoco had thankfully helped ease the young girl's mind.
It was their night off from the Knights of Flavorus, which was a small bakery owned by Alice. The local bakery wound up expanding relatively fast with the help of Albedo’s scientific ways of combining flavors and the owner’s own to-die-for recipes. Albedo was the head food and flavor chemist of the company and managed a small team that would come up with wacky flavors that made all the employees a little nervous to try. 
Kaeya had known both Alice and Albedo long before the bakery began. Alice had been close to Crepus, his adoptive father, before he had passed away. She visited so often that he and Diluc have taken to calling her “Aunt Alice.” Since Crepus's passing, Alice had taken Diluc and Kaeya under her wing, treating them like her own children and helping them through the hardships they endured after the funeral. The family held a special place in Kaeya’s heart, they took him in after he and Diluc had gotten into a nasty fight in the bar. The brothers had exchanged harsh words--words neither of them truly meant, but left emotional scars all the same. One of the long-time bartenders broke them up and let Kaeya leave early, just an hour after midnight. Wouldn’t you know, that would be the same night a drunk driver hit Kaeya in a head-on collision as he was driving towards Aunt Alice’s house. 
He lost his right eye and his brother that night. 
The next following days in the hospital were…ones he’d rather forget to be honest. Surprisingly Diluc would visit, which would always end up in a yelling match that Aunt Alice or nurses would rush to break up. During those rough weeks of healing and physical therapy and searching for a job (and trying not to think about his eye), she had let him stay with her. Aunt Alice bought the bakery just a few months after his accident and hired Kaeya as one of the bakery’s managers. After a lot of deliberation and discussions and arguments with Diluc, he started work at the Knights of Flavorus and got an apartment with Albedo. He was often found upfront working his customer service ‘charms’ as Lisa, their accountant, would say, or in the back decorating cakes.
Thankfully, Kaeya and Diluc are at least on speaking terms now. Sometimes, they can even stand each other long enough for Kaeya to help out at the bar or to sit through an event with Aunt Alice and her family. 
Nonetheless, Albedo was not one to dress up for Halloween, often going with whatever costume Kaeya or Klee wore or just donning his lab coat and grabbing some kind of prop he dug out from Kaeya’s closet. Tonight, he sported an oversized white hoodie that had swirling gold embroidery on the arms with stars sprinkled in, a pair of navy sweats, and fluffy Dodoco slippers Alice had gifted to him last Christmas. 
Kaeya had on his costume and a face full of makeup, ready for a night out in the town.
Only, he had forgotten he was supposed to take Klee out to the annual Halloween bash in the park this year. The bash is hosted by the town where various businesses open up elaborately decorated booths ranging from food to games to entertainment. It was one of the biggest holiday celebrations in the town, right next to Christmas. The winners of the booth decorating contest won bragging rights as well as the ability to pick where their booth would be located at the next year's bash.
After the bash, the streets in town would be closed off for a few hours so kids can run around and go trick-or-treating. Everything considered, the turn out for the event was huge and most of the employees at the Knights of Flavorus worked in shifts at their booth.
It was the first Halloween either has had off for…a while. Usually the two spent the night covering each other's breaks at the Knight's booth so they could spend a little time with Klee. Yet, here they were, spending the few hours before the Halloween Bash to get their costumes on and goodie bags for the kids ready, and Kaeya just realized his predicament. 
Albedo slowly tore his eyes away from the TV and looked over at Kaeya, raising an eyebrow at his costume. “Last time I covered for you, you got arrested.”
“And I got a cute boyfriend out of it, your point?” 
Last Halloween, Kaeya had gotten into a small fight with a customer that resulted in both him and the customer getting detained and taken to the nearby police station. He wasn’t even working for the Knights of Flavorus, he was helping his brother bartend. Technically, he was supposed to be at the barkery, but Albedo had covered hsi shift after Diluc had called Kaeya up right around the time the Halloween Bash began, asking if there was any way he could help. His long-time bartenders had called in just before the bar opened: one had gotten sick and the other had to rush their child to the emergency room (word on the street was the child had grabbed a flaming marshmallow with his bare hands, apparently trying to throw it into their cup), leaving Diluc alone at the bar. Kaeya couldn't exactly leave his brother to fend for himself, he knew how busy the Halloween party at the bar got and then the absolute insanity when the after party started. (It was always the best party of the year, fondly remembered by all those who participated until the next rolls around).
It wasn’t his fault and, if it says anything, Diluc and the police agree that Kaeya was not at fault. 
Listen, what was he supposed to do when he kept getting orders for angle shots? He and Diluc made sure to keep an eye out for the creep. Unfortunately, with how packed it was, neither seemed to be able to spot the man. His breaking point was when Barbra, a member of a local band that often played live music at the bar, had shakily come up to him and tell him that it was Albert. At that point, Kaeya had left the bar to hunt the man down. Can you blame him? He was getting sick and tired of throwing Albert out for creeping on girls and following Barbra around the parking lot. No matter what he or Diluc tried, nothing seemed to keep Albert away. 
When he finally caught Albert’s ass, he made sure to get between Albert and the person he was pursuing. Of course, when kicking Albert out peacefully didn’t work, Kaeya had tried to forcefully kick him out. One thing led to another, and Albert wound up breaking a bottle of wine over Kaeya’s head and used the bottle as a makeshift weapon. At some point in the fight, Kaeya had been able to wrestle the bottle away and subdue Albert until the police arrived. 
Imagine Kaeya’s surprise when the police arrested both of them. He supposed it had been a year or two since he’s worked as security, but he thought the local police would at the very least remember all the times he had called the station about an unruly drunk. 
He didn’t exactly regret fighting Albert, the man had it coming for a long time and a small part of him was satisfied that he was the one to put the man behind bars, but he did regret having to sit in an interrogation room for the rest of Halloween without spending any time with Klee. He sat in the cold interrogation room for who knows how long--his head bleeding, feeling a little woozy, and overall reevaluating his life choices--until Wriothesley had walked in. It’s cheesy to say, but Kaeya’s breath was taken away at the sight of the officer. How could he not be infatuated when the officer scrolled in, a slight grin tugging at his lips, and began to tease Kaeya about the fight?
He wound up doing community service for a few weeks, but it was so worth it. 
For one, Albert was officially banned from the bar and Diluc was able to get a restraining order of sorts to keep him off the bar's property. Secondly, it also gave Kaeya more time with Wriothesley. Eventually, he had worked up the nerve to ask the other out for dinner, who had teasingly said he would take up his offer once he was finished with community service. 
“My point,” Albedo said, pointing a Crunch bar at him, “is that last year, you were beside yourself for missing out on spending time with Klee.” 
“I know," Kaeya sighed, "it's just, I can do the Halloween Bash, but Wriothesley and I wanted to go to the after party together and…" 
"That's when trick-or-treating starts," Albedo finished for him.
Kaeya nodded and silence filled the space between them as Albedo thoughtfully munched on the candy. After a moment, Albedo looked over at him and pointed his half-eaten crunch bar at Kaeya: “You know, you still owe me for knocking a whole tub of peppercorns into batter when you and Wriothesley tried to fu--”
“OOOKAAY we agreed to never bring that up again,” Kaeya interrupted, his face turning a nice shade of red. 
Albedo took an aggressive bite of his candy, the loud snap making Kaeya cringe, and threw his arms up as if to say: what do you want me to do, when you haven't touched a single cake pop I've made?
The Peppercorn Incident™ happened when Kaeya and Wriothesley first started dating. Let’s just say Wriothesley's after hours visit to the Knights of Flavorus with Kaeya to pick up a set of keys had turned into an impromptu cake decorating lesson in the large walk in cooler that got a tad flavorful, if you will. In their passion, they had knocked over a large container of peppercorn into leftover dough (who knew plastic wrap was so flimsy?). 
After knocking the peppercorn over, they decided it would probably be best to continue elsewhere, so Kaeya cleaned up (he wasn’t a monster, thank you, people make food on those tables) and they left. Only, he had forgotten to throw out the leftover batter, and Albedo had been the lucky soul who had decided to look at the security footage to find the culprit. Thankfully, Albedo deleted the footage and they both agreed never to speak of it again, so long as Kaeya taste tested anything Albedo made for the Halloween Bash.
You can imagine how much Kaeya had wanted to yeet himself into the abyss when Albedo had dragged him into dry storage and confronted him about it. 
Kaeya can only imagine what would have happened if Sucrose, or, God forbid, Aunt Alice had found the footage.
Small mercies and all of that. 
Regardless, Kaeya didn’t mean to avoid taste testing things for Albedo. Between helping Diluc out with the bar, getting the Knights of Flavorus’s Halloween booth items, and splitting his spare time between Klee and Wriothesley he hasn’t been able to pop by the labs. Usually, Kayea doesn't overwork  himself--he prides himself on his ability to balance his time between work and life--but before he had realized, he found himself committing to setting up the bakery’s booth for the Halloween Bash and helping at Angel's Share all so he could get tonight off. 
He wasn't proud to say that Albedo and Lisa had to send him home early a few times (nearly collapsing at the counter and throwing an entire tray of cupcakes away instead of the broken piping bag wasn't his brightest moments), calling Wriothesley to come pick him up and drive him back home. One day, Albedo took one look at him, picked up his phone, and told Jean Kayea wasn't coming to work--all while maintaining eye contact. Don't get Kayea wrong, he was thankful for his coworkers (if he was being honest, they were all more friends than coworkers) and without them he wouldn't be half as alert as he was currently. 
However, Albedo hasn’t summoned him to the labs once. Instead he just set random cake pops out and about the apartment, and they weren’t even weird flavors, they were vanilla. Perhaps he didn't call him over because he could see how exhausted Kaeya was, but he was fully capable of making caffeinated cake pops.
Albedo can deny it all he wants, but he swears he's seen something about it in Albedo's recipes.
Not only that, but Albedo occasionally enjoyed giving them things to taste test that were unusual, stifling a laugh when they made faces at the flavors. So to say that Kaeya would have been the perfect subject for unusual flavor testing, tired and unassuming as he's been the past few weeks, would be an understatement. 
