#kavetham fic

[iiping]

kaveh snapping at alhaitham for buying another ugly wood carving… except he forgot it was his birthday 👀

read my short fic on twitter here or see more below! 🫶

—

“This looks absolutely nothing like me!” Kaveh snaps at the rough-out Aranara carving that suddenly shows up one morning, looking so blonde and angry.

Alhaitham comes out of his room at this moment and walks over to their common shelf where the architect stands.

Kaveh has a meeting with a particularly frustrating client today and he’s feeling so anxious that he cannot help but snaps at Alhaitham too, “How many times do I have to tell you not to bring ugly wood carvings into our home!?”

Alhaitham looks at Kaveh, his lips tightens. Something unfathomable flashes across his eyes and disappears just as suddenly.

“Do whatever you want with it then,” Alhaitham says finally after an awkward silence. Then he grabs his key from the shelf and turns his back to walk towards the front door without saying another word.

Kaveh looks at him leaving the house in puzzlement. It is not a rare occasion to see the Scribe not bothering to argue with him but Alhaitham never walks away after saying only one sentence before. He looks as if he’s angry or even…pouting? Kaveh is not sure if that word can describe Alhaitham.

Maybe Kaveh did something wrong? He gasps at the thought.

Is it because the smell of the cream soup he made yesterday was too strong? Or maybe it was the fact that the house is now so messy because he’s in the middle of tidying up things? Or maybe he moved or touched some books he wasn’t supposed to?

Kaveh ends up thinking for the whole day. He even spaces out during the client’s meeting and almost drops the model when he tries to present his plan.

He thinks and thinks but nothing comes to his mind. They have been on unusually pretty good terms lately, so he cannot think of something recent that might have made Alhaitham upset.

Kaveh is so deep in thought he almost bumps into Collei on the way home.

“Ah! Sorry!” Kaveh exclaims then realizes who it is, “Collei! I didn’t know you were in town today!”

Somehow, the trainee Forest Ranger looks shocked to see him. She quickly picks up something that fell to the ground when they bumped into each other earlier. Kaveh catches a glimpse of a small green box with yellow ribbon before Collei swiftly hides it behind her back.

“It’s so good to see you! Wanna grab something to eat?” Kaveh asks, ignoring her suspicious behavior. He’s not ready to go home just yet, not when he still hasn’t figured out what he did wrong.

“Uh, sorry I have somewhere to be today,” Collei replies nervously, avoiding to meeting his eyes, “If you will excuse me, I really need to get going.”

Then she takes off before he can say another word.

Kaveh ruffles his hair in confusion. What is going on today?

After wandering around aimlessly for a while, he decides that he has no other place to go except the good old Lambad’s Tavern.

He sits down at a table and orders a drink even though it’s merely 5PM.

“Hey, Kaveh!” Lambad shouts his name from behind the counter, “That one’s on the house! Happy Birthday!”

Oh. Shit.

A realization strikes him like a bolt of lightning.

“How could I forget!” he cries, standing up abruptly, “It is my birthday!”

He tells Lambad that he’ll take a raincheck on that glass of wine before leaving the tavern. Kaveh rushes home as fast as he can and finds Alhaitham standing in front of the shelf with the Aranara carving on one hand and a bag on another.

Alhaitham raises his eyebrows when he sees Kaveh practically flying from the front door.

“No, wait—-“ Kaveh tries to catch his breath, “D-don’t throw that away!”

“Oh?” Alhaitham puts down the Aranara and turns to face the architect. “Seems like you finally remember something.”

“Sorry for what I said this morning,” Kaveh blurts out, “I know it sounds like an excuse but that client’s project kept me frustrated all night and I shouldn’t have taken it on you.”

Alhaitham looks at him silently.

“Alright, alright,” Kaveh puts two hands in the air, “I apologize for calling it ugly.”

The Scribe lets out a chuckle right this second. It is clear that he does not intend put up any fights with Kaveh on his birthday.

Alhaitham hands him the Aranara in question and asks, “Will you also stop calling my other wood carvings ugly?”

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far,” Kaveh replies with a beaming smile. His eyes light up as he takes the wooden figure in his hands.

Alhaitham gives him birthday presents every year but they are usually books or drafting tools. This is the first time Kaveh has received something custom-made. Well, from anyone, really.

“I don’t know what’s gotten into me this morning,” he mumbles, feeling the rough wood under his fingers. “Sure, it looks a bit cruder than that one in your bedroom which I kind of like, but the more you look at it, the mor—- Hey!”

“I changed my mind,” Alhaitham announces with a straight face, the Aranara is now back to his hand. “I’m taking it back.”

Kaveh blinks.

“What did you just say!?” he raises his voice.

“I don’t see any reasons why it should be in the possession of someone who doesn’t appreciate it,” he replies simply while putting the wooden figure in the bag, then starts to walk to the entrance hall.

“How do you know I don’t appreciate it!?” Kaveh follows him, trying so hard not to yell at his back, “This is ridiculous! You just gave it to me literally a second ago!”

That does not make Alhaitham slow down one bit. In the heat of the moment, Kaveh charges at him without thinking.

Next thing he knows, they are both on the floor with Alhaitham being beneath him. He quickly snatches the bag from the Scribe’s hand and sits up.

“Ha!” Kaveh exclaims, raising it in the air in victory. “You cannot walk away from me this time! Don’t you know that it’s rude to take back what you have given!?”

When there isn’t any response, Kaveh glances down, only to see that Alhaitham is covering his face laughing.

Kaveh looks at this scene in disbelief.

“Were you just teasing me!?” he asks with a high-pitched voice, “Oh my god, who are you? What have you done to my Alhaitham?”

“I couldn’t help,” he is still laughing, “You should’ve seen your face.”

It’s extremely rare for Kaveh to see a silly side of Alhaitham, let alone seeing him laughing like this. Kaveh stares dazedly at him, completely forgetting why he was mad in the first place.

“You can have the Aranara,” Alhaitham says with a smile, “Will you get off me now? Although I don’t really mind—-”

Kaveh interrupts this sentence with a cough, just realizing what a dangerous position they are in. He shifts to move out of the way, but at this moment, a small piece of paper falls of the bag and lands on Alhaitham’s chest.

The Scribe’s eyes widen as he moves to reach for it, but Kaveh is quicker.

Seeing what’s on there, he is speechless.

Alhaitham covers his face again, but his ears are turning visibly red. The worse thing is, Kaveh can also feel his face burning too.

“You carved this,” he asks softly, “for me?”

After a while, Alhaitham admits with a sigh, “Yes.”

Kaveh is dumbfounded. He assumed that it was merely a commission. Never has he ever thought Alhaitham would go that far to do something like this for him.

“That’s why you’ve been coming home late for the past week!” Kaveh just remembers how unusual it was when he said that he needed to work overtime.

“You knowing this wasn’t part of the plan, I was too careless.” he says flatly and decides to pull himself up, unintentionally getting closer to Kaveh. “Now it’s good time for you to forget you have seen that workshop receipt.”

“Nuh-uh,” Kaveh pokes his chest, “This Aranara is now worth a million mora to me.”

“You have just burdened yourself with a new enormous debt then” Alhaitham teases.

“Hey!”

“I think wood craving has grown on me.” Alhaitham smiles, “So I’m afraid you’ll have to put up with these ugly figurines for now.”

“Come on, they are not that ugly,” Kaveh chuckles, “But we do need to set up a proper corner for them so they don’t disrupt the current aesthetic.”

The Scribe can’t help but roll his eyes at this comment.

“Seriously though, thank you” Kaveh softly touches his shoulder and looks directly into his eyes, “It’s the first time someone did something so special for me. I will always treasure it.”

The Scribe stares back at him and without a warning, Alhaitham pulls him into his arms and whispers to his hair, “Happy Birthday, Kaveh.”

After that, Collei, along with Cyno and Tighnari, burst open their front door right when they are still hugging in the hallway. Kaveh’s face turns as red as a tomato as Alhaitham helps him up on his feet.

