fandoms . twst; hsr; gi; bllk; kny; bsd; sbg; homesick; angel of death; hand jumper; the blind prince; ph; ttaf; not even bones; silent screams; marrionetta; etc.
I have a lot of sketches in my drafts, this is one of them and I thought it was time to bring it to the light. Because I was scrolling on Tumblr in the “For you” tab and I came across something heinous and this was my reaction. I’m sure this is how Sebastian and Ciel would react too.
Someone even had the AUDACITY, to go into my inbox and say “hihi love your fics!! i know you mainly do reader insert but could you write for sebaciel? :3”
blocked. nope. get off my blog unless you’d like to be cursed.
✦suggestive! how would the boys react if you step out of the bedroom wearing a very revealing outfit for a date
Riddle Rosehearts
You step into the lounge where Riddle is already waiting, pocket watch in hand, posture perfect as always. He looks up. His eyes go wide. Then wider. Then enormously wide. The pocket watch slips from his fingers and clatters to the floor.
“You…you’re not even dressed!” he’s voice cracking on the last word.
You blink. Look down at yourself. Look back at him. “…I am dressed, Riddle.”
He makes a strangled noise somewhere between a gasp and a teakettle. His face goes from pale to rose red in record time. He takes one step forward, then stops like he’s hit an invisible wall, hands fluttering uselessly. “That is…not… that garment barely qualifies as clothing!”
You cross your arms, which only makes the neckline dip lower, he makes another strangled sound and averts his eyes so fast you’re worried he’ll give himself whiplash. “Riddle, it’s just a dress. I feel cute in it.”
“Cute is one word.” he mutters, still staring at the ceiling. “Another word is dangerous to my health.”
He finally looks at you again and takes a deep, steadying breath. “For the sake of my sanity, my blood pressure… please. Change. Or at least add a cardigan. A very long cardigan.”
When you pout he looks genuinely pained. “…I’ll wear the matching couple’s jacket you like. The one with the hearts. Please...”
You end up compromising, you throw on that jacket. But he still blushes every time the light hits it just right.
Ace Trappola
Ace is on the couch scrolling magicam when you walk in. He glances up casually then does a double take so hard his phone almost flies out of his hand. “Holy…babe. Babe.”
A huge, dorky, shit eating grin spreads across his face. He sits up straight, leans forward, props his chin in both hands like he’s at the theater watching the best show of his life. “Turn around. Yeahhh, that’s the stuff. Damn, you’re serving tonight.”
He’s openly stare, eyes sparkling, already mentally saving mental screenshots. You do a little spin for him and he whistles. Then…about five seconds later…reality crashes in. “Wait. Wait wait wait. We’re going out. Like, to the town. Around people. Who will also see this.”
The grin falters. He suddenly looks like a man who just realized he left his wallet at home after ordering the most expensive thing on the menu. “Nope. No way. Absolutely not.”
He jumps up, yanks his hoodie off in one motion, and practically shoves it at you. “At least put this on. Please. I’m begging. I’ll literally get on my knees. I cannot handle every single guy staring at my girlfriend’s…” he gestures vaguely at your entire torso “everything.”
You raise a brow. “Jealous, Trappola?”
“Territorial!” he corrects instantly. “Huge difference. Now put the hoodie on before I start crying or start a fight. Probably both.”
He spends the entire date with his arm glued around your waist, glaring at anyone who looks longer than two seconds. The hoodie stays on. He still sneaks peeks at your back side every chance he gets.
Leona Kingscholar
You step out and announce “Ready!” with a little twirl.
Leona already half dozing against the wall, cracks one eye open. Then both. He drags his gaze very slowly from your ankles all the way up, lingering shamelessly on every exposed inch before meeting your eyes. A lazy smirk curls his lips.
“You’re gonna be cold.” he drawls. “And then you’re gonna whine about it. Loudly. For hours.”
You huff. “I won’t whine.”
“You always whine.” He pushes off the wall, stretches like a big cat. “But if you’re comfortable freezing your pretty ass off just to look hot, that’s on you, herbivore.”
He doesn’t try to stop you. Doesn’t demand you change. Doesn’t even look particularly bothered. Instead he just grabs his own jacket off the back of a chair, slings it over one shoulder, and jerks his head toward the door. “Let’s go. If you start shivering I’m draping this over you whether you like it or not. And then I’m gonna say ‘told you so’ until you beg me to shut up.”
He does exactly that three blocks later. You’re warped up in his jacket, and he’s walking with smug satisfaction while you grumble. He just mutters “Cute when you’re stubborn.”
Floyd Leech
You step out in the outfit and do a playful little “ta-da!”
Floyd’s eyes light up like Christmas lights. His grin stretches ear to ear, sharp teeth on full display. “Ehhhh〜? Shrimpy looks delicious todayyy~”
You laugh and do a spin, asking “What do you think? Is it too much? Too revealing? I wasn’t sure if…”
He’s not listening…At all.
His mismatched eyes are locked on your cleavage like it personally owes him money. Head tilted. Pupils blown wide.
“…Floyd?”
“Mmm?” Still staring.
“Eyes up here.”
He blinks slowly. Drags his gaze upward like it physically pains him. The grin somehow gets wider. “Too revealing? Nahhh〜 It’s perfect. Shows off all my favorite parts~”
He reaches out, hooks one long finger under the neckline “I could stare at this all day. Let’s cancel going out.”
You swat his hand away. He pouts dramatically but lets you drag him toward the door.
He spends the entire date with his arm slung possessively around you, chin resting on top of your head, occasionally dipping down to whisper little compliments directly into your ear. Half the time he’s not even watching where he’s going, he’s too busy enjoying the view.
Jamil Viper
You walk out confidently. Jamil looks up from where he’s adjusting his bracelets. His eyes flick over you once head to toe then again, slower.
“You look gorgeous” he says, voice smooth and appreciative.
You start to smile.
“Now go change.”
Your smile drops. “What?”
He doesn’t even look guilty. Just raises one brow like you’re being unreasonable. “That outfit is for private viewing only. We’re going to a public place with other people who have eyes. Change.”
You open your mouth to argue. He cuts you off with a single look, the ‘we both know how this ends’ look.
You try anyway. “But I like it. And you just said I look gorgeous.”
“You do. Which is why I’m not sharing the view.” He steps closer, voice dropping. “Change. Or I’ll carry you back in there myself and pick something else out. Your choice.”
You cross your arms. He just waits, patient, unruffled. Three minutes later you’re back in something significantly less revealing. Jamil gives a small, satisfied nod. “Good. Now we can go.”
He still keeps a protective hand on your lower back the entire time you’re out. Just in case.
Lilia Vanrouge
You step out and Lilia’s eyes light up like fireworks. “Fufufu! Darling, you look stunning! Absolutely ravishing!”
He floats in a quick circle around you, clapping his hands in delight. “The cut! The color! The way it hugs every curve! Perfection! And ohhh~” He stops behind you. “Your booty looks gorgeous in this! A true work of art!”
You laugh, half embarrassed, half flattered. “Is it… too much? Does it bother you that it’s so revealing?”
Lilia blinks at you like you just asked something unbelievable. “Bother me? My sweet love, I love the vibe! You’re confident, you’re sexy, you’re turning heads before we even leave the room, why would that bother me?” He grins, fangs glinting. “I want everyone to see what a gorgeous person I’ve claimed.”
Then he claps once. “Wait right there! One moment!”
He zips away in a blur. Thirty seconds later he’s back now wearing low cut shirt with a cropped black jacket with silver chains, leather pants, and boots that match yours perfectly. “Now we match~ Shall we go cause chaos, my love?”
You two end up getting stopped for photos almost every ten feet. You two hold too much power.
You go a lot to mostro lounge and love floyds service. Floyd is oblivious to your love and hints.
[Got this idea when I was thinking about VIP service in mostro lounge]
It was so obvious to everyone how you stared at him. Even the other waiters started to send him to you.
When floyd first got a tip from you he gave you a pat on the head and a shiver giving whisper to your ears.
He took the tip happily and just left.
After that you visited daily.
Always giving floyd a tip made him attached to you without noticing.
He started greeting you when you came inside the lounge guiding you to your regular seat.
He even started memorizing what you order every time you visited.
He has never done that in his whole life as server.
You on the other hand enjoyed it to the fullest and even started to ask him to give you special treatment.
Floyd didnt mind and found it amusing. Hugging you whenever you asked.
Giving your hand a kiss when you held your hand out.
It was all you could wish for.
Yet floyd thought this was all a just a funny game not getting the hints behind it.
The kisses he gave on your hands were soft and warm. His lips leaving a moist feeling.
When jade talked to his twin and was asking if that is his girlfriend he was real surprised to hear no.
"You know they are totally in love with you right"
Floyd just froze looking empty into the distance for almost ten minutes.
That was the most silent jade has ever seen him.
After that he had a whole new view of you. He felt funny inside when thinking of you and he was making up all possible scenarios in his head while in bed .
Floyd loved the thought of you and thrilling experiences.
When you visited mostro lounge again, he kissed your cheek picked you up and spun you like a princess around.
He just gave you the smuggest grin you have every seen and whispered into your ear.
"I like you shrimpy"
He gave a lick to your ear before handing you your regular drink and leaving you star struck.
This was a rollercoaster to write and I feel I hit it pretty well.
Anyways make sure to interact no matter how old this post gets.
I feel like Lohen and Wanderer are nicer than the fanbase tends to characterize them as. In the game, while battle crazy, Lohen is actually rather nice to Traveler & Paimon. (And I don't even need to get into Wanderer in game lol)
Wanderer and Lohen being soft to their partners. There's no need to be rough, they can get that energy out elsewhere. Sure, they still say weird stuff or act a little odd sometimes, but they aren't like rough or mean or keeping a vice grip on their partners, yanno?
Wanderer responding to compliments with insults that really aren't insults and have absolutely no bite in the tone. All the while definitely letting his partner invade his space far more than anyone else, and giving some degree of physical affection (even if it's just holding hands). "Yeah...well...your hair is a mess, you look like a Sumeru rose in the wind" or something. He's too tsundere to say the sweet things back right away, but he's hardly being mean, and his tone is more teasing or playful or sweet.
Lohen being gentle and cheerful with his partner. One can almost forget he's the same individual as the madman on the battlefield. That is, until... "If it's gifts you like, angel, I can happily bring back some ruin guard parts! Or, or, even some rifthound claws! Whatever's your favorite, you name it, you'll have it!" "Lohen, I meant something like flowers, or sweets, silly." "Ohhh, gotcha. I can do that too!"
Bonus: Lohen would also definitely offer to shred anything in his partner's nightmares. Not possible? Doesn't matter. He'll figure out a way. He looks so ready for the hunt that his partner actually believes him and it does actually make his partner feel better.
Anon THIS IS WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT YES
I see this a lot especially with Lohen being headcanoned to be a yandere or obsessive and possessive over his lover/partners (seeing the illuhen ship) when that isn’t his case at all, like you said when we see him he’s extremely respectful and kind even to venti which was just “a random bard that knows a little too much” according to him if I recall correctly yet he wasn’t rude or hostile to anyone 😭 even in his leaked voicelines he isn’t malicious towards the traveler but rather curious about them which reminds me a lot of Childe. I think lohen would use pet names like “angel” and “my love” so far. I’ve seen people say lohen needs someone to humble him, given what we theorize about visits and especially cryo ones he needs someone to understand him instead
Imo wanderer is just as an unfortunate case as Lohen because I think a lot of people don’t understand the difference between scaramouche and him and or prefer scaramouche instead which messes up how he is perceived, just listen to how he talks to the traveler, paimon, nahida, Durin. People he is close to and comfortable with vs how he spoke to those people as scaramouche when we were enemies it’s very different and he’s even canonically called the traveler adorable, his teapot lines are so much softer and sweeter and even the voiceline where he muses he would have loved to take them to the harbinger feasts, which could definitely be seen as a intimate gesture even if it was because he found it funny it’s akin to being invited to dinner.
Recently the fanfiction side of Genshin's been like this...