The perfectly normal and delicious cake pops were odd, suspicious even, and Kaeya had halfway expected one of them to have an interesting candy coating. Except none of them ever did.
(No matter how much Albedo liked tricking others into tasting something odd, he wasn't cruel. Not that he didn't try to make something for Kaeya, he just felt bad pushing his unholy creations onto his tired roommate. Besides, Kaeya has been working his ass off to try to get Halloween off to spend time with Klee. Even Albedo had to admit his efforts were enduring, so maybe he made Kaeya's favorite cake pop flavor to help him feel better after a rough night at the bar. He even made a few for Wriothesley, who would drive Kaeya home. He'd spend the night and cook Kaeya’s favorite breakfast the next morning. Wriothesley would stay over more to make sure Kaeya would actually go to bed rather than work on finding things for the bakery’s Halloween booth.)
So here they were.
Kaeya shuffled his feet, the red shoes of his costume squeaking on the floor. "Listen, I'll make good on that and I'll make sure to help keep nosey cooks and customers away from the labs during the holidays." 
Albedo hummed and stated: "I believe you will…and I'll come up with something you can help me with for this later, so go have fun on your date."
Kaeya let out a victorious whoop, crossing the distance between himself and his roommate to give him a sloppy hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Albedo laughed and patted his friend's back: "Yeah, yeah, don't get too ahead of yourself." 
Kaeya went back into the kitchen, buying himself with packing up a small goodie bag for Klee and another for Wriothesley's adopted cousin Freminet, humming a song to himself happily. 
He paused, his hand hovering between the popcorn balls and Halloween baggies, suddenly realizing: "There's no way you're only wearing a hoodie to Halloween."
"I didn't have time to get a costume." Albedo called from the living room.
"Oh, we'll make you a costume." 
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lotus-pear · 8 months ago
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intertwined fate
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hydrodragons · 1 year ago
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furina imitating her fellow archons 💙
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abyssruler · 1 year ago
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aether, like countless other knights and princes across the realm seeking glory, sets off on a journey to free the princess from the locked tower and slay the fearsome dragon guarding her.
meanwhile, neuvillette is tired of all these humans trespassing into his home and attempting to steal his wife.
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aestherin · 5 months ago
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notes | kazuha x gn! reader
hcs
random headcanons because i had a brainrot session otw back to my dorm :D (also not proofread :>)
also may be considered a stand-alone but may also be viewed as kazuha from my keep my heart smau hehe (would actually be very in character since he's a lit major there) ^^
kazuha, who shared several major classes with you on your third year of university
kazuha, who by chance sat beside you on the first day and opted to just sit at that spot for the whole academic year
kazuha, who impulsively and secretly wrote a haiku on his notes app when he heard your voice for the first time
kazuha, whose interest was piqued by you when he got to read the works you've written when your professors required you to exchange papers and critique each other's works
kazuha, whose eyes subconsciously always trail back to you whenever they find the perfect chance
kazuha, who did not realize it until his friend venti told him about how he's making everything so obvious
kazuha, whose heart jumped and dropped at the same time when the two of you got paired for a certain literary project
kazuha, who tried so hard to hide his flushed face when the distance between the two of you became close to nothing as you two wrote down words on the same piece of paper
kazuha, who only realized how deep he has fallen when you smiled genuinely at him for the first time
kazuha, who stayed up in his room that whole night after that revelation
kazuha, who, for the first time ever in his life, could not come up with words to explain what he was feeling
kazuha, who started writing anonymous messages addressed to you on little post-its
kazuha, who started attaching those post-its to your bag every time he finds a chance
kazuha, who starts looking forward to writing you short poems and short notes every single day
kazuha, who is perplexed by the note he found attached to his bag once he got back from the restroom
kazuha, whose brows furrow even deeper once he realizes that it was the exact same note he had stuck to your bag earlier that day
kazuha, who felt his heart overwhelm his whole being when he spotted a very familiar penmanship at the bottom of the paper
i know your handwriting, kaedehara ( ˶ˆᗜˆ˵ ) would you care to send me more of these cute little messages at [contact number]? (,,>﹏<,,)
kazuha, who almost dropped his phone as he attempted to type as swift as he could with his hands shaking
kazuha, who swore that he would never ever waste the golden opportunity that you gave him
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himasgod · 3 months ago
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masterlist! +
(Welcome to my masterlist where I include all my works to make them more accessible! I update it every day with new works, so remember to save it or review it frequently!)
REQUESTS are open and WELCOME, so don't be shy!
(Remember that I write about all the characters except the child model ones, so if there are any that aren't here, I'll eventually include them!)
MONDSTADT CHARACTERS
"Love is like the wind through the vineyards: free, light, and willing to change course if the heart so dictates."
LIYUE CHARACTERS
"Love, like stone, endures; but also like jade, needs patience to reveal its true splendor."
INAZUMA CHARACTERS
"In a storm of eternity, love becomes the lightning that illuminates even the darkest night."
SUMERU CHARACTERS
"Love is a knowledge as deep as the ocean and as mysterious as the silence of a forest under the stars."
FONTAINE CHARACTERS
"Love flows like water; its beauty lies in its constant movement and its ability to sculpt even the hardest stones."
NATLAN CHARACTERS
"Love burns like a flame in battle: intense, indomitable, and willing to consume everything for that which it deems worthy."
HERE, is a little presentation about me in case you want to know me a little more <3
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semi-completely-original · 8 months ago
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*bursts in at the last minute* IT'S STILL MERMAY RIGHT
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snaillock · 1 year ago
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★-barou shoei, sae itoshi, rin itoshi, nagi seishiro, (wc) kunigami rensuke | megumi fushiguro, choso kamo, maki zenin | lynette, ALHAITHAM, scaramouche, shenhe
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notenoughgauze · 17 days ago
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Throne
MDNI SMUT WARNING AHEAD
He was completely and utterly in love with you. His heart bursts at the mere sight of you. He can’t handle the way your pretty eyes shine up at him when he talks. When he’s alone in his room, he takes the time to imagine you fully. When you say you’re going to take a shower, he imagines stripping and joining you. His mind is owned by you and only you. Good lord and your lips. So kissable it drives him up the walls. He wants to mark his taste along the plush skin. 
You destroyed his very self  with your beauty. He feels like he only could ever exist with you around. When you’re gone, he feels lonely and mopes about the whole house, waiting for you to come back from whatever it is you’ve been doing. He wants nothing more than to keep you in bed and enjoy touches for the whole day, why couldn’t you just do that? Just stay with him! One day is all he asks with those sweet little puppy eyes. He can’t believe it when it finally works and you spend the whole day off with him in bed, just touching,  kissing, and fucking deep and slow. 
“Just give me one taste, just one please baby.” he cries to you, begging to have you sit on his face sometime during the fuckfest you’ve allowed. You’re hesitant, why wouldn’t you be? He just keeps insisting, pleading for your cunt to envelop him completely. Finally when you straddle his face, thick thighs nearly crush his head. You falter, considering if he’d allow you to just hover. You’re afraid to smother him, but of course that's just what he wants. When you take too long, he pulls you down, hands splayed out across your ass and gripping the soft fat tightly, urging you to continue. 
His cock is against his tummy and so hard it looks almost painful. Yet he’s moaning like he could cum just from the taste of you. He wanted to be the throne the pretty goddess sits on to rule. He needed more. Needed everything you would give him. How could you say no to such a sweet display? You give in, letting him have all of you and he takes that opportunity to show you why you’re with him still. He sucks and licks to his heart’s content. Slurping up any juices that come from you. His face is covered in you. God does he love it. He;s engulfed in you fully and he can’t get enough of it. 
Finally he gets that cry, that whine that makes his cock twitch. “I-I’m close.” You scream out, rocking your hips back and forth against him. He feels drunk from it all, working 10x harder to get you to release all over him. To look up and see your eyes roll back in pleasure and your mouth hang open in a silent moan. Of course, he couldn’t help but spill all over himself from the anticipation, moaning into your pussy and sending you over the edge right along with him. His cum coats his tummy, and his cock twitches as it releases everything so pent up. He drinks down your godly nectar and you pull off of him in overstimulation. 
He cleans you both up with a washcloth near the nightstand. He whispers sweet nothings about how he loves you and you did so fucking good for him. That you’re all his and him yours. 
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kayaani · 23 days ago
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𝕸𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙
I will be very clear with this: I'm new in posting things on Tumblr. I've had accounts before this one (I have never posted anything, just reblogged and liked things, mostly for my Sims) so making this is going to be long and I ask for patience. Any help or suggestions are welcome
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credits to the artist of the background
ONE-SHOTS (SFW-NSFW)
HEAD-CANONS (SFW-NSFW)
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credits to the artist of the background
ONE-SHOTS (SFW-NSFW) WIP
HEAD-CANONS (SFW-NSFW) WIP
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credits to the artist of the background
ONE-SHOTS (SFW-NSFW) WIP
HEAD-CANONS (SFW-NSFW) WIP
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credits to the artist of the background
ONE-SHOTS (SFW-NSFW) WIP
HEAD-CANONS (SFW-NSFW) WIP
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windwheeler-aster · 2 years ago
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please, let me just take care of you
summary: your busy-bee of a partner suddenly gets sick, but is a little stubborn to accept your doting and care giving right away
masterlist
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pairings (separate): mona, sucrose, and albedo x reader
reader info: uses gender neutral pronouns (they/them), is in a relationship with the characters mentioned, and reader is not traveler
word count: 578 words~ per section (2 mins each~)
genre: romance, reverse hurt/comfort
format: one shot
warnings: descriptions of characters being sick (no vomit or anything) and characters (mona) being anxious to get back to work
a/n: currently twirling my hair and kicking my feet while thinking about taking care of my s/o whilst there sick💖 hope you enjoy this💖
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Mona feels unproductive while she’s stuck in bed with a cold. She always does whenever she’s sick, but especially now. 
