#simping for albedo

[l-tora-l]

HOYOFAIR : The engines are heated, and we have our racers, technicians, and a... poet!? 2 days left, stay tuned to HoYoFair2024!

[flower-yi]

Perhaps surprise shouldn’t be felt when Albedo’s hands, in between the states of warmth and freezing, are calloused. Right now is the very few times the alchemist’s gloves are nowhere to be seen—most likely due to the work of a certain man with an eye patch—and as his partner (and admirer, as you’d always like to add), intertwining hands with him seemed to be the best idea at the moment.

“I don’t quite get why you have an intense interest with my hands,” he comments quietly, though not at all bothered with the closeness you’ve initiated. Albedo’s gaze often oscillates between observing to thinly veiled interest, which right now is a combination of the two, your brain helpfully supplies, and it doesn’t help with the rush of heat in your cheeks.

He doesn’t find the desire to hold hands with him weird, does he…?

“I don’t get the chance to hold your hands like this. You’re… always, uhm, wearing your gloves. Not that I want you to take them off, of course!”

Albedo stares at you. “Hmm,” he says, giving you no clue whatsoever if he doesn’t like it.

Maybe he’s just tolerating it…

The sudden tight squeeze to your fingers makes you raise an eyebrow at him. What is he doing? A concentrated look furrows his eyebrows, as his gaze drops to your intertwined hands… then he gives you another squeeze, this time much gentler, and you find a content expression is on his face.

“Well. Perhaps we should do this more often,” Albedo says. Is he joking? “I like how warm your hands are… as well as your cheeks, too. I’ll make sure to put this in mind.”

You don’t even have time to react when he lifts the back of your hand to his lips, placing a kiss on it.

It’s hard to miss that smile on his face.

[dumplingsfordays]

you're so pretty, you're so popular

albedo x gn!reader [university au]

genre - fluff

summary - albedo has a little (not really) crush on a semi-popular kid at his school.

cw!: jealousy, albedo's obsessed with you (in a good way I promise), professor ships you two

note - i used to simp for albedo so hard and then I stopped playing genshin... he's still pretty boy in my book though. feel like they did his hair dirty though, it's supposed to be so fluffy and they just massacred it :(

and as always, thank you for reading!

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗

Albedo was jealous of your friends. That was the one simple truth that he never wanted to admit to himself. He'd see you laughing along with them after you'd shown them a funny video and wish that he was the one that was holding you from falling backwards onto the grass as you shook from incessant, adorable giggles, that he was the one whose face hurt from smiling at your radiant expression everyday.

As much as he loved truth, he couldn't bring himself to face it.

And he'd sit on a bench in the shade of an oak tree during lunch, whose relatives sparingly dotted the small field on which you were talking with your friends, and in a sketchbook he would draw you and him on that same grass, blanketed in sunshine as you talked about anything you'd want to. After all, hearing your voice was enough for him to break an uncommon smile.

Albedo did this day after day, and luckily for him, you'd sit on that grass with your friends consistently from midday to 1:30. It was a nice break from the otherwise monotonous existence he led - study, eat, study, walk, draw, work, eat, sleep.

Oddly enough, almost every activity on that list somehow related back to you. The margins of his notes were occasionally occupied by studies of your eyes and hair; when he'd eat, his meals were inspired by what you ate for lunch; his walks were accompanied by music that you'd recommended to him some time ago; and when he slept, his brain would sometimes conjure up images of you hugging him, saying that he'd need to hold out just a little longer and maybe when he has the chance, he'll ask you out. Drawing brought him passion and he did use it as a side source of income, but lately they'd been plagued by splintered fragments of your soul.

He did it automatically, really - he'd add in a dash of your favorite color, draw a person in the background with the same hairstyle that you usually wore, and one time, when Albedo had been painting a portrait for his art midterm, he sketched out a scarily accurate representation of your countenance, usual accessories and all.

He immediately erased it, of course. You were in the same class as him and if he brought the canvas to the professor in front of you, there was no way that you wouldn't be weirded out by him. Who does that, anyway? He'd be better off painting his little cousin, Klee, who was a ray of sunshine and was bound to earn him a hundred.

The stars aligned in such an unpredictable way for him towards the end of the year after a particularly tiring lecture. You, in all your bright, angelical beauty, walked right up to him as he was about to leave and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey, 'Bedo!" you smile as he whips his head around to face you. You don't know what you do to him when you call him by his nickname - he practically melts each time.

"Hey." He's panicking - it's obviously not a bad thing, you're smiling, you don't think he's creepy or annoying or anything, so everything's okay, as long as he plays it cool and-

"So, I've been thinking," you start, averting your eyes to look at the floor and then back to him. "We haven't really hung out in a bit. Do you want to grab a bite somewhere sometime? It's okay if you can't, I know you're super busy and all but I found this super nice place that just opened nearby and I thought that it'd be nice to try it out."