Lohen: *is a character*
Female writers/readers: Until I'm swollen. Until I can't walk. Until I'm numb. Until my head hurts. Until my cheeks are red. Until the neighbours know his name. Until my eyes roll back and stay there. 'Till my throat memorises every vein~. 'Till the doctors think he turned my red blood cells white! 'Till we create the next OCEAN! 'Till he changes my DNA to his! Until my holes speak to him in Morse code!... You could put a nuclear bomb inside me, and I'd still ride~
As much as I hate to be the party-pooper of this fandom (And I REALLY do hate it 🥺), but smut and yandere isn't ALL there is to a singular character.
All of this smutty and yandere stuff I'm seeing about Lohen (and other characters in general, but Lohen seems to be the main focus, at the moment) is lowkey making me feel really uncomfortable and concerned about some of the people's mindsets in the Genshin community.
Again, I'm NOT saying this to hate on people, I'm just saying what's been on my mind lately, and then moving on.
PLEASE don't flame or bash me for having this opinion. 🥺🙏
«I'm the Villainess and Now I Have to Avoid my Assassin! or "The (Un)fortunate Life of Lady du Randier"»
Lohen x f!reader otomeisekai AU
Chapter 4 of the series. If this is your first time seeing this post and are interested in the story, I suggest starting with Chapter 1 !
cw: honestly none. Bit of overthinking, Lohen being Lohen.
No ETA on next chapter tbh...
A/N: Sorry for taking a bit more time to release this chapter, shit happened and the place I was in didn't allow pcs or phones for over 2 hours a day. Did my best ! I hope you enjoy this one! Also tried to proofread this time, so it is in fact an option. No nsfw in here, we be chillin'.
The Nicoloid has been secured for my c6-r1-to-be Lohen. More pulls are on the way. We are getting that man.
Word count: 10k(?)
Chapter 4: Straight out of a novel.
The funeral had gone just as they usually do; a grim tone, lots of crying, and a very well-timed rain to accompany the sounds of sorrow surrounding you. Looking at the grave, you did not find it in you to cry behind your veil. As much as Flins had been a terrifying “man”, he probably also had friends, a family to care for him. But not you. What had terrified you when you saw his body for the first time was not the horror of realising it was in fact him, but the gruesome image and the smell that came with it. You cared very little for him as a person; at the end of the day, he was just another suitor.
In yet another display of gallantry, Lohen was the one holding the umbrella shielding you from the rain. He did not speak a word, but from the look in his eyes, it was obvious he knew you weren’t even sad in the slightest. His knowing eyes, discrete yet visible smirk, he knew everything, didn’t he? There was absolutely no point in pretending, so you just stared at the coffin, the words uttered by the ceremony guide sounding like distant mumbling to you. It was as though he was making fun of you without even doing anything, you could feel it in his gaze.
Not many words were spoken during the ceremony, and most of your day was spent in silence, reflecting a little over most things that had happened recently. You knew troubling yourself with such thoughts was more than unnecessary, but it simply couldn’t be helped. Up until the evening, even as you ate supper, your mind was plagued by questions.
Your inner turmoil was consuming you and, once again, you found yourself tossing and turning in bed. It looked like most of the nights you had spent here weren’t as relaxing as they should’ve been. Taking a walk in the gardens probably wouldn’t prove sufficient this time, drinking chamomile and indulging in small pleasures such as little treats couldn’t possibly calm your mind. No, you in fact did not need calm. You needed something stable or rather, something to stabilise you as you navigated through your own mind at the moment. You needed something to grip your entire attention in an effort to follow it, so much that you wouldn’t even think right anymore.
An idea flashed into your mind. It upset you, quite frankly. It infuriated you; to have such a ridiculous idea. It was almost unnerving how quickly you thought of it but still, your body moved on its own. Slipping in decent garments and slippers, you put on your thicker robes and stepped outside of your room.
Even though you stepped into this familiar territory, what you were looking for was nowhere to be found, even if it’d usually appear out of nowhere at the most inconvenient times. Sighing, your eyes traveled to the tents more cautiously, as if to spot it— or well, him more efficiently. Guards covered in bruises yet again, hurrying around to get their stuff back to their tents; maids and butlers cleaning the training grounds after another long day of “learning”.
The light was on in the main tent, and this was probably your only chance at finding him so late.
Your way of reasoning was quite simple, really: you needed to take your mind off of these horrible things you had seen. What better solution than Lohen? You knew it would take every ounce of restraint you had to keep calm around the annoying man, and so your focus would be diverted. But another problem presented itself…
..you needed an excuse. Of course. You couldn’t just barge into his tent and proudly exclaim something along the lines of “Sir Lohen, I come seeking your tiresome presence so that I may stop overthinking”, could you? Luckily, you wouldn’t have to resort to that, as the training grounds already had enough of an excuse as it was. You steeled yourself a little, exhaled then pushed the drapes of his tent open, stepping in confidently.
“For the last time, Sir Lohen, your poor recruits—”
You blinked. No one. Not a soul. Huh..? You stepped a little further into the tent. The candles were lit, there were some papers— contracts and such linked to recruits, notes he would take during training, surely. You didn’t really understand. The man always had the perfect timing to show up unannounced whenever you needed peace, and now that you were looking for him, he wouldn’t even… be where he was supposed to? You clenched your jaw a little again and turned around to leave, and then.
“Fancy seeing you here, my Lady. Did you need something from little old me?”
Well, here he was. On one hand, you were relieved to see him even though his presence was exhausting, but on the other hand, his appearance was slightly… compromised.
You couldn’t help your eyes from wandering a little downwards, not on his face anymore. He was bandaged, yes. Bandaged. But why could you see the bandages? Ah, yes. He was shirtless, not even an ounce of shame in his eyes. Despite the frail appearance he had when wearing all of his clothing, you found him to be fitter than you had believed. He was slim, that was for sure, but his arms and abdomen were far more toned than you expected. Nothing too big or bulky, just… just right.
“Mm? Like what you see?”
You jumped a bit in surprise and forced your eyes to look up into his again. Oh, how content he was, catching you off-guard when your eyes were wandering over him. You cleared your throat.
“Sir Lohen, you simply cannot keep bullying the recruits like this. How are they supposed to learn if you keep doing this?”
He hummed a little, pretending to give it thoughts as he walked towards you, then just past you, merely a few inches away before he sat into his chair, slightly leaned back with his legs comfortably relaxed. “I do not believe for a single second that you came here at this hour to lecture me on such a matter. Am I wrong?”
Ouch… once again, your horrible acting talents had betrayed you. You felt you could backtrack and leave, pretending it didn’t matter anymore or, surely enough you could double down and assure him that you were definitely not here seeking his presence, of all things. Ah, of course! You could divert his question, so you pointed at his bandages as he removed them to replace them with fresh ones.
“Whatever happened to you?” You couldn’t help but look at the wounds; like small yet deep little cuts, probably from arrows, probably from forcing his trainees to use him as living target practice. It seems some of them were actually not too bad at that.
“Ah, well. Sometimes things do not go exactly as planned.” He shrugged nonchalantly, flashing yet another one of those charming smiles at you. “Though it would be delightful to encounter fiery individuals who do not miss their hits sometimes, don’t you think?”
Ah, no matter. Your eyes weren’t on his anymore, but on the wound. It made you a tad nauseous at the sight, but also more and more curious. You must’ve paled quite a lot, because in the blink of an eye, you were seated in his place, and he was standing.
“Well, as honored as I am that my Lady is eyeing me so eagerly, you should not be staring at wounds like these. It is.. undeserving of your attention.”
It must’ve been the exhaustion, but your hand reached a little toward the wound before retracting as you realised what you were doing, warmth spreading on your face, knowing he had definitely seen. He did not make fun of you this time, simply grabbing your hand gently and dragging it back to the wound, not exactly on it, but on the surrounding area.
“I—” you stammered a little, unsure how to justify your actions. “I did not mean to— this is just… a little… I should not have, Sir Lohen. I apologise, I’ll—”
“That is quite fine, my Lady. But do not think you can walk out of this situation with just an apology. No, I require something in exchange.” His eyes narrowed a little, pleased by your visible apprehension.
“State your price.” You said through a tight throat, hoping deep down that he wouldn’t ask you for something impossible such as taking a life. His grin grew wider and he leaned down towards you, yet remained at a respectful distance… somewhat.
“Well, about that.”
His index finger tilted your chin up a bit, his abyssal gaze on yours. “Eyes on me.” Although the voice was nowhere near rough, you complied. His finger made his way from your chin to your ear, down to your neck, then your shoulder… and… and then… and then he pinched it. Quite hard, in fact. It didn’t really hurt, but it was just a little uncomfortable, stung a bit and lingered for a few seconds. He chuckled at your surprised inhale and removed his hand.
“There we go. Now we’re even.”
It was… a fair exchange, if you had to be honest. You did touch a wound that was probably still a little painful, so a gentle pinch of your skin was not completely unreasonable… even if it was very unbecoming of a knight to let his fingers on a Lady in such a way. He retracted his hands and turned his attention back to bandaging himself, leaving you a little flushed on his chair.
“And so, my Lady? To what do I owe the honor of your visit?”
The oh-so-dreaded question was asked again. You could tell him there was no specific reason other than his annoying presence, but internally sighed at the idea.
“Gods forbid—”
“—a lady has her secrets, right? Fair enough then, I shan’t pry further, my Lady.” He seemed to know exactly why you were here but actually didn’t tease you with it, which surprised you greatly. “You may stay for as long as you wish. We are still inside your estate, after all.”
There was no mockery in his tone for once. He was merely rebandaging himself carefully, taking all of the time he needed to cut and fix the bandages. You pensively watched him do it and couldn't help but wonder where his usual demeanor had gone. It could be the fatigue, since Lohen was more or less always working as an instructor but was also dealing with potential threats around the estate and in the region in general. Moreover, you had come to his tent at a rather late hour and he was probably planning to sleep.
“I should leave, it is getting quite late.”
His face still turned towards his medical tools, his eyes traveled to yours. “If you are concerned about my sleeping schedule, just know that there is no need. I am always glad to bring my Lady some peace of mind.”
The words were a little comforting and so you decided to indulge and stay a little longer. He would probably make you pay for this by being annoying to you the following days, but you really needed some company right now and more specifically, his company. Despite his chaotic behavior, you knew he was a good fighter and a… somewhat respectful knight, which made you feel rather safe around him.
You could hear someone calling for you, but the voice was very distant and a little muffled, like an old memory resurfacing. The calling grew quieter over time, giving room for complete silence. Everything was rather blurry and voices around you seemed like they belonged to no one, every single noise altered by your consciousness, you thought.
Ah, you were dreaming, weren’t you?
It was as though you hadn’t had a single dream since you had impersonated Lady Du Randier. You vaguely recalled dreaming in your previous life, but as far as you remembered, it was always somewhat gruesome or related to war. This one however was pleasant, warm, like a comfortable embrace you felt safe in. You were somewhat aware that you had passed out inside Lohen’s tent, but it didn’t really matter, not right now.
Nothing mattered. You felt like you were floating, as if lifted off the ground, everything felt nice. You were gazing into this darkness, but it didn’t seem frightening at all. You knew you weren’t awake anyway, so anything you saw here would be completely irrelevant. You didn’t see anything though, only heard. Muffled voices, random ambient noises, then the warmth was traded for a squishier sensation, as if you were laying on a cloud. As much as you liked it, the warmth from before was better.
You tried clinging to it with all of your might, but it felt like it was already somewhat gone. It was still here in a way, but not entirely. You could hear yet another voice, but so distant and muffled you couldn't make out any words.
…and then you woke up. You were expecting to see the simple craftsmanship of the furniture inside Lohen's tent, but all you could see was the headboard of your bed and your fluffy pillow that you had probably been hugging and tugging on for a while considering the shape it had taken. One of your butlers had probably carried you back to your room, and you were slightly embarrassed when you thought about it… you weren't a child anymore, after all.
You did manage to fall asleep, almost without a care in the world, feeling so much better now that… ah, nevermind. It upset you, just thinking about it.
