#why was I simping for him and like... not alhaitham when I first started playing this game??

[screamingcrows]

Taken Care of - Cyno x fem reader

Note: Never let me live down that my first piece of fanfiction (not counting the awful slow burn Sylvanas x Jaina from Warcraft I made as a 13 year old) was for Cyno more than a year ago for the explicit purpose of cracking a joke. I've since edited a bit, and felt like uploading it here to have my writing in one spot, consider this an updated version. Tags: fem!reader, crackfic, pun so bad I got hate anons, reader is a student, reader has a dendro vision, established relationship, suggestive at the end, fluff

It was your first time venturing further into the desert than Aaru village, and you had honestly been dreading this trip ever since it became clear that you would have to go on it. The scorching heat made you wish that you could've either kept your mouth shut or at the very least swallowed your pride and backed out. 

All you had wanted to do, was pick a poorly understood subject for your thesis. Not an unreasonable wish by any means. Being an Amurta student, you'd practically had your ears cried full of withering zones and the different families of fungi. And you'd had enough of that, not wanting to spend your entire life studying some obscure detail just for your research to be 'new'. 

So you'd pitched an idea to your supervisor, you wanted to investigate what effect proximity to an oasis had on the evolutionary path of scarabs. After some bickering back and forth, they had agreed to let you pursue this, but under the condition that you were willing to change subject if you'd made no substantial progress within two months. It had now been one month and the only discovery you'd made was, that the literature on scarabs, or anything from the desert really, was sparse at best.

That's how you ended here, boots full of sand, dry skin, probably a good sunburn, and more than a little bitter. But samples wouldn't collect themselves, and a field trip was the only way around your lack of reference material. You rubbed at your tired eyes, regretting it immediately when sand got into them. 

At least Cyno had offered to escort you, not liking the thought of anyone else being responsible for your safety. Of course, as soon as rumor spread that the General Mahamatra was taking leave to escort a student around the desert, you were met with more than a little malice from your peers. You'd done what you could to keep the relation subtle, but avoiding all suspicion was impossible. 

The first morning out of Aaru village you woke to an unfamiliar sight. What appeared to be a mercenary standing with their back towards you, Cyno's jackal helmet laying discarded in the sand.

"What did you do to the white haired man? Speak, or I will set you ablaze!" Your voice shook more than what you'd have like as you scrambled to get up, it would have to do.

"A single night, and already my precious flower has turned into a cactus" 

As always, Cyno's voice was even, but you had known him far too long to not notice the subtle hint of amusement in his tone. When he turned to face you, the satisfied smirk he wore only fueled your annoyance at his antics.

"And what would you have done if I decided to attack first and ask questions later?"

"My flower, you have a dendro vision... Explain to me how you plan on charring me? Regardless, I do feel confident in my ability to dodge a sleepy student in uneven terrain." 

"Fine. Just warn me before you pull such a tasteless prank again" 

"This? No.. I.. I mean... I heard what they were saying behind your back. This way, you can say that your escort was just another mercenary." 

You noticed a light flush across his cheeks, and with that all your irritation dissipated. 

The second day went smoothly, Cyno surprisingly being able to guide you to many groupings of scarabs, sheepishly explaining that he had always found them fascinating.

By the third day in the dunes, you were both tired. Cyno kept insisting that he would keep watch for most of the night so that you could be well rested for your fieldwork. He was undoubtedly hiding the exhaustion better than you, but the slight drag of his feet as you walked towards the next observation spot gave him away. 

That and how he had been cursing at his hair for getting in his eyes all morning. You couldn't help but giggle at the memory of the oh-so-dignified General Mahamatra fumbling about in the morning sun, swatting at his hair while threatening to cut it off unless it behaved. He had undoubtedly thought you asleep.

"If you have breath to spare on laughing, we should be going faster" his voice sounded like he had been inhaling sand instead of air. You couldn't help the whine that left your lips at the thought of your already tired legs picking up the pace.

"Cyno, I'm just a feeble scholar, I wasn't made for field work"

This statement caused him to stop dead in his tracks and turn around with a wicked grin.

"Really? Because in my experience-" 

You cut him off by slapping a hand over his mouth, already knowing his next words. A small shiver crept down your spine feeling how dry his lips had become. Looking into his eyes, his exhaustion became increasingly clear to you. He'd been working himself half to death before going with you, and this clearly wasn't the break you had hoped it would be for him.

"We are stopping at the next oasis we reach. Research be damned, I need a rest,"

Convincing him to stop was easier than you'd imagined. The determination in your voice having no doubt helped, even if he didn't know the underlying reason for the sudden outburst. You plopped down with your back against a palm, closing your eyes and relishing in the shade the overhanging leaves provided. As you opened your eyes, a deep frown settled on your lips, there your idiot was, standing guard in the sun. 