The night cannot be more perfect. The house is filled with the smell of good food, laughers and joy. His most favorite dishes are laid out on the table and the gifts are waiting for him to open. Wine never tastes better and even Cyno’s jokes are funnier than usual.

Kaveh watches as everyone starts to eat and cheerfully discuss about what games they are going to play tonight. His heart aches a bit thinking of how much he does not want to ever lose this; his friends, his happiness, his home.

And when his eyes accidentally meet with Alhaitham’s, he cannot help but wonder, would things turn out differently if he hadn’t met the Scribe at the tavern that night where he had taken Kaveh in?

He tries harder now to stay happy, to actually listen to some of Alhaitham’s advice, the sensible ones at least.

“Don’t burden yourself with something unnecessary from the past and from the future”, he would say.

So instead of dwelling on the past regrets and unknown future, Kaveh thinks he is ready now to find comfort in the present happiness.

(END)

[windyxiao]

to all the time we played a part in each other's lives (heart to heart)

Rating: Teens & up

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply

Category: F/F

Fandom: Genshin Impact (Video Game)

Relationship: Alhaitham/Kaveh (Genshin Impact)

Characters: Alhaitham (Genshin Impact), Kaveh (Genshin Impact).

Additional Tags: Set in Canonverse, Canon Divergence, Genderbending, Female Alhaitham, Female Kaveh, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Birthday, Akademiya Days, Fall Out, Valentine's Day, Home, Anniversary, Growing Old Together, Slice of Life, Domestic Bliss, Developing Relationship, Friends to Ex-friends who still have a crush on each other to Lovers, and they were ROOMMATES, Autistic Alhaitham, Kaveh has ADHD, Non-chronological words: ~ 1k words per prompt

Read on AO3

[generalsdiary]

I'm here.

Alhaitham x Kaveh

warnings: mentions of disassociation, blood, cursing, nudity (?)

word count: 3.4k~

a/n: written in a 3rd person pov w/ a focus on alhaitham and his thoughts – i preferred this approach much more than 1st person pov, much more can be said and added with the way i wrote it. there’s a switch in the middle for a few paragraphs to kaveh’s pov (still 3rd person tho) marked with green, the switch back to alhaitham’s pov (3rd person) marked with blue. not beta read we pray to nahida, can be read whether you choose to view them as a couple/friends/companions/whatever you want any way works, i enjoy the uncommon way their relationship works without the typical romantic stuff <2

description: “who did this to you” trope (not the way one would probably assume), hurt/comfort (except they DIDN’T HURT EACH OTHER, they ended up hurt and therefore COMFORT each other), fluff at the end

he got into a fight. a group of eremites planned an attack catching him unprepared, surprised.  they got quite a bit of the punches in, he managed to defend himself but was mainly outnumbered. his injuries weren’t that bad, and he had no reason to cover up any of it. his hand still moves to his grey hair, while he walks home switching the bangs to cover the bruised side of his face. frustration fills him as he can't justify to himself why he is then covering it up; the red-purpleish eye, the cut on his cheekbone. with a soft sigh Alhaitham walks into his home.

the melodic voice pierces his noise-canceling pieces, his roommate complaining immediately about something easily resolved.

„... which resulted in me actually doing the work and helping the student and they-“ Kaveh stopped in front of him, mid-sentence, his eyes focused on his face. Alhaitham feels a shiver down his spine, fear? no, why would he feel fear? he is fine.

„you were saying, and they?“ he continues, to nudge Kaveh to continue his sentence.

„what is up with your hair, Alhaitham?“ Kaveh steps closer, his eyes staring, almost like he was digging around, scanning every detail.

„can I not change my appearance?“ maintaining the same unamused tone Alhaitham provides a counterargument.

not a beat after, “it is unlike you to change anything“ and a small frown on the blond's face.

Alhaitham sighs, and gestures with his hand, “you were saying, about the student..?“. he is doing his best to hold himself up normally, to appear like he isn’t in pain, and to give Kaveh attention so he can be unbothered in his room for at least the rest of the day. he doesn’t want him to worry.

„Kaveh, it is nothing of matter- a few eremites, there were more of them… they caught me off guard, I'm fine.“

Kaveh nods and starts talking about his interaction not even paying attention to Alhaitham, his eyes moving around the room as he talks and complains until one specific glance at Alhaitham's face makes him stop.

„Alhaitham, you're hurt. you- you're bleeding“ Kaveh moves closer, Alhaitham raises a hand over his hair in an attempt to hide any sign of injury and tries to play it off as a gesture. The blond doesn't buy it, wrapping his hand around the younger's wrist and moving it away. Kaveh's eyes calm, the red matching the anger starting to bubble inside him, and it is scary, he does usually get frustrated and loud, but angry? A terrifying sight, when a kind man is angry.

Alhaitham gulps at the sight of a calm, collected... dear Archons, quiet Kaveh.

„who. who did this to you?“ his voice slightly quieter than normal, he steps closer, his hand moving the hair out of Alhaitham's face and staring at the fresh bruise. “I'll kill them. Who touched you-“ his voice shaking with rage, worry, sadness.

„are you?“ Kaveh quickly sees through the façade he put down, Kaveh’s eyes drop down to the way his arm is embracing his own side like one would do if they were punched there, or kicked.

Alhaitham opens his mouth to reassure him that he is indeed fine but Kaveh cuts him off.  “don't lie to me.“

continuing to press this lie would be pointless so he just falls silent. Alhaitham pulls Kaveh into his chest with the hand that is still in Kaveh's grip. it isn't a full hug, or maybe it is. with the sort of free hand- he was using it to soothe his own pain, he brings him closer by resting it on Kaveh's back.

„I will be fine“ he mumbles, his words met with silence. Alhaitham finds himself thinking, is Kaveh crying? why the silence? no, he isn't crying, he is completely still.

„let's get you patched up-“„I'm fine- I have taken care of it-“„-and put something cold over the bruise and you should go rest“ there is a certain silence in the air beneath his words. the way his voice flows along the air and the sound evaporates like smoke. message between the lines, he knows him, why is he having trouble decoding it? perhaps the words between the lines aren’t meant for him.

the architect's hands are gentle and steady while they press the soft cotton onto his cheek, the cold towel soothing the bruised eye. his lips pursed, focused on his movements making sure to not provide Alhaitham any more pain.

Kaveh spent the remainder of the day, afternoon and evening included, taking care of Alhaitham's injuries, which weren't major, but enough to make him worry, to make him fill with questions. he did ask those questions along the way and loudly express his worries to which Alhaitham didn't make many comments or provide too many answers than what he had already given.

hence when the night came and both of them went to their respective rooms, Kaveh laid awake in his bed. the idea that Alhaitham could be attacked again, especially due to his current high-ranking position as the acting grand sage, dug around his mind. his thoughts of hopeless worry and helplessness turning into laser focus on making sure he is safe, probably in the most destructive way possible; by going out and taking care of it himself.

hyper fixated on only that, he organized what little information he had of the whole situation in his head and headed out, purposely leaving Mehrak behind.

the doors open, making Alhaitham look up for a second, he knows it's his roommate- but he does a double take, his eyes widening and freezing on Kaveh. Kaveh walks further in, his hands, arms - the white puffy sleeves covered in blood. the tips of his blond golden hair dyed a dark shade of red, his face splattered with drops the same shade as his eyes. his body language suggests he is uninjured, and there is a sound. like something is dragged on the ground. the large claymore weapon, which is still in Kaveh's hand comes into his sight.

he informed Cyno of the attack from the day by talking to some of the younger matra who were on his way, informing them of the urgency, and letting them know where he assumed their base was. without waiting for anyone or any feedback he made his way to said location. after confirming they were the ones who attacked Alhaitham... he attacked on sight.

lifting the heavy weapon like it was light as air, not caring for his muscles burning in pain, he knew how to wield it. along with using his vision, he fought quite a few of them, getting hit occasionally but much less than one may think, creating slashes, and getting covered in blood. no one dropped dead yet when the matra showed up, taking them all in and away. they thanked Kaveh for the information and while Cyno was busy scanning around the area and conversing Kaveh left. his job, his goal, finished. the price to achieve it, in the way he wanted to achieve it, was too high.

he walked slowly back home, dragging the weapon on the ground as he did. he walked for hours, his head empty, with no thoughts. Alhaitham was now safe and that was all that mattered. not feeling the pain in his body, not actually. the dryness of his throat, the bruises he sustained, the ache in his wrists. the way he looked like he had just slaughtered a boar or a sumpter beast. the way he has yet to realize the dire consequences and the toll it takes on one's mind when you do such things. when you... turn off everything except the one goal.

any hi's, hello's falling onto deaf ears, or comments on his appearance while he walked through Sumeru city. any worried, scared expressions unnoticed by his eyes. his body but a mere shell as he approaches the door of his home. unknown to him it was already past noon the following day, and quite a bit of time had passed.