You woke up well-rested for once, earlier than usual even, and decided you wouldn't loiter around today. No. You had to take your fate back into your own hands. You managed to dress yourself correctly and went outside, passing by the barracks as if it had become a routine now, though the menace was nowhere to be seen. You went to greet some of the knights, thanking them for their service.
“I do hope Sir Lohen has not been too harsh on you?”
The simple mention of his name made them shiver in their boots. “Ah… Well, some of us made a little mistake recently. Thankfully I didn't! I-I wouldn't! But the poor souls had to undergo his uh.. he calls it ‘special training’. No one really knows what happens there, though…”
It made you curious. What horrors could he possibly inflict on those poor trainees that they would be terrified just hearing his name? “A mistake? Do you mean… The arrows?”
The way that poor man paled told you enough and confirmed the flying suspicion you had about Lohen’s wounds. You went back inside and stepped confidently into the hall. Today was the day where..! Where.. what exactly? You were very determined to enlighten yourself on your situation, but where would you even begin?
First, the mystery letter. This couldn't be helped and had to be put on hold. Then, there was Lohen's behavior… which sadly also had to be put on hold. Rationally, the only thing you could “investigate” was Flins’ death, but how? You did have some basic forensic knowledge from your previous life, though justifying how a Lady would know all these things could prove a little tricky.
Perhaps you could persuade the medics who performed his autopsy to let you in on the not-so-juicy-anymore details, or sneak into their office to steal the documents, but you couldn't possibly unearth the man yourself. Nor with anyone else. This was a line you would not cross. How to get these documents frustrated you deeply. Well, you did know of an alternative but…
Every single atom in your body told you not to. First, because you would have to ask. Second, you would probably be mocked a little for it. And finally, third, you weren't sure you wanted to see Lohen yet after yesterday. Unfortunately, the vision of his shirtless form bandaging himself was already branded into your mind. Maybe as a last resort…
After asking for a carriage, you stepped inside of it, determined to play the part of a terribly sorrowed woman who had lost her best suitor. As previously stated, your acting talents were really, really, indubitably bad. Horrifying, even. But surely shedding fake tears and acting dead inside would be completely fine. The ride took a while as well, since the office was located in the capital, but you eventually made it, stepping out of the carriage.
You rubbed your eyes a little and forced yourself to yawn, giving your face this unmistakable— iconic even “grieving enamored maiden” look and entered through the front door. You were promptly received as it was rather rare that they would receive any female customers, and explained your “issue”.
“I have been oh-so unable to sleep since my beloved suitor’s passing… Alas, no amount of comfort or affection could possibly quell the unending sorrow that plagues my heart. Ah— truly, the only thing that could bring peace to this weeping maiden is to know how her most dearest passed. Would you please be able to enlighten me?”
The coroner probably did not know any better as there was no reluctance on their side. After all, such a beautiful, terribly tormented maiden could not possibly mean any harm, right? And so, they led you a little deeper into the office, where all of the gruesome details were kept away from the public’s gaze.
The document read the following informations, though some of them were redacted:
Name: ███████ Flins.
Occupation: █████.
M̶a̶r̶r̶i̶e̶d̶ / Single / W̶i̶d̶o̶w̶e̶d̶
Identified by: an unreadable name you were frankly not interested in reading.
Residence: ███████ Estate.
Height: ~182cm
Hair: Dark Blue — light blue.
Cause of death: stabbed through jugular and carotid by an iron butter knife.
Additional details: Wound on front of the neck— growing towards outside, tilted upwards.
Burial requested by household. No further investigation required by household.
A few things caught your attention. First off, the cause of death. It was common knowledge that one being stabbed would inevitably meet their doom to a sharp blade— you were painfully aware of that fact, though… a butter knife? Even sharpened, you heavily doubted it would cut well enough to slice through two major arteries. Secondly, the specifics: iron. You did recall that carrying iron around a fae was in fact a bad idea when confronted with them. Maybe it would have helped? But then again, the assaulter would have needed to know about this weakness. Lastly, the way the wound was described. Front of the neck, upwards and towards the outside.
Undoubtedly, the opponent must have been standing in front of him, and was probably on the shorter side due to the inclination of the wound. This would narrow your search quite a lot, though Flins was taller than most of the people you had met so far, aside from this bulky man Varka. You rapidly shoved the copy of this report into your purse and exited, thanking the helpful coroners for alleviating your grief.
As soon as you returned to your estate, you only had one culprit in mind. An unending source of malice, a bully even: Lohen. It had to be him. He knew about faes and specifically about Flins being one, he was very much proficient in such simple weapons, and as for a motive… you couldn’t quite figure it out, but surely you would hear it from the horse’s mouth.
Stepping into the barracks with an insatiable hunger for answers, you did not even make yourself known as you stepped into his tent. Here he was, sitting at his desk, and turned around to greet you.
“Ah, my Lady. What brings y—”
You practically shoved the coroner’s report into his face, looking at him in a mixture of fear, confusion and discomfort. “Would you mind, Sir Lohen, explaining what any of this means?”
He threw a glance at the report, eyes skimming over the information provided before looking up at you. It was the second time you had seen his fox-like grin vanish, his eyes reflecting nothing but seriousness. He stood up, pacing his tent a little bit, hands clasped behind his back, before turning to face you, his expression still serious.
“And what else was I supposed to do?”
…huh?
“Was I simply to sit idly by and watch my Lady’s mind get clouded by such threatening forces?”
Was that his motive? You? A part of your mind couldn’t believe it, but the remainder of it however completely believed every single word he uttered. You sighed deeply, running your palm against your face to process the information. Though before you could say anything, he elaborated.
“Though I must say, I am quite disappointed.” He flicked his dagger between his fingers, mimicking a stabbing gesture before looking at you, looking a little… sad, almost. “Someone beat me to it.”
“...whatever do you mean?”
He gave a dry chuckle, looking at his dagger, clenching the handle in what you believed to be genuine anger.
“I wished to stab him, my Lady. Oh, how I wished to do so. I did indeed travel to his estate with the sole purpose of taking his life. I even went through the trouble of asking him on a little rendez-vous, however…” He paused, sheathing his dagger again and crossing his arms, leaning back against one of the wooden pillars in his tent. “When I arrived, the bastard was already dead.”
You couldn’t tell what to make of it. Your gut told you he was not lying, but after what he had concealed, you couldn’t tell if he was trustworthy anymore, in fact, you couldn’t even trust your own mind any longer, feeling it twist with every single piece of information you stored day after day, hazy somehow, a little disturbed too. What disgusted you most was not his actions, but it was the fact that you were not even angry at him. How strange it was, to have someone murder— or attempt to do so on your behalf. Part of you was terrified of the knight, or rather the man turned genuine threat, but the other one felt… strangely, eerily pleased at his act. You could’ve retched at your own feelings at this very moment.
“Such an ugly side of myself I have shown you, haven’t I? But fear not, Lady (Y/N),” you hadn’t heard him be this formal around you before, which sent a slight shiver down your spine “I shan’t overstep again, that much I can promise.”
His eyes seemed like a vortex blending loathing, disappointment as well as something between longing and desperation, yet you could not tell if it was targeted at you, at the late Flins or at himself. Perhaps some things were better left unsaid, after all.
“Sir Lohen, I—”
“I have no need for your pity, Lady (Y/N). I do not intend to be rude, but it appears I have matters to attend to, if you will excuse me.” He said, back turned to you.
You couldn’t argue and simply left his tent, conflicted and even more confused than before. In the blink of an eye, his entire attitude had entirely swapped; in the past few weeks, any excuse would have been enough for him to come and tease you endlessly, adoring the way you would humiliate yourself further in public.
But now, he was only tending to the tasks he had been assigned, namely defend the estate and form the trainees. He was no longer roaming around you nor running into you at the most perfectly inconvenient timings.
For a second you wondered if you hadn’t gone crazy. Why? Why now of all times, would you decide to check on him? You needed to know where this distance came from— it was vital to you now. You would become the menace and him the hobby, and you would not let go until you had pushed his boundaries far enough for him to snap at you…
…which was in fact exactly what Lohen used to do. You were turning into a strangely female shaped Lohen and didn’t know how to feel about it.
Now, to plan your encounters. You were roughly aware of his schedule and it was rather easy to tell where he would be. At this precise time of the day, he was probably leaving the training grounds after bruising more recruits. You took a step towards the barracks again and… no one seemed harmed. Quite the mystery, then; had the instructor been replaced?
Deciding not to wait, you entered his tent.
“Sir Lohen?”
But no one replied. Where could he be, so early in the morning? You hadn’t even seen him bullying the trainees like he usually did, nor heard any complaints from anyone. Maybe he had been sent on a mission? Even then, he would’ve gone through the trouble of finding you and making your day just a tad more insufferable. But somehow, you found yourself longing for that banter and the fact that you couldn’t find him anywhere was starting to make you feel anxious. You really, really needed answers.
The roles were about to be reversed. All of the free time you had was spent looking for Lohen. Surprisingly, when your days were empty, it was rather entertaining to see him tense up and get all formal. It somewhat pained you as well, but you hoped annoying the hell out of him would change his behavior back to what it used to be.
“What does Lady (Y/N) require from me?” his tone was cold and unamused, but you on the opposite were having so much fun.
“Nothing specific, my dear.” This time, he was the one clenching his jaw. Ahhhh, the satisfaction. You rested your rear against his desk and looked at whatever map he was scribbling. He sighed and shook his head, though he made no move to push you away.
“This is not very ladylike, Lady (YN). I am also busy, therefore I would appreciate it if you left me alone for a while.”
His eyes looked tired and greyer, filled with guilt, as if he had turned into a different person entirely. But you wouldn't let go; not before you had gotten to the middle of this. You stood back up and walked around in his tent as if inspecting every nook and cranny, sometimes dusting pieces of furniture, leaning onto every pillar, then walked back to him and looked into his mirror, more specifically at the crook of your neck.
“You left a mark on me, sir.”
His eyes traveled to yours but his expression did not falter in the slightest. “I suppose that was a mistake. Forget it.”
The tone was cold and commanding but betrayed a bit of disappointment and frustration.
“Why is that?”
He gave no reply although you could physically feel the myriad of answers he could've given, and kept working. It frustrated you a little, really. All you wanted was to get a rise out of him, but he seemed… so out of reach. It felt to you as if you finally understood the urge he always had to push you to your limits.
“What are you working on, Sir Lohen?”
…again, no reply. He had turned into a steel wall. You wished to have the ability to pester him the way he did you, yet did not find it in yourself to disturb his peace any further. Giving a sigh, you ran aw— err… opted for a tactical retreat.
As hard as it was to accept, life became dull for a while. Your research on Flins’ records had led to nothing but uncertainty, yet had somehow narrowed your options. Of course you still believed Lohen had lied to you and was indeed the killer, but then why would he distance himself so much from you now? Did he genuinely regret you seeing that side of him? You already knew he was kind of… off his rocker, it was obvious at first glance, but to think he would feel almost embarrassed right now was out of character. You needed to break his composure.
Luckily for you, a small gathering had been organised later in the week, and your father would surely order Lohen to accompany you once more. You were more delighted than you would’ve liked to admit, but there was no escaping your own emotions. When both of you were called into your father’s study, he simply accepted with a nod, not a single word spoken, not even a teasing glance thrown at you; he merely bowed and left.
The man’s psyche completely eluded you and the way he brushed off anything related to you was even a little offending, but you swallowed your words down and followed him to his tent, as he would’ve done so to you. You cleared your throat, making sure he was aware of your presence.
“Which color would you like to wear this time, Sir Lohen? I will go with your preference, as I am out of ideas.”
And again, not even a glance in your direction, only looking at his documents and rearranging his weapon racks. “Any will do. Just pick one and I shall follow suit.”
You took a deep breath, a deep exhale, and stepped closer. “I insist, sir. You must pick a color.”
“Purple.”
Did he pick this one on purpose? You absolutely despised the only purple dress you owned. Maybe this was his way of telling you off? But he clearly did not know who he was talking to.