Because right now, you’re bustling around in her poor excuse of a kitchen, making her a soup. Ever since she described her symptoms to you this morning, you’ve taken on the role as Mona’s personal nurse. You waited on her beck and call, serving her fresh, warm meals that surely cost you something. And you’re ever so sweet to her, giving her sweet smiles and making light conversation with Mona so her sick brain isn’t overwhelmed. 
And she hates it. 
Not because she hates you, but more so that she hates that she is being forced to rest. Rent’s due sometime soon, and she barely has enough for it. She knows Goth’s patience is wearing thin, and she can’t afford any other place in Mondstadt as of now. Mona needs to work, making mora through the many side jobs she’s picked up from the Adventurer’s Guild. She absolutely cannot be resting right now, you don’t understand—
“Mona, you better be back in bed when I turn around,” you called from the kitchen, your voice carrying to the front entrance, where Mona was now frozen in place. “I just made some chicken noodle soup for you, so you better be resting like I asked you to.”
She faltered, but relented and went back to bed. “You don’t have to do that, dear.”
You brought her soup with a smile. “I want to, though.”
Mona looked at you, her lips thinning out into a tight frown. “Why?”
“Because I love you?”
“Oh. Well,” her cheeks had turned a pretty pink now, “you don’t need to do this for me, dear. I’ve gotten by just fine before, I really don’t need to rest or stay in bed all day. So, please, just let me—”
“No.”
“No, dear, you don’t understand. I need to complete the—”
You shook your head again. “Mona, what you ‘need’ is to rest so you can be better later. I’m just trying to make sure my girlfriend is taken care of, alright?” you sighed and looked at her once more. “Please don’t be mad at me. I know that you need some mora, and I’ve told you multiple times—”
“You aren’t paying my rent,” Mona snapped, her tone more angry than she meant it to.
“I basically live here.”
“...No comment.”
You chuckled, which made Mona smile reluctantly.
“Alright, babe. Whatever you say,” you tell her. “How about I run a few errands for you? Just so you don’t get overwhelmed by tasks when you’re feeling good enough to do side jobs. Is that alright?”
Mona looked at you, analysing your features. No hidden intent, no mischievous smile. Just her cute partner, being as sincere as you can be in this moment. Nothing to indicate that you’ll hold this above her in the future. 
As if they ever would, she snapped at herself as she met your loving gaze.
She sighed. “Alright. But you better come back in one piece, my dear. It would be a shame if I had no one to take care of me.”
You kissed her temple, causing Mona to blush quite hard. “Of course, Mona.”
She was in shock for a moment, silently screaming and clutching her head in her hands at the loving action. Mona blames it on her illness for making her so flustered. As if she didn’t react like that every time you touched her, no matter how long you two had been together.
She heard the door open and snapped up, quick to yell her adorations to you in her signature fashion.
“I love you!” she stammered out, blushing a deep red when she heard the sounds of Mondstadt driftting in. “Be back soon, please.”
“Anything for you, babe!” you shout back, blowing her a kiss that sent her under the covers, flustered beyond belief. “Rest up, my star!”
And as the door shut behind you, Mona clutched her head under the blankets as her face grew impossibly warm. 
If it’s not this stupid sickness that’ll kill me, it’ll be them, she thinks.
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Time management has never been one of Sucrose’s strengths.
Like sand in an hourglass, time slipped by her quickly. Sucrose didn’t mind though, as she found her work enjoyable. She got lost in conducting experiments and writing lab reports, passion and coffee being the only things that fuel her to work. 
But whilst in the middle of her work, Sucrose often forgets to take care of herself. She began to favor coffee over sleeping, staying extra late at the lab so she could complete some “last minute” work before she went home. The lunches you packed for her were left forgotten in her office until the next day, the smell being so pungent she could smell it the moment she enters the room. And don’t even try to ask Sucrose when was the last time she drank water, because she doesn’t know the answer herself.
With these working conditions Sucrose put herself through, it was only inevitable for her to get sick. 
You had to drag her back into bed when she tried to go to work, stuffed up nose and weary eyed. She was insistent that she was fine, despite the snot that threatened to dribble out of her nose. But after a convincing offer of some well deserved rest and relaxation, Sucrose reluctantly agreed.
“M’fine,” she grumbled, squinting up at you in bed. “Don’t worry about me.”
You felt her forehead and chewed your lip in worry. “You’re hot.”
Sucrose pulled the covers up to her head, whining beneath the covers. “Don’t tease me when I’m sick!” You saw her pretty amber eyes and smirked. “Stop that!”
“Oh, you know I didn’t mean it that way,” you frowned. But then you perked up and grinned, “but I will say, you do look really—“
“Ah! That’s enough out of you,” Sucrose interjected, furrowing her brows.
“I’m sorry, baby,” you cooed. You bent down and hugged her through the covers. “I’m just speaking the truth, y’know?”
“Argh, cut it out! My brain’s all mushy gushy already,” she complained. “Don’t need you to make me all mushy and gushy, too.”
You chuckled. “Alright, alright. I’ll go easy on ya, deal?”
Sucrose let the covers down to her chin and nodded. Her face was flushed pink. She shuddered underneath the covers and bundled up more, making your heart tighten. Poor thing, is all you can think as you caress her cheek.
Sucrose nuzzled into your hand, her eyelashes fluttering close. “Mm, honey?”
“Yes?”
“You’re… you’re not mad at me, right?”
You frowned. “Mad at you? Angel, what for?”
Sucrose looked away from you and mumbled, “For not taking care of myself. I know you have better things to do—”
“—than take care of my sick girlfriend? Nonsense.” You leaned down and gave her temple a quick peck. “Don’t fret your pretty little head over that, angel. Now, get some sleep for me, okay?”
Sucrose nodded slowly, turning over to sleep on her preferred side. “Okay. I’ll try.”
You smiled and got up to leave, already planning some sort of dish that could help Sucrose feel better.
“Wait!”
You turned around and looked at her. Sucrose had sat up in bed quickly, still clutching onto the covers of your shared bed. 
“I just wanted to say thank you for doing all this,” she said. “And… and I love you, a lot.”
Your heart sped up quickly, urging you to run over to her and kiss her all over her cute face. But instead, you take a deep breath and lean on the door’s frame for a moment. 
“I love you a lot, too, Sucrose. Now, get some rest.”
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Time and time again, Albedo tried to reassure you that he couldn’t get sick. He’s made out of limestone, for goodness sake! There is no way he could possibly be ill, Dragonspine’s freezing weather conditions be damned. So, really, there is absolutely no reason to worry your pretty little head over your boyfriend.
Until there is, in the form of Albedo greeting you with a pair of rosy cheeks and a sniffy nose after spending a week in Dragonspine alone. 
He’s more than aware that his current state is… quite pitiful, safe to say. As soon as he landed on your doorstep, you practically cradled him into your arms and swaddled him in blankets. The whole experience was infantilizing and slightly frustrating, as Albedo kept wanting to assure you he would be fine. Though, he would like to secretly admit that this feeling of being pampered wasn’t too bad, after all.
“Good morning, love,” you greeted from the doorway to your shared bedroom. You nudged the door open with your foot, smiling bright when you saw your boyfriend snuggled up into bed, begrudgingly.
“Good morning,” he mumbled. He raised his brow at the tray you carried. “What’s that?”
You sat down, gently, on the bed and placed it on Albedo’s lap, once he sat up. “Your breakfast. I made sure to make you something that’ll warm you up from the inside out.”
He gave you a strange look, as though he was analysing your actions. It almost made your heart sink.
“What’s that look for?” you asked, sheepishly.
Albedo blinked and then blushed, suddenly realising he was caught up in staring at you. “Sorry. I was just expecting a cheeky ‘I told you so.’”
“Oh,” you sighed, furrowing your brow as you recounted the many times you nagged at him to stay warm whilst away in Dragonspine. “Well, believe it or not, I’m not as petty as you think I am.”
“That’s not what I meant—”
You pecked his cheek and smiled. “I know. Don’t worry about silly things like that, alright? I want you to rest up and feel better, love.”
“I’ll try.”
You gave him a warning look.
“I will,” he corrected himself, quickly. “I’ll rest after I eat breakfast.”
You smiled, titling your head up in victory. “Good. Now, I’ll just be in the other room. If you need anything, just call me. Okay, Albedo?”
He nodded, his focus now on pushing his food around on the plate. “Yes, dear. Thank you for this meal.”
“Anything for you, my love,” you winked at him. “Now, eat up. You need all the energy you can get.”
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thank you for reading 💖 all forms of interaction to my posts are appreciated 💖
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r4izx · 11 months ago
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Worth more than what you take me for.
ayato x gn!reader
summary: in which he had to choose between two people including you, in a life and death situation.
disclaimers: swearing (there's like one lol), kidnapping, ooc traveler.
4,032 words and 21,895 characters.
a/n: dayum. this took a while and i did not expect to write this much.
you've known ayato since childhood. your parents has been serving their clan for generations, being one of their most trusted allies. and you're no exception.
growing up with people with high authorities was such a privilege. you remember when you first met lord ayato and lady ayaka. they both were very the same yet so different. so elegant, disciplined and was well mature for their age. you felt some kind of barrier between you and the siblings but they turned out just as kind as they look. they were easy to converse with. naturally, after some time of serving them, you would have gotten closer. and in fact, you did. although you thought, you and ayato's relationship was... rather special.
for some reason, ayato treats you very differently compared to others. not in a bad way. he often calls you to his workplace, make you sit there and drink tea with him. he takes you out to go eat dinner at uyuu restaurant when you both have finished work. he requested you to be his personal assistant while ayaka had thoma. and because of this, you get to spend more time with him than anyone else. at the beginning, you always thought ayato would be a cold and strict person. but it turns out to be quite the opposite. okay- maybe he is more quiet and colder than others, but that's towards other people. especially to those he only has business with.
ayato is surprisingly different to what you originally thought. he would try to match your humor, often speaking informally like the way you would around your closest friends just to match with you. lately he's been spending his free time with you too. he noticed you liked tea a lot, much like him. so both of you had made it a habit to have tea at the estate's balcony while the sun is going down. watching the sunset together. it felt really romantic for you- but you quickly shook your head and remembered that to him- you're just his work partner. but is that really the case for him? because he was much more observant than you thought. especially about you. he notices any slight change in the mood with you. so there was a particular day when you were gloomy because of being so tired. but he noticed this immediately.