Gently pressing a hand to the trunk behind you, you decided to not give him the opportunity of refusing a rest. The roots sprung to life and crept towards your beloved General. In one fell swoop they wrapped around his ankles and pulled, causing him to fall to the ground. He merely let out an exasperated groan and did his best to flip onto his back to avoid getting a mouthful of sand. 

As he came to rest with his head in your lap the roots gently untangled themselves from his golden skin and disappeared back into the sandy ground. You wasted no time gaining access to his white mane of hair as you started gently scratching at his scalp. Cyno practically purred at the action, letting his eyes remain closed, it was almost obscene to watch as his face contorted until a peaceful expression finally settled in his features. 

"You are a wicked, wicked woman," he couldn't fight the smile on his lips even as he tried to sound stern. Your only response was a soft kiss to his cheek, only serving to have him melt further into your soft form. 

"If anyone sneaks up on us I am blaming you," this time his tone was more serious, but with the sleepy expression on his face you only rolled your eyes at him and mumbled a quick apology.

"Worry not General, I'll keep watch while you rest" as you gave him a final pat on the head, you moved to get up, only to be met with Cyno holding you down with an impressive amount of strength given his state. A hand snaked up your body and closed around one of your breasts, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Don't go, it seems we have plenty of securi-titty"

You sat back down in utter shock, remaining completely quiet as you tried to process the words that had left his mouth.

"Ahem. You see, I took the words security and ti-" You cut him off with a loud snort followed by laughter.

"It seems you will be to blame if we are ambushed General," Your amused tone made his ears take on a reddish tint. Cyno looked up at you with eyes full of adoration.

"For this, I am willing to take the chance of being caught unaware" 

He grabbed your hips and pulled until you were laying next to each other. After a little while in silence, Cyno's breathing evened out as he fell into a light sleep. A content sigh passed your lips as you settled against him, satisfied with the outcome. 

[crystallinestars]

AAAAA! HELLO HELLO! I am glad to see your response T_T! Honestly, I am trying not to think too much about it, hence why I left X and just stayed here in Tumblr, as for tiktok, I made a new account and just actively not search for it other than solo edits (Jing Yuan edits are so 👌 I don't know how much more I can love that man.)

Also I was reading the other anons posts and your response and yeah! I just notice right now how there is no Kaveh in Alhaitham's banner. Like I don't remember him being in Haitham's since his first debut and since Haitham's rerun. OoO that's interesting. But yeah, I somehow just moved on from Alhaitham and just referred to him as my ex that can't move on (I dunno why, but whenever I simp for the other husbandos, I somehow get ads about him, pics, edits in my socmed 👀 it's sus lol) and I have fixations now which is Neuvillette and Capitano (I love men in power HAHAHA).

Also, do you mind if I rant about Jing Yuan and Argenti? I see that you love Argenti, so I'll start with him. So Argenti…ah…how do I describe this piece of magnificence and manifestation of beauty…HE IS SO AAAAAAA so so so gentlemanly! He's like really good with words, genuinely sweet, prolly his love language is acts of service and he's also so handsome. Like he's got some feminine aspects in him like silky long hair and pretty eyes, also I dunno but he seems like he smells so good and that is plus points to me HAHAHA!

Now onto the General. *sigh* how do I start with this man? Please marry me. HAHAHAHA like no joke. He's got the qualities of a man I am finding for in a husband. He's smart (I love smart men <3), handsome, good sense of humor, etc. Plus, he's got that aura. I dunno how to explain it, but he seems to be the type to make you feel protected and safe. Like it is disarming but in a good way. Here's more. What I really notice about him is he is gentle but also exudes a healthy amount of masculinity. Gentle and Firm that's the best description (sorry for bad english, I am running on coffee rn and my hands are shaking HAHA). He's like…hm…THE MAN kind of man. Like I first saw him and I snapped my fingers and just goes "Yup, that's irl husband material right there!" Haha!

Anyways, sorry for the long yapping about them, but I also just wanna share thar I just learned about the term Yumejoshi and wow oh wow! I am so happy to see more people who self-ships T_T I am so glad to finally see people who share the same interest after years of thinking that maybe I am just weird but now, I feel like I found my people hahaha!

Btw, thank you for the well wishes, I really hope to finally graduate and I am proud to have an architect representation in-game (I am envious of how he just have Lumion installed in his suitcase that is so conventient ;_;). As for the discord invite, I'll join once I get a new laptop, my old one is barely hanging on lol. Have a great day and love lots! <3

- 🌊

Welcome back 🌊 anon!