“What a lovely choice. I sure wonder what you will look like wearing purple, Sir Lohen.” You said with a small grin, eyeing him eagerly. For a moment, he did seem a little surprised before his eyes narrowed almost suspiciously.
Was he… on to you? The way you had so easily accepted to wear this horrible dress you hated so much could’ve given you away… but it seemed rather unlikely.
Either way! You made your way back to your chambers where you pulled this disgusting excuse of a gown out of the closet and observed it for a bit. Well, you had a bit of time to get used to the idea of wearing it for the unfortunate second time of your life, you guessed. It annoyed you, but he had picked the color for you, and you did ask for it as well… backtracking now would only be rude.
It took a while to find shoes that would fit the abominable garment, as well as hosiery and other accessories. It was not only the shade, no— the entirety of the design was a terrible mistake, and you couldn’t help but wish a swift recovery to whoever had imagined it and deemed it a good idea to produce it. The sleeves were puffy and only reached the middle of your arms, it was neither short nor long, yet just curved enough to make you look like some ugly umbrella, reaching down to your knees. The chest part wasn’t any better; a long veil of embroidery that looked like a grandmother hooked on suspicious substances had made it linked both of the shoulders, covering your entire chest down to the part where your belly button would normally be. And the worst part? The shade was a dull, light purple with no other color. Nothing, no highlights, no subtle details, just a color that, if it was sentient, would be begging for euthanasia.
Well done, Lohen.
You felt down in the dumps for the entire day just thinking about the pitiful existence of this “article” of clothing (if it could be called such a prestigious title). How long was it, again? Ah yes, two mere days before you would have to swallow down your pride and make a fool out of yourself (and Lohen!) by wearing this atrocity. Well, no matter. Dwelling on it wouldn’t do you any good, though you didn’t really have anything else to do. Usually, Lohen’s relentless teasing would keep you occupied and focused enough but, now that he was acting so cold, there was nothing to distract you from your own thoughts.
And boy, what an amusing amount of thoughts. From the impersonation of Lady Du Randier, meeting Lohen, dealing with Lumine and Flins’ death, your mind was almost going haywire from the wonderful collection of memories. You wandered into the gardens, probably looking for something to think about, something to keep your mind busy, eventually sitting on a bench and observing the clear blue skies.
Of all the things it could’ve picked, this one was pretty recent. You know? That one time you stumbled upon the menace while he was shirtless and bandaging himself. He was still rather… “friendly” at the time and you couldn’t deny the sight had been branded into your mind, more than Flins’ gruesome remains. Ahhh, and the way he had left a little mark on you, too... You couldn’t even move anymore. In fact, you had become a statue, fragile yet every single atom of the sculpture was held by a very strong glue called “Lohen”.
And of course, the source of your.. ailment walked towards your bench then stopped in front of you, believing you may have had an issue.
“Lady (Y/N). You do not look well. Do you need medic-”
“Ahh-!” He took you out of your overthinking but you couldn't really calm your heartbeat. “You scared me, Loh-” you stopped yourself. Were you about to call him by his name? Was it even allowed? Either way, you cleared your throat, “--S-sir Lohen, haha. I am fine, no need for medical help.” There, that'll do it.
“But your face is completely red, have you gone sick?”
That was probably the most concern he had showed you since the incident. Of course was still standing quite far from your bench, but the intention was there.
“It is… for other reasons, Loh--” wrong. again. “-Sir Lohen.”
He looked conflicted for a bit, looking at you with an expression you couldn't read. You could only pray that he wouldn't just leave and dismiss it so casually, but you couldn't exactly tell him about those thoughts…
He was there, observing you with a neutral expression and.. well, let us say the permanent grin he had on fitted him much more. You decided to divert the situation.
“You have been avoiding me, sir. Why is that?”
“I've only given you the peace and quiet you asked for whenever I was the one pestering you. Besides, I do not believe it is a good thing that a Lady finds herself so close to a soon-to-be murderer.”
You couldn't deny the first part. Yes, so many times you recall telling him to go, but now you just missed those moments of what actually seemed to be banter, from your current point of view.
“Well, I cannot deny how many times I've pushed you away.. As for the second part, we'll..” Wait. He said soon-to-be. What..? “Are you… planning on killing someone?”
Cold eyes met yours, face giving a simple nod. Oohh, no… It seemed like the words had escaped his lips unwillingly and he was now looking away from you.
“Is it… is it someone I know? Are you going to kill m-”
“You are not my target, Lady (Y/N).”
Phew. Well, that was a relief. You also didn't want to know who the target was, though this raised more questions. “Did you attempt to kill Flins for my sake, sir?”
He went silent for a little bit, his eyes narrowing faintly as if bracing himself for the razorblades that were about to leave his mouth.
“Yes, Lady (Y/N).”
You knew it, already. You did and, even if he was clearly a danger to society, you couldn’t resent him. Was it the fact that Flins would’ve ruined your life or gotten you killed somehow? Was it because you were scared not to have anyone on your side after the letter you had received? Was it because it was specifically done for you?
“Is there any way I can talk you out of it?”
He gave a dry chuckle and looked in your direction, though not at you directly. “No. But I will take my leave once it is done, do not think about it so much.”
Well that was it, now you were going to obsess over that. And not even over who he was planning on killing, mind you; you would think about him departing and potentially never seeing him again. Why, though? He had been nothing but a nuisance, not to forget he was— and still is probably your biggest death flag. You should be so happy that he was finally going to leave, yet… all you could feel was your organs sinking. It probably showed on your face, as you paled a little from the confession, but he did not take it as he should have.
No, from his point of view, all he could see was a damsel feeling nauseous after a criminal like him let her know he was about to kill someone. Without a word and giving a short bow, he left for the barracks once again. You wanted to reach for him, to stop him, to tell him he wouldn’t need to go but you couldn’t even begin to understand where this sentiment came from.
Somehow, thinking about the atrocious dress could’ve put you in a better mood than this conversation. After a long while, you stood back up and walked to your room, finally deciding to update your journal of the events.
Even after reading everything from the beginning, it had stopped making sense after a while, and although you had all of the timeline displayed underneath your eyes, you couldn’t quite pinpoint the moment everything blurred. As for the feeling of being watched… you had gotten so used to it you couldn’t even tell when it was there anymore.
Really, aside from the fact that Lohen was going to leave one day or another and that you would, unfortunately, have to dress in purple in a few days, nothing was too bad… There was always the inauspicious letter, but you had just put that on the previous Lady du Randier’s table. Asking merchants didn’t yield any results and it isn’t as though you could’ve snooped your way around too much without anyone noticing. Where would you even start?
As long as you remained a quiet, gentle, clueless Lady du Randier, absolutely no harm would come to you, you were sure. It didn’t matter if your life was not that comfortable, or even if it became unbearable, at least you would be alive! And do you know who isn’t alive? That’s right! Dead people! Just like you were before you got dropped into this world! So don’t complain and whine about this or that going wrong. You got a free do-over. Figure it out yourself.
You couldn’t stop your thoughts from spiraling, your fingers incapable of moving the quill any further. It was pointless to keep trying over and over again; the ink couldn’t possibly do your job and force the words out by itself. For now, you decided to rest… again. How lazy.
You emerged from your slumber to meet the unfortunate day where you would, for a few hours, look like some kind of clown in front of everyone. Luckily, the reception season was almost over and there would be very few gatherings for a while. Of course, the event was held in the evening, so you were allowed a bit of reprieve. And reprieve you enjoyed, lazing around in your room, not even bothering to eat, going through your personal book collection, looking at other articles of clothing.
Knock, knock, knock.
“Come in?”
You were already bracing yourself at the idea of Harold yelling at you for skipping a meal, looking at the door intently. The door opened, only to reveal Lohen who was holding a few pieces of clothing— purple, of course.
“I just came by to tell you that we will be leaving in t—”
His eyes, of course, were on you when he started speaking, but something diverted his attention just enough that his gaze silently traveled to the purple abomination hanging on your closet’s door. He looked at it for a solid minute without a word, his expression flat and unreadable. Were you… supposed to say something? But you didn’t want to upset him any further either.
He gave a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. “No, no.” He muttered to himself before he gestured at the dress, visibly at a loss for words, just enough that he could barely form a sentence. “Just… deep blue. It will do.”
And with that, the door closed.
You gave a huge sigh of relief at his change of heart; he wasn’t a complete monster after all! Standing back up, you shoved the horrid creation back from whence it came and pulled out a way prettier, navy blue one. Your mood wasn’t better per se, but the short amount of happiness the switch in dresses brought to you was enough to keep you from spiraling again.
Delightful indeed, and instead of calling your maids over, you decided to do it all yourself. You weren’t exactly an expert when it came to makeup or hairstyling, but the accomplishment itself felt like absolute paradise in a world where you couldn’t even afford to have one good day without something going wrong.
Shortly after, you left your room and made your way outside where Lohen was waiting for you.
You couldn’t help but wonder what the gathering was about this time. You were only informed of it, yet had no clue what it was exactly. He gallantly helped you get into the carriage and sat on the opposite bench as usual, this time arms crossed and looking out the window. You absentmindedly look at him, at how his expression was so neutral, almost a little melancholic. He didn’t even throw a single glance at you.
After a trip that took longer than you expected, he helped you out of the carriage out of politeness, and you found yourself in front of a small, quaint estate. A few other carriages were already stationed there, the horses loosely attached to the nearby trees, peacefully eating grass while the coachmen were having tea inside. A little further in the garden, nestled between multiple rosebushes was a table, large parasols and… ladies. It seems all of them were accompanied by men who, for the great majority, were discussing a little further away, probably uninterested in whatever conversation they were having.
Lohen directly made his way to the group of men while you hesitantly approached the table. Lumine was here, of course, as well as multiple ladies whose identities were completely unknown to you. Some of them had their partner sitting with them, others didn’t. Your eyes traveled along the table; a very pretty lady with short blonde hair and glasses who introduced herself as Emilie, a visibly younger one with chestnut hair arranged in two buns whose name you understood as “Yaoyao”.
There was also a tall, godly-looking woman with long purple-blueish hair, the gentlest face you had ever seen and… quite the rack— if you had to be honest who presented herself as Lauma; another beautiful woman with deep purple hair and eyes embraced by long eyelashes who, unlike the others, was accompanied by another lady with luscious blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes… and then, the elephant in the room. The cute-looking, pink haired one, sitting with her legs crossed, face flushed from… heat stroke? Or maybe it was the glass of wine she was holding. These ladies were the most noticeable ones among the small gathering, at least.
“Lady du Randier, over here!” Lumine happily waved at you and pointed at a seat right next to her. You couldn’t help but smile a little, and gave a polite bow before sitting down. “My name is (Y/N) du Randier. It is nice to meet you all.”
They seemed delighted at your introduction and kindly gave their names as well before Lumine cleared her throat and announced the main event.
“A-hem,” she dramatically coughed and, in a display you wouldn’t see everyday, took a comically, poorly imitated deep manly voice. “I have summoned you all today to speak of most important matters; yes, today is the day our lady-only book club is formed.”
It was difficult not to laugh, mostly since she was giggling too. It was only the first session, so none of you had any books in hand, and so… the mood was a little awkward at first before one of them finally broke the ice.
“So… which genres does everyone read?”
As expected, most ladies said they were interested in romance until one of them, the one you remembered as Clorinde, crossed her arms and tilted her head a little. “And what of erotica?”
You didn’t know what to say, but reactions were very varied. Most ladies were laughing a little nervously while Lumine’s face was flushed in a shade of red you’d never seen before, Lauma was smiling very politely as she covered Yaoyao’s ears, though you doubted the little girl could understand anything as she came from a foreign country.
One thing you did not miss was the pink-haired drunkard and Emilie locking eyes with each other in an almost primal display of instinct before giving each other a formal handshake.
You… weren’t sure what was going on anymore, but you were having fun. Only now did it occur to you that maybe, just maybe you could have some reprieve from overthinking and from the cruel reality that someone had inauspicious plans for you by enjoying the book club Lumine had so eagerly formed. She also seemed to like you more than she liked the others, which, if you had told your past self, would have been unbelievable.
