Forbidden Fruit

by crimsongraveyard

Summary:

After waking up in an unknown room, Kazuha travels around Natlan while waiting for Beidou and the Crux Fleet to return. In the meantime, he learns about the history of Natlan, makes friends with the people, and falls in love with the one who saved him - No matter how doomed that love may be.
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' The children’s eyes lit up as they each went on to talk about how Kinich had helped them, their parents, and the saurians around the entire nation. Kazuha was quite shocked, listening to each of the stories. “There was one time where these mean guys lied about a saurian being aggressive and hired Kinich to kill her but he found out it was actually a mother saurian protecting her child!”

“It’s a good thing he found that out, then,” Kazuha smiled. Kinich sounded like a truly amazing person, Kazuha was looking forward to meeting him. '

Chapter 1: In the Beginning, one Learned

Summary:

' Kazuha snapped out of his thoughts at Kinich addressing him. Though, he barely had enough time to respond before he was taken aback. With how the scenery was in Natlan, he would have assumed no other sight could steal his breath more than the nature he admired. Though, he had clearly been wrong. Before him was a man more gorgeous than the sun’s rise, more artistic than the world’s greatest poetry. The stories he had heard seemed to not even live up to the sight before him. '

Notes:

no specific trigger warnings for this i don't think? just Kazuha healing from an injury

Huh? Where am I? Kazuha opened his eyes, his head throbbing with pain. “Ah, young man, I would not push yourself to get up so quickly.” Kazuha turned his head a bit to look at the person who just spoke, not recognising them. “Kinich found you passed out near the tribe and brought you back here, you should rest for a few days. You are not from Natlan, correct?” Kazuha nodded, slowly sitting up.

   “I’m uh.. recently with the Crux Fleet, usually stationed in Liyue but I’m from Inazuma,” The stranger nodded, making some medicine for Kazuha and passing it to him with some water.

   “Kinich is delivering something to the Flower-Feather Clan, it may take a few days but you can ask him more about what could’ve happened when he comes back. Rest for today,” Kazuha took the medicine and nodded. 

 

The relief Kazuha felt when the pain subsided due to the medicine was beyond anything he could describe. The, now dull, pain didn’t stop him from slowly sitting up and looking around. Wooden architecture with green and yellow accents caught his attention. He noticed most of his outfit - save for his kimono - neatly folded onto a chair with his armour plating resting on top of it. A wave of exhaustion rushed over him as he laid back down, his arm rising to rest on his forehead. Just how did I get myself in this situation? Kazuha sighed, allowing his eyes to close as he drifted off to sleep. 

 

The next time Kazuha woke up, the sun was just beginning to rise. The pain in his head having returned to its original level as he slowly sat up. It was the same routine for the next day as well. He would wake up, take medication, go to sleep, rinse and repeat. On the fourth day, the pain had dulled enough for him to walk around. He was already quite warm in just his kimono, but he had decided to put everything but his haori on before exiting the small home. The sun was quite high already, causing Kazuha to take a second or two to adjust to its brightness. He had already seen the scenery outside, but it had been equally as breathtaking as the first time he’d seen it. “Glad to see you’re feeling better,” Kazuha turned to see the same man that had been helping him the past few days, “I would like to apologise for this, but I never asked you for your name.”

   Kazuha took no time to respond, “I’m Kaedehara Kazuha, a wanderer who roams the land. I’d prefer to be called Kazuha”

   The man smiled at him, “I’m Wayna, the chief of the Scions of the Canopy. I hope this is able to be comfortable for you as you recover,” Wayna patted Kazuha’s shoulder.

   “Ah, thank you,” Before the conversation could continue, Wayna was called over by someone else. 

 

Kazuha walked around the tribe, looking at the scenery down below and answering any questions the children of the tribe asked him. “Who are you?” One of the children had asked him.

   “My name is Kazuha, I’m from Inazuma but I travel around quite a bit,” Kazuha answered as the children listened.

   “Do you have a home in Inazuma?”

   “I don’t, no. It was taken away from my family. Though, I now often rest on the Alcor in Liyue,” Kazuha thought for a second, “It’s the main ship of a fleet called the Crux, its captain is an incredibly strong woman called Beidou,” He decided to explain more.

   “Is she stronger than Miss Mavuika?” Kazuha recognised that name as being the Archon of Natlan.

   “I’m unsure, I’d have to think about it quite a lot,” Kazuha found the question quite humorous. Though, he decided to change the topic towards the man who had apparently saved him. “Have you heard about someone called Kinich?”

   The children’s eyes lit up as they each went on to talk about how Kinich had helped them, their parents, and the saurians around the entire nation. Kazuha was quite shocked, listening to each of the stories. “There was one time where these mean guys lied about a saurian being aggressive and hired Kinich to kill her but he found out it was actually a mother saurian protecting her child!”

   “It’s a good thing he found that out, then,” Kazuha smiled. Kinich sounded like a truly amazing person, Kazuha was looking forward to meeting him.

 

As the sun set, he made his way back to the home he had been staying in. “Seems that yumkasaurus took a liking to you,” Wayna mentioned as Kazuha neared the home. Looking back, he saw what he remembered to be a saurian following him. The young yumkasaurus tilted its head at him, “She doesn’t usually walk around much, that’s interesting.” Wayna reached his hand out and petted the saurian, “You should go inside and rest, I’ll get this one back to her family.” Kazuha thanked Wayna and walked into the house, preparing to sleep. 

 

“Mr Kazuha!” Kazuha turned around, seeing a group of children running up to him. He recognised some of them from the previous day.

   “Just Kazuha is alright, what did you need?” Two young saurians joined the group, sensing the excitement.

   “Can you tell us some stories from Inazuma?” Kazuha smiled lightly, ‘Stories about Inazuma? Are any of them light enough to share..?’

   “Of course, what do you want to know?” Kazuha moved out of the way so as to not block any paths people may need to take.

   “Is it true the Archon took people's visions?” One of the girls of the group called out.

   “Ah, so you’ve heard about that? Well, let's start from the beginning. A year before a Traveler arrived in Inazuma, the Raiden Shogun had decided to fulfil her own wishes of eternity. Do you know what your Archon’s ideal is?”

   “Oooo! I know this one! It’s war! We have this tournament called the Pilgrimage where the winners go fight the Abyss!” Kazuha nodded at the answer, having learned something new.

   “Yes, the Electro Archon’s ideal is eternity. She believed that a stagnant life was how to achieve this eternity.” Kazuha continued his storytelling - making sure to tell it in a way that would portray the events but be toned-down enough to tell the group.

 

Kazuha went through telling stories of the Vision Hunt Decree, helping the Traveler, travels he’s had since leaving Inazuma. The group listened closely, asking questions and paying attention to everything that was said. “Would you ever go back to Inazuma?” One of the children asked.

   “I don’t think so,” Kazuha answered after thinking for a few seconds, “I wouldn’t trade the life I had. Experiences shape your future, and leaving is an experience that gave me the freedom to travel I wished for,” Kazuha looked up, noticing the sun already setting. The group also noticed, saying bye to Kazuha and thanking him for the stories. According to Wayna, he would be able to meet Kinich in a day or two. He felt relief, soon being able to have the full story of what happened. 

 

The next two days often went the same. Kazuha would wake up, get ready, eat breakfast with Wayna, and walk around the Scions of the Canopy answering questions about Inazuma and asking questions about Natlan and Kinich. He was starting to look forward more towards listening about Kinich’s helping around Natlan, feeling even more comfortable with a gentle warm feeling from listening about such stories. It was pleasant to hear that the person he had been saved by and looked forward to meeting was such a kindhearted and helpful person. He liked walking around and seeing the way the saurians interacted with the people of the tribe, often being followed by the same saurian from a few days ago. “Oh? What’s your name?” Kazuha looked over at the person who spoke to him, being greeted by a girl with long, white hair.

   “Oh, hello. I’m Kaedehara Kazuha, just Kazuha is fine,” he introduced himself.

   “That’s such a cool name, I’m Mualani, a guide from the People of the Springs! Are you visiting?” The atmosphere around her was that of curiosity.

   “I was. Turns out something happened and I woke up here, I’m waiting for someone called Kinich to return,” Kazuha answered honestly, seeing no reason to lie.

   “Kinich isn’t here? Well, I guess we’re both waiting for him! There’s a new dance competition coming up and I’m usually the one informing him of them!” Kazuha nodded. Mualani told him stories from her tribe as he listened closely, making sure to pay attention and take mental notes in case he spoke with her more.

 

As the day turned to night, Mualani looked slightly past Kazuha at someone else. “Kinich! You’re back!” Kazuha’s eyes widened slightly as he turned to look in the direction Mualani had now run off to. “There’s a new dance competition in three days! You should sign up!”

   Kinich put his arms out in front of him to signal to Mualani to calm down for a second, “I feel like I should let someone else win this time.”

   “Yeah! Not like anyone wants to see his dancing anyways,” Kinich glared at Ajaw.

   “Well, now I have to. Just to watch you being upset at nothing again,” Kinich put Ajaw back in his hiding place, “At least he’s being less annoying today.”

   “What was that?” Kazuha asked, a curious look on his face as his voice was barely heard.

   “Huh? Oh, you’re awake. Feeling better?” Kazuha snapped out of his thoughts at Kinich addressing him. Though, he barely had enough time to respond before he was taken aback. With how the scenery was in Natlan, he would have assumed no other sight could steal his breath more than the nature he admired. Though, he had clearly been wrong. Before him was a man more gorgeous than the sun’s rise, more artistic than the world’s greatest poetry. The stories he had heard seemed to not even live up to the sight before him.

   “...Yeah,” was all Kazuha could muster. He had seen attractive men before, of course. Yet, rarely had he seen someone more angelic than the autumn sky.

   “That’s good,” Kinich went back to talking to Mualani about the dance competition. Kazuha had taken this time to calm his heart beat, which he had no clue how it had sped up so much. “Okay, Mualani, you can’t just walk back right now. There’s always free beds around. Come on, I’ll help you find somewhere. Kazuha,” Kazuha got instantly brought back into the conversation, looking up at Kinich but just barely making eye contact. He wasn’t sure why, but he couldn’t bring himself to look Kinich in the eye. “It’s quite late, you should go and rest.” Kazuha simply nodded, saying bye to the both of them and heading back to Wayna’s home. Maybe he had just been tired, surely he had just been tired. That was all Kazuha could tell himself to explain his reaction. That was all Kazuha could let himself believe.

