Work Text:
Favonius Keep settles down for the day, chatters of the knights distant from where you watched the lake of Amsvartnir. The warm light of dusk hits your cheek and the mystical building floating above the said lake. Cold wind rushes past, heavy shoulders relax.
A heavy notebook—could it even be called a notebook from its size?—sits on your lap. Bookmarks, folded pages, messy handwriting from quick recordings rest within it. Its contents still plague your mind. Despite the cooling shades of green, blue, and purple greeting your sight, the tiring day (or week, rather) was starting to get to you. Not that it was anything new, no. The day had just been more tiring than usual.
Greetings, gifts, letters from your homeland—despite today being the day you were born into this world, you still had to do your duties as part of the Knights of Favonius. Juggling all the surface-level kindness from many was additional work to your already loaded schedule. You look down at your notebook, letters from your parents and friends stuck between pages. I still have to reply...
"Ah, there you are."
You shoot up from your seat by the wrecked stairs, hugging your notebook to your chest as you muster up a smile to the man approaching behind you.
"Grandmaster Varka—"
His hand lands on your shoulder the moment he got near. A gentle push from him was all it took to have you sit back down, your neck craning up to him.
"Miss Supervisor," he greets gently, settling one step behind her. "Expedition Alchemist,"
You almost reel back when he leans over to you. Panicked thoughts were immediately silenced when his nose meets the top of your head, the warmth of his breath on your skin making your whole body heat up.
"Birthday girl." He murmurs.
"V... Varka," you attempt to stabilize your voice, meeting his eyes when he pulls back. "We've been looking for you all day, we still have a lot of reports to settle and compile. Oh, and the status of deliveries for the weapon supply—"
"I'm not here to chatter about work and logistics, Supervisor," Varka chuckles at your restlessness. His hand on your shoulder coaxed you to turn your back to him, his other hand resting on the other side of you. "It's your special day. Loosen up, will you?"
Your lips part to retaliate but the words get cut off when his thumbs press on the stiff muscles of your shoulders. A sigh leaves you, your body melting. The gentleness of his hands and the amount of pressure he was using would surprise anyone after seeing him on the battlefield. Rough, he usually was. To you, he seemed to soften like a petal of a cecilia.
Varka chuckles. "There we go, good girl. The day ending calls for a moment of relaxation."
Heat rushes up to your ears at his praise. You turn your head, a shy gaze meeting amusement in another. "What's up with you, anyway? Doing this..."
"Well, everyone knows you've been working hard ever since we all went on this expedition," his hands trail down your back, the pressure of his thumbs making your breath shake. "And the amount of annoyance I've probably put you means I owe you compensation." He laughs in a softer manner. Very different from his loud ones, so you turn away.
Your lips turn to a frown. Sure, you did tend to be irritable when tired and overworked—handling the logistics of the Knights of Favonius for this Nod-Krai expedition and investigating the Wild Hunt with the Lightkeepers—but the way he said it sounded like he felt guilty. Everything else would've annoyed you, but to be annoyed at him? It sounded like a rare occurrence. Alas, your endearment for the Grandmaster is undeniable at this point.
"...you don't annoy me," you mutter out. His hands come to a stop on your lower back. "I mean, I know you tend to go out and about somewhere and we have to look for you to work on papers and investigations. I know you tend to get drunk making it impossible to work straight with you."
Another chuckle leaves Varka. You couldn't see his face, but his voice alone sounded guilty. "Yes, I know—"
"But that doesn't stop me from admiring what you actually do," you meet his eyes again, seeing the slight surprise in them. "You're strong, you care for your team, you care for Mondstadt. And probably many more that I can't remember from the top of my head right now because I'm exhausted."
Varka blinks twice, staring. Most likely your eyebags that were part of your signature look at that point. Silence, for a moment. Then a smile.
One of his hands go up to your head, his palm almost engulfing you. He grins. "Alright, I get it. I was just worried I'd be a burden on you. Your pretty little face looks tired as is."
"You're not a burden," your cheeks flush.
"Yes, yes, I'm not a burden," he leans down with a laugh in his voice, getting close to your face. You don't reel back. "And I'm not letting this day end without getting a gift for you."
You feel his lips on yours—the kiss is soft, fleeting. The smell of him makes your chest warm up.
With wide eyes, you stare at him when he pulls away. "...you don't smell like alcohol."
"Is it that surprising?" Varka cups the side of your face with a bigger grin on his face. "I wouldn't want to kiss my dear Supervisor smelling like something she doesn't like."
You almost forget the notebook you were holding, clutching it to your racing heart. Your eyes unknowingly turn pleading after the sensation of the kiss left you yearning.
He raises an eyebrow. "One more?"
A nod from you has him giving you another kiss, this one lasting longer than the previous. His lips move with yours in a slow motion, a tongue slipping out to tease, but he doesn't coax your mouth open.
"Happy Birthday, love," he whispers between kisses. "You've been working so hard, I'm so proud of you..."
You mutter a plead against his lips when he pulled away. Thus, a burst of laughter that made you jump leaves him.
"You'll get more later, dearest," his thumb brushes your cheek. He grins at you like he was seeing a mountain of gold and silver. "How about we stargaze on a cliff with a small picnic I set up for tonight, hm?"