Is Lumion some kind of software? I've never heard of it before.

You move on quick, haha. Alhaitham must be jealous that you moved on from him so fast XD Neuvillette is a really solid choice though, so I understand. It seems you like the noble and authoritative archetype.

I'm more than happy to talk about Jing Yuan and Argenti with you! I actually like Jing Yuan a lot too. Back when HSR first released, the only thing that piqued my interest about it was Jing Yuan. I resisted playing since he alone was not enough to get me into turn-based combat, but with the release of Argenti and Aventurine, I eventually caved. There aren't many characters in HSR that appeal to me, but Jing Yuan, Argenti, Aventurine, and Jiaoqiu keep my interest.

Argenti most certainly is a gentleman, and that's what's so appealing about him aside from his looks. The fact he's a noble knight that diligently serves Idrila is tragically romantic. What really gets me is that all his flowery praises and flamboyant gestures are genuine. He means what he says, and what he says is so, so beautiful. He could genuinely love any type of person because he is that kind and open-minded. His looks remind me of a character from a 70s or 80s shoujo manga haha. I will be pulling for him and his lightcone when his banner reruns, so wish me luck!

As for Jing Yuan, I feel you!!!! His intelligence is so attractive, my god. It's like he's always thinking several steps ahead of his opponents, and has the confidence to face anything head-on, no matter how dangerous. He never panics but rather handles everything in a smart and laidback way. There certainly is something very reassuring about him. He's the kind of man that will treat you well and that you can rely on, which makes him perfect husband material. I approve, you have good taste, anon.

Welcome to the world of self-shipping! Japanese yumejoshi make a lot of lovely art for us, and on tumblr you can find a lot of reader-insert fanfiction. A lot of people self-ship, even through MCs, so you are definitely not alone! I used to be a part of several websites that posted pretty much exclusive self-shipping content, but unfortunately they have all closed down a while ago ): Tumblr and AO3 still have a lot of awesome fics, and pixiv and twitter have a lot of good art. You need to know where and how to look for it, though.

I will most likely take down the discord invite link in a few days for the sake of safety. Once you get a new computer, feel free to send me a message with a request for the link, and I will give it to you again.

Hope you have a good night, anon!

[dustofthedailylife]

(uhh tumblr confessions hard, and this is a lot to admit; i don't usually send asks like this, but dust blog feels comfy and i have a lot of feelings, so here goes nothing-) alhaitham is basically the reason i started playing genshin, i've always thought he was pretty and interesting. and now that i know more about him as a person, oh boy^^; i finished his quests and not even five minutes later i was just 'when is he coming back;v;' very attached to him now, he's very much a comfort character, and i'm like his sappy, crumpled paper boyfriend who will start to miss him five minutes after he leaves and cry if anything happens to him and maybe i feel too much? i mean, i know i can be an emotional person.. kaveh and i would probably get along that way^^; but maybe it's a lot to be sitting here after alhaitham quest feeling like a military spouse waiting for their husband to return from the war; so, i wanted to ask.. to dust (fellow alhaitham lover, hello♥) and to anyone else, how do you cope waiting for another appearance of a character you care a lot about? maybe i could take a page out of your books, metaphorically speaking..?

I'm honored you think it feels comfy enough to send this here! 💕

As someone whose comfort character is Alhaitham as well, I totally get you. Despite how aloof and distanced he seems to the player at first there was just a sort of vibe I instantly got from him (aside from him being incredibly attractive, ohhh boy). Something that was just very mysterious, and that made him even more attractive to me! And that he is a smarty-pants is also something that had me swooning sjsjdnsj.

I totally feel you on the "when is he coming back? ;_;". Whenever he appeared again in a quest I was internally squealing and ngl... He is probably a huge part of the reason why the Sumeru Archon quest is my favorite. *raises hand in massive simp*

I currently miss him a lot as well ngl. The last time I had this to this extent was with Zhongli who was the other love at first sight character ;_;

What usually helps me is... staring at them in game (I shamelessly admit it lmao!), looking at fanart of the character or most importantly: reading fanfiction. It sort of extends the canon universe and gives you imaginative interactions with the character. The latter for me perfectly filled the void. I soak up all sorts of fanfics like a sponge.

And also for me personally as an artist and writer, I also start writing for the character because then I can put myself in scenarios with them that I'd love to read or see.

Eternally crying about Ayato because my man rarely ever gets anything at all... At least Alhaitham and Zhongli get actual screentime.

And to bring an end to my endless rambles - a smiling Haitham just for you! 🤭💕