Alhaitham is horrified, worried, and aware that this is a moment where he has to try his best to communicate the best he can - because Kaveh looks like... that. what could’ve possibly happened, possible outcomes run through his mind. he continues observing him, the way his eyes are focused on the floor, the fact he didn't bring Mehrak wherever he went. speechless for a few moments as he puts down the book and slowly stands up, patiently finding the right words to say. meanwhile, Kaveh gently leans the claymore onto the wall, his movements mechanical, and automatic, after which he straightens his back and notices Alhaitham. his eyes turning brighter at the sight and approaching him, behaving as if he looks completely normal.

„Alhaitham- don't worry, you're safe now, no one will hurt you ever again- they-they wouldn't, would not dare touch you“ his voice is full of emotion, shaking, showing flashes of anger, pain, relief, stumbling over his words as he approaches the taller man. he sounds almost delirious.

„Kaveh, what happened? are you okay?“ his voice calm, stern. he holds his tongue to not ask, what did you do?

„yes-,“ he waves his hand gesturing like it is nothing “of course, I'm fine“ he chuckles between his words “and nothing happened, I took care of those people that jumped you- well I-“ he stops, sighs, “the matra came quickly, you need not worry, I have not turned into a criminal on your account.“ he laughs dryly.

beat. a feeling of relief, murder sits heavy on the mind, it is good the matra came. Alhaitham nods to himself. he reaches with his hand, hovering above Kaveh's cheek, and lets it fall back. the way Kaveh didn't even react to that tells him enough, the architect is not fully here, perhaps dissociated or he was hyper focused on what he wanted to get done. he isn't facing reality, or rather he isn’t completely in reality at this moment. and if he is hurt he probably can't even feel it, can’t acknowledge it. no words Alhaitham would say right now to scold him, lecture him, or express worry would not reach him actually. he attempts to settle on other ways.

„you do realize how you look right now?“ Alhaitham can't help himself trying his normal way of talking, which fails immediately- his earlier conclusion on Kaveh's mental state at the moment proves itself accurate as the blond nods and speaks the same thing again, “you're safe, I- I took care of it“

...other ways it is. the underlying worry about him being injured still lies but at this moment, anything his roommate would say would be unreliable. “let's...“ he reaches with his hand towards his. “let's get you cleaned up“ Kaveh just shuts down, allowing Alhaitham to lead him to the bathroom, he stays silent, fully on ‘autopilot’.

with simple instructions he leads him in. “your clothes are dirty, take them off, we will wash them later.“ in his monotone voice he instructs.

a line which would be flustering at least, no matter the situation, now it provides not even a blush from the shorter man. he takes off the white blouse, which Alhaitham immediately places in a bowl filled with cold water, and does the same with the remaining clothing pieces. Kaveh sits down in an empty tub and Alhaitham gently washes the blood out of his hair, he notices from Kaveh's body language that he is slowly coming back to reality. with a cloth he gently scrubs down the blood from his arms while silently praying to lesser lord Kusanali that he doesn't have any cuts or wounds there. as if she had answered his prayers, Kaveh’s arms are only covered with the occasional light bruise.

after the only running water turns clear, with no sign of blood, he turns the water to fill the tub. allowing himself to place a hand on his forehead, his mind fills with worry and regret closing his eyes for a moment, his gaze moves to Kaveh who is staring at a dot on the wall across from him. the warm water fills the tub and Alhaitham speaks, but only in the basic words, instructive kind, keeping his thoughts still to himself, “the warm water will soothe you, you should stay inside the tub for half an hour at least.“ a nod. a positive sign in his mind, he stays sitting on the ground, observing the older man. Kaveh's eyes fall to the water, his voice comes out shaky, quiet, “A- Alhaitham?“

„I'm here“ he responds in his normal tone, he notices Kaveh's distress, his hand moving under the water, caressing the older's back. “I'm here“ he repeats himself, his tone a tad softer this time.

Kaveh turns his head to Alhaitham, his eyes filling with tears, “I-I-“

„you're in distress right now, you don't have to force yourself to speak“ to which Kaveh nods, but he is trembling slightly as if he is about to have a panic attack, Alhaitham notices that and makes a quick decision, moving to gently kiss his golden hair. “I'm here“ he whispers, offering a moment of comfort while he quickly strips himself of his clothes and goes into the tub, sitting behind him. his arms pull Kaveh into his chest, so he leans backward on him. Alhaitham whispers once more, his lips next to the older's head “I'm here.“

time seamlessly flows by, until Kaveh's breathing calms down to match Alhaitham's. the water stays warm, and Alhaitham would sit there with him as long as his senior needed, nothing else would matter. Kaveh then softly starts telling what happened, or what he believes is important at that moment.

„please, don't ever do that again- and, no, I do not care about those people, I am talking about you, do not bring yourself in such danger again, not for my sake at least, or anyone's for that matter.“ Alhaitham scolds the man in his arms.

„I'm not- I'm not a violent person, I just...“ falling quiet for a moment. “I don't mind self-defense- I just- I couldn't bear the thought of you being in danger... It had to be by my hands, not with Mehrak- and I, I probably sprained my wrist-“ his words made Alhaitham's eyes fall to his wrist, scanning it for any injury, moving to gently grasp it, hold it, ever so softly.“-and, I know why... for some... fucking reason I blame myself for not being able to keep one fucking person safe“ there's a heaviness in the way he says ‘one fucking person’, Alhaitham can sense the incomplete version of it hovering. one fucking person I care about, the most? his voice fills with anger at himself and Alhaitham already mentally prepares his words but Kaveh says the lesson he wanted to carry over, “tho it has no relation to me and I'm not guilty for it and therefore shouldn't have punished myself for it by using the claymore by hand.“

he shakes his head. “and I probably look like a wet rat now“ typically in Kaveh fashion he also adds a complaint or something rather unimportant and, if you ask Alhaitham, completely untrue. to maybe make Kaveh laugh, or even crack a smile, he plays along his line “eh, so do I, especially with the gray hair“ he dryly laughs. Kaveh turns his head to look at Alhaitham and sighs, “well that is no consolation, you look handsome as ever.“ which makes Alhaitham chuckle, his chest lightly rumbling under Kaveh's back.

Alhaitham of course doesn't allow such slander against his roommate, even if it comes from the roommate himself, grabbing his chin to make him face him once more for a moment, “and you look as beautiful as ever, as radiant as the sun.“ Alhaitham could ramble on and on about Kaveh's beauty, and how he must be a descendant of the goddess of flowers because he is so ethereal, yet his looks are what he cares about the least. thus, he sees little point in it. he has much more appreciation for his personality, intellect, habits, behavior, kindness, loyalty, etc. those things you can't buy. the moment is short and unnecessary in his opinion, yet Kaveh's eyes turn a shade brighter, appreciating the comment, but his head turns to the front and he leans his head back onto Alhaitham's collarbone.

„of course, I wouldn't, I wouldn't be so foolish.“ Alhaitham is quick to answer, to which Kaveh scoffs, “I'd get them to proper punishment from the matra, and be more careful towards my injuries, or get them to be judged in front of our archon.“

„that means I should never bring myself in danger then, Alhaitham.“ he points out a fault in his sentence, to which Alhaitham nods, a small smile playing on his lips, which Kaveh cannot see. “I'll try my best not to then.“ Kaveh adds, earning a nod from Alhaitham.