The conversation was honestly hard to follow, as everyone kind of exposed what kind of books they enjoyed reading, Clorinde’s… special tastes not going unnoticed. When your turn came, you couldn’t form a single answer. The only books you had really immersed yourself into were the Unfortunate life of Lady du Randier— a thing you could not afford to tell them, and a book about the fae, which you could not exactly disclose either.
“I don’t know,” you couldn’t help but fiddle with your fingers in embarrassment, “I haven’t really read any books before.”
Once again, total silence. Multiple gazes rested on you, some of them confused, puzzled or straight up shocked, some of them desolate or compassionate, as if they regretted asking this question in the first place.
“W-well…” Lumine seemed a little awkward, then patted your shoulder. “Maybe you can take recommendations from us, I’m sure it’ll brighten your days!”
She was probably right… usually, you’d spend your days overthinking and trying to find something to occupy your mind, maybe a bit of reading wouldn’t hurt, since Lohen was so blatantly ignoring you for some reason— though you had your suspicions on his reasons.
“I… think it might be a good idea, actually. I’ll gladly listen to everyone’s suggestions.”
You were recommended a lot of romance novels, some with very obvious titles that probably revealed the entire plot just by hearing or reading them, but of course, two or three suggestions were more “noticeable” than the rest, especially Clorinde’s and Emilie’s.
Some steamy titles and just a slight reveal of the plot were enough to interest you, but you thought you’d probably read some regular novels first, at least to get used to the idea of reading again. Besides, the Unfortunate Life of Lady du Randier had been quite a good novel when you first read it, and it happened to be a romance, out of everything it could’ve been. You weren’t quite sure if these would influence you in any way, but it was worth giving it a try at least.
As you were making a mental note containing all of the titles, you wondered if your estate’s library even had such books, as shopping for them and revealing the daring titles to a regular worker would be very embarrassing, and you couldn’t possibly let that happen. Maybe they could lend you some? Ah, it didn’t matter, you’d find a way to get your hands on them.
After a long while, riveting conversations and lots of tea and snacks, it was unfortunately time to head back, though Lumine had already given everyone a date for the next meeting. You had a bit of time to read one or more of the novels you were suggested, and surely, surely you wouldn’t have to go out of your way to get them. Sadly, no one had been warned that this small, private gathering would be the opening of a ladies’ book club and, as such, no one had brought anything to discuss at all. Better luck next time, you thought.
As per usual, Lohen helped you get into the carriage, out of sheer politeness, barely looking at you. The ride seemed to take even longer than it did on the way to the smaller estate, leaving you a little sad that it was already over. It had been a little over four hours, but the amount of fun you had was enough to make you feel like spending time away from your new acquaintances was a little depressing. But you seemed a little happier than you did earlier in the day, and that was all that mattered. This time, you were the one who didn’t even spare a glance at him, although you could feel his eyes on you, as if he had so many things to say but couldn’t let them escape from his mouth for… reasons?
It seemed childish to you. After all, both of you were grown adults and you believed talking things out was a reasonable thing to do, more mature than a simple silent treatment.
The first thing you did when you got back home was to head to the library and search the different categories. As you suspected, there were some romance novels that seemed completely untouched, a little dusty, even. Unfortunately, none of the recommended titles were present, but you figured you could read some of them and put them in your recommendations for the next meeting.
You picked a random one; a romantic story between a princess and a knight from an opposing faction. As cliché as it looked, you decided to give it a chance and brought it to the gardens with you, sitting on a bench to start reading.
The sounds of the training knights, despite being a little muffled, helped you get into the story. As silly as the story sounded, you couldn't deny that your heart fluttered a few times, especially at the sappy and stereotypical sentences the knight gave the heroine. It truly made you wonder whether such romances existed, but you rapidly perished the thought and kept reading.
However, another issue presented itself; it wasn't exactly a matter of life and death, but the idea of merely entertaining such a concept was pretty annoying. Every time you'd read one of those cliché phrases, you imagined a certain voice. A certain voice belonging to a certain individual whom, lately, was certainly nowhere to be seen.
Of course it was Lohen. It could have been Flins, it could have been Varka, hell it could have been literally any suitor, any man you had ever met, but just had to be Lohen. Why did it have to be such an annoying— but you cut that thought short. He hadn't talked to you in a while now, and you could've sworn you were frustrated. You wanted to interact with him really badly, but he would probably act distant as always.
You’d need to get his attention, one way or another.
Maybe hanging out in the garden while reading a romance novel would reawaken the teasing bastard buried deep behind this cold persona… but if it didn't? You'd just make a fool out of yourself and probably disappoint your parents. After all, there was a reason as to why the book club was a private gathering. You also didn't know anything about his tastes aside from his favorite color… maybe you could ask around and see when his birthday was? Or what kind of cooking he enjoyed?
It didn't matter how; you had to catch his attention. Why? It didn't matter. All you knew was that somehow, he had left a mark on you, and not only on your shoulder, physically. No, the mark was embedded deep inside your mind and, hopefully not, your heart.
But you pushed this thought to the back of your mind, where it could rot with the overthinking you had finally managed to control.
It was time to act.
What kind of literature would catch his eye anyway? Was he even into reading? You’d probably look like a fool if you started reading war related novels or… old books written by very famous “war artists”... Maybe that would catch his attention, but you’d have to go through a tremendously long reading about things that didn’t interest you in the slightest.
Romance was a fine pick already, it would give you time to get used to reading at all, and maybe then you’ll move on to the less… conventional ones. Though… Emilie and Clorinde’s suggestions were a little bold. Too bold, in fact. So bold that if a servant or even your parents caught you reading those steamy novels, you would probably get in trouble. You didn’t remember the estate’s library containing such interesting stories, so your only chance at getting your hands on one of those was to get to the city and pray to the gods you’d never have to go back there again.
Maybe you should stock up on those? Who knows. Certainly not you.
For some reason, the nice, silly feelings you’d caught by interacting with the other ladies while having tea slowly got blurred into the anxiety of having to buy the book. But they had lots of customers, some of them probably bought the bolder kind of novels you were looking for. Surely, the workers there wouldn’t look at you as if you were some kind of degenerate, perverted young lady. Right..?
Today was the day. You had brought a pile of romance novels from the library to your bedroom, and you were about to go out and fetch some more. This time you were not accompanied by Lohen, but by your regular guards. “I’ll also have to hide these from them…” you thought, but it didn’t matter anymore. You needed those books.
The carriage stopped in the middle of the city, bustling with drunkards, pretty women and lone men complaining about these ladies. Looking around for a quick second, your eyes landed on a library; the front of the shop was just a regular stack of books, but maybe the sought after treasures could be found here.
With a slight gling of the door, you were greeted by the librarian; a young man with golden, luscious hair and amber eyes.
“Oh hello there, my Lady. You look like you’re in need of a specific type of books, am I wrong?”
…shit.
“Ahhaha,” you laughed a little nervously, “I guess you can tell… yes, I am in fact trying to find, huhh…” You reached for the notes in your bag and, as your eyes landed on the titles, you suddenly weren’t sure if you wanted him to hear them. But he seemed very nice and gentle, surely he wouldn’t tease you about it.
“The… The imperishable.. night—”
“With a vampiric lover? Yes, yes we do have that book. Follow me, please.”
The fact that he immediately guessed what you wanted reassured you. You were probably not the first lady coming here in search of a thrilling novel.
Leading you to the back of the store, he presented you with a shelf, a very full shelf. You couldn’t help but wonder how it was holding out with so many books arranged on it. Expertly, he retrieved one of the books and extended it towards you; you grabbed it and, sure enough, that was the book. For once, the title wasn’t stupid enough to reveal the entire plot. The cover art though… was less than acceptable. Some kind of… two people, very close to each other, feral expressions on their faces…. you couldn’t help but wonder if this was a horror novel and not the erotica you had come searching for. But it was too late anyway, so you figured you could look for a few more. He recommended quite a few, and you ended up leaving with three novels instead of one. Gods, you hoped no one would figure what kind of atrocities may have been written.
On your return, you immediately hid the novels in your bedroom, inside a barely noticeable drawer before getting the romance novel you had started reading and making your way to the garden where you could finally sit in peace. It was late afternoon and the sun was slowly giving space for the moon to rise, a perfect environment.
You opened your book again; the story had you hooked more than you knew. To be fair, the title and illustration seemed a little silly to you, but the more you read through it, the more you wanted to know what would happen next. The recruits and knights were already packing to go rest, though no sign of Lohen. Ah, whatever. You were too engulfed in the story to pay attention to that.
There came a very intense moment: the knight had been seen holding the princess in a familiar way, which displeased the knight’s superiors greatly; she was supposed to be a war prisoner, not his lover. But both of them argued; she didn’t want to go back to her home, as the family had always been cruel to her, and him? He could teach her the ways of their land, make her someone truly worthy of living here. Of course, they were in love, and nothing could’ve possibly stopped it!
But even in romantic novels, not everything always goes as planned. The woman was later captured by other guards, and the knight was exiled. Eventually, after years, she had managed to escape and stole a horse, immediately making her way to the place he had been exiled. After days of searching, of refusing to fall asleep or eat anything at all, she found him. He was there, laying on the ground under the shadow of a tree, polishing his weapon. Needless to say, he noticed her as well, and they held each other, right before something terrible happened: one of the guards knew she was going to try and find the knight, and he had followed her.
Both of them were disposable and, in their tight embrace, they couldn’t possibly have detected the presence of this man.
He readied his crossbow and shot. The bolt went straight through her head and ended up planted in his heart. Their last seconds were spent knowing it was the end for both of them and so, they embraced each other one last time before death had claimed them both.
You… did not expect this ending at all. It also brought tears to your eyes. Why? How could the writer be so cruel? It was a somewhat romantic and good ending, but so bittersweet… You couldn’t help but shed a tear as you closed the book. Lohen wasn’t even around, but at the moment you couldn’t care less, though spending time with him right now would’ve alleviated the inner pain you were fighting.
You slowly walked back to your room, determined to never read such a tragic story again. The next book on your list was very simple: “The imperishable Night with a Vampiric Lover”.
I lovelovelove him so much he's so pretty look at that smirk look at that eyes look at that clothes my beautiful attractive jaw dropping wonderful pretty amazing fascinating cutie🥹🥹 my kin my king🤑🤑
You compliment him, and he doesn’t know how to react.
Floyd Leech isn’t one for flattery. With the nature of his childhood best friend and twin brother, he only sees praise as a method of manipulation.
The first time you said you liked his eyes, he brushed you off. Of course he’s heard comments about his mismatched eyes a million times in his life (even if they were never to his face). It felt like a weak attempt at small talk, which was amusing at best. He didn’t think of it beyond that.
Later on, you told him his mer-form looked beautiful. He laughed in your face. It was certainly forward, but he still didn’t acknowledge your words sincerely. “No duh. Most land-dwellers have never seen a merman as cool as me.”
You said beautiful, not cool. But as his attention drifted, he left your words in empty space. That’s how it would continue.
Moments like that would keep happening. Where you’d say something genuine, and he’d avoid the sentiment of the words. His reactions would vary. Sometimes he’d scoff at you, or give you an unimpressed look. Other times he’d puff out his chest and look overly proud, or cackle like it’s the best joke he’s ever heard.
One night, you were watching him practice shooting for basketball. He was sweaty and exhausted when he wandered over towards you. Instead of talking, grabbing his water, or doing anything worth his time.. he collapsed on top of you.
At the struggled sound you made, from the drastic shift in weight, he sighed. “Ain’t gonna tell me I’m handsome like this?”
You tapped on his shoulder twice, and after a few long seconds, he pushed himself off.
You looked at him. Really looked at him. His face was flushed from chasing the ball in the last two hours (oddly determined on his end). His breathing wasn’t ragged, but it was a little uneven. His gym uniform was soaked in sweat.
