Pleasantries
Tw: SFW, can be read as gender neutral tho written with a fem reader in mind, fluff.
Pairing: Wanderer x Reader
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"There's no need to exchange pleasantries. It's rather pathetic to force a conversation, just to occupy silence."
"Sure buddy," you say with an eye roll "so you've said a million times already."
The two of you have set up a small camp near the outskirts of Sumeru City, taking a rest after a long afternoon of clearing the fatui infested routes. You were sitting across from each other with a small camp fire between you.
"And yet idiots like you keep asking me pointless questions." He replies haughtily.
"It's what friends do dude, you chat together about stuff you like, or... " You smile mischievously. "Would you rather when it's my turn to cook, I make you a pile of extra sweet tricolored dango? Or what if, say, I hand them over to you as a gift in front of Nahida?" He glares. "Something tells me she won't just let you dump them somewhere." You say smugly.
"...I'd like to see you try."
"I'm just saying, that would definitely make you annoyed right? So you like, have to tell me your likes and dislikes." You pull out a notebook and pen from seemingly nowhere and prepare yourself to write; "Go on then don't be shy," you smile cheekily, "tell me everything."
He sighs. "...Fine, just to shut you up." He looks up towards the night sky. "I loathe overly sweet things, even more so if they stick to my teeth. As for favorites... I guess in that regard, the simpler the better."
The wanderer watches as you scribble into your notebook, it's cover turned to him so he can't actually see the contents of the page. "I see, and what drinks do you enjoy?" You continue.
"Something with a rather bitter flavor to it would suit me well. Any sugary drinks are certainly out of the question."
You hum. "Makes sense." You say distractedly, then flip the notebook and show him you had not, in fact, been writing anything he told you. Instead there were poorly drawn stick figures of the both of you holding hands and smiling. "Say, do you think I have a future in the art business?"
"Well, that's just downright awful." He scoffs. "No one would hire you. You lack understanding of basic human anatomy; the arms are too short, the torso too thin, the face is almost beyond salvation, and the hair... I'm not even sure it's supposed to be hair. Do better."
You fall out of your seat cackling, your whole body shaking. "Dang dude you're brutal!" It takes effort for you to subdue your laughs. You stand, but instead of returning to your previous seat you go sit on the log next to him, still giggling to yourself.
"Well, I try. You asked for my opinion, you should expect nothing less than honesty."
" 'K, 'k. So, what about you? Can you draw?" You sit next to him, but angle your body to face his.
"I've never been very good at it, to be honest. The only things I can draw are maps and blueprints. I've even used to have a rather elaborate sketchbook full of those."
"Oh?" You say, grabbing your notebook-now-revealed-sketchbook again, flipping it to a new page. "Were those from your fatui days? When you were planning... Fatui things?"
"You could say that. My drawings of my personal projects in particular were highly confidential. I only showed them to my closest confidants."
"I'm surprised you even had confidants, with that nasty temper you had back then." You pick up your pen and go back to your scribbling.
He crosses his arms "You're really testing my patience here."
"What?" You respond teasingly, eyes focused on your work in the sketchbook. "You're the one that likes honesty so much!" You challenge.
"Fair enough. Then I'll be upfront with you: your drawing skills suck. They're terrible. If you think there's talent in that hand of yours, you're lying to yourself."
"Mhm..." You respond distractedly, your sketchbook turned away from him like before.
"Are you even listening to me?" In a flash, he's reaching for the sketchbook to see whatever it is you're-
You slap his hand away, albeit not harshly. "You'll see when I'm done ."
"...Fine. Keep your damn secret. What could that page possibly be for? You still think you can be an artist, don't you?"
You look up at him sharply, and keep eye contact for a long moment, long enough he worries he'd actually managed to offend you, but then you go right back to the sketchbook, ignoring him once more.
"...You really are the most annoying person I've ever met." He grumbles.
That brings a chuckle out of you. "Funny I could say the same about you," you respond easily, then glance up at him with a soft smile "but you know, you're also my favorite person to hangout with.
"...Did you just make a romantic implication?"
"Maybe I did and maybe I didn't." You reply casually, going back to your work.
He raises a brow. "Hmm. Do you happen to have feelings for me by any chance?"
"Is that your attempt to get a confession? Or maybe..." You glance up at him with a smirk, "Fishing for compliments, wanderer?"
His face flushes a soft purple. Pretty you think. "That was absolutely not what I was doing, I was simply... uh..."
You giggle. "Either way," you say, rising from your seat and carefully tearing out the page you'd been working on, then handing it over, revealing a sketched portrait of himself, signed : What if I do like you? -(y/n). You take a step back, awaiting his reaction, feeling uncharacteristically nervous.
"What... He stares at the drawing in awe for a few moments ...How did you manage to capture my likeness this fast? This is almost creepy." He adds the last comment almost out of habit, clearly not meaning it one bit.
"Then I guess I should spend less time with you? That is the only reason I was able to draw you this fast... Maybe we should hangout less, since you find it so unsettling." You say with mock offense.
"No, that's not... Don't leave. And didn't you promise not to, anyways?"
He stands and takes a few steps closer to you and looks at the drawing again. "My hat... the sleeves... that's all correct. Are you, by chance, a professional artist in disguise?"
"Just a hobby," you answer, "though don't think I was born with special talent or anything, it took lots of practice."