„you also don't understand- you wouldn't do it for me“ Kaveh turns the conversation back to the middle of the topic, an underlying tone suggests he is upset.

after a moment of silence, “I wouldn't do what you did.“ he says a bit quieter the following, in that moment, the warmth of the water, Kaveh's body against his, his tired mind, he can't bite his tongue to the next words “I would do much... much worse.“ his mind forces him to imagine Kaveh getting hurt, just the thought of someone daring or even thinking about hurting his comfort person, his roommate, his senior, his... everything... anger, rage flashes, his words whispered “I'd kill them.“ and in that moment, those are true words. he'd kill them in cold blood and never blink an eye for it until the rest of his life. it would be as natural and as justified to him as killing an ant in the kitchen is.

Kaveh moves his hand to Alhaitham's, which was beside Kaveh's thigh, he takes it in his own under the water and gives it a reassuring squeeze. “no one is harming me, I'm okay.“

Alhaitham nods, “I know“ he kisses Kaveh's temple, “the biggest threat to you is you, yourself“ making Kaveh laugh self-deprecatingly.

time passes, with comforting silence, and eventually, Alhaitham massages Kaveh's scalp with a mint soap bar, proving to be a soothing, simple moment for the both of them. they both dislike any sweet scents, mint being the only scented one amongst their shared products.

after the bath, the drying up, the clean clothes, pajamas, Alhaitham is escorting, that is what he told himself - in all actuality he is following, Kaveh to his room. promptly also moving into the blond's bed, nuzzling his head into the still slightly damp golden locks.

a silence falls over the bedroom upon which Alhaitham would've thought Kaveh fell asleep if it were not for the pattern of his breathing which gave away his state of consciousness.

„I..“ Alhaitham begins, “I care about you too much for this to happen to us, let's“ he exhales, “let's try communicating better“ which makes Kaveh chuckle, “you suck at communicating well enough.“

„I am excellent at it“ Kaveh raises an eyebrow to that statement. “oh, are you now? well-“ he decides to not go along his usual route of this conversation, he sighs softly, pausing for a moment as he changes the trajectory of his thoughts “we have different ways of communication, and 90% of them perfectly match which is not visible or even typical with any normal people, we... for fucks sake the fact that we write notes in an ancient language would be the prime example. but in those 10%...“ he sighs, and Alhaitham continues instead of him, “we differ to the point we hurt each other.“

in a hushed voice he says, “I care about you.. a lot. I am... I am failing to find words for the things I wish to say, except I just care.“

Alhaitham smiles, Kaveh grumbles a bit more and he listens. all is well.

Kaveh turns to face him in the dark bedroom, heads next to each other to the point they can feel each other's breath. “it is painfully obvious that I also care. I guess we should show it to each other, to remind ourselves, in more... mundane ways.“

Alhaitham closes his eyes, moving closer, his arm moving to rest on Kaveh's waist, his head resting in the crook of his neck, “agreed. you can start by doing the dishes in the morning.“ the soft quiet moment sliced by a high pitched whisper which makes him chuckle, “hey! I did them just the other day- it is your turn!“

they will be fine.

[kitty-thinks-stuff]

here have a fic i wrote while sick and kinda out of it LMAO pumping out these fics before all the new hoyo stuff drops in hsr and genshin

Rating: Teen and up audiences

Archive warning: No archive warnings apply

Category: M/M

Fandom: 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game)

Relationships: Alhaitham/Kaveh (Genshin Impact)

Characters: Alhaitham (Genshin Impact), Kaveh (Genshin Impact)

Additional tags: Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Angst with a Happy Ending, Established Relationship, theyre dating but theyre new, Alhaitham is Soft for Kaveh (Genshin Impact), Soft Alhaitham/Kaveh (Genshin Impact), kaveh cries a lot im SORRY, Cuddling & Snuggling, Hair Brushing, No beta we die like signora

Language: English

Summary:

“You look beautiful, Kaveh,” Alhaitham smiled.

Kaveh scoffed, ignoring his red face, “I look terrible. I didn’t take my makeup off before my shower and now it’s smudged, and my eyebags have never been worse.”

“I like you like this. Like the stained glass in the Akademiya.”

OR Kaveh has a terrible week and breaks down, Alhaitham brushes his hair

[platypusundercover]

Having you like this is enough (or is it?)

As a scholar, Alhaitham knows a lot of words. But it's not a reason for him to know how to use them, especially when it comes to Kaveh.

-Alhaitham and Kaveh dream of each other, and say the things they won't say while awake-

Audience : General

Word Count : ~4,700

Ship : Alhaitham/Kaveh

[idislikehoney]

Chapters: 2/2 Fandom: 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game) Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Alhaitham/Kaveh (Genshin Impact) Characters: Kaveh (Genshin Impact), Alhaitham (Genshin Impact) Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, They're not together, but they're also not Not together, A secret third thing, acts of service, soup as a love language, Idiots in Love, Caring Alhaitham (Genshin Impact), Oblivious Kaveh (Genshin Impact), Sharing a Bed, Getting Together, Autistic Alhaitham (Genshin Impact), Implied Sexual Content, Fluff Summary:

Kaveh has no idea what to do with this silent, compliant Alhaitham. If anything, he knows for sure that a compliant Alhaitham for no apparent self-beneficial reason is a fundamentally wrong Alhaitham. And that by itself is enough cause for worry.

or: Alhaitham doesn't know how to conventionally comfort people, and Kaveh can't recognize when he's being cared for.

[mania-sama]

with every line, a comedy (05)

<- Previous | Chapters and Tags | Next ->

Fic Summary: The people of Sumeru had not experienced dreams for the past five hundred years. Lesser Lord Kusanali then abolished the Akasha system and returned the wonders dreaming to her people.

However, there are complications that arise with freeing the brain’s unconscious activities. Nightmares start to haunt those that had previously repressed traumatic memories in order to cope.

Kaveh, on the other hand, begins sleepwalking. Alhaitham tries to fix the problem before someone gets hurt.

Or; Kaveh has nightmares and sleepwalks. Alhaitham dreams and deals with the emotions he holds for his roommate.

--------------------------------------------

05 - his translucent skin made shiver deep within my bones

Pale White Horse - The Oh Hellos

wc: 5,705 | Cross-posted from Archive of Our Own

-

Cyno was the first one to greet the two in the morning. There wasn’t a clock in the living room, but the windows showed the moon sitting on the horizon. Great. He forgot Cyno was even more punctual than Alhaitham. There wasn’t any way he was going to be allowed to stroll in late to work.

Alhaitham had been in and out for most of the night. The hearing aids coupled with previous events had kept his thoughts running, irritating him to the point that he considered it would be better if he just took them off. But of course, he didn’t. Not when he could hear Kaveh’s uneven breathing a few feet away from him at all times.

As for Kaveh’s night, the Scribe was well aware that there wasn’t a chance that he’d gotten back to sleep. If he had, they’d probably be dealing with a broken splint and a rush to Bimarstan or the student hospital against Kaveh’s will.

Tighnari soon came down afterward and examined Kaveh’s ankle. Although overall pleased that it hadn’t worsened, he insisted on them seeing a doctor together as soon as possible. Alhaitham noticed Kaveh acted overall neutral to the subject. Overcompensating — pretending his panic attack had never happened in the first place, that he had to consider if he’d trust even his oldest friend with the care of his body.

Breakfast was served by Cyno, who was easily the best cook out of the four. Collei joined them the moment plates were set on the table. Alhaitham had never been particularly close with her, but that didn’t mean they disliked each other. In fact, they’d shared conversations about the types of books they enjoyed. Though the attempt at reading one of her books, and conversely her attempt at reading one of his, went rather poorly, he recognized the merit in her choices of material.

Her demeanor was entirely different from the last time he’d seen her. Collei was a shy and soft-spoken child but wasn’t particularly skittish or weak-willed. Even if she didn’t want to do something, she pushed her way through since she understood the importance of why it had to be done. That consisted of eating, exercising, studying, interacting with others, and more. Alhaitham saw a bit of himself in her, especially in the interaction department.