Chapter 2: Entranced, yet only you hadn't noticed

Summary:

A journey to the People of the Springs for a dance contest turns into Kazuha's thoughts and feelings shining through in times of relaxation and Kinich's care transforming in times of crisis
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Kazuha’s eyes drifted to Kinich, the sound of multiple instruments coming from a singular geo construct blinded him to anyone but him. Kinich moved seamlessly, a practiced performance crafted by a clear expert. Kazuha felt entranced, the sound softly dulled as it seemed all of his attention was being used for Kinich. He felt some voices speak near him, yet he couldn’t hear what they were saying. Time had seemed to slow, yet it had also seemed to speed up as he watched Kinich finish the performance. No wonder he had won many times.

Notes:

okay! slight cw for misunderstanding near the start but it gets cleared up quite quickly! and cw for fighting with the abyss as this is all set closer to when Kazuha's birthday prior to Natlan was! kazuha does something dangerous and gets slightly hurt but it's nothing life threatening!

“Morning, I hope you didn’t mind waiting for me to come back,” Kinich had already set out breakfast for Kazuha.

   He sat down, “I didn’t mind, no. Thank you for the food,” Kinich nodded, sitting down opposite Kazuha as the two began eating

   “I found you near where the Mountain King rests, passed out with saurians protecting you from hilichurls. Wayna told me that Alandra hasn’t left you alone every time you go outside,” ‘Alandra? Is that the name of the saurian that followed me?’ “I guess you were caught off guard by hilichurls and knocked unconscious. I’m glad you’re feeling better now, though. Feel free to stay as long as you need to before heading back home.”

   Kazuha paused eating for a second, “Oh, I’d have to find a way to contact Beidou,” he stated in realisation. The route was to go to Natlan, Sumeru, and Inazuma before heading back to the usual station in Liyue. He knew Beidou was probably worried but couldn’t adjust the schedule.

   “Oh, do you know where she would be?” Kinich asked. Kazuha thought for a second.

   “She’s probably in Sumeru by now, maybe if I send a letter to Inazuma somehow?” Kazuha thought over it. If she’s in Sumeru, she would be leaving the next day and getting to Inazuma would take a while. How would a letter get there before? It would have to be addressed to the Kamisato family who would have to get to the docks of Ritou before Beidou docked and departed. The wind outside of the home seemed to intensify a bit, Kazuha looked over at the door. An anemo crystalfly squeezed through the door, laying on Kazuha’s hand. “I guess the wind will guide it,” was all he said. Kinich looked confused but ultimately decided not to question it. Perhaps that was just a quirk of Kazuha’s, he hadn’t known Chasca or Ifa to talk to the wind. 

 

After finishing breakfast, Kinich handed Kazuha a piece of paper and pen for him to write. The crystalfly resting on his shoulder, Kazuha began to write. ‘Dear the one who is to hand this letter to Beidou. Should she have departed Inazuma prior to your ability to hand her this letter, please send it to Liyue. Dear Beidou, I am aware my absence may be worrisome. However, please do not worry. It appears I had been ambushed by Hilichurls and rescued by Saurians and one named Kinich from the Scions of The Canopy. I will stay with the Scions of The Canopy until I either hear back from you or see you return.’ Kazuha signed his name off and neatly folded the paper. As he was done, he opened the front door and watched as the anemo crystalfly took the letter and went on its way to the Kamisato family. He closed the door, he would now just have to wait. 

   Turning around, Kazuha noticed Kinich right behind him. They were face-to-face and Kazuha finally made eye contact with Kinich. If he had thought Kinich to be one of the most alluring men he had ever seen, he was now sure that Kinich was crafted by the heavens themselves. His eyes like the sunrise over the Mondstadt hills. Kinich went from his usual calm face to that of confusion as Kazuha kept staring at him, “Uh… you okay?” Kazuha seemed to snap back into reality, averting his gaze to the floor.

   “Ah, apologies…”

   Kinich nodded slowly, “It’s fine, uh… I’m… gonna be heading over to the People of the Springs. You’re free to join, I’ll be there for a few days until after the competition.” Kazuha looked back at Kinich and nodded. 

 

After collecting everything he needed, Kinich and Kazuha began making their way to where Mualani was staying. “You ready?” Kinich called out to her.

   “Yup! Oh! Kazuha’s joining us!” Mualani smiled, “You’ll love it there, I’ll have to get you into the hot springs,” Kazuha agreed, curious about Mualani’s tribe. “Where did you arrive?” Mualani asked as the three began walking.

   “Huh? Oh, I believe it was near the Collective of Plenty?” Kazuha hoped he remembered it correctly.

   “Oh! Did you meet Iansan or Varesa? Iansan’s busy but I’m sure Varesa might visit for the competition. I know Xilonen is gonna be there and Chasca might too-” Mualani got cut off by Kinich.

   “Maybe let him respond before listing off the entire guest list?” Mualani looked like an abyss mage caught in its own bubble. 

   She apologised, “Oh, it’s okay,” Kazuha smiled his usual gentle smile, “I believe Beidou spoke to someone but I didn’t hear their name. I was just given the go-ahead to wander around and be back by 6am the next day. As we can tell, that didn’t go as planned,” he shrugged, trying to make light of the situation.

   Mualani laughed, “You should visit more often! You’re fun to be around,” she continued talking about things to do around Natlan, mentioning the Pilgrimage that Kazuha had previously heard about. Soon, the conversation turned to Kinich and Mualani talking about things from the past that have occurred in Natlan. Kazuha couldn’t tell why, but his chest began to slightly hurt. Could he still be hurt from the attack? No, it couldn’t be that. That pain had been in his head, not in his chest. Perhaps he was just getting used to the heat still.

 

Looking up as they got to the tribe, Kazuha noticed the moon was already almost in the middle of the sky. It had taken quite a long time walking, no wonder it had taken Kinich six days to get back. Mualani guided them to a spare room, wishing them a good night. Walking into the room, Kazuha looked around. The People of the Springs had a blue and white architectural colour palette. He wondered if each tribe had their own representative colours, deciding to join Kinich each time he would leave the Scions of the Canopy. Exhaustion had finally caught up to him as he prepared for sleep. 

 

The next day, Mualani had apparently been waiting for Kazuha outside of the room. “Do you want a tour around the place?” She asked, smile already bright. Kinich had been nowhere to be seen, “He’s signing up for the competition and preparing for it, asked me to keep an eye on you. Something about being worried you’re still not feeling great and spacing out,” Her tone was bright and airy, a carefree yet careful atmosphere surrounding her. ‘He’s worried about me?’ Was all that ran through Kazuha’s head. Mualani began the tour, showing Kazuha around the different shops and stalls. The welcoming and joyful atmosphere would have been overwhelming if he had not been on an entire mystical adventure a few summers prior. He was given food to taste, a few gifts to remember his visit, and information about the tribe’s history and current life. Yet, even as he was given clothes to change into and taken to the artificial hot springs, Kazuha’s mind wandered to where Kinich would be. He had never experienced this before, being unable to stop thinking about someone. Even when he’s been away from his friends, had to say goodbye to the Traveler on many occasions, and has been away from Beidou and the crew every so often. He was always able to focus on the journey ahead and clear his mind. Perhaps his head was slightly damaged from the attack that had occured, it would clear up soon. It would have to clear up soon.

 

Sitting in the hot springs, Kazuha felt himself instantly relax. Mualani had put some light snacks nearby as the two laid back and let the water surround them. The peace and quiet, gentle sounds of nature, the distant sounds of laughter and a language Kazuha would have to learn. Yet, all of that dimmed the second Kazuha had sworn he heard an angel’s call. It was as if nature had to give him a sign every time Kinich had been near. He opened his eyes slightly, seeing Kinich sitting down near Mualani. The previous pet, as Kazuha had assumed Ajaw to be, resting in the air nearby. They had been just five feet apart, yet something about the distance pained Kazuha to see. “Oh, Kinich! How was your practice?” Mualani had asked. Her smile seemed ever-so slightly brighter, had Kazuha been imagining this? This seemed like the smile one would give to someone they are close to, could it be?

   “It was good, Ajaw was as infuriating as ever, though,” Kinich sighed, letting his head fall back and eyes rest for a second as Ajaw responded back in anger. Kazuha’s eyes wandered. He didn’t mean for them to, yet he found himself looking at Kinich more. The way his head had fallen back, the muscles that were otherwise hidden behind his shirt, the way his hair fell when it wasn’t being styled by his bandana. Kazuha averted his gaze after Ajaw looked between the two, his face feeling warmer than usual. “You okay? Your face is red, what’s the temperature in this one?” Kinich’s more relaxed voice questioned Mualani with worry.

   Her gaze stayed on Kazuha for quite a while, “He was fine a moment ago, we’ve only been in here for around seven minutes or so? That’s not usually enough time to cause any bad effects,” the situation was perplexing to them, confusing beyond belief. “Oh, his face is getting more red,” Mualani pointed out, standing up as Kinich got closer to Kazuha. Kazuha felt Kinich’s hands around his arms, helping him up - though, Kazuha knew he didn’t need the help. Something in him didn’t tell them he was fine, he had simply let himself be helped out of the hot spring and back to his room. He felt… wrong for how he couldn’t stop himself from acting this way just to be near Kinich. ‘Wait… No, that couldn’t just be the reason. I must truly have had a reaction to the hot springs… It seems to happen a lot to visitors, that must be it,’ Kazuha justified his actions to himself. 

 

Kinich helped Kazuha dry up with a towel once they were back in the room, Mualani walking out to get him food and water. Kazuha tried not to stare at Kinich again, tried to pry his eyes away from their closeness. Telling himself to snap out of it, Kazuha decided to simply make conversation as Kinich got his hoodie and loosely put it around Kazuha. “You two seem close,” ‘Why that? That’s the first thing I say? My Archons, I should think before speaking more…’ Kazuha scolded himself, hoping his voice didn’t sound too wrong.

   “Huh? Mualani and I? I guess so, we’ve been around each other a lot,” Kinich responded while looking through the drawers for another towel, “Though, I guess getting basically adopted by Mavuika has brought us closer?” ‘Oh… I misread the situation,’ Kazuha almost sighed at himself before realising Kinich wouldn’t have had the context.