He swallows. "Y-yeah, that would be nice-"

"Great!" Albedo blinks at your rather loud interruption and you clear your throat awkwardly. "Um, I mean, um, yeah! So, I think you have my number, so just text me when you're free and and we'll figure it out."

You'd never tell it to anyone but you find his small, shy grin so endearing. He stutters a little when he replies but you think it's cute - he'd never know that unless you told him straight to his face though.

"Sounds- sounds good, yeah."

"So, we're set?"

He nods and grabs his bag, offering to walk with him. You accept with a smile, to which his face reddens, and as you walk out together the professor sighs.

"Young love," he chuckles. "Guess they'll be sitting together from now on."

[erabu-san]

Tighnari.

Tighnari is all we need.

This fennec boy has stolen our hearts

Real !!!

[w4yf1nder]

he's stunned for a few seconds when you let out a snicker, he watches you dissolve into fits of laughter, your hands coming up to cover your mouth. oh no, don't do that. before he realizes it, his hands have grasped yours, gently tugging them away from your lips.

it's like he has seen you for the first time again, your lips parted mid-laugh as you try to pull your hands out of his to cover your face again. but he just holds onto them tighter, a stern look crossing his face for just a second but softening when he looks into your eyes again.

"don't." it's a simple order, won't you let him see his favorite view?

kazuha, albedo.

[fancyrowlet]

Me and Albedo share bdays hehe 🎂

[witch-hazels-musings]

Suggestions for drunken confessions (if they inspire you): blushy thoma, shy kazuha, smug itto, soft albedo, cheeky ayato 😏

Hahah yesyesyessssss

Thoma doesn't know where to put his hands so he just lets them live in front of you, palms open, fingers spread but eyes trained on you. He made you drink a lot of water but it didn't help much, "Th-ma ... You cute, like ... No wait ... Handsome. Like really hamsome." He's laughing but his cheeks burn, "I like hamsom ... Thma .." he pushes you along faster so you don't pass out ... And neither does he

Kazuha, oh man, you know he's already had a few with you. Instead of the confident stride, he's walking a little more loose and finds himself staring a little too much at the person wobbling ahead of him. You stop, look to the sky and breathe it in but he bumps into you and doesn't know what to do while you fix his hair and let sweet confessions tumble from your mouth

Itto's hand barely leaves your shoulder, your arm, the top of your head as he directs you back toward your house. He's impressed by the amount you put away (small or large, it sends him reeling). When you see something on the notice board and explain to him how much you like this person, he bursts into pride-filled laughter and decides to leave this particular wanted poster up for now

Albedo is used to drunkenness. He's seen Kaeya stumble into the knights headquarters often enough, but to see you out of sorts like this has gotten him a little worried. His mind is already calculating what to brew for you, what solution will being you back to your senses, but when you lean across the countertop and brush his hair from his face, your cheek smooshed against your arm, he feels himself at a loss and his heart a flutter when you hum, "you're so pretty" in soft laughter

You've learned your lesson. Out drinking Ayato is not an option. It's hard to see and concentrate but Ayato doesn't seem to mind your wandering thoughts, drifting eyes over his loose clothes, or seem to care that you've been inching toward him throughout the night. He especially didn't mind the secret you whispered in his ear as he helped you back to your room, "I have feelings for you," Ayato glances at your lips and asks if you'll be brave enough to tell him again in the morning

(continuation of this brainrot lol)

[san-aria]

"And perhaps I, too, can become an Aeon."

[primojade]

mkay brainrot here

albedo’s sensitive spot is his star mark. like, he completely melts like magma when you just brush it with your fingertips; he’s all hot and suddenly very nervous. and when you kiss it? oh boy oh boy, this man right here completely melts like he’s a popsicle under the sun

HSKSHSJWHE NOURRRR I WAS THINKING THIS ALL DAY AND WHEN I FIRST READ IT I HAVE TO STOP MYSELF FROM WRITING A WHOLE ASS FIC BC IM STILL FINISHING OTHER FICS SJSKAH

cw: kissing, teasing him lmao.