His eyes were as lovely as you always thought. His hair was messy, in a way only HE could pull off. He held this smirk on his face, and it grew as you stayed silent. His face said ‘gotcha,’ like he had you trapped.
After a couple seconds of baited silence, his expression shifted. His eyes didn’t stay focused on you, his posture slumped a bit more, and his grin melted to an uninterested frown. He was getting bored, as he usually did.
“Floyd, I think you’re really attractive.”
…
He stayed silent. He looked you in the eye. Maybe he was trying to hold back from punching you, maybe he was debating the truth behind your words. You were so direct that he was momentarily caught off-guard.
He finally giggled. That giggle quickly grew into proper laughter. It was a few moments before it died down.
When he was somewhat calm, he tilted his head the tiniest bit. “I figured that out after the first four couple compliments, y’know.”
You knew, and he knew you knew. He’d also make sure you knew he felt the same way towards your appearance.
«I'm the Villainess and Now I Have to Avoid my Assassin! or "The (Un)fortunate Life of Lady du Randier"»
Lohen x f!reader otomeisekai AU
Chapter 3 of the series. Here are the links for chapter 1 and chapter 2!
cw: death, a tiny bit disgusting but really isn't worth mentioning, just in case. no cw otherwise
A/N: Took a while, I'm sorry. I wish I could've posted sooner but hey things happen. Also well, I already have around 800 pulls waiting for the guy anyway, so knowing he isn't standard makes me smile a little. This chapter is slightly longer than the previous ones, couldn't really make it any longer with the schedule I have these days but anyway, I hope you enjoy it.
PROOFREADING WAS AGAIN NEVER AN OPTION
word count: idk around 9.5k? maybe more? don't know. I'm a dainty little lady, I don't do math.
Chapter 3: A scream-flavored cake.
You couldn't fall asleep that night, consumed by the thought of someone noticing your shift in behavior compared to when the villainess was still herself. Maybe you should've adapted little by little instead of immediately becoming an acceptable person… but again, who could it be? The butlers were used to interacting with (Y/N), it could very well be one of them. It could be one of your suitors who, despite not knowing you very well, could've heard about the villainess’ horrible attitude. It could not be Lady Lumine, as you two only met for the first time at the Grandsworth reception. It could have been your parents, but you doubted they would resort to something as petty as a short letter, and last but not least, it could not be Lohen. As much as he was your first suspect, his expression didn't lie; he was a teasing little bastard but today was the first time you had seen his smirk falter.
In any case, there was another thing bothering you. Of course, it wasn't even close to the letter you had received, but… why did Lohen seem so serious about the letter? As far as you remembered since you met him, he wasn't that type of man. He would've taken any opportunity to belittle or mock you, and this one was golden, literally served to him on a silver platter… yet he did not do anything with it. Merely scowled and took you very seriously for once and, somehow, it unsettled you more than his usual immature attitude. Ah, but it was Lohen, of course you couldn't know what was going through his mind. Perhaps he had another side he'd rarely show, not that you deemed yourself worthy of seeing it though.
After a thorough process of elimination, you were left with a grand total zero possibilities. Not a single suspect in sight, and that could only mean one thing: you may have overlooked someone in your suspects. Of course, you couldn’t possibly get into their heads or read their minds, so you would have to look further into it. But how? You had no talent as an investigator and playing dumb was not an option because, as Sir Lohen had pointed out, your acting talents were horrible at astronomical levels.
Ah, no matter how hard you tried, slumber was avoiding you although you were absolutely exhausted. Sitting back up in your bed, you put on your slippers. Perhaps some chamomile would help you calm down, or a few little treats? Either way, you put on more… appropriate garments and made your way out of your room, down the imposing staircase and into the kitchen. Very few servants were still awake at this hour and so you had free access to all of this unfortunately unsupervised food. Grabbing a few treats from the cold room, you sat down at the large wooden table, sighing as you put one in your mouth. All you could see through the tall window were the line of trees that marked the beginning of the woods, the grass in front of it basking in moonlight. You couldn’t see nor hear anything from the woods— or at least not anything threatening; only the wind through leaves and a few cracking twigs, probably stepped upon by rabbits or deer as per usual.
It was probably already past midnight when you finished eating whatever you had found. As if drawn to it, you approached the window, arms softly crossed as you thought about everything you had gone through so far.
First, there was your… “reincarnation”, if one could give it such a name. You couldn’t help but think about the original soul from time to time; where was it now? Was she so despicable the gods had decided to make her an empty husk for the first impostor to take?
Then, there was your walking death flag— Lohen. A cold, composed and rather quiet assassin, or at least so he was depicted in the book, but you assumed it was just a persona he’d built around the heroine. Or maybe around you, who knows? Lohen had always been a good actor, even in the story. Though, the way he made you embarrassed was quite annoying, and you knew he wouldn’t quit that easily.
To make things worse, there was your father who seemed to greatly appreciate Lohen. You weren’t really sure about anything so far, except for one thing: he had your father in the palm of his hand. A simple whim, a dramatic sigh, and your father would probably make you go through hell and back, barefoot even, if it made the assassin feel any better.
The other constant problem was your suitors, but you figured you’d already thought about this matter for long enough.
Lastly, the letter. The only thing that could give you a lead was the handwriting, though… It wasn’t your parents’, as it was a little too… shabby for that matter. You hadn’t seen most of your suitors’ handwritings, but you believed they would be more refined since they came from very influential, wealthy families. You had also seen Lohen’s handwriting once, when he showed you the crumpled piece of paper your father made him sign.
You had a lot of things to investigate.
You woke up in a groggy state, eyes underlined by dark bags showing your fatigue to the world. Your slumber had been interrupted by rather uncomfortable dreams; not quite nightmares yet, but very close to that. You were clearly bothered and your maids noticed it, but unfortunately, no amount of sweets and shoulder rubs could help relieve the tension in your muscles.
Fortunately, there was nothing on your schedule for a long while, and so you decided to take a walk around the manor grounds. You could see hunters getting ready for their patrol, maids coming and going around to bring whatever items visiting nobles had inquired for, and as per usual, the knights training. Although, something had changed. They looked more exhausted than usual, a little pale sometimes, and some had bruises, too. You walked a little closer, tilting your head.
“Whatever happened to the training regiment?”
He raised his head to look at you, and you could’ve sworn you had seen some people describe gruesome, horrible encounters with less fear in their eyes. “It’s… the new instructor, my Lady. He is relentless and merciless, we simply cannot compare.”
This was problematic. Beating the knights up during a training session was counterproductive. You scowled a little and, without a second thought, entered the instructor’s barracks.
“Why, oh why would you—”
“Why would I what?” he said, turning around with a small grin, eyes staring directly into yours. Why was he here now? How did he even get permission to… oh. Your father, of course. It had to be your father. You sighed and rubbed your temples a little.
“First of all, why are you even here? And secondly, why are you beating the knights up like this? They cannot learn that way.”
He hummed for a second, catching his chin between his fingers, looking at you a little teasingly.
“Well, with the threatening letter you received, I would be a fool not to train your knights to defend you in dire situations, would I not, my dear?”
The nickname irritated your ears and you ran your palm across your face just at the mention of it. The tea party was over, so why would he call you that in the first place? While thinking about this, he had already gotten closer, leaning down a little to look at your face more closely.
“Aha~ did I fluster you, my Lady?”
You clenched your jaw for the thousandth time; he was a little too close for you.
“Step back immediately, sir Lohen.”
He grinned more and leaned in even closer. “Or what~?
There it was. Your self-control broke entirely and— slap! You delivered a firm hit of your palm on his head, making it turn to the side. He remained that way for a few seconds before turning back to face you. “Hah…” His chuckle sounded anything but sane and his eyes displayed excitement like you had never seen before. “Well done, my Lady. It took you long enough, didn’t it~?
You couldn’t even begin to understand why he wasn’t mad at your gesture or rather, why he seemed to have enjoyed it so much. And as such, you were the one taking a step back, a little astonished by the glint of folly in his eyes and his unsettling smile.
“You… you are sick.”
He chuckled a little and bowed down. “Well, thank you for the compliment, my Lady.” The way his voice cracked subtly, so eager to smirk in your face made a shiver crawl up your spine like a centipede. Not knowing what to say, you turned back and left the barracks, leaving behind this absolutely despicable excuse of a man. However, he decided to follow you, hands clasped behind his back with that everlasting shit-eating grin.
“Oh, come now. Are you really going to leave me like that? Come on, just another one.”
“No. I believe we have spent enough time on this pointless conversation. I wish you a good day.” His smile kept growing as he followed you, eager for another demonstration of your annoyance, but you gave him none and left the barracks, though you could feel his eyes on you even after breaking his line of sight.
Lohen was too unhinged for you to handle, this had been made certain when he enjoyed your slap. Your mind was however still concerned at the letter. Analysis of the paper has been made to common librarians and stationers, but none of them could identify it.
The feeling of being watched while running your errands had not stopped. You had figured it would be Lohen, but it was much more eerie. Taking a different route this time, far from your guards’ view, you stumbled upon a tall man cradling a black cat. Of course, you couldn't resist the temptation of petting it, and.. it let you. Completely docile, playful, trying to catch your hair with his little paws. You giggled a little bit before raising your eyes to meet dead yellow ones.
“Ohhh.. sir Flins?” You asked, in surprise. He gave a nod, as to not disturb the small feline he was holding, shushing as he put the playful little creature back on a nearby crate.
“My Lady. How have you been faring?”
This polite, seductive mile, these gentle eyes, a true gentleman. A man way out of your league. But maybe, just maybe…
He smirked a little, his gloved finger touching his bottom lip. “Ah. From the look in your eyes, you believe I know something you wish to know... don't you?” His smile only intensified as you looked more nervous than before.
He leaned forward with a little small smile. “I suppose I hit the right button. Though, why are you so troubled about it?”
You scoffed, brushing your fingers through your hair in frustration. Why did he look so laid back about this? It was absolutely crucial to you.
You inhaled for a solid, long second and decided to ask.
“The letter. It was you, wasn't it?"
And to that, he tilts his head.
“My couriers must have worked fast, I only sent it this morning.”
Huh..? But you had received the letter earlier than… was he talking about a different one?
“What was in the letter, if I may ask? It is quite a matter of emergency.”
He hummed for what seemed to be an eternity before he looked at you with a smile. ”Ah, let us cut the unimportant things. I was merely stating that no further visits would be necessary.”
Nothing else? Nothing about your secret?
“I am pretty convinced you and Sir Lohen are quite.. close, and I cannot and will not marry a woman who thinks of another.”
Your jaw was dropping now. First of all, he obviously did not write the threatening letter. Second, he had a very good sense of feelings. But this… You? With this poor excuse or a malevolent little gnome? What a funny thing to say.
“I assure you Sir Flins, that whatever is going on between Sir Lohen and I is strictly private and professional. He tends to help me around a lot as a... whatever he is doing. I'm sure he is actually doing something, although sometimes I do find myself wondering.”
“Mmm… if you say so, my lady. May the right suitor show up for you. “ he said, unconvinced before leaving.
You felt a bit of disappointment. After all, he could have been the right one. You couldn’t help but grab his sleeve before he left. “Just another one?” And now, without you knowing, the puppy eyes appeared. “Please?"
He scanned your face for a second before laughing softly. It seems he couldn’t resist your desperate face.
“Fine then, one more. We shall see where it leads us.” And with that, he left.
You felt so relieved; he was quite the gentleman, very attractive too, and aside from that, he was easy to converse with. Emerging from the dark alley, your guards looked panicked for a second, as they had let you out of their sight. “My Lady!” One of them exclaimed, “Please do not wander on your own, Sir Lohen would have our heads!” You sighed and waved your hand dismissively before you kept going on your errands. If the calendar wasn’t wrong, it was supposed to be Lumine’s birthday very soon and, not finding any artisan capable of crafting such a masterpiece, you would have to get your hands dirty.