   “Ah, that would bring people closer, I’d think.” He wasn’t sure why, he wouldn’t know where to search first. Yet, he felt lighter, comforted, relieved. Perhaps it had just been the mix of the relaxing hot springs and the warmth of the room and hoodie that was around him.

 

A knock on the door woke Kazuha up. He took a second to ensure he was decent before beckoning the person in. Kinich opened the door holding food and water. “Are you feeling better?” He asked as he set the plate and glass down on the bed-side table.

   “I am, thank you,” Kazuha said softly, trying to mask his morning voice as much as he could. He noticed Kinich looked at him for a second or two longer before nodding.

   “You can rest today, the competition isn’t until later,” He simply mentioned before sitting down on the other bed.

 

Kinich and Ajaw had a conversation in Natlanese as Kazuha ate the food Kinich had brought him. He felt slightly curious about what was being said, especially with how Ajaw seemed to be laughing and Kinich seemed increasingly annoyed. Continuing to finish his food, Kazuha found himself paying more and more attention whenever Kinich spoke. Not even the sound of the morning birds, the calm waves of the ocean, nor the gentle sound of the wind could recreate what Kazuha heard every time Kinich spoke. Even the most elegant of poetry held nothing against Kinich’s voice- ‘Wait, what am I…?’ Kazuha blinked, realising he had been absentmindedly staring into the water he had been given. He placed the cup next to the, apparently, now-empty plate after drinking the rest of the water. Kinich looked at him and said something to Ajaw before addressing Kazuha, “You all good? Spaced out there for a second,” ‘He noticed?’ Was all Kazuha could think from that, unsure why he would’ve cared that this small habit was noticed.

   “I’m fine, yes. Apologies, when is the competition again?” He tried to smoothly change the topic, to simply give himself something else to focus on.

   “In around two hours, we could walk over now? It’s not too far away but it’d give you time to meet the others,” Kazuha nodded, finding an excuse to distract himself. Before Kazuha could even reach for the dishes, Kinich had already picked them up, “I’ll return these, you should get ready.”

 

Kazuha walked outside to be met with Ajaw almost flying into his face before Kinich managed to catch him. “ Ajaw . I told you not to do that.” Kinich scolded the flying creature. Kazuha blinked a few times, focusing again when Kinich’s concerned eyes met his, “Are you okay? He didn’t manage to hit you, did he? That was probably terrifying to just randomly see something flying towards you,” Kinich’s eyes scanned over Kazuha’s face, “Oh, your face is a little red. Is it too hot? I thought today felt colder,” Kazuha hadn’t even noticed his face felt warmer.

   “I’m fine, just a bit… shaken-up,” Kazuha gently smiled, attempting to ignore how Kinich’s eyes seemed to dart to his lips for a split second. 

   “That’s good, wouldn’t want you overheating,” Kinich sighed out of relief.

 

The two, Ajaw now back to being hidden, walked to the competition grounds. Mualani was excitedly talking with a group of five people. “Yeah! He had to send a letter to Inazuma to be able to communicate with the Captain!” ‘She was talking about me?’ Kazuha asked himself.

   “Already gossiping about a guest?” Kinich seemingly joked, causing one of the people to laugh.

   “She was just catching us up so we didn’t bombard him with the same five questions, Kinich,” That same person responded, “Is this Kazuha?” She asked, turning her gaze to him, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Mavuika” ‘The Pyro Archon? I was aware not everyone would be like the Raiden Shogun but…’ Kazuha shook Mavuika’s out-reached hand, smiling.

   “Please, the pleasure’s mine. The last few times I’ve met Archons could’ve gone as peacefully as this,” Kazuha took the chance to make a light-hearted comment, unsure why he felt the need to be on Mavuika’s good list. She’s the Archon of War, of course he wouldn’t want to especially anger her. At least, that's what he told himself.

   “I see you get along with them well,” Mavuika joked back. “The rest of these lot are Xilonen of the Children of Echoes,” Mavuika pointed to a woman who had ocelot ears and tail, “Chasca of the Flower-Feather Clan,” A woman with a hat that covered a part of her face stood next to Xilonen, “Varesa of the Collective of Plenty.”

   “Oh! I’ve seen you! You were with the pretty pirate lady!” Varesa called out, seeming to recognise Kazuha, “Sorry to hear you got kinda forced to stay behind, she was worried sick,” ‘Ah, so she’s probably going to attempt to return if she gets the letter or not,’ Kazuha politely smiled at Varesa.

   “I’m sure it’ll all sort itself out,” Mavuika took her place as the speaker again, “And the last one is Ororon of the Masters of the Night Wind,” Mavuika pointed at someone who had just been helping at a stall with vegetables and was returning to the group. 

 

The group went back to idle chatter and conversation, trying to include Kazuha as much as they could. Though, Kazuha enjoyed simply being there. Simply hearing them talk about what has happened and using inside jokes. He enjoyed watching people’s dynamics and the way they changed from being near strangers to being near those that they are comfortable with. Yet, they seemed to not change all too much. Some jokes were different, tones were more light-hearted, yet they mostly acted with Kazuha as they acted together. All too soon, the atmosphere shifted from chatter and jokes to support and companionship as it was time for the competition. “You’ll love Kinich’s part, he’s won these almost every time since he’s taken part,” Mavuika mentioned.

   “Yeah, he’ll love it. That’s for sure,” Ajaw’s sarcasm stood out to Kazuha, what could he have meant?

   “If you’re mean to our guest, I have express permission to lock you away,” Mavuika warned, seemingly silencing Ajaw with a simple reminder.

   “It’s alright, reminds me of someone I used to know,” Yet, Kazuha couldn’t remember their name or face. Just who did Ajaw’s sarcasm remind him of?

 

The audience quietened down in anticipation of the performances. Groups and people took the stage to show their choreography to music performed by the live band. Sometimes the audience remained silent, captivated by the acts, and sometimes they cheered the people on as loudly as they could without obstructing the music. Kazuha noticed Xilonen quietly stand up and move towards the side of the stage. His eyes followed her as she walked towards Kinich and spoke to him for a few minutes before the two stood next to each other, watching the current performance. He couldn’t take his eyes away as Kinich turned to Xilonen and said something before walking closer to the small steps leading onto the stage. As the act finished and Kinich took the stage, the live band stopped playing and Kazuha witnessed as Xilonen seemingly summoned something he had never seen before. The geo vision on her back seemed to glow softly as she began to play music. Kazuha’s eyes drifted to Kinich, the sound of multiple instruments coming from a singular geo construct blinded him to anyone but him. Kinich moved seamlessly, a practiced performance crafted by a clear expert. Kazuha felt entranced, the sound softly dulled as it seemed all of his attention was being used for Kinich. He felt some voices speak near him, yet he couldn’t hear what they were saying. Time had seemed to slow, yet it had also seemed to speed up as he watched Kinich finish the performance. No wonder he had won many times.

   “Right? He captivates the audience, seems like you got put directly under his spell,” Kazuha suddenly heard Varesa next to him. Had he said that out loud? “You’re lucky for that, didn’t have to hear Ajaw. Safe to say we won’t see him again today,” she shrugged. Kazuha looked at the bracelet of Kinich’s he hadn’t even noticed Mavuika holding. It was glowing gently, perhaps Ajaw being sealed was the best thing for today. 

 

Kinich and Xilonen returned to the group with Kinich collecting the bracelet from Mavuika with a knowing sigh. A few more people performed before a sudden and urgent voice was heard, “The Abyss is attacking!” Kazuha couldn’t react before groups of people were being ushered into buildings and homes with people protecting the entrances and others going directly to where the Abyss had come from. He had even less time to react before Kinich was grabbing his hand and running towards the room they had been staying in.

   “Stay in there, don’t come out or answer the door,” Kinich warned before running towards the same direction Mualani and Ororon had gone. 

 

Kazuha was confused yet he was more worried about staying alone and inside while he could be helping. He wouldn’t know how he would be able to feel knowing some people might die without him even trying to help. He wouldn’t know how he could think of letting that happen again, he wouldn’t let that happen. Kazuha looked around, feeling conflicted about where to go. His eyes caught what he saw before he could process it, instantly running over and blocking the attack of the… Mitachurl? It didn’t seem normal, it seemed stronger, unyielding. Kazuha yelled out to the woman and child behind him to find shelter. His attention fell onto the Mitachurl in front of him. He had survived the Raiden Shogun’s Musou no Hitotachi, he would be damned if this was where he’d let himself be defeated. “Watch out!” Kazuha heard Mavuika say, now having barely enough time to dodge out of the way of the seemingly Abyss-altered saurian as it barely scraped his shoulder. “Leave the fighting to me, take a breather,” Mavuika simply stated.

   “I can’t sit back as this happens,” Kazuha simply responded, adrenaline rushing through him.

   Mavuika sighed, taking care of the saurian, “Fine, just don’t tire yourself out.” The two worked towards clearing out the Abyssal opening, Mavuika constantly keeping tabs on Kazuha’s condition and shouting orders every so often.

 

Once the opening was forced shut, Mavuika took a second to check on Kazuha, “How are you feeling?”

   “I’m mostly fine, my elemental power seems to be a little weakened…” Kazuha stretched the shoulder that had previously been scraped.

   Mavuika looked concerned, “Where’s your vision?” Kazuha showed her his left shoulder blade, where his vision sat. The casing chipped and slightly breaking, “Shit, you should really go and make sure you’re safe inside. I’ll discuss this with Xilonen later, go.” Kazuha couldn’t argue against Mavuika’s words, her tone with a hint of anxiety and words demanding. Kazuha went back to the room, staying silently inside of it until the attack ended.

 

Kinich opened the door frantically, looking around the room until he saw Kazuha. A sigh of relief escaped him as he walked into the room with Mualani and Ororon behind him. They closed the door, Kinich sitting on his bed as Mualani and Ororon stood near the door. They had clearly been worried. Soon, Chasca and Varesa also walked inside. The room seemed smaller than ever. The silence deafening as even Ajaw waited for Mavuika and Xilonen to return. People barely moved, apart from the subtle shuffling and restlessness as they tried to remain as quiet as possible. It was clear they had all been told to simply wait . The second the door opened for the last time, the relaxation shown from everyone’s body language was clear as day. “Xilonen, c’mon. I need to know if you can fix it,” was all Mavuika said, beckoning Xilonen further into the room. Everyone looked at her confused, especially as the two walked closer to Kazuha and Mavuika forced his shoulder forward for Xilonen to inspect the vision’s casing.