Anyhow, touching the sensitive spot in his neck was probably the best idea if u want to get his attention. Especially if he's too busy to give u the daily attention u need from him or if u want to make him take a break from his experiments （⌒▽⌒）

And if ur feeling a little teasing s/o to him, make sure that he was too occupied to know that you're approaching him like a snake hiding to attack their prey ┏(｀ー´)┛And when ur near enough, lightly brush your fingers to his neck in a teasing manner before your nails travellered thru the star shaped mark on the base of his throat. The slight sting from your nails and the goosebumps that rose from his skin was so satisfying to see! Especially if u nanage to get a little blush on him (づ￣ ³￣)づ

You kissing it might be the end of him /j if ur doing it for the sake of teasing or in public, he might scold you a bit with a little flustered expression (he liked it sm dw but he doesnt like others seeing him like that. His expressions are all urs to see mwehehehe) BUTTTT if you do it when he was really stressed and tired, or during the days where he was particularly overthinking things on bed, it was a great way to destress him. Tell him u love him, using comforting words while raking ur hands thru the soft tresses of his hair, kissing the sensitive spot in his neck, while holding him close??? Yep. That's a perfect definition of bliss (´∀`)

and maybe, in ur arms and touches he could finally found the truth he was looking for :))

[vespertineart]

just realized I probably never posted an Albedo fanart bere before here's one i whipped up today while studying

this is mainly based off of an AU i created which I hope I can write headcanons for one day, but for now, have this very discreet lore of it lol-

[hiraa-straw]

- my favourite characters <33 [ 'Wishes From Teyvat' ]

[nethercomfies]

Ahaha wtf

I posted a tiny Astarion word vomit drabble and like an hour later my notifications are blown up, meanwhile the Gale fic I put actual work in got 3 notes, one of which was my own reblog.

Vampire man is on another level 😭

[karmilli0n]

So rather than sleeping like I should I stay up and make all of these 🥲 my brother called me a simp for this.

[speedywombatpsychicpasta]

‘To Melt A Frozen Heart’ Chapter II (part 1)

‘To Melt A Frozen Heart’ (Impostor!Albedo x Reader)

✨️Summary- It all worked out well. Or did it? One thing leads to another and you find yourself in yet another dangerous situation with none other than Rubedo. 

✨️Word count- 5661

✨️A/N- Please excuse the mistakes in this one. I just finished taking the graduation exams yesterday and am now anxiously waiting for the results (: As a result, this is a bit rushed. 

╔═══*.·:·.☽✧    ✦    ✧☾.·:·.*═══╗

Things seemed to have calmed down since Rubedo’s change of heart. For you, life went back to normal- running on a tight schedule between taking commissions from the Adventurer’s Guild and exploring. Which also meant you had little time to spare to check up on either him or Albedo in the coming weeks. 

The Chief Alchemist made the necessary arrangements for his twin to become his assistant, with both of them spending most of their time cooped up in Dragonspine, working on Archons-know-what. 

At first, you hoped you could run into one of them in town, but after a talk with a rather apprehensive Timaeus, you’d been dismayed to learn that neither of them made much of an appearance in Mondstadt since Rubedo had been introduced. Curious, given that you assumed the elder creation would want to get as much time as possible away from the icy prison that Dragonspine was. 

Worry had been eating away at you, and you finally decided to pay the two alchemists a visit to ensure they hadn’t strangled each other by now. Despite their relationship’s significant improvement, you still preferred to keep a close eye on them. Their personalities were diametrically opposites, with Rubedo being the more impulsive of the two, prone to taking rash decisions, and Albedo with his calm and seemingly cold demeanor. You were almost convinced he still didn’t trust his brother fully, but he was doing his best to make it all work. 

The image of the two experiments hugging back in that cave lingered in the back of your mind. Yes, Albedo had his doubts about Rubedo, but he felt responsible for him- guilty for being the source of his brother’s torment all those years, and thrilled at the prospect of having someone who could keep up with him in terms of alchemy. 

Your feet were trailing through the thick layer of snow, a thick coat separating you from the harsh bite of the wind. You were lost in thoughts, wondering what new project Albedo was working on this time. Normally, you’d see him in Mondstadt more often, either looking for supplies for one of his experiments or at the Headquarters of the Knights, giving Jean a lengthy report on the results of his latest one. It’s got to be something important to keep him confined to his lab on the mountain for this long. 

You shook your head, having almost walked right off the edge of the cliff. Overthinking didn’t mix well with the dangers of the mountain. An icy breath escaped your lips, which were already turning blue from the cold. That was too close… You chastised yourself for your carelessness, settling on asking the alchemist himself when you got to his lab. For that, you’d have to make it in one piece. The rest of the journey went by quickly, your limbs minimally frozen by the time you reached the alchemist's lab.  

There appeared to be sound coming out of it. And you could already guess who it belonged to, judging by the unmistakable edge of anger to it. What was going on? you wondered, breaking into a run. The moment you stepped foot through the entrance of the cave, you were greeted with shouting- a flying pencil missing your face by an inch. 

“What on Teyvat is going on?” Your voice drew the attention of the blonds, each of them freezing in place. Anger was bubbling up inside you, hot enough to warm up your numb fingertips. 

“We were…uh… just having a little disagreement,” the elder one broke the silence, a conspicuous vial still clutched in his hand.  