"I..." He lightly runs a finger on the lines, careful not to smudge them, not that the material he's made out of can really do that. "It's beautiful. I could never replicate your passion to the craft, even if I spent my entire existence practicing. He looks towards you. "It's an honor to be the subject of your drawing. I'll keep it, as a keepsake."
That's unfair you think, flushing. "I'm glad you like it but..." You point at the signature, your blush deepening. "You're not gonna answer that? It's rude to keep a lady waiting."
"I was expecting you to confess directly if you did have feelings for me, this shy side of yours is quite unusual." He chuckles. "I've always found that directness of yours charming, to be honest. My feelings for you... are complex, but if I know one thing about you, it's that you always manage to surprise me." A smirk spreads across his features."
"...So what's your answer?" You ask carefully.
"I'm a bit surprised myself. I've never felt so... connected to someone. If you like me, even as just a friend, then my feelings for you will only increase. I enjoy spending time with you." He takes a long breath. "And... I think I've started liking you... romantically."
You sigh in relief, and start shifting your weight from leg to leg oh archons that was nerve-racking.
"I thought you liked being straightforward. You've been teasing me this entire time, why be nervous all of a sudden?" He says with a smirk.
You glared at his teasing, though without any real heat behind it, you shove him lightly on the arm "Shut up." You mumble.
He chuckles. "You really are adorable, you know that?"
You mock pout and play along. "I'm not adorable!" You speak in the most cutesy tone you can muster. "I am a beast to be reckoned with," You raise your pitch further, "a monster of nature!"
He bursts out laughing. "You couldn't scare a butterfly."
You halt, cutesy voice already gone and a dangerous glimmer in your eyes, you take one step forward towards him, your eyes not leaving his "Funny, you said I had horrible drawing skills yet look how that turned out." You take another step, and with your mouth now next to his ear you whisper darkly. "Do you want to bet?"
The hairs on the back of his neck stood up, his heart started racing as he took a step away from you. "...Maybe I shouldn't have said that."
You burst out laughing. "Oh my gosh your face!" You say, happy tears welling up at the corner of your eyes. "I got you good! Pffffft-"
"...You suck."
You laugh harder, letting yourself slide down to the floor like before. "S-sorry, but hey! You're the one who underestimated me first!" You say gasping for air.
"You nearly gave me the equivalent of a heart attack, you little..." He sighs, his expression serious. "...So I suppose this means you like me too?"
"Your laughs die down, and you start regaining your breath, you raise your hand cheekily, motioning for him to help you up "What do you think?"
"...I think you can help yourself." He crosses his arms and looks away from you.
"Oh come on don't be like that!" You say grinning. "Just help me up and I'll give you your answer."
"...Fine." He walks towards you, grabbing your hand as he asks "So what's the verdict?"
Just as he starts pulling however, you bring him down on the ground next to you, and just before he has a chance to protest, you wrap your arms around his neck bringing your faces so close with just a few inches between you.
"...Woah, easy now. You really do have a flare for the dramatic."
He lets out a sigh in defeat, in another life, the empty cavity of his heart would have been thumping at the contact.
"But doesn't it make everything so interesting?" You say, slowly inching closer, your eyes glancing between his eyes and lips.
The Wanderer can barely manage a response, "...Yes. Yes, I suppose it does."
And then, you close the distance between your lips, his eyelids falling shut.
The moment your mouths meet, a feeling of pure euphoria washes over you. You can't help but close your eyes, sinking deeper into the kiss. He pulls you closer and you gladly let him, wanting to experience every possible sensation you could in this moment, your mouths locked together. Your heart races, pumping blood and joy through your body, making you feel like it would burst at any second.
After a long moment, you pull away slowly, already mourning the loss of contact but needing to catch your breath. "Well that was... Nice." You giggle at your own underwhelming response, fully aware the kiss was much more than nice.
"...Nice?" He repeats, looking down at you, his face a bright purple color as he tries to compose himself. "Is that all you have to say?"
"I'm just teasing, you're an annoyingly good kisser Wanderer." This better not raise his ego further.
He tries to act cool and unfazed, but it's useless. "R-really? Are you sure about that? I mean, it was nice, but... it was... Uh."
"Yes I'm sure." You say firmly, rising, and pulling him up with you. "It was perfect."
His eyes narrow as if he didn't quite believe you.
"Yes. It was." You insist , then, back to your usual teasing you say: "Or do you want more compliments oh great and wise Wanderer?"
He groans, covering his face with his hands. "You're going to milk every moment of this, won't you?!"
"But of course! Can you really call yourself my boyfriend if you weren't subjected to my teasing in your every waking moment?"
"Boyfriend?" He looks back up, his expression slightly confused, then "Right... Yes. That's... Gonna take some getting used to."
You sigh dreamily at his cute expression, then throw your arms around him in a hug and sqweel at his cuteness.
He remains still for a few moments, then starts gently stroking your head.
But at some point, you stop and pull away slightly, you don't let go of him however. "Wait! Would Nahida approve of me?"
You manage to catch him off-guard, not expecting you to break the embrace so quickly. "You want her to give us her blessings? Is that what this is about? I think, all things considered, she'd be more than happy to learn that I found someone who appreciates me as much as you do."
"Still, she's basically your mom!" You say, starting to drag him towards the Sanctuary of Surasthana as he squirmed in your hold. "We should pay her a visit. Oh! Maybe we can grab her a gift at the bazaar first!"
He sighs, then stops resisting, and lets you pull him along, knowing there's not a whole lot he can do to stop you. "You really want to involve her in this?" He sighs again."Very well. Let us go."
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