   “Wait, what happened?” Kinich’s voice seemed to hold a tone that Kazuha couldn’t fully place. He had stood up, eyebrows furrowed as he addressed Mavuika, “What is she fixing?”

   “Oh, damn, it’s quite damaged, huh…” Xilonen ignored Kinich as she checked the casing, “I can probably fix it, yeah. Might take a few days,” she shrugged and Mavuika released Kazuha’s shoulder.

   “What is she fixing?” Kinich asked again, tone more demanding.

   “I’ll let him explain later, we all need to rest today.” Mavuika signalled for everyone that wasn’t Kinich and Kazuha to leave the room.

 

Once the room was empty, Kinich sat back down on his bed and took a moment. Sighing, he asked Kazuha the same question for a third time, “What is she going to fix?”

   “I couldn’t sit still and let everything around me happen, so I went out and fought. A saurian almost snuck up behind me but instead just scraped my shoulder and chipped my vision casing…” Kazuha explained.

   Kinich was silent for a few minutes before nodding, “As long as you’re safe.” That was all either of them said for the night as they got prepared for bed and went to sleep.

Notes:

first time writing the other 51, kinda nervous /ref

Chapter 3: When one noticed, the other realised

Summary:

In a strange series of events, Kazuha has a birthday party planned for him by his new friends and acquaintances.
---
The two fall into a comfortable silence. They had now existed in the same space for around eight or nine days. Kazuha felt comfortable, something about being with Kinich made him feel… safe? Had that been the word? Or perhaps he was just happy at meeting someone new, at having a constant in a situation that had confused him. Kazuha didn’t know what it was that Kinich brought out in him. Perhaps he didn’t want to know, perhaps the world wasn’t ready for him to know… Without knowing it, the two had just been stood there. Staring into each other’s eyes, enjoying their time in silence.

“Will you two stop staring already?” Ajaw’s voice invaded their ears, breaking them out of the spell they seemed to be under.

Notes:

the curse tried to get me the way i had to go to a&e yesterday and then slept for 20 hours after getting home but here's the new chapter!

In the morning, Kinich and Kazuha spent the day walking back to the Scions of the Canopy with the group - aside from Mualani - joining alongside them. Before the two went back up to the tribe, Xilonen decided to bring up how they could fix the vision casing, “You could either stay at the Children of Echoes or I could try taking the vision and in a few days you could come and get it back?” Kazuha thought back to what he witnessed during the Vision Hunt Decree.

   He didn’t feel comfortable with his vision in the hands of another, “I’d rather go with you,” He stated politely. The group continued walking until they reached a fork in the road. Only then did Kazuha notice Kinich was silently still walking with them rather than going back to the tribe. He couldn’t discern Kinich’s expression, perhaps he was just there to ensure Kazuha’s safety. He seemed to still be slightly unwell either way, his face often feeling slightly too warm or him spacing out. Only Xilonen stayed out of the group as she guided them to the Children of Echoes.

 

“Xilonen! Can you help? Ifa won’t be here for a few days and this one’s child went up the mountain a bit too far,” Someone called out to her. Kazuha watched in awe as she passed her jacket to Kinich and summoned a different kind of shoe before climbing up the mountain easily. 

   “What does she keep summoning? Are they all geo constructs?” Kazuha asked Kinich.

   “Huh? Oh, a DJ booth and rollerskates. I don’t know if they are but it wouldn’t shock me. She’s an engineer, so,” Kazuha realised that was the first time Kinich had spoken since they left the People of the Springs. Nevertheless, he nodded. After a few minutes, Xilonen returned with a baby saurian and went over to its parent. 

   “Sorry ‘bout that, lets go to my workshop,” Xilonen guided the two to her workshop after returning.

 

Taking Kazuha’s vision, Xilonen began fully inspecting the casing. “This’ll take a while, we could walk around and find Kachina. She might be able to give you a tour,” Kinich recommended. Kazuha glanced at him before unknowingly staring at his vision in Xilonen’s hands. He blinked one, two, three times before turning his attention to Kinich and silently agreeing. They found who Kazuha guessed was Kachina, a child who was talking to a saurian. 

   “Ayo, you have to eat something,” she scolded the saurian.

   “Is he not eating again?” Kinich asked her, causing her to turn to him.

   “Just today, he’s refusing to today, I’m not sure why,” Ayo tilted his head at her before looking upset and going towards his food, eating a few bites. “At least Ifa will be here soon,” Kachina sighed and fully turned to Kinich before noticing Kazuha, “Who’s he?”

   “I’m Kaedehara Kazuha, a traveller from Inazuma,” Kazuha introduced himself, “Is the saurian okay?”

   Kachina glanced at Ayo, who had sat down after eating a third of his food, “He will be once Ifa’s here, sorry you had to see that your first time here. Did you need something from me?” Kinich explained what happened with Kazuha staying in Natlan and his vision, “Oh, that’s not good! You need to rest as much as you can,” Kachina showed Kazuha around the tribe while taking him to spare rooms. She showed him and Kazuha to the rooms but, before she could talk with them more, she was called away by another person.

 

“I’ve heard of the Tepetlisaurs getting ill more near the Pilgrimage but we’re still a month or so away…” Kinich mumbled to himself, “Hopefully Ifa can help them.”

   “Who’s Ifa?” Kazuha asked, curious about this person he had been hearing about.

   Kinich hummed, “A saurian vet from the Flower-Feather Clan, he’s um… A lot…” Kinich sighed.

   “He’s a lot? His dumb pet is a lot!” An angry Ajaw butted in, “Always trying to talk to me and attack me, he’s so annoying!”

   “Don’t instigate anything and Cacucu won’t attack you in self-defence,” Kinich shrugged, lightly glaring at Ajaw, “You’re one to talk about annoying people,” Ajaw went to try and hit Kinich, to which Kinich simply moved his body slightly to the right. This exchange caused Kazuha to laugh. Kinich stared at him, eyes gentle as he looked over Kazuha’s face. Ajaw looked between the two before saying something in Natlanese, to which Kinich responded with a fed-up tone. “Sorry about you being inside a lot, by the way,” Kinich lightly apologised. 

   Kazuha stopped laughing, lookin at Kinich with a gentle expression and tears remaining in his eyes as his smile became gentle, “It’s okay, I don’t mind. It’s a change from the sea and open air but I’m having fun. I appreciate you trying to make the most of this situation,” his voice was gentle and tone soft. Kinich stared at him for a moment before lightly nodding, mumbling something under his breath. Kazuha didn’t pry, he felt as if he shouldn’t. The atmosphere was comfortable, as if they had been meant to be near each other. An anemo crystal fly flew into the room, a different one from the last. Kazuha looked at it for a second before understanding why it was there. “Ah, right,” Kazuha turned to Kinich, “Is there paper and a pen anywhere near?” Kinich looked through his bag, taking out a few pieces of paper and a pen, “Always prepared, huh?” Kazuha thanked him for the materials and began writing his letter.

   “Who’s that for?” Kinich asked, watching as Kazuha was writing.

   “The Traveler, you’ll know them when you see them. I don’t know why, but the crystalflies always visit before someone’s birthday for them to write a letter,” Kazuha’s voice was soft as he explained, still focusing on the letter.

   “So your birthday is soon?” Kinich asked.

   “In two days, yes,” Kazuha responded. The room fell silent as Kazuha continued to write his letter about his recent travels in Natlan and wishing the Traveler well.

 

The next day, Kinich seemed to have disappeared as Xilonen greeted Kazuha outside of the room with his fixed vision. “Oh, thank you, how do I repay you?”

   Xilonen brushed it off, “No need, just try not breaking it again,” she shrugged. “Kinich went somewhere but Ifa’s here so I’m sure you won’t be bored.” Kazuha was confused until he heard a voice coming from a… Ball of feathers?

   “No way, bro!” Kazuha stared at the bird, blinking as he tried to process what he was seeing and hearing.

   “Cacucu! I told you not to go too far, bro!” A tall man that Kazuha assumed to be Ifa walked up behind the bird, “Sorry ‘bout him,” Ifa apologised.

   “... It’s like if Itto became a bird,” Kazuha stated absentmindedly.

   “Oh, so you’re used to this? That’s good,” Xilonen yawned, “You two have fun, I’m going to sleep,” Xilonen helped Kazuha put his vision back near his shoulder before leaving.

   “So, who’s this Itto guy?” Ifa asked, Cacucu resting on top of his hat.

   “Oh, Arataki Itto. He’s… a guy from Inazuma,” Kazuha explained, “I think you two would get along well,” He smiled gently. 

   “Oh, no way, bro! You’ll have to bring ‘im here someday,” Kazuha could now tell where Cacucu got his language from. “I don’t know why Xilonen called me over here, I’ve got work to do. Feel free to join me, bro!” Ifa smiled, going to begin walking before Cacucu decided to pick up his hat and almost catch Ifa with the string. Luckily, Ifa managed to get a hold of the string and stop Cacucu from doing whatever it was that he was planning. 

 

Kazuha followed Ifa and watched as he looked over the Tepetlisaurs. He wrote a few things down in his notebook with each new bit of information he gathered from the people around. “Have you found anything? Kachina asked, clearly worried for them.

   “It seems to present similar to the standard increase of sensitivity to the change as we prepare for the Pilgrimage… It seems to be getting further and further away from when the tournament begins.. It’ll be the usual treatment, make sure to carefully monitor their condition.” Ifa explained to everyone around.

   “It keeps happening earlier and earlier, is there something happening with the Pilgrimage…?” Kachina mumbled to herself.

   “Surely not, Mavuika would tell the tribe's chiefs if something was,” Ifa comforted her.

 

Right as Kazuha and Ifa were sitting down together and ready to talk, Kinich returned. “Oh, hi Ifa,” He simply greeted. 

   “Bro, where were you? I come over here for my job and Xilonen drags me to a room and I meet this guy,” Ifa stood up and put his arm around Kinich’s shoulders. Being shrugged off, Ifa sighed, “Did you know Kazuha here apparently knows a guy I’d get along with?”

   “Really? That’s interesting,” Kinich hummed.

   “Yeah! His name is… wait, what was it again?” Ifa turned to Kazuha with an apologetic expression.

   “Arataki Itto, he’s quite fun to be around. To be fair, Kinich, I think you’d be great friends with an artist from Mondstadt I know; Albedo,” Kazuha’s smile was gentle, thinking back to the Irodori Festival he had managed to participate in.