You quirked your brow at the obvious lie, receiving a sheepish smile in return. Your gaze shifted to Albedo who hadn’t moved an inch since you arrived. His expression betrayed his exhaustion- teal eyes surrounded by dark circles underneath. You noticed the absence of the bruise on his cheek before he caught you looking at him, a porcelain-white hand coming up to rub at the spot. Other than the obvious need for sleep, he looked unharmed. 

“I’m pretty sure it was more than a little disagreement. And please put that thing in your hand down, will you?” you nodded towards Rubedo, who scrambled to set the vial down on the nearby table. You watched his shaky hands almost drop it before his grip tightened around it, enough to turn his knuckles white. He carefully set it on top of a  precariously-balanced stack of papers, both your gaze and the alchemist’s watching his every move the entire time. Albedo’s eyes briefly flickered to you, only to be met with an inquisitive look. What the hell set him off this badly? He responded with a shrug, subtle enough to go unnoticed by the other male. Oh, really? You have no idea, do you, Albedo?

“I didn’t come all the way here to watch the two of you arguing. What even is this all about?” 

“According to my dear brother, I’m still too dangerous to be around others,” Rubedo snapped. If looks could kill, there was no doubt in Teyvat Albedo would be dead. His fingers were rubbing his temples, making you wonder if it was out of frustration or if the exhaustion was taking a toll on him. Both males looked disheveled, with their hair messy and clothes wrinkled. Albedo’s signature braid was half undone, stray locks sticking out in all directions. Your attention shifted to Rubedo, who on the other hand, seemed to have taken to keeping his hair down. It looked just as tangled as his brother’s. 

“That’s not what I-”

“That’s exactly what you mean!” Their bickering resumed- utterly ignorant of your presence.

‘Celestia help me with these two!’ you muttered under your breath. Your patience was running thinner with every insult shouted, some of them so vile that you wondered where Rubedo even learned them from. Your heart sank with the knowledge that his maker was, most likely, the only other person he’s interacted this much with. 

You could understand where he was coming from. Having already been confined to the mountain enough, it was only natural that Rubedo would want to see more of Mondstadt and live the life he had been deprived of for too long. You hated to admit it, but Albedo also had a point. Rubedo was unpredictable, with a short temper and a Cryo vision- the perfect recipe for disaster. You trusted him enough to not intentionally hurt others, now that there was no need, and could bet that Albedo did the same. Yet an accident was still a possibility.

The sound of glass breaking resounded through the cave. All heads turned to the vial, now shattered in countless tiny fragments, the bright pink liquid inside it- splayed on the rock beneath. You cleared your throat, gaining the attention of both males.

“Enough with the fighting! You two need a break from each other.” None of them looked you in the eye, all of a sudden having developed a deep interest in the pattern on their matching gloves. Amber wasn’t wrong when she said you were more terrifying than Stormterror when mad. Between you and the dragon, both twins would take their chance with the latter.

“Albedo, you haven’t visited the city in weeks. I’m sure Klee misses you and Jean would be delighted to hear about… whatever you’ve been working on,” you continued. In truth, you were almost certain that if they had to be around each other one more minute, things would escalate out of control. The blond seemed unsure of your proposal, but he couldn’t deny the need for a break. 

“Rubedo can come with me to finish my commissions and explore, right?” you gave said male a small smile. Rubedo nodded furiously, already beaming with excitement- both at finally going down the mountain and getting a break from his brother. 

You hoped Albedo could understand what you really meant by that. Go and take a break, I’ll look after him today. You could see the hesitation and weariness battling inside of him. From the looks of it, the latter won.

“Fine,” he reluctantly agreed, leaving you hoping he would use the opportunity to get some sleep too. What was he thinking in the first place anyway? If he needed someone to watch over his brother, he could have asked you instead of overworking himself for Gods knew how long. 

The two of you watched him depart, having offered to stay behind and clean the spilled liquid. Well… ‘offered’ was a big word; it implied that you had asked to do it, which you hadn’t. It was Rubedo’s fault for the mess in the first place, and you said you would be responsible for him today, so you had to help as well.  

“Well, the mess is not going to clean itself.” You tried to ignore the blond’s inquisitive stare as your hand reached for the broken shards of glass. Before you could even touch them, cold fingers wrapped around your wrist, and all you could focus on was the blue color of his eyes. 

“I wouldn’t touch that barehanded if I were you, Traveler.”

You could barely understand what he was saying, too focused on your rapid heartbeat and the heat rushing to your cheeks.

“Huh? Why?”

Archons damn you, why did you have to react this way? Being around Albedo never got you this flustered before, so what was it about the man before you that made your heart race like that?