Two days later, you learned something very valuable: your maids knew a thing or two about baking and, thanks to their help, the dough making session did not go as horribly as you imagined. Merely a kilogram of flour was lost, assuming you perhaps wanted to feed the poor, famished kitchen ground. Finding the right molds was also an issue. She enjoyed stars and butterflies, two things you could not handle seeing considering your darker wardrobe, but… you would make an effort. After all, the Melusine girl was quite nice once correctly acquainted.
You tried, and tried, and tried again to get the right shapes, but everything was wrong in one way or another. The stars would look like disembodied vortexes… you could almost hear the screams from the abyss below. It was as though your butterflies were begging for death and not to mention the most simple of circles did… somehow… not look circular at all.
To say you were frustrated was an enormous understatement, but you were at least trying your best. For once, Lohen would not be bothering you with this or that, or stick to you for no reason again. Hitting him was apparently not an option as he seemed to have enjoyed it last time, dismissing him would only interest him further in whatever business you were busy with, and hiding from him was even harder as it felt like he had eyes everywhere. But you were busy with something important and, as much of a bastard Lohen was, he would not disrupt your learning process.
After hours and hours of trying, the cake started to look somewhat edible. The taste was present, of course, but the way the green frosting kept dripping from the side made it look so ominous you wouldn't even dare feed your mother a piece of it. A very, and I mean very long sigh escaped your lips as you let yourself fall onto one of the armchairs. You never knew baking could be that hard.
It did not take long for you to recognise the slow footsteps in the hallway as you stood up immediately. “I forgot…” you whispered to yourself, as a very amused Flins entered the kitchen grounds. The floor was, in fact, not lava, but an amalgamation of flour and messed up butterfly-looking creatures that were still begging for euthanasia. You were covered in flour as well, but dusted your hair a little, giving him a deep embarrassed bow.
“S-Sir Flins! I apologise, I was so caught up in—”
“Trying your best, I can see.” He laughed a little, apparently not bothered by the chaotic environment. “Has My Lady taken a liking to baking?”
“N-no! Yes! I mean… I am in fact trying my best… Lady Lumine’s birthday is coming up, and I would like to bake a cake for her, but as you can see…”
Both yours and his eyes wandered upon the floured wasteland, rolling pins discarded in one corner, horrible-looking circles in the other… He cleared his throat. “Perhaps I could be of assistance. My parents taught me a thing or two about baking when I was young.”
“Young? You don’t look a day over twenty.” you said admiratively, to which he responded with an uncomfortable laughter, apparently not willing to display his actual age.
“Well, let us try again, this time with more guided steps, shall we?”
And like nothing you would have expected, he grabbed a rolling pin and gave the dough a perfect shape. Even your cookie cutters were easy for him to manoeuvre. The horrifying butterflies turned into works of art and the circles finally looked… Well, circular. He put all of those pieces apart and, after a while, instead of giving you the successful cake, turned to you with a small grin.
“Now, replicate all of my steps. I believe you have it in you.”
…huh? He wanted you to do the exact thing you were incapable of?
Well, no matter. It was all for the sake of Lady Lumine. And so, you baked and baked, and baked some more, making casual conversation with the tall, handsome man.
“And by the way… may I have your name?” he asked casually, looking at you with a small smile. You thought nothing of it and, while struggling with the rolling pin, you answered naturally.
“I am (Y/N). (Y/N) Du Randier.”
You could’ve sworn you saw his eyes glow for a second, but he gave you a reassuring smile. ”Well, (Y/N). It seems you are already improving with those cookie-shapers.”
The next hours were spent improving your basics on cooking and, surprisingly, you weren’t that bad at it anymore. Maybe hope was in sight. You turned to Flins and clapped your hands. “Thank you so much, Sir Flins. I cannot stress this enough.”
He gave a gentle bow, letting you exit the kitchen followed by some of your maids before he turned his head to look at you. “Ladies, I believe Lady (Y/N) is quite fatigued and should go back to her room.”
As if compelled, your body started stumbling on its own, the exhaustion unbelievably contrasting with the energy you had put in baking today. Maybe the tiredness was finally catching up? Without questions, you made your way to your room. Nothing felt wrong with you, but the sleep you got that night was more than rejuvenating.
Unfortunately, daylight broke through your curtains, ripping you out from slumber’s merciful grace.
You sat up, groggy but feeling nice for once. Letting your maids dress you up already, and were given a short notice demanding that you make your way to your father’s office, which you did. There sat Flins elegantly and Lohen completely laid-back. It seems your father liked those two a little too much.
“Ahem…” your old man cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention. “I do hope you have not forgotten, dearest daughter, that you are supposed to attend your cousin’s gala tonight, at the Grandsworth estate again. I’m sure you are quite familiar with it now.”
Of course, you did remember it, even though it was only the gardens, but…a gala? Of all things, a gala? Why was there even one in the first place? Ah, it didn’t matter. If you had handled Lohen once, you could do it a second time. As charming as Flins was, you did not quite feel comfortable yet going with him.
“As per usual, Sir Lohen will accompany you to the event.”
A sigh. “Very well, father, Sir Lohen and I will—”
“I believe your daughter would rather go with me.” Flins stated confidently, and without a doubt. “Don’t you, dear?” Those words elicited a cold, dead glare from Lohen who did not seem amused with his favorite toy being taken away from him. But your mind was foggy at that time; perhaps had you not slept enough?
“It is true, father. I will attend with Sir Flins.” The words came out of your mouth, without any control. Lohen’s expression turned into a scowl… then into a sly smile.
“Oh~ I see what is happening here.”
He promptly exited the room, bidding goodbye to everyone present, his mind swirling with suspicions. You, on the opposite, could not tell what was hiding behind this side eye.
As you entered the dressing room, accompanied by Flins, of course, you tried picking a dress. Red was too provocative for his taste, purple didn’t fit your hair color… A deep blue, though, would work perfectly with what he was wearing.
“I don’t really like this dress, though.”
He gave a smile and placed his hands, reassuringly, on your shoulders. “Of course you do, silly.”
You looked at it again, smiling a little. “Yes, I suppose you’re right.”
You two made your way to the gala and you could recognise many faces from the Grandsworth’s reception. The same merchant families were here in search of recognition and potential customers, some of your servants were meddling with others, some rich families such as the Melusine one, and… Sir Lohen, apparently.
He was there too, accompanied by a girl you would have described as a background character. Maybe it was you being petty, but her dress had nothing special; her manners were more than regular and she didn’t seem like the type to take care of herself… poor girl, he had probably pressured her into joining this event. Why were you so bothered by that anyway? Lohen was not your partner this time. "Get a grip..." you told yourself.
Seeing as you were absorbed by Sir Lohen’s affairs, Flins gently caught your arm with his, gallantly escorting you to one of the tables where plenty of hors-d’oeuvres were being displayed; “Pay no matter to Sir Lohen, my dear. He is only here to cause chaos, as always.”
He was right, though; not paying attention to him was the best you could do to endure this gala just a little bit better. Being entranced with men wasn’t exactly something you did, but somehow… Sir Flins was the only person flooding your mind. Every single thing you could see, every sound you heard, hell, every piece of food you ate made you think of him to the point where you wondered whether something was off with you.
Either way, you enjoyed the beautiful music and curtains as well as the long windows of the grand hall, yet you could still feel eyes watching you. This time, it didn’t feel quite as anxiety inducing, but more like a gentle gaze. It could be Sir Flins, watching from afar, or maybe knowing at least two out of all the people who were present here was helping.
Well, three. Lady Lumine rushed to greet you as soon as she noticed you, taking both of your hands and shaking them a little. “Lady Du Randier! I am oh so glad to see a familiar face, for once! Except for… Sir Lohen. This man is very strange.”
You were also, much to your surprise, glad to see this overhyped young woman. You gave a polite bow— without your hands, unfortunately. “Lady Lumine, pleased to see you are doing well.”
She gazed at you for a few seconds and tilted her head. “Is everything alright? You seem a little out of it again. Is it that troublemaker Sir Lohen putting you in impossible situations again? I swear, this man—"
You shook your head slightly. “Haha, no, nothing like that. In fact, I am attending this gala with Sir Flins.”
The name made her grimace a little, as if she knew something. Pulling you aside for a bit, she leaned closer to your ear. “You should be careful around that man, Lady (Y/N). It is said among the nobles that he has... powers.
Powers? You couldn’t believe those words. This world didn’t look like anyone had powers at all but again, you had been reincarnated, so the possibility still existed. You thanked her quietly and returned to your partner, who was gazing at you from above the rim of his glass. He didn’t ask anything of your meeting, as if he knew exactly what you had been told.
“Let us indulge in a dance, shall we?”
Every single idea he spoke sounded marvellous to you. You couldn’t exactly tell why, but you felt the man was perfect in every single way. Your thoughts were clouded by his beautiful yellow eyes, his luscious blue hair and his imposing yet graceful presence. Lohen was no longer an issue to you. Just Flins. Only Flins. You felt this connection could last forever.
You did then indulge in a dance, a waltz, more specifically. It was perfectly timed although you had no idea how to dance at all, but you followed his steps and you two looked absolutely dazzling under Lohen’s disapproving look. Was he jealous? Ah, you couldn’t care less and let this peaceful moment flood your heart.
The soirée ended up as peacefully as it had begun; Sir Flins walked you to your carriage, gallantly offering a hand to help you in. “Have a good night, my dear. I will see you tomorrow.” You nodded, at a loss for words aside from acceptance.
Getting back to your bedroom, you couldn’t wait for the next time you’d see him. Your eyes were misty when you looked into your mirror, almost imagining his instead. Your heart couldn’t stop beating and you almost felt like fainting as soon as you were away from him. Sleeping was such a chore, as it was wasted time away from him, but you fell asleep nonetheless, eager to hear his voice again.
Exactly as he had promised, he was at the manor’s doorstep the very next day, in the morning. Your maids had given you a casual, yet beautiful dark blue dress, as he had asked you to, and off you went.
Throughout your walk in the city, you could still feel a threatening stare grazing your back, but you couldn’t care less. Sir Flins was with you, so obviously there was no risk. He took you to a fancy restaurant to have breakfast and, of course, paid for it. And after that, he brought you to a jeweler. He in fact already had an order that was completely ready; a black ring with a yellow stone on it, a reminder of his beautiful eyes, as well as a tight blue necklace. It felt uncomfortable at first, but oh, the happiness of wearing his gifts took over your mind completely and you accepted them gracefully.
You two spent your afternoon walking in the city’s public gardens, admiring the flora and the beautiful fountains, his hand always lingering close to your waist as if to keep you at bay. Dinner was the same; a reservation had already been made in the most luxurious restaurant in town. You ate whatever he ordered for you, with a smile on your face.
“I think I have proven myself far enough, have I not? You should let your father know.” He said, closing the door to the carriage.
“Are you not coming with me, Sir Flins?”
“I’m afraid I have some business to attend to, but I will see you tomorrow, same time.”
You couldn’t even refuse, how could you, in fact? He was so polite and courteous. Everything was so perfect. The carriage, slowly but surely, led you back home. You had found him, the perfect suitor.
The perfect suitor indeed, you had to let your father know. You had found the one. There was no one else for you, and no one else for him. You two obviously were made for each other. The ride took quite a while, and you were shaking in frustration.
Quickly stepping outside the carriage, you took quick strides towards your father’s room and opened the door without even knocking, almost giving your old man a heart attack.
“(Y/N), was this the matter of this intrusion? Daughter or not, you must announce yourself when you ent—”
You were out of breath, clinging to those words from the bottom of your heart.
“Father, I have made a decision. I know who I want my suitor to be.”
He raised an eyebrow and looked at you, hooked by your declaration and putting down his documents and glasses, clasping his hands on his desk, urging you to go on.
“I wish to marry—”
…huh? Who was it again? Suddenly, the name had left your lips; the infatuation you had had with him since that very day you two exchanged names was gone. Your mind was empty and a great fatigue took over your body, eyes closing on their own.
“(Y/N)?!” Your father, for once, was worried by your state and rushed to stabilize you. You couldn’t say his name. The entire evening you had spent in his arms completely gone from your mind, your infatuation had disappeared in a blink yet you couldn’t figure out why. Holding your head with one of your hands, you shook your head.