   “You’ve been to Mondstadt too?” Kinich asked.

   “Yes, traveling with the Crux Fleet gives me the freedom to visit the nations. I’ve even been to a place called the Golden Apple Archipelago before the Traveler went to Sumeru. It was quite interesting,” Seeing how he made the two curious with the short information of his travels, Kazuha began to tell them about his journey. He told them about his escape from Inazuma, his first meeting with the Traveler, the Irodori Festival, and the Golden Apple Archipelago. 

   “No wonder you said your meetings with Archon’s haven’t been peaceful,” Kinich muttered to himself, causing Kazuha to chuckle. The trio spoke until the sun set, even as they walked back to their rooms to rest for the next day.

 

Kazuha blinked as he woke up, the smell of freshly-made food filling the room. He sat up, lightly yawning. Looking towards the source of the scent. Seeing a meat stew, Kazuha blinked. ‘Who made this?’ Deciding to ask around later, Kazuha began to eat. 

 

In Inazuma

 

“Miss Beidou, good morning. Has your voyage been comfortable?” Ayaka asked, smiling towards the pirate.

   “Vaguely, yeah. Stressed a bit, but work’s work,” Beidou sighed, leaning against the boxes near the ship. The sound of the calm waves surrounding the docks, contradictory to the storms that had previously cursed the sea.

   “That’s not good. I may have something to calm your nerves,” Ayaka handed the folded letter to Beidou.

   “What’s this?” Beidou absentmindedly asked, taking the letter and reading over it, “That mother-” She sighed, “I figured something happened. I’ll have to go back to Liyue before being able to pick him up, contracts.” Beidou’s face scrunched up in confusion, “Wait, how’d he get this to you?”

   “An anemo crystalfly landed on me with the letter, I am as confused as you are,” Ayaka smiled politely.

 

In Natlan

 

He walked outside, his full outfit worn. Knowing that, by now, his letter would have been delivered to the Traveler. The wind blew freely through his hair, ‘Hm? The letter was delivered, good.’ Kazuha walked around before he saw someone he recognised. “Mavuika?” she turned around, a smile on her face.

   “Kazuha! Morning, did you sleep well? I see your vision’s all fixed,” Kazuha was comforted by her positivity, it meaning that all was okay for the time being.

   “Good Morning, do you know who could have entered my room during the night or early morning?” Kazuha decided to ask her, wondering if the Archon would know anything about the situation.

   Mavuika looked slightly confused, “Entered your room?” She seemed to think for a moment, crossing her arms, “Did they take anything?” 

   “No,” Kazuha paused, thinking about how to phrase his next sentence, “They left me some food,” Mavuika’s face showed slight shock and her containing her laughter.

   “That… I do not know who gave you food during the early morning, no,” She tried to stifle her laughter, being unable to hide the smile that showed on her face.

   “I see, so the mystery stays,” Kazuha sighed, a light smile showing as the insanity of the situation finally processed. Someone seemed to have broken into his room, taken nothing, and simply left him some food that seemed professionally made.

   “Let’s ask around, maybe someone has a clue towards this,” Mavuika lightly patted his shoulder as a comforting gesture.

 

Despite the absurdity of the situation, Mavuika and Kazuha did, in fact, go around and asked if anyone had seen someone walk into his room. “Xilonen, did you see anyone go into Kazuha’s room with Blazed Meat Stew?” Mavuika asked as she walked into Xilonen’s workshop. ‘Blazed Meat Stew…?’  

   “Huh?” Xilonen looked at the two with a confused expression, “...No? Was it good, at least?” Kazuha sighed. “Was it in, like… a special dish or something?”

   Kazuha looked at Xilonen for a second, “I can’t remember…”

   “We could go and look at it, then?” Xilonen offered. Walking back into the room, Kazuha looked around and couldn’t find the dish. He couldn’t find much of anything, as the room was surprisingly dark. “Damn, let me go pull up the curtains.” 

 

Mavuika made sure to distract Kazuha with idle conversation as Xilonen uncovered the windows. Something finally clicked for Kazuha, “Wait, I never told you about what the food wa-” A chorus of people wishing him a happy birthday sounded through the room. Kazuha looked around, stunned. Kinich had been a slightly quieter voice in the chorus, but that is who Kazuha’s eyes had first landed on. Somehow, Kinich had managed to get Mualani, Wayna, Kachina, Ifa, alongside Mavuika, Xilonen and someone Kazuha didn’t recognise in on this plan.

   Before Kazuha could even react, Mualani was at his side. “Why didn’t you tell us your birthday the first time we met? We could’ve had a big party!”

   Kazuha politely chuckled at her enthusiasm, “Actually… This is preferred, I’m not usually the centre of attention. Thank you,” Kazuha addressed the final two words to the entire group.

   “This was all Kinich’s plan, he figured you’d be too polite and want to find someone who gave you food, giving time to set up,” Mavuika explained.

   Turning to Kinich, Kazuha made a lighthearted joke, “So my politeness is used against me, I see,” before Kinich could respond with an apology, Kazuha began laughing yet again. 

 

The rest of the day was full of conversation, story telling of Kazuha’s journeys and Natlan’s history. Kazuha had gotten used to just spending the day with the crew or alone, this was a welcome exception. 

 

As the day ended, all but Kinich left with final birthday wishes. “You really managed to surprise me,” Kazuha gently mentioned.

   “I did? That’s good, I’d hope,” This caused Kazuha to chuckle softly.

   “It is, it was a nice change of pace…” The two fall into a comfortable silence. They had now existed in the same space for around eight or nine days. Kazuha felt comfortable, something about being with Kinich made him feel… safe? Had that been the word? Or perhaps he was just happy at meeting someone new, at having a constant in a situation that had confused him. Kazuha didn’t know what it was that Kinich brought out in him. Perhaps he didn’t want to know, perhaps the world wasn’t ready for him to know… Without knowing it, the two had just been stood there. Staring into each other’s eyes, enjoying their time in silence.

   “Will you two stop staring already?” Ajaw’s voice invaded their ears, breaking them out of the spell they seemed to be under.

   “Ah, apologies. You should go and rest, Kinich. Good night,” Kazuha’s smile was genuine, showing something neither of them were ready to admit.

   “Good night, Kazuha,” Kinich grabbed Ajaw and left, his voice oddly soft.

 

Yet again, the day turned to night as the two questioned that which fate would never let them believe

Chapter 4: So close together, yet so far apart

Summary:

The two put it behind them, deciding to not question it further. Deciding they couldn’t question it further, as to not make the journeys ahead uncomfortable for the other.

Continuing on their journey, Kazuha and Kinich find themselves in a peculiar situation

“Anywhere you want to go?” Kazuha looked over at Kinich as they stood near a Statue of the Seven outside of the Children of Echoes, “Beidou should’ve gotten the letter by now, right? We don’t know how long left you have to be here so… Since you enjoy adventuring, why not show you around?”

   Kazuha hummed, thinking it over, “Wouldn’t your tribe need you? I’d hate to take you away from them for too long.”

   “Wayna already told me it’ll all be fine. You’ll need to make your way to the Collective of Plenty anyway, it’d be nice to travel around to the Masters of the Night-Wind and Flower-Feather Clan as well,” Kinich shrugged.

   “That’d be nice,” Kazuha nodded, he wouldn’t mind spending more time with Kinich. “Where are we going first?”

   “Well, we can go to the Stadium of Sacred Flame first. With no pauses, it takes three days to walk to the Flower-Feather Clan. If we spend the day walking to the Stadium, rest there for the night, and walk to the Masters of the Night-Wind. That’ll be day two, we can stay there for a few days and then walk to the Flower-Feather Clan. Does that sound like a good plan?”

   “Hm, is there any way to go from the Flower-Feather Clan to the Collective of Plenty?” Kazuha asked, curious.

   “...No, we’d have to walk the whole way back. Which is where we could stay at the Stadium before walking to the Collective of Plenty,” Kinich and Kazuha nodded at the plan. They both felt happy, excited. Both looking forward to the days ahead of them.

   “You guys are leaving already?” The two turned around, seeing Mavuika, “Heading back to the Scions of the Canopy?”

   “Not yet, I’ll show Kazuha around to the other tribes first,” Mavuika said something in Natlanese to Kinich, who sighed.

   Mavuika chuckled, “Just kidding, don’t worry. I’ll join ya to the Stadium.”

 

With Mavuika joining them, they began to walk. Kinich had planned for it to be a peaceful walk, though it seems Mavuika had other plans. Only a few seconds after they left the Children of Echoes, Mavuika spoke up, “Oh, Kazuha, do you want to hear some stories?”

   Kazuha hummed, “Sure, I wouldn’t mind.”

   Kinich knew what was going to happen, yet he realised too late, “There was one time that Kinich-”

   “How about we don’t?” Kinich asked, cutting her off. Kazuha was shocked at that, still adjusting to how calm Mavuika was for an Archon.

   “Aw, Kinich, you don’t want Kazuha to hear about your childhood stories?” Mavuika teased, finding Kinich’s sigh slightly funny.

   “You let someone adopt you once… If you want to tell him, then do, but I’ll be up ahead,” Kinich shrugged. The second Mavuika started telling Kazuha about the stories, he stayed true to his word and used his vision to quickly go up ahead to the Stadium.

 

By the time Kazuha and Mavuika caught up to Kinich, Kazuha was laughing and had obviously been doing so for a while. Tears ran down his face, eyes still tearing up from the laughter. As they walked up to Kinich, he was staring at Kazuha for a moment. Mavuika looked at him with a pitiful yet knowing look. Kazuha wiped his tears a bit, smiling cheerfully at Kinich. A smile that, if you asked anyone else, was normal. Yet, a smile that, upon asking Kinich? It was different, it wasn’t the usual calm smile Kazuha had but it wasn’t the otherwise polite smile he showed to acquaintances. Kinich didn’t think he could ever forget that this smile was brought upon by stories about him. “I’m guessing you two had fun? How many stories did you tell him?” Kinich threw a questioning look at Mavuika.

   “Just about all of them, I’d think?” Kinich sighed, “Don’t worry, I only told him the cute and silly ones,” Mavuika smiled, chuckling.

   “That doesn’t make this much better…” Kinich mumbled, “We should go check into the hotel. You have fun with whatever you’re doing,” Kinich said goodbye to Mavuika and made sure Kazuha was following him before walking away.