“It’s extremely corrosive,” he said, not letting go of your hand. His other hand reached for the substance and before you could stop him, the liquid was already frozen. Right, he’s got a Cryo vision, you remembered. Your shocked expression was met with a laugh as he picked up the frozen potion, and deposited it in a glass container.

“I’ll make sure to dispose of this later,” he muttered to himself while fixing his gloves back on. “What shall we do now?”

“Oh, umm,” you struggled to recall your schedule for today, “I guess we can start with exploring a new domain I heard about. I promised Katherine I would take a look to make sure it’s safe for other adventurers.” 

From what you were told, it appeared out of nowhere around Windrise. The Guild was too busy to send a research party and make sure it was safe so the task fell on the one person who had the necessary strength and experience to fulfill it. In other words- you. Not that you minded. The chance to be the first one to step foot into that domain in God knows how long was too enticing to pass up. But now that you had someone else to look for, you were not so sure it was a good idea anymore.

“You know you don’t need to worry about me, right?” Rubedo snapped you out of your thoughts. “I am perfectly capable to take care of myself.”

“I know. Still, we don’t know what we might stumble across in there.”

“I survived the mountain. I think I’ll be fine, Traveller,” he gave you a sly grin, and you had to agree he made a good point. Pushing your doubts aside, you smiled in return.

“Ok, then. Let’s go.”

“Where are we going?” Paimon appeared behind you, making you jump. She had the habit of disappearing when she was bored, then randomly popping out of thin air at the worst moments, always scaring you half to death.

“Paimon, next time give me a warning, please!” You were still straining to catch your breath when you were startled by another sound. Turning around, you were speechless at the sight of the man beside you howling with laughter. It took you a moment to get over the initial shock, never having managed to get Albedo to laugh like that before. You had assumed Rubedo would be just as hard to entertain, yet the high-pitched sound coming from him proved you otherwise. 

“It’s not funny! I could have gotten a heart attack!” you pouted, arms crossed near your chest. 

“I don’t know much about humans, Traveler. But I’m pretty sure that isn’t the case,” he said smugly, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

“Let’s get going if we want to get it done with today.” 

The two of you took one last look at the lab, making sure you left everything in order before finally going down the mountain.

“No one answered Paimon’s question! Where are we going?”

“So, this is it, huh?” Rubedo asked, eyeing the entrance of the domain. It looked no different than all the other ones you had explored up until now- the same stone door with strange symbols carved onto it. If you didn’t know any better, you would have dismissed it as nothing interesting, but having explored this area prior, you were sure there was no domain here the last time you saw it.

“I guess so. It’s not marked so it’s a new one. I have explored all known domains around Mondstadt, but I have no idea what to expect from this one.” In truth, you had a bad feeling about it. There was something unsettling about it that you couldn’t quite place.

“Ready to go in?” 

You were an adventurer for Archon’s sake! Anything this place could throw against you, you had no doubt you could face it like you have done so many times already. Curiosity was urging you forward and the part of your brain warning you of danger was no match against the one that delighted in it.

“Never been more ready.” You placed your hand on the stone carving, watching the massive stone doors open before you. The interior was not visible, as it was with every other one, obscured by the magic containing it. You had always wondered how domains were so spacious inside, yet you supposed it was not that strange since you had witnessed the adepti fit entire houses in teapots. 

You took a deep breath before stepping over the threshold. You found yourself standing in a stone corridor, surrounded by stone walls covered in patches of violet vines. This was new… You took a few tentative steps towards the nearest one, fingers close to brushing against its leaves. A yelp made you turn around, just in time to see the silhouette of Rubedo trip on a stone and tumble to the ground.

“Oh my God, are you alright?!” You rushed near him, crouching down to make sure he was not hurt.

“Yes, I just lost my balance and tripped,” he groaned in frustration.

“Well,” you sat up and held out a hand, “can’t say it never happened to me too.” His eyes darted from your outstretched hand to your amused smile, before he took it, pulling himself to his feet and dusting his coat. He did his best to ignore the weird feeling in his chest.

“Don’t leave Paimon behind!” The fairy burst through the doors, almost crashing into you just in time before they closed.

“Why did it close?! Paimon didn’t touch anything. It’s not supposed to close.”

Your eyes were fixed on the sealed entrance, your mind rushing through all the safety procedures from the last time it happened. Domains were not supposed to close unless the mechanism was triggered, not that it hadn’t happened to you before. What worried you was the fact that there was none in sight; no element-triggered contraption, no lever. Realization dawned on you that, unless you could find out how to open the door, you would be stuck here for Archons know how long. ‘Great…’ you thought bitterly. 