The girl that sat down at the table next to Kaveh was tired. Dark circles hung like heavy weights from her red-edged violet eyes, and her posture was tense and rigid as if she felt the urge to flee at any given moment. Eye contact was held for only half a second before she went to toy with her food. She was quiet and clearly watching them from behind her eyelashes.

The meal wasn’t silent, but it was quiet in a way that let everyone recover from the night previous. Any conversations they had lacked any real substance, aside from when Tighnari asked about Alhaitham’s dreams again, to which he politely responded for Tighnari to describe his.

Collei ate very little of her food, though she tried to put more down every time either Cyno or Tighnari requested that she eat a little more. From the corner of his eye, he saw Kaveh struggling just the same, even if he was better at hiding it. Alhaitham was certain he was the only one that noticed how Kaveh would swallow twice, lick his lips, and take extra time in preparing the next bite. His eyes would glance at the Scribe’s plate before looking back at his own, seeing how much progress he should be making in comparison to Alhaitham’s slow speed.

The coffee was more bitter than Alhaitham preferred. He watched the sunrise from the window in the dining room, and he had the foreboding feeling that it was going to be a weary day.

And yet, he left before Cyno did. Tighnari accompanied him to the door, and he anticipated what he was going to say before the Forest Watcher opened his mouth.

Lips drawn into a frown, he warned, “Don’t talk about my sex life again until you can figure out yours.”

Alhaitham leveled him a blank stare, leaving the held-open door without a word. Before he could step out of earshot, however, Tighnari’s voice called after him. “I mean it, Alhaitham.” 

The Scribe didn’t grant him a response. On his walk to his house, his hearing aids were held firmly in his hands, deaf to the world and forcing his mind to focus on anything else.

—

Throughout the years that Alhaitham knew Kaveh, he’d noticed one intriguing peculiarity about Kaveh:

He was a strangely private person.

It didn’t seem that way at first. Really, Kaveh didn’t know how to keep his mouth shut most of the time. When they’d first met, Kaveh had sat with Alhaitham and talked his way through the entire lunch and barely stopped enough to eat his meal. He revealed everything there was to seemingly know about him; he was raised by two scholars, he was a student of the Kshahrewar Darshan, a master of trigonometry, loved soup and anything cute, and was generally obnoxious.

He told people so much that they didn’t feel the need to look deeper. They would think, after one conversation, that there wasn’t anything more to know about him. He’d already supposedly spilled their entire life story to them, so why would they try to find out more?

It had worked on Alhaitham for about one day. After that, he began picking up on the qualities that Kaveh didn’t expect people to see, notice or comment on. He expected that his hard-looking shield would deter everyone away from actually hitting it. That way, they wouldn’t find out just how brittle the metal actually was.

Kaveh wasn’t private around Alhaitham much anymore. It was hard to be with the Scribe’s perceptibility and how often they were around each other. Aside from the nightmare situation, Kaveh had given up on hiding. He let every part of his life and personality bare their ugly teeth in the containment of their home.

However, there was one aspect of himself that he’d never revealed to Alhaitham. And for his part, Alhaitham had never cared to push on the subject. He didn’t need to see Kaveh’s bare body. Even if there were days where he found himself picking apart Kaveh’s clothes, imagining what may lay underneath, he’d never brought it up before.

But it was while he was sitting in his office, trying to work through the thick stack of post-meeting documents, that he was struck by the fact that he’d never seen Kaveh’s naked stomach before, nor his thighs.

He wouldn’t know if dark freckle marks were dotting his skin like glittering constellations. Kaveh could have birthmarks of any shape. He was likely pale, paler than the rest of his skin. Would it be smooth from underexposure, or rough from constantly rubbing against his clothes? There could be blemishes, prominent abs on his stomach, or sharp muscle lines stretching across his thighs.

He’d thought about it before. It had kept him awake at night, wondering what he may never get to learn, and how he could go about finding out without driving Kaveh away from him. Because, of course, Kaveh wouldn’t expose himself for Alhaitham's pleasure and curiosity.

Alhaitham had never before contemplated the matter the way he was now.

Scars of Kaveh’s past could be littering uncharted skin. And the shape of those scars, whether they be burnt, large, jagged, narrow, or straight, could be a clear indicator of stories Kaveh left untold about his childhood. They could be the answers to the incessant questions Alhaitham had on childhood surgeries, torture, and escapes.

And there may be nothing there at all. There could be nothing to indicate trauma, nothing to show for physical abuse. Kaveh wouldn’t be hiding anything underneath, but rather keeping what’s there away from other people.

Alhaitham recalled the taut rope, sobbing, and incoherent words, and felt a little nauseated. The paper in front of him blurred out of focus for half a second. It was worse knowing that Kaveh might be afraid of what Alhaitham would do if he ever saw what he kept hidden.

“I hope this isn’t a bad time, my Scribe,” a young voice called, and Alhaitham’s vision cleared immediately. He focused on the Archon and the slight glow she always emanated. He wondered if she was aware of it, the way that people couldn’t help but notice her presence.

The Acting Grand Sage carefully set his pen down on top of the document, a little too aware of the organ working in his chest. “Not at all. What do you need?”

She walked up to his desk with heavy feet. Her eyes were open and imploring as if she could read every emotion on his face. Alhaitham had always been told that he was impossible to read — his facial expressions rarely differed. Kaveh had once said that his eyes would go from narrow to narrower, and that would sometimes be the only indication that his emotions had flipped.

“Kaveh isn’t afraid of you,” she blurted. Immediately, her hands went up and shook them. “I wasn’t trying to read your mind! I… I do it subconsciously. Looking into people’s heads, especially Dendro Vision holders, is like breathing for me. I sincerely apologize.”

“There’s no need,” Alhaitham forgave, and really, the only reason he did was the knowledge she provided and the ease that knowledge set aside. His stomach was still coiled with the theories left untested, but at least one tight knot was set free.

The Archon nodded, though her fingers twisted together in front of her chest uncontrollably. “I didn’t come here to tell you that, anyway. I want to inform you that I’ve found the reason why I can’t help Kaveh directly.” She paused, giving time for Alhaitham to fully prepare for what she was going to say. That, and her voice was uncharacteristically tight. It appeared that it caused her great discomfort to speak aloud. “He blames me for what happened to him.”

“I find that hard to believe,” Alhaitham refuted. His mind was already piecing together the route Kusanli took to come to that conclusion. “He loves his Vision more than he loves himself most days, and he holds you in extremely high regard. I don’t see how he could blame you for something you couldn’t have taken part in.”

Then there was the matter of Collei. Alhaitham had already compared and contrasted them; Collei had even mentioned before that she had screamed for the gods to help her, angry at them for allowing her to be tormented in the first place. Out of the two Dendro wielders, it would be Collei that should be blocking Kusanali out.

“He blames me like how I read minds; it's subconscious. What happened to him occurred in Sumeru, and he thinks he survived it all alone, without any help from me or anyone else,” she mourned. “I hear the prayers he sends in his dreams. I’m not helping him there, either. And that Vision… when he looks at it, he is only reminded of all the times I’ve failed him.”

Alhaitham sat with fighting words on the tip of his tongue, ready to come back to Kaveh’s defense. Even though Alhaitham largely disagreed with his viewpoints, he knew how much Kaveh loved her. He believed that his dedication had finally been recognized by their Archon herself. 

But, he couldn’t deny that her conclusion seemed correct. It was an undeniable fact that Kaveh had unattached his Vision during the night, and hadn’t bothered to reattach it that morning at Cyno’s house before Alhaitham left. Collei, on the other hand, had her's safely pinned to her sides as most Vision wielders preferred. 

“He doesn't attribute a lot of the blame to me,” she continued. “His reservations are mainly held in other places, but it’s enough to block me out. The reason why this doesn’t apply to Collei,” and she looked a little sheepish as she said those words. It was clear she was still reading his mind. “Is that she has already remembered most of her time in treatment before the nightmares started. She’s had time to heal and realize that the only person she can put her anger to is the one that hurt her, not the ones that couldn’t help her.”