 

“We’re here to check in, we’ll be leaving in the morning,” Kinich said to the worker.

   “Understood. Just the two of you? That’ll be 52,400 mora,” Kinich handed the mora to her, “Thank you, here’s your keys,” She handed him two keys with the number ‘13’ on them.

 

They walked to the room, Kinich handing Kazuha one of the keys. Once they opened the door, Kinich paused. Staring into the room. “Is everything alright?” Kazuha asked, his voice gentle.

   Kinich cursed under his breath in Natlanese, “Yeah. Just stay here for a second,” he closed the door again and went to walk back over to the desk. Kazuha stayed there, sitting on his knees while waiting. It felt like hours, the calm silence of the hallway being interrupted by the distant sound of talking and walking. He usually didn’t lose track of time, usually didn’t feel like a few seconds was a few hours. Yet, being fully alone for the first time in a while, he found himself unsure of how long it had been. He picked a leaf from the soil of a nearby plant, cleaning it off carefully before beginning to do his usual favourite pastime; music. He used the leaf to create the usual song he played, carefully creating the notes. “I didn’t know that was possible,” Kinich had seemed to appear out of nowhere. Kazuha paused, carefully placing the leaf back.

   “Ah, apologies. I learned how to do it once and seem to return to the habit every so often,” Kazuha gently smiled.

   “It’s okay. I talked with the receptionist. It seems this is the last room available today, a lot of people have been passing by recently…” Kazuha didn’t know what had apparently been so wrong with the room. That was until he walked in, seeing how there was a singular bed.

   “... This is like a poorly made romance story when the writer doesn’t know how to fill in the time,” Kazuha thought back to the stories from Yae Publishing House that he had been forced to read during times of boredom on the ship.

   “Oddly specific, but yeah,” Kinich sighed, “I’m sure they have extra pillows and blankets around, I can find a way to sleep on the floor comfortably.”

   “You shouldn’t. I can sleep on the floor, you should have the bed,” Kazuha shook his head, not allowing Kinich to risk his comfort. The two went back and forth for a while.

   “Oh my- Can you two just shut up and both sleep on the gods damned bed?!” Ajaw showed his face, angry at the constant chatter. “Why are you acting as if this is a crime punishable by death?!” Kinich and Kazuha looked at Ajaw for a while. 

   “Ah, I guess that would’ve been the more obvious option, wouldn’t it?” Kazuha’s voice was barely above a whisper, him still questioning why his first instinct was to argue about who would sleep on the floor.

 

The two put it behind them, deciding to not question it further. Deciding they couldn’t question it further, as to not make the journeys ahead uncomfortable for the other.

Notes:

a little bit of a shorter chapter but i hope it was good nonetheless. i finally got a new bed after my last one was basically gojo for a few months 3

Chapter 5: Archon's Blessing

Summary:

After so long, and after Citlali threatened the two, Kazuha and Kinich finally address their feelings.
---
Ajaw looked from side to side awkwardly, he wasn’t used to having to deal with such conversations. “I think… if it’s just how you are, other people should just shut up,” His usual irritated tone made itself clear, yet his words were shockingly reassuring.

Kazuha turned his gaze back to the floor, “Maybe you’re right…” His voice was barely above a whisper.

Notes:

CW for more obvious religious guilt/trauma and internalised homophobia!! please read with caution!

They didn’t speak about it, they couldn’t speak about it. Yet, neither could forget waking up. Neither could forget how, even though they had slept under separate blankets and as far as they could comfortably be, they woke up in each other’s arms. Neither could forget how that was the most rested they had ever felt. They checked out of the hotel at sunrise and began walking. The tension between them couldn’t even be sliced by the finest and sharpest of swords blessed by the Gods, and Ajaw was tired of having to deal with it. By now, he knew what was happening. He had heard Kinich speak about Kazuha, had teased him about it at the start. Now it was just getting tiring. “Are you two leaving space for the damn Heavenly Principals now or was cuddling too much for you?”

   “ Ajaw .” Kinich warned, a single glare sent at the companion.

   “What?! I’m just asking! It’s awkward here!”

   Kinich almost sent Ajaw away. “It’s alright,” Kazuha’s chuckle stopped Kinich in his tracks, “It was a bit quiet. Comfortable, yet tense. Like the morning wind with the Summer’s sun, yet not a singular chance for the body to cool,” His smile was soft, his tone light. Kinich could get lost in those eyes, but he couldn’t let himself.

   “Yeah, yeah. Okay, poet boy,” Ajaw scoffed, turning to Kinich, “You should let him get that creativity out in the art contest, maybe I’ll tolerate him more then.” ‘ An art contest..? ’ Kazuha thought to himself

 

An art contest indeed. The second they stepped foot into the Masters of the Night Wind tribe, Ororon was already walking towards them. “Hey, you guys!” He cheerfully welcomed them, “Did you wanna sign up for the contest?”

   “Ororon. Where are you?!” Another voice angrily called out, an older woman with pink hair walked up. “I keep telling you to leave the preparations of the easels to others. Do not touch them.” Every word of her last sentence was enunciated. 

   “Sorry, Granny! I saw they were struggling to set up and wanted to help,” Ororon simply smiled. He turned to Kazuha, “This is Granny Citlali, I don’t think you’ve met her yet?”

   Citlali turned to him, a look of surprise on her face before she went back to her usual - slightly frustrated - expression, “You here to sign up or just visiting? And, for the record, just call me Citlali.”

   Kazuha thought for a second, “Ah, I might as well?” Citlali grabbed a piece of paper and handed it to Kazuha with a pen, “Oh, thank you,” Kazuha quickly wrote his name down and handed it back.

   Citlali looked over it for a few seconds, “...Kaedehara Kazuha? You’re from Inazuma, right?” Seeing Kazuha nod, Citlali hummed, “Does Yae Publishing House still stock ‘Pretty Please, Kitsune Guuji’?”

   “Uh… As far as I know, yes,” Citlali nodded, simply walking away, “Oh… Uh… Okay..?”

   “She does this,” Kinich sighed, “I didn’t know you painted?”

   “Hm? I prefer poetry, but I did get to learn some skills from an artist from Mondstadt,” Kazuha explained.

 

Ororon guided the two towards the contest grounds, arriving right as Citlali put Kazuha’s name onto one of the easels. Ororon seemed to want to say something to Kinich, but the announcements had already started. Artists were told to find their seats, Ororon and Kinich saying a simple bye to Kazuha before they stood nearby. “So… you two, huh?” Ororon spoke under his breath, catching Kinich off guard.

   He looked at Ororon so quickly, he swore he would’ve hurt his neck, “What? Us two? What do you- What?!” Kinich had to manually keep himself quiet.

   Ororon blinked a few times, a look of confusion then realisation showing his inner dialogue, “Ohhh… So you haven’t talked about it?”

   Kinich looked around quickly, glancing at Kazuha as he listened to the instructions and prepared his materials, “Talked about what?”

   “...Wait, you haven’t-”

   “No, they haven’t.” Ajaw quietly sounding irritated caught the attention of Kinich and Ororon. “It’s getting on my nerves.” Ororon nodded in understanding, sending Kinich a pitiful glance.

   “We’ll talk about this another time… It’s just shocking because even Citlali noticed,” Kinich couldn’t even start to look confused as the announcer counted down for the artists to start painting.

 

Kinich ignored what Ororon had said and simply watched as the contest occurred. There was a woman standing still in a pose in the middle, allowing the artists to draw her and her outfit in whichever style they wished. Kinich watched as Kazuha first sketched her carefully. His eyes were mostly on the woman, confident pencil strokes being placed upon the canvas. Kinich watched as Kazuha’s eyes were focused, his movements precise yet careful. As soon as his sketch was complete, Kazuha’s eyes turned to his paints as he carefully mixed the colours necessary for the painting. Kinich felt slightly trapped in watching Kazuha. He had noticed his staring during the dance contest with the People of the Springs, had this been how he felt? Every stroke placed on the canvas seemed perfect. His eyes followed Kazuha’s hand, watching as the paint stayed shockingly consistent. He felt as if time had escaped him, as if Istaroth herself had neglected to let it progress. Yet, she seemed to remember as the announcement of the end of the contest was heard by all. Kinich blinked back into reality, simply glancing at Kazuha’s canvas as he was cleaning up his station and returning the materials. It was… Gorgeous. Kinich looked over what he could see, eyes wide. Even as the canvas was taken in for judging, he continued to stare at it. Mesmerised. It took Kazuha a few tries to get Kinich’s attention back to reality, “Everything okay?” Kinich quickly turned his head to him.

   “Huh? Oh, yeah, sorry,” Kinich had to manually reset himself, reminding to not think about certain things.

   “That’s good, that was fun. A little anxiety-inducing, but fun,” Kazuha smiled, almost causing Kinich to get lost in thought.

   “Anxiety-inducing? You looked so calm and confident,” Ororon mentioned, amazed.

   “Ah, did I? I was just focused, I haven’t painted with these types of paints before,” Kazuha chuckled, “It was a fun challenge, truly.” Before Kazuha could even begin to converse with his friends, Citlali called him over - causing him to leave Ororon and Kinich alone again to have a well-needed conversation.

 

“Yes, Citlali?” Kazuha asked politely after walking up to her.

   “Ororon walked up to me during the competition, are you and Kinich dense?” Citlali asked, frustration spreading over her features.

   “...Pardon?” Kazuha’s confusion just made her more frustrated.

   “Look, I know I don’t know you and you don’t know me, but I’ve heard enough. Kinich doesn’t usually take all this effort for someone he’s met recently. If you two don’t talk about it soon, I will feed you to the Abyssal monsters myself. You’re dismissed.” Citlali walked away, causing Kazuha to stand in place for a second before walking back.

 

Even though Kinich had been glaring at Ororon, his face quickly turned to concern upon seeing Kazuha’s confusion, “Are you alright?”

   “Hm? Yes, Citlali just said something that confused me,” Kazuha quickly masked his inner turmoil with a smile. ‘ Talk about it..? Talk about what? Could it be… No… She couldn’t be that perceptive, could she? ’

   “Oh, yeah, Granny can be quite scary,” Ororon smiled empathetically, “At least you survived this time!”

   “... This time-” Before Kazuha could finish questioning Ororon, the announcer began talking again.