Your hand brushed across the stone, searching in vain for any hidden opening mechanism. Minutes of studying the stone for the smallest clue proved fruitless and when your elemental sight failed to reveal anything new, you knew you were in big trouble. There was only one way out and no idea what to expect from it. ‘You have gotten out of more dire situations’, you reasoned with yourself. Paimon’s incoherent rambling was filling the silence. She was in the middle of giving a panicked explanation about how it wasn’t her fault, even though she was the last one to enter when you cut her off. 

“There has to be a way out. The best we can do is to explore ahead and search for anything that can activate it. What do you think?” You looked at Rubedo who was seemingly deep in thought. You hoped that at least he had a better plan.

“That seems like our only option.” His hand was nervously rubbing his neck in the same place Albedo’s birthmark was.

You sighed in frustration. Why did this have to happen today? Not that getting stuck in an unexplored domain would be better any other day, but you hated to be the reason Rubedo was stuck in another dangerous place on his free day. You should have stuck with something more simple, you chided yourself. But now you had no time to be angry at the moment. No, there would be time for that after you all got out of this mess safely. For now, as the most experienced adventurer of you all, it was your duty to keep the other two safe.

   “Paimon doesn’t like this! Paimon remembered she has to do something… Right now!” It seemed that you spoke too soon. The floating pixie disappeared into thin air as she usually did during boring commissions that she didn’t want to accompany you on. You had always wondered where she goes after she vanishes.

 “She’ll be back,” you informed a rather bewildered Rubedo. “But since we can’t exactly do that too, we should get going.”

With one last look at the sealed entrance, the two of you made your way forward through the vine-covered corridor, your path illuminated by the dim torches fixed on the walls. You silently thanked the heavens for the weird magic of this place, having yet to master Pyro.

You’ve been silently walking for quite some time, searching for anything out of the ordinary when you spotted light in the distance that grew the closer you got to it. The path opened into a large room in the middle of which stood an Anemo pillar. You doubted the solution to your problem would be that simple, yet activating it was the only way you could proceed further. 

The only obstacle preventing you from reaching it was currently lying a short distance ahead of you. You grabbed the man beside you by the hand, yanking him behind a nearby wooden crate before he could even get a good look at the room.

“Wh-” 

You silenced him by pressing your hand over his mouth, ignorant to the little gasp he let out and the way he is hands gripped the sleeve of your shirt, before signaling to the slumbering Ruin Hunter. His eyes widened and you could feel him tense under your touch. You slowly lowered your hand, bringing your index to your lips- a signal for the blonde beside you to be quiet.

His gaze lingered on the finger touching your lips, the same one that was over his just a moment ago, for a second too long before averting it to the sleeping monster. ‘Get it together!’ Rubedo told himself. You needed a plan if you wanted to move forward. 

“We could target its week spot before it activates.” Your hot breath- so close to his ear- made Rubedo’s mind turn to mush, all semblance of a plan replaced with the realization of your proximity. He supposed it was the lack of contact or interaction for a few hundred years that caused him to feel like this. Yeah, this must be it…

After being discarded by his mother, eaten alive by an evil dragon, and left to die in the cold of a cursed mountain, one would naturally feel a bit touch-starved, right? But then again, it might just be that you were the first to touch him like that- softly, without any bit of malice- unlike the harsh sting of Gold’s hand across his face whenever he mixed the wrong ingredients for a solution, or when he tried to rebel against her by refusing to go through with their alchemy lessons. He shuddered at the memory of it. 

Her idea of mercy was feeding him to the dragon the moment she deemed him unfixable. All because he had never been much interested in unearthing the truth of the universe, like his master and his younger brother were. His death was supposed to be quick and painless, not a bit of himself left after Durin would have been done with him. So much better than the gruesome ways she had disposed of previous prototypes. At least that’s what she said as she was dragging him to his death, insensible to his kicking and screaming, and when all failed, to his begging for a second chance. 

“Rubedo, this is not the moment to zone out!” you whispered furiously, grounding the male back to reality. In the end, he got his second chance- a name and a life of his own. Now he was no longer Subject Two, but Rubedo, and he needed to do his best to make it work. He needed to do his best to keep both of you safe.         

“Right, sorry! We could have done that from a distance if one of us had a bow, otherwise, we would have to get too close.” He scratched his neck, considering every possible alternative or outcome. Getting too close to the Ruin Hunter was too dangerous, the possibility of activating the killing machine being too high. Rubedo frowned. There was no other option that allowed the two of you to trigger the mechanism without facing the monster. 

“We have to make a break for it; open the door before it wakes up and hope for the best.”

“That’s too dangerous! If it’s going to attack us anyways, should we not take our chance with trying to disable it first?” 

You had a point. There was a possibility you could eliminate it before it got the chance to hurt you, but if the shot missed its weak spot or if the creature awakened fast enough, both of your lives would be in even more danger. Rubedo would not risk both your lives recklessly.