"Shall we take a break?"
-- and you don't know why but your heart skipped a beat when he said that. you thought it was funny-- how he would do all of this for you. and at times like these, you start to feel like a special person to him. just because he always relies on you compared to others. you thought you were special to him. until she came.
who is she? she looks so... bold and pretty. just one look at her and you can already tell she has a strong personality but has a gentle aura. her blonde hair swaying so glamorously in the wind. her otherworldly clothes making her stand out among people. the way she moves makes it embarrassing to stand beside her. she seems so... perfect in everyone's eyes. unfortunately, that includes ayato's. you don't remember having a guest in ayato's schedule when you were fixing it, so why's she here?
you found out the answer really quickly. everyone at the estate has been talking about her and... ayato lately. you don't know why though, which is weird- because as his assistant you should be the first to know about things regarding him. it's even weirder that ayato had not summoned you after work has ended. 'is this where our afternoon tea sessions end?' you thought to yourself. so you found it upon yourself to just be straightforward and ask others what's the gossip all about. luckily, there was another servant nearby. she quickly leaned closer to you and whispered.
"h-haven't you heard?... it seems that lord ayato had taken a liking to lady ayaka's guest."
you were surprised. really. it wasn't even his guest yet he bothered to entertain her. just who is she?
"who-... who is her lady's guest?" you nervously questioned.
"I heard it was... the traveler? was it? lord ayato visited her personally! they're just so perfect with eachother!- i can't help it." the servant squeals in excitement, contrary to your look in horror. you try not to make it obvious though. but you shouldn't even be feeling this way. why does it hurt? there's a sharp feeling on your chest that you just can't get out of. it just hurts to know the reason why he stopped your afternoon tea sessions, dinner hangouts, or just even talking with eachother is because of another girl! you were in no place to get frustrated since you were just a servant. nothing more, nothing less. to him.
you only see him through work now. the urge to invite him to a tea break and have a conversation with him while watching the sunset is getting stronger everyday. and who are you to resist?
"lord ayato... wou-" before you could even finish your sentence, he stopped you. your heart was beating so fast. 'oh no. did I do something wrong?' thoughts like these were circling through your mind.
"i told you to just call me 'ayato' y/n"
--and he chuckles a bit at the end. and so do you. you felt so... relieved. your worries instantly washed away. you felt at ease knowing that you are special to him. i mean- he doesn't do this with others does he?
"ah- my bad... but as I was saying, would you like to have some afternoon tea break with me? I mean, we used to do that everyday but it has been a while since we last did soo..."
and at this point you were so sure he wouldn't decline. he's been less busy this week, what could he possibly do that's far too important to even refu-
"my apologies, y/n. i've already scheduled a tea break with someone else this afternoon. maybe next time if i have the time. i promise i'll make it up to you. however, you could accompany us if you would like." and your mind. empty. the world seems like it stopped for you. not only was your only time to hang out with him gone but you were also replaced. all this time... he was with someone else. you had a gut feeling of who that someone else might be. but you couldn't hold a grudge, you have no right to.
"i-... i look forward to it." nope. you absolutely don't, look forward to it. that day will eventually come though. you just didn't expect it to come, three days later. how quick. you were filled with mixed of different emotions. you hate to admit it- but... you are jealous of who this person might be. but at the same time you're glad to just see ayato again! sadly, for work. when he summoned you, you thought-- 'oh is this finally it? will we finally hang out together again?' until you realize it's just that you will just accompany him to go to a somewhat date with someone else. compared to you and ayato just drinking tea at the estate's balcony, he had prepared so much as to have tea and snacks at the shore. alas, you could finally meet this person. once again. as you realize it was her. the traveler.
"traveler, did you wait long? i'm sorry, you could've ju..."
and their conversation went deaf on your ears. the ayato kamisato. speaking informally, and giving out tea invitations to the traveler. when it used to be you... why are you feeling like this? isn't it obvious. the traveler is way prettier, stronger and better than you. comparing yourself to the traveler is already such an embarrassing thing to do. no one could compare to her. she's out there defeating monsters and fighting archons. while you're here holding a grudge on a person who doesn't even know you just because you're jealous you were easily replaced. but who were you to be replaced when you weren't even his to begin with. this is why you feel guilty. because you think that you have no right to feel this way. it's just now that you realize how much of an overthinker you are. however your thoughts were cut short when you hear ayato calling out your name.
"y/n, i'll go to to the comfort room for a bit. please entertain the traveler while i'm away."
he says.
"understood." and so you take a seat at ayato's chair before. and despite not wanting to have a talk with the traveler, it is still your duty and you would not abandon it for just some mere feelings.
"greetings, i'm y/n. it's a pleasure to meet you traveler." you bow slightly and give the smile you usually show to guests. a smile you practiced countless of times infront of a mirror. "you might have not heard about me though. so allow me t-"
"oh i know. you're ayato's personal assistant. he mentioned it to me before." the traveler states. and you were genuinely shocked but also... curious.
"is that so?... then, has he said any other things about me before?" you nervously asked. though the nervously part may not be obvious to others. the traveler sees right through this. and she giggles. but nods. "would you mind serving me some tea? the tea ayato has been serving me is delicious however i've tasted it countless of times from our past tea parties. so I would like to have a different flavor this time."
the word 'countless' implies that they have been doing this for a while now and you already know that. but it still stirs a feeling of jealousy inside you.
"of course. luckily i brought a different tea flavor for myself as well. let me go get the ingredients from my bag." you return after brewing the tea and pouring it into the cups. how thoughtful that the traveler had already prepared the cups for you.
"this tastes a lot like lavender... melon." the traveler says.
"hm. because it is. you have a great sense of taste." you reply. from this point and so on, you don't really know what to talk about. the atmosphere is really awkward. but you still try to strike up a conversation because she is a guest.
"s-so... what brings you here to the kamisato estate?" you ask. in which the traveler replied with "originally, ayaka invited me. and ayato next." you don't know if it's just your eyes playing tricks on you or did the corner of her mouth raise upwards for a bit. you brush it off. maybe the grudge you have on her is going too far. i mean, it's not like you hate her though. but it's also not like you like her.
by now you've almost finished your tea. same goes for the traveler. you only had to endure a little bit more of this atmosphere and her because ayato should be back soon. so you lowered your guard and relaxed a bit. this whole time you only stared at your teacup, but it wouldn't hurt to take a glimpse at the traveler right? so slowly but hesitantly, you lift your eyes up to see her. already staring at you. but you couldn't break away from the eye contact. especially because she just asked you something you're also asking yourself.
"y/n. tell me. do you like ayato?"
despite having a smile on her face as she asked this, her tone was rather cold. it sent shivers down your spine. you don't know why she's asking this. but you also don't know the answer to that question.
...do you like ayato?
"I'm..."
that was the last thing you said before you went unconscious. before that, your vision went blurry and your head was getting dizzy. how could this be? all the years you've spent serving the kamisato clan, this has never happened.
a loud ringing on your ears forced you to wake up, you could hear numerous voices as you slowly opened your eyes. your vision was still blurry but you could figure out that someone was huge was standing before you.
"it's awake."
'it's? what do these people take me for'. --is what you would have thought when you realized you've been kidnapped and the kidnappers are a group of nobushis. you look at your surroundings, counting just how many they are until you finally notice someone beside you. the traveler. she's still unconscious. looking at her made you realize that you're also tied up and is unable to speak. screaming is no use. you seem to be in a... cave? you're not so sure because you don't remember a cave this huge at inazuma. you try to recall what happened and why you ended up here until you heard something a nobushi said.
"ya think he's coming here?"
"i heard he fancies these two. of course he will."
he? who's he? considering they kidnapped you and the traveler, don't tell me they're talking about him. not lord aya--
"oh well look who's here."
your eyes widen in shock when you turn to the direction they're facing. he's standing right there. ayato kamisato has come to save you. ...and the traveler. something moves beside you and you see the traveler, already awake, with tears in her eyes. isn't the traveler supposed to be strong and mighty? you don't understand, how were they able to kidnap her. in what situation was she in for her to become so vulnerable and be captured? i mean before all of this she was only with you-- !! your eyes widen. you saw ayato, ...glaring at you.
why was he glaring? you were in a pitiful situation right now, yet he glares at you as if you commited a crime. you can't believe it but... 'don't tell me thinks... i poisoned the traveler.' archons. he definitely thinks just that. the way his eyes softens as he looks to the girl beside you confirms so.
"give us the document. maybe we'll let both of them go." one of the nobushis spoke up. documents? what documents are they talking about? you handle all the documents for ayato, could it be he's been keeping something from you? are they comparing lives to a piece of document? surely ayato would-
"no. ...who sent you?" his voice cold as ice. the world has been surprising you a lot today. how important could that document be for it to be able to compare to a person's life. "straightforward i see... too bad, if you don't give us the documents any time we'll kill both of your precious little friends and this place will blow up soon." one of the nobushis spoke up again, it was the same guy as earlier. normally, ayato would be able to beat a few nobushis on his own. but he's way outnumbered right now. for some reason he knows that you and the traveler was taken here, yet he still came alone. you look beside you and see that the traveler is now crying. compared to the mighty traveler you seem to be too calm. you shouldn't be, in a situation like this. is it because ayato is now here? although he probably hates your guts already. but you just trust him way too much.
"...not giving in eh? then let's see..."
the nobushi paused for a moment, seemingly thinking about another way to make ayato give in and for them to gain something out of him. the nobushi smirked.
"...if you give us some mora... we'll let ya choose one of them to go with. give us the documents, you all can go home safe and sound. give us none and... you'll die with them." and finally, you felt... fear. your heart was racing. you didn't know it was this bad. earlier you already knew that you're this close to death's door but you weren't panicking at all. you also don't mind dying if it was for ayato. from an early age you already knew that you had to serve and protect their clan no matter what-- even if you have to pay the price of your own life. so why panic now? is it because the nobushis are going to far with their negotiations? is it because you're knocking right at death's door? or maybe it's because you're afraid that ayato will abandon you. choosing someone else, right infront of you in a critical situation like this. but surely he wouldn't, right?