   “Everyone, everyone, the Judges have come to a decision. All artists have done beautifully and this was a truly difficult decision for all. Yet, three pieces have won their hearts above all. In third place,” The audience cheered for them as they walked up on stage, their art unveiled and their prize handed over, “Surprisingly, in second place, we have a past ten-time winner,” The audience gasped, a consistent winner having been dethroned. Yet, they cheered and the dethroned contestant still held a giant smile on their face. “And last, but not least. A new face, a new name. A visitor from afar, a friend to a hero. Kaedehara Kazuha of Inazuma!” Gasps of shock and cheers of encouragement sounded as Kazuha’s face turned to surprise. He stood up slowly, making his way to the stage. Some cameras went off to photograph the winners and Kazuha exchanged encouraging words with the other two.

 

“Look at you, just got here and already winning contests,” Ororon joked.

   Kazuha looked around, not seeing Kinich nearby, “Where did Kinich go?” The sun was already setting, something Kazuha hadn’t noticed.

   “Oh, he got called away to help with something, I can see you to your room?” Ororon’s calm smile seemed to be hiding something. Kazuha didn’t ask, it would be hypocritical of him to question another’s masking.

   “Ah, sure. Thank you,” Kazuha simply smiled back. He didn’t mention how Ajaw hid behind him. He didn’t bring attention to how he saw Kinich speaking with Citlali. ‘ ’If you two don’t talk about it soon’, huh? How can we when most would condemn it? When nature sees us two and chooses to hate the form of which our love takes, how can we consider ourselves worthy and deserving of facing it? Love doesn’t choose its form, yet those who despise it mold their hate into the weapon they desire… ’ Kazuha simply nodded at Ororon as he left, sitting on the sole bed in the room. Ajaw flew around the room for a moment, seemingly waiting for Kinich to finally be done. Yet, seeing Kazuha staring into space with such a bleak expression, he couldn’t help but settle.

 

They sat in silence, Kazuha lost in thought as Ajaw simply rested nearby. Kazuha’s eyes shifted to look at Ajaw, slowly blinking back into reality before he finally spoke up, “Is it possible?” Ajaw bit back his instinctive snarky remark, feeling awkward but not stopping Kazuha from continuing, “Two men? Together? No… Not the Archons nor the Heavenly Principals would allow this… Would the nature of this world let it be? If nature allowed love to take this so-called ‘sinful’ form, was this her silent acceptance? Should nature wish it so, would those that make the laws of this land allow us to love freely or would they declare us free of love?”

   Ajaw looked from side to side awkwardly, he wasn’t used to having to deal with such conversations. “I think… if it’s just how you are, other people should just shut up,” His usual irritated tone made itself clear, yet his words were shockingly reassuring.

   Kazuha turned his gaze back to the floor, “Maybe you’re right…” His voice was barely above a whisper. Thankfully, in his belief, as a knock sounded on the door and Kinich walked in.

   “I hope Ajaw was well behaved, sorry about that,” Kazuha instantly masked his previous concerns.

   “He’s been oddly silent, actually,” Kazuha chuckled.

   “He has?” Kinich looked at Ajaw with confused shock, “That’s odd, maybe he’ll have to be seen by Ifa at some point.”

   “I would rather die.” Ajaw was instantly back to his usual self.

   “A check-up could still be needed,” Kinich joked in a monotone way, “Either way, I’m glad he didn’t cause chaos. I’ll be taking him back now, sleep well,” Holding his word, Kinich got Ajaw back and left the room. ‘ If it’s just how I am… but who’s to say he’s like me, too? Would we both be deemed broken or would the world allow a happy ending just this once..? ’

 

Kazuha hadn’t heard Kinich knock on the door nor walk into the room. He was staring at the ceiling, deep in thought. Noticing Kinich’s hair in his peripheral vision, which he was sure he could recognise within the most crowded of rooms, Kazuha moved to sit up. Kinich had just been sitting there, in silence, peacefully. “How long have you been here?” Kazuha asked, curious about how much time had passed.

   “Not too long but not long enough,” Kinich shrugged, “Do you want to go for a walk?” ‘ Not long enough..? Did he wish to just sit here in silence the whole day? ’

 

For a walk they went, walking past Citlali talking with the chief and Ororon and Ifa talking about something with Cacucu and Ajaw. ‘ He left Ajaw with them? Could… No, I’m probably thinking too much into it… ’ Denial was something Kazuha had become acquainted with recently once more. They walked in silence, the air comfortable yet heavy, until they were quite far away from the tribe. The air was calm as far as Kazuha could tell, as if it was anticipating something. They sat under a Flammabomb tree, resting for a few moments as they settled. “We should talk,” Kinich broke the silence, the air grew tense as if it reacted to the shock. Kazuha quickly mentally prepared himself, ‘ Ah, I see. I suppose it was bound to happen. ’ Kazuha could only hum in response, preparing to be called insane, hoping to be wrong about what the conversation was going to be. He wasn’t sure why, he had never felt this way before, had never been so anxious and closed off. “Tell me, Kazuha, do you want to speak first or should I?”

   Kazuha wanted so much to be the usual open-book he is, yet he couldn’t bring himself to, “Could you, please?” 

   Kinich thought this would happen but had wanted to give Kazuha the choice to speak up first. He had heard him last night, had heard the pain in his voice, had heard the worries. He understood how Kazuha felt, understood that this would be difficult, that this wasn’t a time they would be allowed to exist like this but he was always willing to try. “Of course,” his voice was soft and soothing, the tone comfortable. It calmed Kazuha’s nerves. “I wasn’t sure how to… feel, I suppose? I wanted to make sure you were safe and protected, that you had no regrets when you inevitably left. When I first saw you, I was more focused on just getting you to a safe place. I wanted to be there when you woke up and make sure you were safe. The whole walk away and back, I had been worried. When I saw you talking with Mualani, I was just glad you were safe and happy. I noticed you staring at me, noticed every time you got lost in thought. I was sure I was misreading it, I haven’t always been the best at noticing social cues, yet I started being more observant after you visibly relaxed when I said Mualani was my sister,”

   Kazuha became more alert, “You-”

   “Yeah, I noticed that,” Kinich’s light smile was slightly teasing, “I also noticed you obviously staring at me before, during, and after my performance at the competition alongside you basically checking me out every so often,” Kazuha lightly blushed, embarrassed at how shockingly obvious he had apparently been, “It’s alright, don’t worry. I didn’t mind… I guess, maybe I wanted you to look at me?” The atmosphere was now more lighthearted, something Kinich had planned to make sure happened. He didn’t want this to be tense, no matter how it ended. “I think the second I realised I liked you was when I was worried that you had been hurt again but the second I realised I love you was when the idea of you being away at the Children of the Echoes hurt. Hearing Xilonen ask you if you wanted to go with and you agreeing made my chest feel heavy, so I silently joined. I could tell Xilonen noticed and thought of it as odd, but I think I knew that, deep down, she didn’t care too much. All this to say, I guess, I… want to spend every moment I can with you until you have to leave. I don’t care how we describe ourselves or how we spend this time. As long as I see you off and know it ended on a good note, I think I will be fine,” Kinich, resting his head against the tree, looked up at the sky.

   The air became a gentle breeze. Kazuha could feel the way it was heading, he could tell its message. It was guiding him, guiding his soul, to Kinich. “The Heavens wouldn’t allow it… The Heavens, the public, wouldn’t look kindly on it…” Kazuha looked at the ground, he thought back to what Ajaw said. “I’d like to think people could ignore it if they didn’t understand or thought of it as wrong, but that cannot be the case. Hatred of that which you cannot change is not logical, many care not for what nature allows. I’ve seen it plenty, seen the way some react to others for both things they can and cannot change… I’ve seen people die, be injured, put their life at risk. I will not risk your life for love but I will not risk love for my life. If fate only gives us this one chance,” Kazuha looked at Kinich, who was already looking at him. They made eye contact, lost in each other’s sight, “May I ensure I live the rest of my life without this one regret?” For some reason, Kinich felt his vision glow at the same moment he saw Kazuha’s do the same. They seemed to understand each other as they leaned closer, closing their eyes. The moment their lips met, the wind grew stronger. It seemed as if time had stopped, allowing them to feel this freedom for just a moment. They stayed there for a few seconds before pulling away. Kazuha smiled lightly as he saw Kinich blush, going to rest his head on Kinich’s shoulder. His eyes landed on the Brilliant Chrysanthemums around, having read about them in a book on the different specialities all across Teyvat. His smile got impossibly softer as he understood what could have happened as the winds grew and flowers bloomed. They stayed there amongst the flowers, resting against the tree as the winds calmed. When they did decide to stand up, Kinich stood up first and held his hand out for Kazuha. Once walking back, the world felt brighter to Kazuha as he allowed himself one chance at freedom free from the judgement of those who might never understand.

Chapter 6: After everything, it will always be You

Summary:

After a confession and first kiss, Kazuha and Kinich continue on their journey around Natlan. The realisation they would soon part for the foreseeable future has set in, yet it could not ruin the joyful mood each were in
--
“How long are you thinking of staying there? We’ve got a flying competition soon, you two should join!” Ifa seemed to not notice the silent communication between Kinich and Kazuha.

“I think that’d sound fun, it’d be nice to compete together this time,” Kazuha accepted Ifa’s offer.

“Let’s get going, then, dude!” Ifa patted Kazuha on the shoulder and began to walk, not noticing the silent look Kinich and Kazuha shared. 

Notes:

CWs: internalised homophobia and near death experience kind of??

“You ready to head out?” Kinich called out, checking on Kazuha.

   Kazuha looked over at Kinich, feeling shockingly calm yet overwhelmingly joyful. After their kiss yesterday, Kazuha had been feeling unusually upbeat. “I believe so, yes,” Even though they didn’t speak about it, even though they didn’t talk about what this all meant, they knew something had changed. The air around them was shockingly more comfortable, their existence harmonious. Heading towards the road they were to take, they were at peace with silently loving each other.

   “Yo! Bro! You’re heading to the Flower-Feather Clan?” Kazuha recognised the voice and words as belonging to Ifa.

   “Oh, Archons. Yes, Ifa, we’re heading there,” Kinich seemed to already be mentally preparing for the numerous times they’ll hear the word ‘bro’ if Ifa were to join them.

   “How long are you thinking of staying there? We’ve got a flying competition soon, you two should join!” Ifa seemed to not notice the silent communication between Kinich and Kazuha.

   “I think that’d sound fun, it’d be nice to compete together this time,” Kazuha accepted Ifa’s offer.