“No. If it activates too early to one of us trying to disable it, we’re going to be in real danger. It’s best we avoid an unnecessary fight.”

You nodded, mentally preparing yourself for the worst before you had to abandon your hiding spot. 

“At three we go, alright?” Rubedo whispered. 

“One…”

You had a bad feeling about it.

“Two…”

It was too dangerous. What was he even thinking of? Rubedo’s expression was unreadable as his eyes were set on the Ruin Hunter, searching for the smallest sign of movement.

“Do you trust me, Traveller?”

His question took you aback and you turned to face him. You nodded.

“Three!”

Both of you darted out from behind the wooden box. You ran as fast as your feet could carry you, heedless to the mechanical whirring behind you. The machine was springing to life, the sound freezing your blood in your veins. It was deafening, growing closer and closer with each moment. Still, your eyes were fixed on the Anemo pillar, knowing that if you did as much as look back, both you and Rubedo would be in trouble. 

Time seemed to slow down… one step… two steps… a hand outstretched and a blast of wind… the sound growing too close… eyes the color of the ice on Dragonspine filling your vision, and before you could reach for a weapon to defend yourself, you were pushed away. 

 The hit came nonetheless, but it was not you who bled.

 You wasted no time, jumping to your feet and grabbing the male. The door was barely open, the mechanism- most likely weathered by time- was not completely functional anymore. No matter, the gap was enough to squeeze through, dragging Rubedo along just in time to avoid another slash. 

You yelped at the absence of solid ground beneath your feet. Both of you tumbled to the ground, hitting the stone floor with a thud. The impact knocked the breath out of your lungs, leaving you gasping for air as your eyes fixed on the opening you just fell from, less than a meter above the ground. You mentally thanked the archons that the fall was a superficial one, all while cursing whoever designed this abomination of a domain.

Your hand came up to wipe the sweat off your forehead, only for you to notice the wet sensation of liquid already coating your fingers… 

Your hand was covered in blood.

You felt your stomach drop and panic set in.

“Rubedo!” You rushed to the man laying on the ground, your eyes immediately falling on the red liquid soaking his white coat. No, no, no, no…

You kneeled beside him, watching the slow rise and fall of his chest. You breathed a sigh of relief, that quickly vanished upon seeing the gash on his side, spurting crimson liquid out at an alarming pace.  

Rubedo awoke to the feeling of his back pressed against a cold smooth surface and a throbbing headache. The first thing his eyes landed on was your panicked expression, trying in vain to bandage the wound he got from the Ruin Hunter. It seemed like you had managed to subdue the bleeding, but not enough, judging by the intense look in your eyes. You were so focused on your work that you had not even noticed the male staring at you, analyzing every detail of your face, from the furrow of your brow to the way your lips pressed together into a tight line. 

You were worried, and Rubedo found himself ashamed at how happy it made him feel. He could smack himself. Happy? Because of how scared you looked as you were trying to prevent him from dying? Not that he would, anyway. He had healed from far more serious injuries- Gold’s punishments were no easy thing to endure. He would do anything to not disappoint you, to not make you worry, hating the frown adorning your face and the fact that he was the reason behind it. After all, your smile was far more beautiful. But the selfish part of Rubedo relished in the knowledge that you cared- enough to be worried for him, to try to keep him alive.

“I’ll be alright. I heal way faster than humans anyway.” You startled, the blood-soaked cloth falling from your hands. He was awake. There were so many things you wanted to do- hug him, thank him for saving your life back there, scold him for risking his own. But when you opened your mouth to speak, you found yourself at a loss of words. 

“I thought… I…” you stammered, the words stuck in your throat. Both of you knew what you meant. The weight of it filled the silence  I thought I lost you. 

“It’s ok. I promise I’m fine.” Selfishness be damned, he couldn’t stand the pained look on your face a moment longer. That didn’t seem to deter your attempt at treating his injury. The cloth was pressed to his side once again, while in your other hand lay some clean bandages that he supposed came from your inventory.  

“Even so, I’d rather not risk it getting infected. Sit still now, will you?” Rubedo wanted to argue further, but, knowing you, it would most likely be useless. When you set your mind on something, there was little anyone could do to stop you. He knew more about you than he let on. 

At first, it started as a simple curiosity- to see for himself what was so special about the mighty Traveler everyone was talking about and assess how much of a threat you could pose to his plan. That first time he had met you outside the cave on Dragonspine he thought you cruel- willing to dispose of everything you found no use for, like humans always did. 

After he took his brother’s place and went through his notes, he found himself amazed at how much the younger experiment wrote about you. How brave and kind, and sometimes stupid you could be. The story of how you crossed the frozen river swimming got a few chuckles out of him, even though Rubedo would never admit to it. Albedo obviously thought highly of you- although he suspected it was more because he saw you as an anomaly, much like him. Even so, the thought didn’t sit right with Rubedo. He wanted to talk to you, to see what it was about you that caught the other’s attention, and to possibly steal something else from his younger brother. 