Alhaitham finished for her. “Kaveh hasn’t had that time to adjust.”

The Archon shook her head, her shoulders tense and eyes downcast to the floor. “I would apologize to him in person, but doing that would be the equivalent of putting a roof over a young sapling. Its growth would be stunted and deformed, twisting in order to get around the roof and towards the sun.”

In other words, Kaveh wouldn’t heal properly. “There’s more,” Alhaitham prompted.

“... Yes. I’m honestly a little ashamed,” she admitted. Her body rocked side to side. “It’s not just Kaveh, but Sumeru as a whole. My people have been suffering for the past five hundred years, and there is little I can do to help or change that fact. I feel like a tiny fish in a wide, storming sea, trying to make a ripple among raging waves. Apologizing now wouldn’t even make so much as a sound.”

He narrowed his eyes at her. “I’m certain you didn’t come here to gain sympathy from me.”

“No,” she said, and a small smile appeared on her face. “I’m saying this because I want to thank you for all the work you’ve done for me and Sumeru. I know you don’t enjoy being the Acting Grand Sage but If you hadn’t offered to hold the base, the Akademiya would have crumbled by now. You’ve done an amazing job so far.”

Alhaitham stared at the young Archon, unsure of what to do with the praise. People didn’t often acknowledge the work Alhaitham did — they seemed to think his ego was already inflated enough. It was foreign. The last person to congratulate him on a “job well done” was his grandmother, who had long been buried.

Noticing his silence, Kusanali carried on with, “And I want to express my gratitude in more than just words. The issue is that I don’t know what would suffice. My Scribe,” she said with her hands spread wide open, “what would you like from me?”

His first instinct was to bite out “a new Grand Sage,” but he knew that it simply wasn’t feasible. Kusanali had made it his responsibility to pick the next Grand Sage, and so far he hadn’t been able to find a suitable heir to the title. He hadn’t had the time, and all of the candidates were less than exemplary. His second desire was equally as unattainable. Kaveh’s nightmares were far out of Kusanali’s hands.

Why did he care enough about Kaveh to give this divine opportunity to him?

He shut down the line of thought before it could spread. He could think about it later when his Archon couldn’t read just how confused he truly was when he had the time to fall to the same frustrating conclusion he always came to.

Alhaitham didn’t need anything. He supposed the window needed to be replaced, but he already made time to fix that issue at a later date. He wanted to wake up later than six in the morning, but that couldn’t happen until there was someone to take his place in the grand chair he sat on. His life was cozy and complete; other than his occupation and Kaveh, there was nothing he wanted.

“Your dreams,” Kusanali said, interrupting Alhaitham’s vigorous search for a request. He looked at her curiously. “How do you feel about them?”

He couldn’t remember his first dream, but that didn’t surprise him. His research on the topic showed that recalling dreams, especially after an extended period of time after they originally occurred, was exceptionally hard. Unless the dream caused an extreme emotion or was vivid enough, most people go their whole lives with only being able to remember a handful of their dreams.

However, he could recall his second and third dreams relatively well. In his second dream, his house was burning down, and he went down with it in search of his roommate still trapped inside. A few of the details blurred at the edges. His third dream, a ship capsizing with Kaveh as a drowning prisoner underneath, still exceedingly clear in his mind’s eye. His heartfelt desperation to release Kaveh was as vivid as it was real in the waking world. When Alhaitham analyzed it, he wondered why he hadn’t dreamt of either his Vision or Kaveh’s.

Dreaming, as he’d learned, is a way for the brain to process information. He didn’t mind that he was having them based on that fact, but Kusanali wasn’t asking for his opinion on the objective truth of his dreams. She wanted to hear what he felt.

If she’d asked Kaveh the same question, he would’ve said that his dreams made him feel fear and out of control of his life. Alhaitham knew this because he’d observed Kaveh react to his dreams and mask his emotions in an effort to regain authority over his own mind.

“I don’t hate them,” he started. “I’m aware of their value in processing information. That doesn’t mean I appreciate what their contents are. During the day, I watch Kaveh suffer. Then at night, I relive it all over again. I can’t escape his pain or mine.”

Even in his office, far away from the architectural work Kaveh was laboring over, his mind persisted in reminding him of all that his roommate wasn’t telling him, all that he was dealing with alone in his own head. He never truthfully ceased reflecting on Kaveh and his situation, and Archons-forbid if Tighnari’s incessant voice echoed in his thoughts one more time Alhaitham might have to go the rest of the day without his hearing aids. It wasn’t like he cared to hear anyone’s voices anyway.

When he slept, it was a respite from the day he had. Since upholding the title of Acting Grand Sage, Alhaitham had craved that solace even more. Now, his dreams prevented him from receiving that break.

Lesser Lord Kusanali put a hand on her chin and stared thoughtfully at the desk in front of him. “Thank you for telling me, Alhaitham. Even if it’s just for one night, I’ll see what I can do for you and your dreams.”

Alhaitham nodded to her. “Is there anything else you wanted to talk to me about?”

“No. Please, continue your work and I will continue mine. We are making Sumeru better every day.” She smiled and winked at him. Instead of walking to the elevator, she blinked out of his sight. The only indicator that she had even been in the room was the faint green outline of the body that permeated the air. 

Now that he reflected on it, she hadn’t come in through the elevator, either.

Blinking away the reflection, he returned to the document on his desk. Kusanali had cleared his head and ebbed away his growing anxiety and overstimulation. Sifting through papers wasn’t fun regardless, but it was easier to do when he wasn’t focused on Kaveh. Instead, he thought of his dreams and how Kusanali intended on influencing them. The logistics played in the background of his mind as he approved another paper.

—

Alhaitham hated being the Acting Grand Sage of the Akademiya. It was exhausting, hard work that was incredibly boring at the same time. He had chosen to be the Scribe of the Akademiya for a reason; it was easy work that rarely took up much time during his day. The title of Acting Grand Sage guaranteed the exact opposite.

Worst of all, the meeting he had scheduled later that day to further the process of choosing the next Grand Sage since two of the sages were ill with the flu. The virus had been spreading through the Akademiya during finals week, and the students that had all caught it from their weakened immune systems due to stress had spread it to their mentors.

Of course they spread it to their mentors. Alhaitham used a sparing prayer to Kusanali, silently asking her to protect Kaveh from the illness. Not because he was worried Kaveh wouldn’t make it, but because he would spread it to Alhaitham. There were few things that Alhaitham despised more than being sick.

As he walked to his house, he eyed the Matra tailing him. Then he spotted the ones lurking further up the street, finding himself disappointed that Cyno hadn’t been lying.

Cyno had dropped by his office soon after Kusanali left. The visit wasn’t overall unexpected; if he was in the city, he would make the personal trip to drop off the reports and case files that Alhaitham had to analyze and approve. The General Mahamatra acted first on reports, but they did wind their way to the Grand Sage for a second opinion. If he wanted to have a case halted or pursued, he had the authority to override the General Mahamatra’s decision.

Alhaitham knew that Cyno would do what he believed to be righteous no matter what the Grand Sage thought, so he didn’t even bother to correct his decision. The most he would do was read the first passage of the report in the instance that it was intriguing.

When Cyno had delivered the papers, he warned Alhaitham that he, Kaveh, and their shared house would be on surveillance for the next week. The General Mahamatra then showed him the report that he’d filled out. Kaveh and Tighnari’s names had been listed as the correspondents.

“We’re going to snuff out the criminals as soon as possible,” Cyno had said, his eyes narrowed and unamused. “But if they manage to catch wind of this before we get to them, Kaveh could be targeted, and you by extension. I’m keeping you both safe this way.”

Alhaitham had carefully held the paperclipped stack in his hands, flipping through the pages until he landed upon a blueprint and a sketch. They looked just like the ones that Kaveh was working on for his commission. The one that had needed it to be finished as soon as possible, and even paying extra for maximum efficiency.