   “Let’s get going, then, dude!” Ifa patted Kazuha on the shoulder and began to walk, not noticing the silent look Kinich and Kazuha shared. 

 

“You’ll love it there, bro. The Qucusaurs are being oddly social recently so you might see them more around. People with visions are allowed to use whatever power their vision gives them if it'll help, but safety’ll be mostly on you,” Ifa kept dumping information onto Kazuha as they walked. “I usually fly with Cacucu but Chasca flies on her gun, so-”

   “Wait- Sorry, pardon?” Kazuha was taken aback.

   “Huh? What’d I say?” Ifa looked between Kazuha and Kinich, confused.

   Kinich sighed, looking over at Kazuha, “Chasca is known as the Peacemaker and her vision grants her the ability to infuse a giant gun with Anemo and use it during any battles or conflicts,” he explained. Kazuha nodded in understandment, realising he was often quite confused at everything he saw. ‘ And I thought the Akasha Terminal was shocking… ’

 

“And here we are, dudes! Welcome to the Flower-Feather Clan, Kazuha,” Ifa gave them a slightly grandiose welcome. “Chasca! I’m back! I have guests!”

   Chasca looked over, stopping in the middle of her conversation to see who Ifa was talking about, “Got it, I’ll be right over,” She said something to the person she was talking to and began to walk over, “Welcome back, Kinich, and nice to see you again, Kazuha. Any reason for the visit?”

   “Ifa told us about a competition, but we were originally going here for Kazuha to sight-see,” Kinich responded, to which Chasca nodded.

   “Of course he did. Well, welcome to the Flower-Feather Clan. I’ll get rooms ready for you,” Kazuha wanted to stop her and ask for a single room, but he couldn’t allow himself to. Talking about it felt shameful, as if it was still wrong for him to accept this was okay. 

 

Soon she returned, giving Kazuha and Kinich keys to their own rooms. Kazuha stared at his for a second, apparently too long as Chasca asked if he was alright, “Huh?” He looked up quickly, caught slightly off guard, “Ah, yes. Apologies,” His smile was quick. He could tell Kinich looked at him a bit too much, analysing his expression and body language to guess what he was thinking. 

 

The competition started five hours later. Prior to the event, the four signed up for it and looked over the route. “Okay, so we go here and here then here?” Ifa looked over the location, trying to see if there were any visible obstacles. “Usually they have a few harmless explosives here and there or things about to show up like blockages and obstacles. I can’t see anything yet, though?”

   “They went further with hiding it, I guess,” Kinich shrugged.

   “Guess so, just try not to accidentally grab at one of them,” Ifa joked, prompting Kazuha to pay more attention.

   “What do you mean?” He asked, confused.

   “I’ll be using my vision, even though I’m the only not-anemo vision user able to. I use this here,” Kinich showed Kazuha the gold and black bracelet on his left arm, “To fire out a dendro-fused grappling hook. Sometimes it targets things and picks them up instead of helping me,” Kinich sighed, though he was slightly distracted by how interested Kazuha seemed. His eyes were looking over the bracelet, slightly holding Kinich’s hand as he looked over it.

   Kazuha’s eyes drifted to his hand before his eyes widened more and he quickly took his hand away, “That’s fascinating…”

 

“Three, two, one!” The announcer’s voice boomed as everyone prepared on the start line, “Go!” Everyone started to move. Those on Qucusaurs began expertly manoeuvring through the air, though everyone fell short of Chasca. She zoomed ahead on her anemo-infused gun as Kazuha used his vision to create quick bursts of air that he jumped onto and used to boost himself. He was a bit ahead of Kinich, who had just been overtaken by Ifa - though the two often were alongside each other. So much so that, when Kinich’s grapple malfunctioned for long enough to pose a risk, Kazuha felt as if time had slowed. His body moved on its own, just like it had done when the Traveler had been attacked by the Raiden Shogun. He quickly moved to catch Kinich, holding him in a princess-like carry as he continued to move through the air.

   “Oh- Hello,” Kinich reacted after a few seconds.

   Kazuha chuckled while not losing his focus on the competition and obstacles, “Hi,” his smile stayed, oftentimes glancing at Kinich. It was intoxicating, Kinich found himself slightly losing track of time. “Feel free to fix your grapple if you want to,” Kazuha’s voice was gentle, yet it held an undertone of not wanting Kinich to have to leave. As such, Kinich looked over it and - quite loudly - complained about it breaking on him. Kazuha’s smile became more gentle, silently understanding what Kinich was doing. They finished the competition fifth and sixth with Ifa and Chasca immediately surrounding them after Kazuha helped Kinich back to standing up.

   “Shit, Kinich, you okay?” They had clearly seen the incident from further ahead or the finish line.

   “Yeah, I’ll just have to fix the grapple tonight,” Kinich and Kazuha shared a look.

   “It’s good Kazuha was close by, that looked terrifying, bro,” Ifa put a hand on Kinich’s shoulder in a comforting manner.

 

The four had decided to get some food after the competition. It turned out that Chasca had gotten first place and Ifa had gotten third. “I’ve gotta say, though,” Ifa began, “getting fifth and sixth with a setback is very impressive. The way Kazuha moved through the air was so cool, too.”

   “The bursts of air looked gentle,” Chasca agreed.

   “They can be, yes. I often don’t use them for much outside of any battle or fight aside from for if I need to get up somewhere higher than I can climb or when the Traveler helped me with gliding.” Kazuha explained.

   “Gliding?” Kazuha had apparently forgotten that not many places outside of Mondstadt had nor heard of gliders.

   “Using a glider, yes. A wing technology made in Mondstadt. It hasn’t really left the nation but I believe the nations the Traveler has visited had made them a special version to represent the Nation,” He continued to explain, remembering the Traveler showing him the Inazuma-themed glider the Kamisato Clan had gifted them.

   “Really? Do you have anything to show about it? I’m guessing this Traveler will be here at some point, it would be nice to get ahead of that. Especially since, if they’re getting such a customised gift, they must be quite important,” Chasca took a mental note of what Kazuha said.

   “I should have some pictures they took on the Alcor, I’ll find them when Beidou returns and hand them to Kinich,” Kazuha promised. 

 

And there Kazuha was yet again, laying in his bed and staring at the ceiling. He thought back to the talk prior to the competition and the competition itself, ‘ So close and yet so far away, will there ever be a day I can hold him with peace in my mind or will thoughts of internalised disgust constantly plague my waking moments? ’ Kazuha sighed, questioning his every thought process. He had finally heard the knock on the door, humming to let - who he assumed was Kinich - know they were free to enter the room. Kinich walked in, as expected, but he was clearly ready for bed and without Ajaw. “Are you alright?” Kazuha went to sit up but Kinich gestured for him to move over in the bed, which he did. The two cuddled for a while, relaxing in each other's arms. It felt as if this was an instinct for the two, as if their meeting was predetermined. Kazuha hummed, nuzzling slightly into Kinich’s chest. 

   “Thank you,” Kinich broke the silence, yet it stayed comfortable, “for saving me earlier…”

   Kazuha looked up towards him slightly, “You don’t have to thank me for that, you know?” The two stared into each other’s eyes for what felt like the millionth time.

 

The next morning they awoke in each other’s arms, the air around them warm yet cooling. “Mornin’, felt tired after last night?” Kazuha lightheartedly joked, noticing how Kinich had woken up after him for once.

   Kinich blushed lightly, “Perhaps…”

   Kazuha chuckled, “I’ll go get food, you rest,” He got up off the bed and got dressed in his day-to-day clothes before leaving the room.

He walked around for a bit before being found by Ifa, “You lost? Oh-” Kazuha didn’t have enough time before Ifa was adjusting his scarf, “Careful there, you looking for food?” he asked once he finished adjusting it.

   “Huh? Yes,” Kazuha was slightly confused but Ifa gave him a knowing look. 

   “Don’t worry, I know just where Kinich usually eats breakfast,” Kazuha was even more confused, he hadn’t even said anything about Kinich. Yet, all at once, he realised what Ifa was saying.

 

The two went to a food place nearby and Ifa ordered for himself and Kinich before letting Kazuha order for himself. “I can take his food to your room,” Ifa offered once they got the food. “Maybe just go beforehand,” he suggested. Kazuha took the offer and walked far in front of Ifa. Once at his room’s door, he knocked in his usual way before opening the door and walking inside. 

   “Ifa’ll be here soon,” He simply mentioned, even though Kinich was already dressed in his daily clothes.

   “He will?” Kinich looked confused for a second before sighing, “of course he will.” Sure enough, Ifa was knocking at the door a few minutes later. Kazuha opened the door and took the food from him as the two wished each other a good day.

 

Kazuha and Kinich ate in comfortable silence. That is how a day after a competition often went. They would eat together comfortably and spend the day relaxing and talking. Today was no different, no matter what had happened the day prior. Kazuha knew he would miss this the second he left Natlan. 

 

Walking back to the Stadium of Sacred Flame took two days with a rest stop with the Masters of the Night Wind. “Kinich! Kazuha! Glad to see you again, did you have fun?” Mavuika welcomed them.

   “You act like you’ve been waiting for us specifically,” Kinich commented.

   “I’m always glad to see everyone, you know that,” Mavuika responded lightly, “Besides, the journey’s over for Kazuha soon. Gotta make these days worth every moment,” That comment hit Kazuha and Kinich like a Frostarm Lawachurl’s attack. 

   “Oh… I guess it is…” Kinich hummed, having not realised how quickly the time seemed to pass. Mavuika invited them for dinner before the two would go to sleep. She asked about their time with the Masters of the Night Wind and Flower-Feather Clan, listening to Kazuha as he described the competitions of the two tribes. Kinich almost got lost in thought as he watched Kazuha talk about the days in an excited and passionate tone. He thought back to the day of the flight competition and quickly changed his attention to the food in front of him. 

 

It was oddly quiet as the two walked around the stadium with Kinich talking about the past Pilgrimages and the Night Warden Wars as Kazuha listened carefully, asking questions about anything he didn’t understand or wanted to know more about. That was how they spent their time at the stadium. Walking around, talking about anything and everything they could think of, relaxing under the sun or in their rooms. Too soon, they were already walking to the Collective of Plenty. Too soon, the journey was almost over.

Notes:

just realised this is almost over, hello?? i hope you've all liked this so far, i have a kinda plan to have this be 1/3 of a lil series but it might be a while before i get part 2 and 3 written 3