But that day he met you in the city, he couldn't help but challenge you. And you hadn’t hesitated to respond to it. Then his plan failed. He had underestimated you and was about to pay the price, but you spared him. You even offered him a second chance- a life that could be his and only his. It was when your hand took his, and you pulled him to his feet that Rubedo knew he would never be able to let go of you. 

And now here you were, having managed to stop his bleeding and struggling with wrapping the bandages around his midriff. His lips quirked into a small smile. 

“Here you go.” Rubedo removed the blood-stained shirt, giving you easier access to the cut beneath. 

You let out a quiet gasp at the sight of the numerous scars covering his chest and back. Some of them were so big that you doubted even Barbara’s vision would have been able to heal them in time before bleeding out. You went on with your task, gently wrapping the bandages around him and mentally scolding yourself for staring. 

It took everything in him for Rubedo not to lean into your touch every time your fingers brushed against his skin.   

“Why are you doing this, Traveler? I’ve survived far worse wounds without the need for bandages.” The words left his mouth before he could stop himself. Your hands stopped. Silence fell again between the two of you, making the blonde wish he had never spoken. Did he say something wrong? He should have never brought that up. Were you angry with him now? Panic was digging its claws into Rubedo’s mind and each moment of silence stung him more than the neatly bandaged cut on his side. You cleared your throat before you spoke.    

“She hasn’t been kind to you, has she?” Your fingers came up to brush against a particularly big scar on his back. Rubedo’s breath hitched, barely able to keep himself from flinching. You had no idea what effect you had on him, did you? But then again, Rubedo himself couldn’t fully understand it either. You were the first to accept him and to care about him. The thought of you made his heart race and clouded his mind. And now here you were, touching him like that- like he wasn’t just one of Gold’s discarded prototypes. It made him ache.   

“Rhinedottir was the best alchemist of her time,” he let out a shaky breath. The warmth of your hand retreated from his skin in favor of listening closely to what he was about to say. Rubedo wished it had stayed. “She was an audacious and cynical individual, not hesitant to dispose of anything that didn’t serve her.” His eyes were obscured by blonde strands of hair, yet the hurt still crept into his voice. “To answer your question, kindness was not something that she practiced.” 

The weight on his shoulder made him let out a quiet gasp. He could feel the warmth radiating off of you, every hot breath against his skin sending shivers down his spine. Have you been to Inazuma already? Because every little touch of yours felt like electricity, making the poor Cryo wielder melt more with every passing second. When he finally worked up the courage to turn his head, Rubedo was met with a pair of eyes looking into his blue ones. You were so close. He swallowed hard. If he leaned in only a little bit, your lips would touch.  

It happened before he could even process it. The next thing he knew, you were closing the distance between the two of you, a hand already cupping his cheek. This was happening! His mind went blank, the single coherent thought he could form was that this would be his first kiss. He closed his eyes, anxiously waiting for it to happen, when-

“Am I interrupting something?” Both of you jumped before moving away.  

“No! We just, um…” Rubedo awkwardly scratched his neck, barely now realizing how the situation looked. 

“Rubedo got injured earlier! I was just bandaging him,” you explained, your lips curled into a sheepish smile. Well, it was true; at least partly, before you started doing other things than just tending to his wound. 

“Oh, okay!” the fairy chirped, feigning ignorance. If the half-convincing excuse you just gave her could have fooled her, your flushed faces told Paimon everything she needed to know. 

You hastily finished tying the bandages before handing him your coat. Both of you avoided meeting the other’s eyes, too embarrassed after what just happened; although you couldn’t prevent yourself from sneaking a few glances. He looked cute.

“Ready to move forward?” Rubedo asked.

“But you-” 

“I’m fine,” he cut you off, forcing himself to look at you. “I think the cut even healed already.” A small smile was adorning your lips and, although you were still worried, you gave in.

“Then let’s go.”   

╚═══*.·:·.☽✧    ✦    ✧☾.·:·.*═══╝

[mayuichi]

So I know I haven't posted in a while... But I've gotten really bad anxiety so I'm more focused into getting better than writing. But I swear I'll come back!

Though I wanna share that order I've got today!

I love plushies too much, I know I'll buy some more to go along the Albedo one that I hug for now.. 4 hours. It's silly but it just comfort me so much, so yeah.. and I'm such a simp for Lyney, I needed his cards. I've been so happy I wanted to share with anyone caring about it!

Otherwise I hope you're all doing okay! Have a nice day! 💝

[kay-selfships]

i found this and i kept forgetting to fill this out for myself so here lololol