Before the Acting Grand Sage could open his mouth, Cyno had said, “I advise you to talk to Kaveh about this. He wasn’t taking it well when he gave me the report. Tighnari and I convinced him not to drink, but it’s been a few hours. I don’t know how well our advice stuck.”

Alhaitham was fully expecting to open his door to either two situations:

One. Bottles strewn across the living room with the architectural drawings ripped up in a pile. Kaveh would be drunk out of conscious thought, mumbling his woes into Alhaitham’s ear.

Two. The papers would be intact, but Kaveh wouldn’t be home. He’d be at the tavern, drinking his sorrows where Alhaitham couldn’t see his pitiful state.

With a Matra staring coldly at his back from across the street, he prepared himself for either scenario. The blanket that had been re-tied over the empty window slot moved with the door. Alhaitham tugged it behind him as quickly as he could, not wanting the Matra to see the scene inside.

Kaveh was home.

There weren’t any empty bottles. There weren’t any bottles at all. The living room was spotless clean of any dust, dirt, and architectural sketches. The book that Alhaitham had left open after he’d departed that morning had been closed and tucked into its proper place. A distinct smell of cooked meat and roasted vegetables drifted through the house.

The Light of Kshahrewar sat hunched over on the center couch, a paper clenched in his hands. He didn’t react to Alhaitham’s entrance. 

“Kaveh?” Alhaitham called, making his way over to his roommate. The only indication that Kaveh had heard him was a small bob in his throat as he swallowed.

When he reached his side, the Scribe didn’t pick up on any trace of scents of alcohol. His clothes were unmussed, his hair pinned back in his usual style, and his skin glistened like he’d taken a long, hot water bath. A proper splint covered his foot and ankle, meaning he’d made it to the doctor and back just fine.

His ruby eyes were blank and unseeing. The paper in his palms was crinkled from constant pressure, and the ink had been smeared in various places. It was otherwise free of variant marks and stains. It did not tremble or move in Kaveh’s grip. The architect was as still as a statue carved by his own hands.

Alhaitham sat beside his roommate on the couch slowly. He recognized this routine now. If he tried to say anything more, the results would be static and unchanging. Perhaps he wouldn’t make it worse, but he certainly wouldn’t achieve any progress.

He could violently pull Kaveh from the couch. It could startle him into the present, or he could be an emotionless doll. Under Alhaitham’s hands, he would allow himself to be pushed in any direction or touched in any way without a reaction at all. Alhaitham could tear the sketch to pieces, light his blond hair on fire, rip the earrings from his skin, and Kaveh wouldn’t make a sound.

The Scribe laid his hands on his lap and stared forward, letting himself drown in the static feedback from his hearing aids. Normally, everything had sound. The air moving, Kaveh’s breath, their house creaking — the only time he could ever escape it was when he took off his hearing aids. Now, it seemed like the world had sewn its mouth shut.

Silence was Alhaitham’s comfort. It was his blanket. He had lived without sound until his grandmother had fitted him with a pair of hearing aids. He hadn’t worn them often, then; he hadn’t cared to. It was only after he’d been a year into studying at the Akademiya that he’d crafted his own pair of hearing aids, ones that reverberated sound back to his eardrums as though he’d been born listening to the city’s bustle and the scholars’ debates.

His hearing aids weren’t made for the convenience of others. If someone wanted to converse with him, they’d find a way to do it. They’d learn sign language like they would any other ancient language they had to study in order to graduate, or they’d write what they wanted to say. Alhaitham had developed a keen eye for reading lips and understanding the words being spoken. He didn’t make them for the convenience of himself. He didn’t have any issues with his perpetually deaf world, and the occasional rough sound the old hearing aids provided.

He’d made them because, for the first time, he wanted to clearly hear someone’s voice other than his grandmother’s.

He had met Kaveh a year into his higher education career.

In the presence of Kaveh, silence was disturbing. He wore his hearing aids around his roommate for a reason. They were not meant to ring with static alone.

“They told me it was a ranch.”

Kaveh’s voice was not quiet. It was not choked. It was entirely blank, void of any of the depression, fury, or regret that Alhaitham associated with the architect. It matched his posture, the living room, his cleaned body, the scent of cooked food permeating the air, his dull ruby eyes.

“I had known they were lying. It looks nothing like a ranch.”

His voice was nothing at all.

“My first draft certainly looked like one. We talked about the modifications, and though I argued with them, I couldn’t pass up the mora they were offering. They knew what they were talking about, exactly what they wanted. If they wanted a terrible ranch, then that’s what they were getting,” Kaveh continued. His gaze was in the present, but not exactly focused on the sketch. “Cyno has already told you about this, hasn’t he?”

That was the first indicator that he’d acknowledged and recognized Alhaitham’s presence. Just because he’d been talking didn’t mean he’d known exactly who he’d been talking to. But the use of Cyno’s name showed that Kaveh was acutely aware of his surroundings, no matter how absent he had been before.

Alhaitham’s voice was toneless when he said, “Very little. I skimmed the first paragraph of the report; I want to hear the rest from you.”

His hearing aids rang with silence as he waited patiently for a response.

“The plan includes bedrooms, bathrooms, and a kitchen. At first glance it seems normal, but then you take into consideration everything you’d need in a house in general, not to mention a ranch house, and it certainly doesn’t meet the standards. Then there’s the fact that it’s in the center of the ranch, where the animals are roaming all around, and there aren’t any sheltered areas designed for animals themselves,” he monotonously explained. “But I’d explained all of the problems to them already. They didn’t care. This was the way they wanted it.”

For the first time since Alhaitham got there, Kaveh moved. It wasn’t much — he changed his grip on the paper so he had one free hand while the other prevented the paper from flopping at the edges. Kaveh lightly traced the outline of a fence on the sketch with his pointer finger. Alhaitham followed the finger intently, his attention flicking back and forth between the sketch and the architect’s face.

“It was the f…” His voice cut out, failing on the word he’d intended to say. He blinked, possibly for the first time in a while, and took a moment to regain his speech. “Fence. Ranches require specific types of fences for a list of reasons I won’t bore you with. There can be leniency for people as uneducated as the commissioners, but a palisade is obviously out of the cards for a ranch. The perimeter also wasn’t long enough for any type of ranch animal, nor the area big enough to provide enough space.”

Alhaitham had come to that conclusion on his own. He hadn’t asked Kaveh to explain it because he didn’t understand the logistics, he did it under the assumption that it would help Kaveh process the information and begin healing from it.

Looking at him then, Alhaitham realized that the issue ran deeper than he had originally thought.

“It’s meant to keep people, ” Kaveh started, and then choked on his own sentence. He let the sketch flutter softly from his hands onto the ground in front of him. His eyes were scrunched up together and his teeth were bared in a half-snarl. The usual shine that came with unshed tears was absent from his gutted face. “It’s meant to keep people in. Meant to harvest their organs and throw them out once they are emptied of anything to sell.”

When Kaveh stood, he staggered, tripping over his splint and hitting the edge of the table. The sketch crinkled and tore under Kaveh’s weight. Alhaitham stood up with him, reaching out to steady him before he fell. What he received for his efforts was a hand wildly swatting him away and a strangely level voice that said, “I don’t need your help.” Those ruby eyes, the ones that Alhaitham could never get enough of — the way they were so unique, their color descending from a deep crimson to a dusted pink, always so expressive of frustration and excitement — met Alhaitham’s with a glaring intensity. “I have never asked for it.”

And his nose was flared, and his hands were balled into fists, and he was favoring both legs as he roughly pushed past Alhaitham. His bedroom door slammed, rattling the vase settled by a set of books on the shelf beside the center couch. The sound reverberated into Alhaitham’s hearing aids, and they reminded the Scribe just how sensitive they were with an ear-piercing screech.

Fresh dust settled in the newly-cleaned house. The aroma of cooked meat and roasted vegetables filled the space where the smell of Kaveh’s shampooed hair had once been. Light streamed in from where the blanket had come slightly undone. The ever-present sound of silence wrapped around Alhaitham like the Grim Reaper’s skeleton hand.