" ...traveler," he throws a pouch of mora to the ground towards the nobushis. you remember when you both were strolling around at inazuma city after dinner. when he mentions that ever since he saw you looking through the stalls but not buying anything, he figured he'd buy them for you. so he always carried a pouch of mora. for you... and not for anyone el-
".. let's go." what? are you hearing things right? but judging by the way they pull the traveler and untie her, it seems that you are. but you wish you weren't. it turns out he really would choose someone else. the traveler lunges to embrace ayato. seeing ayato slowly hug her back, patting her back to calm down her tears and letting her cry on his shoulder just made your broken heart break even further. you get it. with the traveler's back facing you as they embrace, you take a glimpse of ayato until his gaze lands on you.
" ...y/n..."
his tone was somewhat... soft. you assume on a lot of things and right now you don't wanna expect but, you are. is this his last words to me? is he telling me he's sorry? is he gonna tell me how he regrets doing this? and that he never really wanted this to happen? and that i'm someone special to him, viewing me more than just a serv-
" --how dare you."
...and his gaze turns dark. what for? you didn't even do anything. his eyes glares at you as if you both were never friends. or maybe you were never really a friend to him. and he always thought of you as a mere servant. just like the rest. you were just- too naive. so foolish. thinking you were special. special just because he went looking for you and bought medicine and special rare tea in a day when you were sick for work. special cause he always invited you for tea breaks, conversing with you and only you. special because he always relies on you, and you allowed yourself to be relied on, --when you had no one to rely on for yourself. was those years of being with him nothing for him? was it that worthless in his eyes? that you could just be replaced and abandoned any time? you thought you were someone special in his life when he treated you differently compared to others.
but what about the way you treat him?
you treat him as if you were nothing without him. because he was everything to you. you were only this happy with him. only him. if you think of the most memorable memory you've ever had, it would include him. the day you first met him, and today. the last day you're seeing ayato. you watch them slowly turn their heels to leave. and all of a sudden you spoke. you couldn't help it, you spoke without even thinking. and now you don't know what to say. or maybe-- you just don't want to say it.
"a-ayato..." 'did you ever think if me as more than a friend?'... heck- more than a worker even. you wanted to ask just that. but you wouldn't. cause you couldn't. "...thank you, but I did nothing wrong." you say as you smile. that was your final words before the traveler and ayato takes more steps towards another path, probably leading to the exit. you hesitantly and slowly lift your eyes up to take one. last. look to ayato and... the traveler. and last time your eyes were playing tricks on you, but now you realize it wasn't. cause she was smirking again. smirking at you. leaving you to death.
anger. shame. resentment.
fury rises inside of you. you were raised to be patient with others. it was your job. so you've never felt this way for someone before. you wanted to scream but you couldn't. all you could think about was the traveler.
...the traveler!! the traveler!! the traveler.
it was all because of her that you're in a state like this. ever since she came, things changed. she was the person ayato replaced you with. the person he chose to spend the rest of his life with. and the reason why he threw away all of his memories with you and treated you like nothing. he chose a girl he just met instead of a childhood friend companion who has done nothing but pledge loyalty to him. now that you think about it... for ayato you would risk your life for him, die for him even. but he wouldn't do that for you. he only showed up for the traveler when you thought he came to save you.
it felt like your world was crumbling right before your eyes, watching them walk away, leaving you to death. you could mean that literally since anytime now you might be reduced to nothing but also... ayato is your world. to you he is everything. growing up with him, growing with him. he really is that special to you.
too bad,
he doesn't even see you as anything more than a servant. to him you were, not. special. at. all.
their footsteps has slowly faded away. they left. they've left you. behind, to die. it seems... this is it. you hear the nobushis chuckling and talking amongst eachother,
"geez... what a show! anyway.., are the preparations complete?"
"really? then we could go!"
"where did she say we would meet her again?"
"that bitch... making us do all of this. if it weren't for the mora then I wouldn't have agreed."
her? who's her? who's she? these thoughts seem all too familiar, and once again, you got your answer quickly.
"oh the traveler asked us to meet her at jinren island." a nobushi replied. just when you thought your hatred for her couldn't get any worse. however your thoughts were completely cut off when the nobushis all started leaving you. not even batting a single eye. you remembered them mentioning something that would leave you to ashes here. what was it again? if you recall quickly it was probably a-- "a bomb," --a nobushi says to you. as if he could read your mind. "a few minutes from now, once we all leave, this place will get wrecked. including... you." the nobushi laughs. you have never been this lonely before. i mean, you always had ayato beside you. but now that he personally left you for someone else- who do you have now? you have no answer for that. or maybe it is the answer. nothing. no one is there to help you. your reason to live is gone. atleast, you served your life's purpose before you die. you were never really that close to others including your family because of ayato. so you have nothing to lose now. but... you wish you could atleast take revenge on the traveler... even though you hate that idea. revenge isn't something you would even consider but.. the traveler is a different case.
today has given you particularly a lot of last things. like your last thoughts just now. before feeling a strong burst of energy and the brightest light you've ever seen. and everything turns dark.
...your eyes are closed and you can't move your body. but you're hearing something... footsteps? oh, a voice.
" ...how pitiful,"
you fall into deep sleep once again after feeling such an electrifying strike on your back.
... just who was that?
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murmuree · 1 year ago
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self defence 101
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jhuzen · 3 months ago
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the woes of a god [gn/m.reader]
definitely not my comeback piece. just got inspired randomly in the middle of so many things that i have been doing. i deeply apologize ;; 🙇‍♂️. this is just… a really long story that builds on the premise of the last story i posted TvT.
𖦹 big on genshin lore again, with a few interpretations of my own to fill in the gaps and insert the reader, creator reader but not sagau (again like the last story), focuses on post primordial one vs sovereigns, primordial one and second throne war, archon war, and post-cataclysm. features all six archons by their goetic names (the tsaritsa is conveniently not around), neuvillette, mentions of old seven and apep, this leans on a what if scenario, of reader coming down to teyvat before the archon war, reader is a little brutal but that’s okay ;;
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The sky has never looked more fake.
Your eyes squint at the light that the world you have crafted bathed in. You had seen the horrific sights that lie beyond the peaceful blue that the skies projected before you.
Though it did little to bother any other living creature that now dwelled on your magnum opus. Your gaze drifts to the new beings, molded with striking differences from one another, their characteristics bound by the land that they were born on.
The day you had awoken was a painful ordeal to go through. The wounds that lodged within your very body is terrifyingly painful. And the very world that you had created and anchored into your body was the only culprit.
For a time, your masterpiece, Teyvat, felt like a malignant tumor that only propagated within your soul, corroding every piece of your self until you are no more. How ironic was it that your most cherished creation among all the other worlds became the very thing that causes you physical harm.
You had slumbered for a long time since then, and had dutifully descended. Your sleep was not only attributed to the pain during its descent, but also to mourn the painful passing of your beloved sovereigns. Your eyes cannot endure the fate they suffered through, and to this day, the guilt tramples over whatever sense of elation that you feel, washed over with the feelings of intense shame.
Their creator was you alone. No one else.
And when an alien being came to hunt them down for a war that lasted decades, you were nowhere to be found.
You were certain that Nibelung knew your gaze was casted on them, that he understood you were stepping away as a form of test, a way to see if he, as well as your seven sovereigns could withstand such a small conundrum such as a foreign descender.
The thought sickens you physically — you could only wonder if you putting your loving faith on them to be your champions in this war was a devastating mistake of yours that they paid for with their lives and dignity. Your mind could barely comprehend the kind of desperation that Nibelung must have felt for him to dive into the deepest depths and use a knowledge not of this world that Teyvat, and to an extent — your body, until now, struggles to recover from.
A sigh escapes your lips.
It was a gnawing ache, like those celestial larvae that crawl into your body, having a grand feast on it.
The day you descended, you had called on the elements that embodied this very world, seeking answers for what had happened when you were in such a deep sleep, entirely clueless of the events, with only a body that aches from the physical wounds it sustained to guide you to the clues about Old Teyvat’s demise and the embarking of its new age.
You had learned that day, that after the devastating defeat of your dragons, it imparted a new life. And now, humans walked the very ground you had crafted for dragons to walk on initially. You have also learned that the tiny vishaps have retreated deep into Teyvat, living under the hopeless depths, making do and surviving in such a decrepit environment.
Coming in contact with them was nothing more than a world full of hurt when you came to the realization that even the vishaps are terrified of your light. It had shattered a piece of you, and have only grieved with nothing but shame and regret.
And even when you left, the despairing echoes of your cries remained beneath as the vishaps’ lullabies as well as the tears that created a pool for them to bathe in.
Your cries that soothed the vishaps became a haunting legend in a certain civilization that had collapsed and fell through the depths. Children cowered at the stories told about the harrowing echoes, and the scholars of that very civilization had recorded your voice as a mere phenomenon, a tale for the insane, a story for bedtime to frighten unruly children.
Much after the grieving that you had succumbed to, you had learned the stinging pain that pierced through your body that keeps persisting to this day was the work of these pillars — you have come to know them as its divine nails, made to heal the lands of Teyvat from the parasitic effects that the forbidden knowledge inflicted when it was used during the wars.
Quite frankly, it did little to heal your body as you feel the way it seems to lodge within your very core, destroying and corrupting pieces of your soul.
Your first journey since your awakening was nothing short of enlightening. You had learned much about the turn of events. Your dragons have suffered enough, with the few alive ones like the Dragon of Verdure incredibly spiteful of the new race that came about.
And you were not clueless about the sharp tone Apep had taken when she first talked to you after your disappearance during the war between it and the seven sovereigns. You understood the bitterness and sheer betrayal that she had felt, knowing that all this would have been prevented had you only decided to lend a hand.
You left Apep’s abode with little pity for yourself and more remorse for not being a proper artisan to your creation.
But as you watched a civilization grow among the vast sands, you also cannot help but disagree with the unsavory words that Apep had described the new life.
Yes, they were small.
But you understood that humanity is not insignificant.
Gods have always fascinated you.
You understood that to some degree, you too, are a god. You understood that way before Teyvat became a project of yours. Your previous creations that were successfully inhabited with the creatures you had given life to worshiped you, and your descent on your visits were always welcomed with celebrations of endless grandeur.
Things were no different once the sovereigns had come to realize that you were the source of their life and the very world they live in right now. And you had also been crowned as Teyvat’s primordial deity.
However, the age of humanity had given birth to two differing types. There were the normal humans — mortal, average in strength, and so easily swayed by their desires and fears alike.
And then there were the immortals. You had come to realize that immortals came in all forms. Some had originally been creatures of the myth, others were mere elemental manifestations, spirits, or humans that were lucky enough to be ordained and strong enough to defy all the odds that an average human can only do.
There were also gods who took the shape of creatures — sea monsters, newer dragons that were striking descendants of the ancient ones.
You understood then, that even immortals, much like mortals, answered to the authority that reigned supreme in your world, someone who is not you.
Glancing up at the sky, your gaze immediately drifts to that floating piece of land, meant to hold the thrones of those revered by the new worldly life.
And just as you were finally understanding the existence of gods lesser than you, the one above who has stolen your very presence of authority declared an all-out brawl across Teyvat, deeming your very masterpiece its playground for needless bloodshed and barbaric warfare.
It declared seven thrones for seven remaining gods that would triumph above all.
And nothing could prepare you for the prize of winning one.
It was an unforgettable feeling — the way your blood ran cold as it presented seven ornaments in unique shapes, each containing a very familiar power that you have cultivated and given yourself.
The prize was the authority of your defeated sovereigns.
Mockery. You thought it was mockery. You thought whatever resides up there knows you were lurking, relearning Teyvat after your forced slumber for survival, and decided to taunt your everlasting grief over your creations by using the very dignity of each dragon sovereign that you had entrusted those authorities to.
And now, it taunts you in such a needlessly cruel way, by desecrating your world once more through an all out war between the very gods they have also created.
It was a jarring era. You took part in aiding the defenseless mortals, taking whoever in the tiny nooks all over the world. You had brought several mortals in your sanctuary in times of desperation while gods have staked their claim by surviving battle after battle.
Tactics were employed by different gods, differing in styles. Some had bargained for it, some willingly gave their throne to a god they deem fit, others who are weaker opted to team up with those that can trample over others, some had forcibly taken what was rightfully theirs, and some had willingly shut themselves off, cowering away in hopes of being left alone so they may protect their people in peace.
You had learned by then that even gods… can succumb to their desires and fears.
It had been long since the great war among gods had concluded.
However you can still feel the bittersweet sensation that pulsed through your veins as you watched all seven take their seats, claim their divine thrones, and hold the vessels for the power stolen from your elemental dragon sovereigns.
You would remember them as they staked their claim over their regions.
Barbatos, Morax, Baal, Rukkhadevata, Egeria, Xbalanque, and previous Tsaritsa.
You recall them well enough — considering that they have managed to unearth the truth of Teyvat’s existence. They came to you, offering themselves for you to indulge at the cost of recognition.
The original seven, eager as they were to meet you, were promptly shut down with a smile on your lips.
“You are not mine to claim, as my blood does not flow through any of yours’ veins.”
Suffering became an easy friend of yours.
You had gone through so much already, and your body as well as Teyvat have yet to heal and recuperate from the effects of the many wars that transpired on this world.
And here comes another one.
However, this time, someone had played the role of Icarus, and had flown way too close to a certain parasite.
It dawned on you as the familiar stinging pain seeped though your very core, breaking you once more little by little, its persistence unmistaken when you first felt it when the very first war erupted in this world.
Someone had unearthed Nibelung’s discovery of the forbidden knowledge and decided to use it.
You remember it vividly — yet another huge devastation that came to Teyvat. However, the catastrophe was marginally bigger compared to the horrid Archon war. And with the discomfort of bearing through that disgustingly painful experience, you had plunged into yet another slumber.
By the time you had awoken, you realized how deeply affected each and everyone was. Many comrades have died, some were affected, and you had come to find out that even the archons had to make some incredibly difficult sacrifices that dealt equally devastating blows to their very being.
You had little to say.
However, you have much to do.
Perhaps it was your guilty conscience that pushed you into this long journey. However, you were not guilty of being asleep while the fallen nation had wreaked havoc with their circumstances. Your guilt lied within the fact that you had never gotten to console your dragon sovereigns when they were defeated by it.
Most of them were dead, others were sealed and unable to reincarnate.
And so this was your way of making it up to them, albeit… with the archons, those who remained, and those who are now stepping up into their new responsibilities as a member of the newly established seven.
You had first visited the cold region of Snezhnaya, paying a visit to their new Cryo Archon, who has been planning something else entirely. She had willingly entertained you, despite the slight edge and tension within her. However you understood that you were limiting her desire to continue on with her plans, and so you were quick to disappear from that very nation.
Barbatos has always held you in a high regard the moment his eyes were opened to your existence. The heavenly principles call you the slumbering sloth, deeming your forced slumber and inactivity to act against the horrors Teyvat has gone through a mistake on your part as a creator.
But he deems it as a slander, and he quietly protests at the image imposed so heavily on him. He adored the freedom you had granted — giving free will to the creatures that now live on your domain, and it was that freedom that had continued to flourish within him, spurring on a belief that he had cultivated since the moment he received his gnosis.
In that tiny piece of divinity, he felt you. Quietly lurking across the lands of Teyvat, minding your own affairs without intent of reconnecting with others.
And when he and his fellow archons sought you for answers, you had little to say. Shutting them down with an indifferent gaze — no, Venti hardly calls it indifferent, the mask sure was indifferent, but there is a sense of agony that seems to seep out from that very mask.
Barbatos sleeps for eons not to gather his bearings, but to feel closer to you.
And now here he finds you in the waking world, gaze overlooking Mondstadt — currently rebuilding the life that was devastated by the cataclysm alone. His wings tuck behind him, respectful as he was as he bowed to you.
“They have it handled, Your Benevolence,” he regards you with a carefree grin on his lips, “…Humans are strong. And that freedom I’ve given them will flourish.”
“You seem so sure of it,” you respond without missing a beat.
“…They are still ignorant of you, and they do not realize that the freedom I embody is how I carry your will,” his voice comes out in a quiet purr, a reverent tone that held nothing but unadulterated adoration and devotion.
Your gaze seems too far — looking at the horizon and Barbatos wants to see what your eyes can see in this world. What perspective you have, what you think of the new Teyvat and what you think of him, carrying out your principles through his own beliefs.
“…Let us hope it is not a mistake,” you mumble, your fingers gently caressing those pristine white wings of his, and Barbatos relishes in the feeling.
He held back a wince as he felt a sharp sting from when you plucked a feather from his wing.
Barbatos had one thing to say.
“If it is your will, then it shall be done.”
You had doubts with that. You had your will — and it was done. And where did that lead you? Facing a god bearing the face of a creature that now replaced your creations.
You sucked in a sharp breath before smiling, a shallow gesture as you tucked in Barbatos’ pure white feather behind your ear.
“Mm… it shall be done,” you repeat, and a gentle breeze brushes past you. A tiny whisper and a loving kiss from the archon himself.
You accept it with a quiet hum.
Morax had more questions than the blatant adoration that Barbatos held for you. He first came to you apprehensive and tense, but you knew that he understood that he had to be around in order to get the answers he desired. He came to you with the arrogance and bravado befitting of a god.
How pathetic was it that he looked more like a god than you will ever be. But when he did, you were in a fit of deep sorrow when the heavenly principles made a mockery of your sovereigns and had given it to these new gods that prevailed mostly through bloodshed and sheer force.
He questioned your methods, Morax understood so little about your motives, about your life, about your method of creation. However arrogant and mighty as he was, he held deep respect for you still, you were the creator of the dragons that inspired him to mold his likeness into the same sort when he presented his Exuvia during his descent in Liyue.
And yet you still managed to devastate him as you first rejected him along with the first seven. Unlike Barbatos who saw agony, Morax felt the indignant resentment that enveloped your divine being, and it rubbed him the wrong way.
Morax was quick to straighten himself up, and was eager to wisen himself.
Right, he was taught to understand others.
Your legacy was infamous for losing against the heavenly principles’ divine intervention, that your sordid draconic creations were no match for the primordial one and its shades. That your era was replaced within a battle that only lasted for a few decades. And as you sat at the edge of the tall mountains that he had shaped, gracefully indulging in the tea ways away from Chenyu Vale, he could only bask in your divinity as he stood behind you, keeping a watchful gaze of your very being.
You still had that alluring glimmer that he saw when he first came to you.
An uneasy feeling grasps onto his very being. Perhaps it was the lingering trauma of being rejected by you initially that even served his cautious display now.
“…You’ve done well,” you murmur quietly. A simple, quiet praise, and Morax’s knees nearly buckled at the sheer weight. Of all the times he had been on the battlefield, none could outweigh the suffocating feeling that you suddenly imparted to him.
He feels the weight of expectations while your gaze swept over Liyue’s entirety. And Morax invites it wholeheartedly. His body gives into the sudden pressure that weighed him down, prompting him to go down on one knee, head bowed with a reverent expression.
Morax adores you so much.
“I have taken great inspiration from your creations, Your Benevolence. I have crafted them with you in mind, with how you may envision my nation to its way to prosperity.” His voice sounds like a whisper compared to your melodious echo. “It pleases me greatly to be praised by you.”
Your eyes flit to the countless mountains that were not there before. No doubt they have been shaped with the aid of Morax’s newfound authority over the land with his won authority over Geo.
“As an artisan, I must say, you have truly outdone yourself,” you quietly muse, resting the teacup between your thighs. “You have the talent, I would be remiss to not take you in and teach you few of my personal techniques.”
Morax’s breath hitched, his lips tremble, making his way towards you, half-crawling like a pest that now will surely refuse to leave your side. He had done well in his mind — redeemed himself from the foolish arrogance he once had that might have caused your blatant rejection of his being at first. But now, you were willing to let him learn from you, and that was a step far bigger than any god could have ever made.