Alhaitham tied the blanket back over the empty space where the window should be. He checked the kitchen to see a plate carefully preserved for him. It had meat and vegetables and a glass of water on the side. His footsteps were light and even as he brought the food to the dinner table. He kept his mouth closed and chewed slow as he ate alone. His mind was blank as he tried to think.

Lesser Lord Kusanali’s words bounced around in his head, reminding him constantly of their weight. It made him want to plunge his steak knife into a carotid artery. It gave him urges, not thoughts, not plans, not ideas. Only the strong urge to do something incredibly and uncharacteristically impulsive. Alhaitham prided himself on the fact that he did not do anything without consideration beforehand, and that he didn’t have compulsions since they were entirely illogical, reckless, and without cause.

Alhaitham wanted to flip the dinner table. He wanted to choke on his food. He wanted to cradle Kaveh’s head and beg to see his stomach and thighs. He wanted to shake his Archon’s little body and scream in her face. 

Alhaitham did not act on his urges. Instead, he tossed his hearing aids onto the wooden table, took a deep breath, and ate the rest of his food in the complete, utterly deaf world he belonged to.

He wanted to be able to think, but the dead silence in his head was infinitely better than the uncontrollable voices scraping his brain like a dog that’s been trapped in a cage for days, making his hands shake and his heart burst. Having real thoughts would have to come later, when he calmed down and could open his mouth for anything other than eating.

[mountaingoatsdynamic]

Fandom: Genshin Impact

Pairing: Alhaitham/Kaveh

Rating: Teen

Words: 16.5

Summary:

A Beauty and the Beast AU.

***

“So, you’re telling me that your mom came home with a cart brimming with goods, told you that you couldn’t go back to the Université despite having the money for it, and said you have to agree to move in with some magical…” Tighnari said, grasping for the right word.

“Beast?” suggested Cyno.

“Right, with a magical beast,” Tighnari continued, “or said beast will kill her?”

Kaveh nodded glumly.

“All because she picked a rose from the magical castle which pissed the beast off?”

“A rose I asked her to get for me, yes,” Kaveh said, voice slurred, indicating the rose in question which his mother had tucked behind his ear.

TIghnari was at a loss.

“What did you say?” Cyno asked.

“Well, I said, ‘yes,’ of course! ‘Yes, I will go live with a magical beast in his magic castle to save your life.’”

[ciescen]

Pairing: Alhaitham/Kaveh

Rating: T

Word Count: 5281

Alhaitham is a student with the ability to see ghosts no one else can see. Kaveh is a student with the ghost of his father following him around.

In the House of Daena, their lives cross paths.

Haikaveh hurt/comfort ghost au!

[jinnyart06]

Currently working on a haikaveh fic!! I spent a day on it and with 9k in im nearly done oh lord the brainrot was strong with this one

[teyvatdivision]

Frustration

Rating: E || Words: 2,676

Pairing: Alhaitham/Kaveh

Summary: Like a gazelle trapped by a lion, he tries to look for an escape but it's too late because the moment he spots the opening the lion pounces, Alhaitham catching him in another searing kiss.

[adolinsart]

honestly feel free to send me you're requests too if you have any.

[windyxiao]

new hkvh fanfic 🌱🏛

Update: COMPLETED! Title: Petrichor Fandom: Genshin Impact Rating: Mature Chapters: 1/2 Length: 11,482 words Main Ship: Alhaitham/Kaveh Supporting Ships: Cyno/Tighnari Characters: Alhaitham, Kaveh, Cyno, Tighnari, Nilou, Venti, Zhongli, Faruzan, Xingqiu, Fischl, Kazuha, Yunjin, Yae Miko Tags: Major Character Death, Dark Academia, University/College AU, Poetry Club, and they were roommates, Not So Secret Mutual Pining, Alhaitham is Down Bad, Raining Season in Sumeru, Oblivious Alhaitham, Oblivious Kaveh, Other Additional Tags to be added, 2nd chapter will be super angsty, future Major Character Death, Autistic Alhaitham Language: English Summary:

"Even in dim, warm candle's light, I can't not feel your shine, so bright, Our interactions a private lingo. Asleep, as you lay here at night, I guard thee dutifully, as a knight." Alhaitham has been infatuated with his roommate Kaveh for years, but when they argue about poetry, he simply cannot agree that 'language is art'. So naturally, he tags along to the Poetry Club at the Akademiya and accidentally finds himself a new hobby that helps him express his feelings and thoughts more clearly.

Read on AO3

[mikazukinika]

I. Al-Haitham's Garden

Excerpt from the first chapter of the mage!alhaitham x familiar!kaveh au :3c Explore the tag →

Kaveh finds a seat on one of the cushioned wicker daybeds, running a hand over the tapestry-like patterns in a repetitive, self-soothing motion.

Now that he is actively studying it, Al-Haitham’s garden is arranged in quite the classic manner for Sumerian courtyards. There is the water feature as the centerpiece: a small stone fountain decorated with glittering tiles. Palms and ferns with large, fan-shaped leaves are strategically planted around the perimeter alongside citrus-bearing trees, all of these common choices for courtyard plants. Kaveh internally salivates at the promising prospect of stealing fresh oranges for himself this summer. At that time, he will no doubt find relief from the sweltering heat in the shade offered by the tiny, lattice-roofed patio adjacent to the main house. Kaveh imagines plopping onto the sofas there to peel his spoils at the low table until Al-Haitham catches him. He would talk the grumbling man into joining in, eventually; Al-Haitham is unironically an attentive host despite his reluctance. If Kaveh feels generous that day, he might even compliment him for fashioning such a compact space so deftly. In fact, he would be more suspicious that someone so loath to work arranged this all by himself if the garden didn’t show signs of being “returned to nature” in some places.

As if it is hardly used, the backdoor of the house opens with a noisy creak and interrupts Kaveh’s musings. Al-Haitham steps out, now dressed in his usual sashes and boots. The man does a double take when he sees Kaveh draped over his outdoor seating, painting the picture of a shocked madam who just received word that her son has eloped with a neighboring girl. “Ever the princess, aren’t you,” he comments dryly.

Kaveh snaps upright in an instant, cheeks flushing in anger. “Shut up and tell me where we’re going!”

Explore the mage!alhaitham x familiar!kaveh au →

[romanticashale]

some short and sweet kavetham smut

[chirpybirdy]

Alhaitham completes his death plan. Fakes his death to make sure he didn't miss anything.

Kaveh is named Executor. Alhaitham helpfully provided a to do list.

ficlet under the cut

"If I actually died, I would've told you." Alhaitham states, not bothering to mention the myriad notes he had left in code around their house and Kaveh's office.

"Because you'd want me to donate your brain to science? Hey, Kaveh, this is time sensitive. I died and I need you to scoop my brains out." Kaveh cried sarcastically. "Do have any idea how many Thank You cards I had to write? I'm an architect, and my hand cramped."

"I can never apologize enough." Alhaitham replied. He walked into his office and Kaveh followed close behind.

"How about once?!"

"Doesn't seem worth it." Alhaitham confirmed that his will was missing from his desk drawer. Key adroitly placed near the ink well. His note was nowhere to be seen and Alhaitham can't help but stand there and wonder what happened.

"I didn't touch anything," Kaveh stated. Alhaitham arched his brow, because of course he touched things. "I mean, obviously. But I didn't touch anything. Else."

Alhaitham picked up the key and locked the empty drawer, out of habit, and returned the key to it's proper spot—not the place Kaveh had left it and, Archons curse him, not the place Alhaitham had left it when he decided to test his arrangements.

"Are you seriously mad at me right now?"

"Hm." Alhaitham non-answered, honestly not sure if he was.

Kaveh stared at him for a long while. Alhaitham used the time to tidy his desk. He wasn't a tidy person per se. His urge to clean (seldom) and his ability to make a mess (he didn't) were a good match.

Alhaitham was ready to be done when Kaveh spoke. "I'll make you a cocoa. I'm sure you're cold from being dead."

"Thanks."