“…Please,” he mumbled, his fingers digging into the dirt as desperation floods his mind wave after wave. “Please… please, Your Benevolence. Impart your knowledge to me. I will forever be grateful.”
Nothing could prepare him from your quiet laughter, amused by his devotion.
He is quiet, sucking in a sharp breath as he heaved a quiet sigh of sheer pleasure and relief. A genuine desire blossoms through his chest, flourishing and spreading like an illness that cannot be remedied with something remotely as simple as a handful of ground up adeptal herbs.
It took you one look to understand… that you ought not to shatter his genuine bliss. That you ought to not tell him you merely laughed in memory of the dragon who once possessed the authority that now Morax holds.
Beelzebul has always been off with you. She did not know how to feel. Adoration and the imminent desire to devote her life to you was not the first thing she had felt. Perhaps her twin sister did, Baal always did have a sense of innate fanaticism that even as her identical twin, Beelzebul could not understand.
Though she understood that when she saw Baal so utterly heartbroken after speaking so highly of you that she felt enraged. Her sister had rightfully earned her throne in the heavens, to receive that Electro Gnosis, it was hers to have with no room for argument. She had won the favor of the higher power, so why… pray tell… have you rejected someone as strong as her?
She thought you were blind to the notion of strength. She thought you were a fool — to not have seen the grace of power that Baal, that Makoto, had in her hands. For you to refuse the adoration her twin sister felt was nothing short of an insult to Beelzebul. And for a long time, she had intent to make you recognize Baal.
And then the catastrophe comes and long gone were her desires to turn your gaze towards her sister.
Traumatized, Beelzebul had little to say as she lamented over Baal’s death on that horrid war. The war that combed through Teyvat, claiming the lives of not only powerless and helpless mortals but gods like Baal fell.
On that one moment, Beelzebul casted aside her resentment, and begged for you to see just what her sister was willing to do to protect your creation. To witness the pain Baal had to go through despite her inability to curry your favor.
How ironic was it, that now, overcome with immense grief and desire to achieve the eternity Beelzebul wanted for her people, that you decided to come.
The puppet hung still, lifeless and incomplete from the waist down. Beelzebul stood by, and an odd sentiment of understanding for Baal’s fascination and love for you washes over her, as if Beelzebul was programmed to love you in an instant. Her watchful gaze never left you as you walked around, analysing the puppet Beelzebul was in the middle of creating.
Your gaze — one that Baal had longed to have — was directed at Beelzebul now.
“Your desire to reach eternity… is this puppet the answer?” You ask, “Free from erosion, everlasting puppet, made to run your territory to a perfected pace.”
Beelzebul’s footsteps echo as she closed the distance between you and her inch by inch. She becomes minutely aware of your divinity. It was like no other. It provokes the inner sanctums of Beelzebul’s physical being.
Beelzebul wants to cry.
And she wants you to hold her.
You took note of how she stepped back, before responding to you, regarding you respectfully, “…Yes, Your Benevolence.” Her eyes flit to the features of the puppet. He is hardly molded to her likeness, but it shows, beautiful and everlasting. “An eternity does not succumb to the rotting scent of gradual decay. He is a mere prototype, a test of what shall be my true creation.”
“Pity that is,” you quietly murmur. “He would have been a precious one,” you gently cupped his cheeks around your hands.
Beelzebul watched with confusion and interest as your lips press against the puppet’s forehead.
“Blessed be thy path. Return to me and you will be recognized.”
You walked towards her, the ends of your robes fluttering behind you. Her breath hitches at the feeling of your hand over her sternum, “…And may you return to me, should your pursuit come into a halt.”
It felt like a challenge, but Beelzebul does not miss her desire for it to be a mere comfort from a god who is clearly far greater than she will ever be. Undeterred, Beelzebul turns to the puppet and resigns herself into yet another long period of endless work.
There will be eternity. And at the heart of that very eternity will solely be you and her.
Buer knew the day she was born that she had huge shoes to fill in. Her predecessor was a great one, and their domain altogether was far bigger than one could imagine. Sumeru had a tall order and young little Buer had to fulfill it all on her own.
She was born into succeeding Rukkhadevata’s greatest feats, already pushed into the limelight to take over and take action over the nation that her predecessor had managed to cultivate with her compassion and wisdom. Buer was intimidated, she had enough sense to admit and accept such a fact. Buer admired her predecessor, and will continue to do so, loving her endlessly and singing praises about the hard work that Rukkhadevata had put into establishing the rule of Sumeru.
Hence, Buer finds it so difficult to find her footing. Everything she does feels so little in comparison to her predecessor’s achievements, and it was not long before a part of that adoration turns into a quiet hum of deep insecurity, seeding into Buer’s heart that forced her into a never ending cycle of pressure and admiration.
“You have so much on your mind, little one.”
Her mind clears, and she stares up into you. You — the one adored by many, and one that Buer was certain Rukkhadevata had also adored and held in such a high pedestal and rightfully so. Buer wonders how you are able to withstand the crushing weight of pressure that you probably feel on your shoulders as you carried the very fate of this world that was secured and anchored well into your body.
“Your predecessor was the same,” you continue while your fingers slowly cross strands of her hair over the other, neatly plaided. “I watched her scramble around, trying to clean up the messes that her fellow god kings have caused. I watched her get smaller and smaller, sacrificing every part of herself into clearing out catastrophes one after the other.”
Buer agrees without a word. Perhaps not even a god like you is immune to just how truly amazing the original Dendro Archon was as you sang her praises.
“The world is ill, little Buer,” you mention as you gracefully tied her hair to the side. “And when Teyvat is ill, I too suffer the same painful fate.”
No person could understand the paradoxical nature of the feelings that slowly invited itself into Buer’s heart.
She feels light from your encouragement and yet feels utterly crushed at the weight of expectations that you have placed on her, whether or not it was your intention.
Buer feels smothered by it all, and it feels so damning, so terribly incapacitating that it pains her. But Buer loves you. You came to guide her like a parent would to a child when Rukkhadevata had given her the stage to guide a region far bigger than any other archon’s claim.
“I know, Your Benevolence…” she quietly murmured.
Buer’s eyes opened, and the green tint of this prison she was in knocks her out of her daydream. Her palm presses flat against the barrier. A wave of loneliness comes over her being, and it hurts. It had only been a year or two since you came and since her capture, but she had never felt so alone in a solitary prison that Rukkhadevata once used for her own benefit now being used against her own successor.
Where are you? Are you coming back? Are you sending a champion to rescue her? How long will she stay here? A century? Five? A millennium?
Buer prays to you. She asks for an answer. An answer that you alone can possess.
The God of Wisdom seeks your knowledge in desperation, hoping you do not turn a blind eye.
From her prison of isolation, Buer could only hear the last words you have said to her;
“Happy birthday, Little Buer…”
Focalors much like the others in the same state as her had rightfully succeeded the throne of the original archons that now perished in that catastrophic event. Focalors was a mere oceanid, following after Egeria’s will as the late Hydro Archon was led into a battle that she would no longer return from. And now, Egeria’s corpse lays within the deserts of Sumeru, where the late Dendro Archon had buried and cultivated her corpse into a tree that will always be a good distance away from the very nation Egeria ruled over.
Focalors feels injustice against her predecessor now that she has shouldered the prophetic curse that the heavenly principles have decided to rule against Egeria for her sin. Her sin. Focalors’ eyebrows furrowed — was it so bad that the late archon created life? That she had desired to create humans the same way that it had done. She recalled the day Egeria was blessed with the wisdom of your existence.
A sole artisan, you, had created this world. And another one came to give birth to a new realm inhabited by humans. You were not their creator, but from your inaction, it was clear you had accepted, or at the very least tolerated humanity that now thrives on the world you have created. Egeria holds a different opinion compared to the other archons. She thought it was fair that you had rejected them initially, in a way it was your justice to refuse associating yourself with the creatures that replaced your original creations.
Hypocrites, the one that they answer to are all hypocrites.
And the feelings further exacerbate as she feels your hand press against her back. Her shoulders squared as you danced with her, a faint melody from your quiet hum was the only rhythmic guide to this romantic tango of two lonely gods.
There is a sense of longing that stews within the waters of Teyvat, Egeria once told Focalors upon receiving the Hydro Gnosis. And now that she is in close proximity with you, the feeling was overwhelmingly palpable. Her chest hurts as it tightened with every step she took, following after your flawless footwork.
This was a tragedy in the making and Focalors was eagerly participating in it.
“Does it hurt?” She asks you, adoring the serenity etched into your face as a defaulted expression. “To have your name sullied by the injustice inflicted by the winners? That no human speaks your name and sings your praises?”
You flawlessly spin her away until she comes back in your grasp, “I am in agony,” you admit with a haunting smile, mirthless and still so beautiful, “Even more as I am reliving him through you.”
The pace picks up and Focalors hurries, having little time to catch her breath as she feels an unsettling pull wash over her. There was a desire to please you, as if your request cannot be denied outright. Maybe it was the world asking her to do your bidding, or maybe Egeria had programmed this into her very core when she was created as a mere Oceanid familiar.
Before she was even aware, the humming comes to a close and Focalors was bowing like you to an audience of nothing but the endless sea and the creatures that lurked beneath it.
You tilt your head to the side, “I hope I have relayed my feelings well enough to you.” You smile at her and Focalors’ grip on your hand tightens significantly.
You don’t say it, but she feels it. She has the authority of the everlasting waters — your tears, your agony, your pain. And it drowns her further and further until it suffocates her and dissolves her being, much like the dreaded prophecy she was tasked to solve by her predecessor.
Give it back. Give him back.
He was never gone. Focalors had not met him, but she knew of his existence. She knows what you want.
Focalors was blessed with great intelligence, and knew how to kill two birds with one stone. She had thought about it. She could solve the prophecy and fulfill your wish.
Focalors was a romantic as much as she had a flair for the dramatic. She loved humanity above all but perhaps her love for you exceeds that even just for a generous millimeter.
A quiet sigh escapes her lips.
“Applaud me for my performance once it ends, Your Benevolence.” She requested in a quiet voice, and she pities herself for feeling immense satisfaction from a mere wordless nod from you.
For you, who had accepted the humanity that Focalors loves, the archon would do the same. She would accept your selfish wish and make it come true, indulge in your quiet favor, be the one you will forever love and adore even in her death.
Haborym has heard of the tales of the great one. How the very world was shaped by your divine hands, like a sculptor carving out the features of your next masterpiece. But that was only after the First Pyro Archon had gained control over the Pyro Gnosis roughly a thousand and five hundred years ago, one that uncovered the existence of a will greater than the ones that ruled over them from above.
However, most of the people of Natlan remain blissfully unaware of one of the many secrets that the lineage of Pyro Archons have known by their succession to the heavenly throne.
They were unaware of Xbalanque’s great failure in gaining your favor. The failure of the first Pyro Archon that assumed the throne. And the next archons in line that failed after it.
It was much like the pilgrimage, once an archon, not only are they tasked to care for Natlan’s delicate situation against the Abyss, their people, but also they must try again to gain your favor. It was like a tradition, an obligation even — passed down from one archon to another, seeing how they can succeed in what Xbalanque, as great as he was, completely failed at.
Perhaps you were exasperated by the constant badgering for the Pyro Archons that came before Haborym, because somehow, before she could even get to you, you had appeared before her during the havoc that Khaenri’ah’s incident has wreaked upon your lands. You came to her while she finished wringing out every bit of life of any Rifthound that threatened the lives of her people.
She had exerted much of her energy, and though she had enough energy still for more confrontations along with the revered heroes of Natlan, you had come to aid her even for a second. She felt your cooling touch that soothed any aches that rooted deep within her from the abyssal creature’s devastating attacks. She is mostly certain that any normal person would crumble into dust if they even were swiped at by one measly claw of these things.
Regardless, that was the first time you and her had met. Haborym barely registered the truth in your identity before you swiftly disappeared.
And now confusion only grows more evident in her core as she watched you, sat atop the tallest valleys in Natlan’s many plateaus. You sat, cross-legged as you watched the nation slowly recover from its terribly huge loss. You seemed lax, for someone having witnessed the lands of your creation nearly succumb to the abyss. But you were hardly fazed, with your face resting on the palm of your hand.
“…I must extend my apologies.” You finally spoke, breaking the silence.
Haborym feels a sense of camaraderie, and oddly enough, it prompts her to sit beside you. Her fellow archons — whether within Natlan or among the other nations — have always placed you on such a high pedestal. However perhaps it was because Haborym was a human before she was… well, Haborym.
But the humanity that dwelled within her thrives and connects with what she can perceive as a small island of humanity within the seas of your divinity. It was small, but it was irrational, loving, and resentful, all emotions hardly any gods, much less a higher being like you should never be bothered with.
Haborym takes a deep breath before nodding, “I accept your apology.”
She thinks she’s doing better than the preceding Pyro Archons when she heard your laughter. Somehow, Teyvat grew a little brighter upon that single moment.
“I believe I have a hand in the failure of Natlan. The reason why your nation has suffered far more devastating blows was because of the weak constitution of the leylines,” you explained, and it was not news to her. It had been the consistent problem that hung over the heads of the previous Pyro Archons, and now hers.
Haborym nods. She doesn’t ask the question of why, and patiently waits for what else you have to say.
“I am certain you don’t need any explanation, however… I created this place without factoring in the possibility of your kind’s creation. Had I known, your lands would not have been the backdoor for the darkness that threatens to consume the lives of your people.”
You smiled a little, throwing a glance at Haborym, “…You must understand, I am a creator in belief that all good things must become bad… and all bad things must become good. I believe in the equilibrium of the worlds — that all must learn the essence of balance. It is why Teyvat is my masterpiece, because it encapsulates my belief.”
“Creation must face destruction, and destruction must birth creation. That is the essence of my samsara.”
Your words felt like a hint, and Haborym’s eyes dart towards the heart of Natlan, where the Sacred Flame burns bright and hot.
And Haborym was taught from a young age that a true god’s wisdom is never something to overlook.
You had to applaud the collective effort of everyone in Teyvat. Five hundred years later and it keeps thriving from the devastating cataclysm. And now you have met a fitting champion to wield your will. Though they only wished to see their sibling.
The Heavenly Principles finally did something right in setting the stage as your challenger.
Your gaze drifts from the piece of land in the unreachable parts of the sky, down to the tea that you were wonderfully having with the bearer of your tears.
Focalors was right — her performance was unbearably long, however intensely impressive. You had honored her sacrifice with a permanent seat in the dining table of your private sanctuary nestled within the dark seas of Teyvat, where only the seats were personally crafted by you and were only enough to fit the humongous forms of the dragons that once ruled over your world.
She, among the other divinities that were not of your creation, was the first to earn your respect and genuine love.
“Is the tea to your liking?”
You still find yourself looking up on instinct just to meet the sharp gaze of the Hydro Sovereign, only to look back down to see a human being as his incarnation. Though his piercing gaze was certainly not lost on you.
“Hot enough,” you mumbled, “Bitter enough,” you added, recalling the tastes of one divine puppet that found his way back to you through your golden champion and little Buer’s rehabilitation.
Neuvillette quietly basked in the grace of your being. You had not changed one bit. He had recalled your presence when you first met him within the little tunnel on the side of Palais Mermonia during his break, and after Focalors’ final act, he was consumed with memories of you when you first descended in Teyvat.
As the bearer of your tears, he was your sole confidant, something even his fellow sovereigns envied him for all those years ago.
“…I have many questions,” he prompted the conversation, refusing this first meet to be mere session of stewing in silence and basking in each other’s presence. It was clear how dear he was to you, but his memories that eluded him suddenly came crashing down certainly gave him a terrifying and confusing time.
You had nowhere to be, and the traveler was busy with their affairs and many other adventures.
“We have all the time now,” you chuckle, watching the tiny whirlpool in your tea after stirring in a pinch of sugar. “After all, reunions are meant to be focused on reconciling with one another, like two old friends who have lost touch for… thousands of years perhaps.”
“Though I understand my… old life… was subjected into being your confidant for eons to come, I must exercise my impartiality to you.”
You laughed, amused at Neuvillette’s words. Though you respect him as a friend, nodding along. A creation could never judge a creator — it is what many among your fellow artisans have believed. But you have seen when worlds have rallied against their creator, and some have managed to kill theirs for justice or desperation.
You once walked the world of a now deceased colleague, who created a world filled with oppression, where the waters do not flow, and the pantheon of that very world have sought to fight the very god that created them in the first place.
Cruel as it was, you relished in bathing in that artisan’s never ending tears, flowing from their closed eyes as their decapitated head became the new mountain that births fresh water to their creation.
Nevertheless, for hours, you were subjected into endless questions, interrogated from left to right by the Hydro Sovereign that wanted answers more than anything. You had the key and had willingly opened the chest to him, absolving him of the troubles that might have weighed down on him once he received the Hydro Authority that was rightfully his when Focalors killed herself before his eyes.
The questioning only boils down to two questions left. Significant enough for Neuvillette to base his new opinion of you.
However you only had one proper answer for one of them.
“…Do you detest the Heavenly Father for his actions against the new order?”
You had thought long and hard about it. You wandered Teyvat for years to understand what you felt about it.
And you had the proper answer for it.
“Nibelung did what he had to do,” your eyes glazed over, and Neuvillette follows your gaze. Before he could think you were being disingenuous, you focused your attention back to him, gazing firmly into his eyes. “I had thought I felt injustice and resentment for his… foolish actions.”
You picked up the teacup, savoring the bitterness that the liquid offered.
“However I came to realize that he was desperate enough to seek the forbidden knowledge. Only then was I consumed with guilt. I mourned him and you and your brethren. Apep despised me when I visited her in the desert of Sumeru.” You recounted with a quiet hum. “I know not of what happened to the others, but I understand that my inaction may have forced his hand.”
“I feel guilt and I will prostrate myself as an apology before you if you so wish,” you offered.
Neuvillette thinks it was a coincidence when he felt the same. Him and his fellow sovereigns could have defended the world you had generously gifted them before. But a terrifying thought comes to his mind that perhaps his role as the Hydro Sovereign had him tethered to you even in his own emotions.
It was his new crisis — whether or not he truly feels guilt or if he merely shares it with how well connected he is to you.
“Please do not subject yourself in such a disgrace. You are my creator.”
“And my creations have been neglected until their death,” you countered with ease and Neuvillette doesn’t know if it was his programmed reverence that stops him from contesting you or that he also feels that your words ring true.
You stood up from your seat, walking over to him, and he basks in your presence yet again, nearly losing himself like how Fontainians before he had forgiven them dissolved within the Primordial Sea.
You pulled him in a gentle embrace, his stiff posture leaning awkwardly against your midsection as he sat still.
Neuvillette could hardly pull himself together. Your affection feels forced, an obligation that had to be done to console him, and further puzzles him if you shared his emotions or if you truly felt bad for the guilt that he claims he feels.
“…Then, if it is guilt that you feel. Do you resent humanity for flourishing in a world that does not have an allowance for their existence?”
That one, you had no answer for.
Humanity is so beautiful, but you had come to learn that you were merely tolerating them.
Neuvillette feels himself stiffen as your warm body grows cold in this one-sided embrace.
He may be the one responsible for judging the archons and the heavenly principles that had done you wrong.
But he was never the one to call the shots when judging the fate of this world.
After all, an artist can orphan their work once displeased.
Neuvillette just got you back. And he is certain that though the archons were tied within the Heavenly Principles, they desired your presence more than the ones they were expected to answer to.
You had graced him with a subtle kiss on his forehead, loving and forgiving.
“Focalors had you convinced that humanity was worth it,” you mutter, “So it must be true that they have something to offer.”
He looks up to see a small smile on your face.
Empty. Haunting. Grim.
“…If one dead god can convince you, how many do you think would it take to convince me?”
And just like the sky, your benevolence has never looked more fake.
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