“N-nevermind, father, I suppose I am tired and spoke out of turn, forgive me. I should head to bed now.”
A maid came to fetch you and helped you slip into your nightly garments as soon as you entered your room. Of course, you still remembered Flins’ name; how could you have forgotten such a dashing man? But somehow, the fog in your mind had dissipated and you could now see clearly again. As tired as you were, what you needed was some fresh air and so, you decided to tour the manor again, passing by the busy kitchen, servants apparently still cleaning the flour incident you had created before; you decided not to linger and passed by the barrack. Some knights were polishing and cleaning their weapons, some were getting ready for bed. Others were working out a little, but only one seemed to arrive right as you did.
His polearm in hand, he stepped into the barracks and noticed you, taking a few steps toward you with his ever so charming smile.
“My Lady, good evening. It appears the stars aligned for us to meet again, I suppose?”
There it was; his grin, his… ugh! But somehow, now that your thoughts were clearer, he didn’t quite infuriate you as much as usual.
“Merely taking a walk on the manor grounds, Sir Lohen.”
He wiped the sweat off his forehead and exhaled softly. “Would you give me the honor of accompanying you, then?”
You figured that even if you said no, he would join you either way, so you nodded as he walked with you, bathing in the moonlight in delightful silence, until…
“I see you have finally snapped out of it.”
You turned to face him and stopped in your tracks. “Whatever do you mean?”
He had the audacity to poke your head with his finger, but this time you would allow it. Tilting your head to the side, you narrowed your eyes a little. “The infatuation, I mean. Sir Flins is not a common man; well, if he can be considered as such.”
Interested, you gazed upon his abyssal eyes, and having your full attention seemed to please him greatly. “Have you never wondered how old he is? I wager you would have guessed the ‘man’ was in his twenties, right?”
You nodded, not knowing what to say, since that was your exact guess. Ticking his tongue a few times, he shook his head and crossed his arms, making you feel completely stupid. Again, his eyes told you without words that you knew nothing. “He is much older than that,” in his thirties maybe? Or his forties? You could not imagine that he was any older than that, especially with how well he seemed to be taking care of himself…
“It is a rough estimation… but I would guess a few hundred?”
A few hundred what? Years? You couldn’t help but let out a little laughter, albeit a slightly nervous one. Sir Lohen, despite being an annoying little troublemaker, seemed to be quite the prankster as well. “Sir Lohen, I must say you jest very well. It is quite refreshing.”
He looked at you with another grin and wiggled his brows a little. “Indeed, I happen to be very funny when the situation allows me to… but that was not a joke. This man is not a human being.”
Your eyebrows raised as you tried to wrap your head around that new information. How could anyone live that long? It was completely alien to you that, in a world where you were reincarnated, anything such as that could exist.
“Tell me, my Lady… did your beloved Sir Flins inquire for your name?”
Your jaw tightened a little at his words. “He did.”
“And I suppose you… gave it to him, did you not?”
You recalled the exact moment he did and, strangely after that, you could not think of anything other than him. What exactly could he mean? All you had done was give him your name. It isn’t as though he had hypnotised you or something like that.
“Ah, how delightfully naive. I must say, Lady Du Randier, it is almost cute how clueless you are.”
He smiled again and let out a little chuckle. “That is a certified fae move. They ask for you to give them your name, quite literally so and, once they have it, they can cast spells on you; cloud your mind, even force your decisions without you even knowing; it all felt so real, did it not? Like he was the perfect man, that you could…”
“—marry him, yes. That was my exact thought but, for some reason…”
“The spell broke.” Lohen shrugged, playing with the handle of his polearm idly. “I do not know why, I doubt he would have done so by himself, unless he found himself a new target? Who knows. But I will say this.”
And with an unfamiliar display, he kneeled in front of you and took your hand in his. “I am very glad to have you back, Lady (Y/N).”
You could feel a familiar warmth growing on your face and your fingers trembling against his hand. This time, though, he didn’t tease you any further and stood back up, letting go of your hand with a bow, and retired for the night, going gods know there; probably to bully some other newbies under the guise of “training”.
Slowly walking through the gardens, you couldn’t help but wonder why Flins would have done such a thing. Not putting a spell on you, but rather dispelling it so quickly. Immediately, your thoughts rushed to Lady Lumine. She seemed to have been so wary of him, but what if she had made a mistake and fallen into his trap? A trap as simple as giving your name?
You had to know, you had to make sure. As much as you originally despised her, she was now a good acquaintance of yours, and you had to make sure she was safe. You then ran to your bedroom and sat down, grabbed whatever paper an envelope you could find, and took your plume in hand. Dipping it in the ink, you wondered how to formulate this. Obviously, if she was under his influence... he would see the letter.
“Dearest Lady Melusine,
How are you faring? I must say this gala was the apogee of delicateness, far from what I had expected even. It was quite delightful, indeed.
I am glad to have seen you have not changed and are still in very high spirits.
Did somebody perhaps catch your eye? You seemed a little more enthusiastic than before.
I do not wish to pry, but knowing what type of men you like would be quite a funny gossip between us, would it not?
I bid you a wonderful day, or evening.
Your good friend,
Lady Du Randier.”
This was perfect; it didn’t hint at Flins directly, yet still she would be able to tell you immediately. Hastily putting the letter inside the envelope, you called for a servant to have it delivered as soon as possible.
With the knowledge of Flins being a non-human creature, the possibilities of him having written this threatening letter to you were rising to concerning levels. If he was in fact capable of feats such as controlling one’s mind and actions, diving deep into their untold secrets would probably not be an issue. You had to find him before anything else happened, and for this, you would need another gathering he surely would attend.
Since that very day, you had received no letters from Flins. No invitations, no quick visits to check on you, nothing. You were now certain he had gotten someone else in his net. No jealousy filled your heart, only dread and concern. You needed to find a way to expose him, and of course, it would be no easy task.
Asking your father for favors was not something you thought you would ever do. But perhaps for once in his life, your old man would contribute to something greater than getting fatter everyday or making your life insufferable with all those utterly idiotic suitors. And so, coming into his office, you practically begged the man to hold another reception at the Grandsworth office. It took a lot of convincing and a lot of promises, but the second you mentioned it being for Lady Melusine, his face changed into a content smile.
“Why, of course! We must tighten our bonds with the Melusine household.” He laughed and called for a servant to send out as many invitations as possible. Of course, Sir Flins would be invited, and it would be your occasion to check who was caught in his trap this time. Bowing down, you exited your father’s office and followed the maid who was in charge of making the invites.
“May I ask for a favor?” You looked at her directly in the eyes as she turned towards you and bowed, signifying that she was fine with it. You indicated to her that letters sent to the women specifically should have one more sentence, just one.
“Scream the second you see Sir Flins.”
The maid seemed a bit puzzled at your request, but made it so every letter directed to a woman would contain the message. You would finally find him and question him directly, even if you had to make a scene in public. The flour incident was nothing compared to the chaos you were about to unfold.
You had an entire week to prepare yourself. At this point, the original storyline had been completely erased and replaced by something far more grim. If such an influential man was preying on women, he had to be stopped. It didn’t matter anymore who the heroine was, or who the villainess was. All of you had to unite against this monster.
And so you took notes, recounted everything you had felt while under his spell, how he had quite literally taken your name, how his words made your body move on its own. Of course, you documented yourself as well. As little literature there was about the faes, some works of fiction told of rules to respect when addressing a fae. There were a lot of very niche lines, but some of them caught your attention.
Never give your true name to a fae— that, you had already done, and had in fact seen the consequences.
Never accept a gift from a fae, as they will always demand something in return. The necklace and the ring had already been purchased and worn, there was nothing you could do about this one. You were kind of scared of whatever he could possibly ask you to do with this favor you owed.
Never say “thank you” to a fae, as it indebts you to them— that had already been done, too. In fact, you did thank him right after giving him your true name.
Other rules such as “never lie to them” or “never carry iron around them” were probably things you didn’t have to worry about. It isn’t as though you could have lied to Flins while you were infatuated anyway. Of course, you had no way to be certain the other women would play along with your demand… but if it could convince even a fraction of them, your plan could be a success. There were chances someone would let the information slip out, but you couldn’t find a better way to do things.
With all your notes taken, the almost reliable books about the fae and your self-confidence, all you could do was wait and steel your resolve. You made your way out of the library, meeting Lohen who was obviously waiting for you outside, leaning against the wall. Why did he seem to be literally everywhere, and why was he always loitering at your estate? You were pretty sure he was supposed to spend his time in the Melusine household… yet again more evidence proving that you had shattered the way things were supposed to be.
“And what are we doing in the little old library, my dear~?”
His tone sent a shiver down your spine— not a good one. You closed your eyes and inhaled, but this time you didn’t even bother looking at him, even leaving as you spoke. After all, you knew he would follow you either way. “What do you think?”
He hummed for a second, acting clueless before he snapped his finger and grinned. “Someone is veeeery angry at her dearest Sir Flins, or perhaps am I wrong?”
Ugh. This tone again? And emphasizing on the word "dearest"? You had to resist the temptation to slap him, but it was getting more and more difficult the way he kept lingering around you. His grin grew.
“Doesn’t the poor little Lady Du Randier miss his embrace?”
SLAP.
Oops. That one was quite hard, unnecessary and had slipped out a bit too easily, and now you knew he wouldn’t let go anymore. He wiped his nose of the small trail of blood, eyes crazed with the joy of pushing you to your limits.
“More.”
The way his voice cracked in one single word, how he sounded so eager with the laughter that followed, you decided once again not to indulge him and sped up your steps. But as you had predicted, he wouldn’t let go so easily.
“Lady (Y/N), you are always such a tease. You slap me once, then leave me all alone~?”
UGH. You had no time to listen to whatever masochistic tendencies he was displaying and as soon as you reached your bedroom, slammed the door in his face. You knew. You just knew that, in a week, you would have to bear with him again, since your father would obviously send him to accompany you to that reception. And besides… well, as much as you hated to admit it, having the little psychopath accompany you was probably safer than going with anyone else. But once again, you had given him what he asked for, and you had a feeling you’d never live this one down.
Once you woke up the next morning, you had a feeling a certain someone would be waiting for you outside of your room, so you decided not to get out immediately and took your sweet time to prepare your outfit yourself, doing your own makeup— which turned out to be absolutely fantastic, at this point, what did you even need maids for? And doing your hair the way you liked it, for once. Today, you were determined to go out and find ingredients to finally make Lumine’s cake correctly.
But first, you needed an apron, and a good rolling pin. Of course you could simply have taken the ones from the kitchen, but the poor maids already had very little to work with and, needless to say, altering their tools any further would have made you an actual monster. You heartless thing, you. You would have to get out of your room at some point anyway... so you did and, surprisingly enough, he wasn't there at all. "Huh..." you hummed quietly. Of course, you were quite relieved but it made you a little uncomfortable somehow.
Nevermind that; you made your way to the greenhouse to have some tea and biscuits and this time, let your maids dress you up to leave for the city.
Once there, you entered the first bakery shop you found and got whatever you needed. Outside the shop, you still felt eyes on your back. You had gotten used to this feeling, but it remained unpleasant. As much as you looked around, you really could not tell where it was coming from. Was it Flins? Was he aware of your research and had decided to end you before you could end him? Chances were rather high; after all, you had escaped his grasp in one way or another.
Even with two bodyguards, you didn’t feel safe, and walking near the park you and him once took a stroll in made you nauseous. Your errands were quick enough, but somehow you surprised yourself lingering a little longer around the park, as if trying to... compartmentalise your feelings. Simply standing here with the sharp glare you could feel behind you made you retch a little out of anxiety and so, you decided to leave this ordeal for another time.
Instead, you sat back inside the carriage then returned to your estate, eyes still lingering in the shadows and staring into your soul.
Ignoring them, as per usual, you got to work. As much as Flins was a creep, he had also been a good teacher, and his knowledge of bakery helped you improve a lot. This time, only a few grams of flour were wasted! Well, the frosting didn’t quite look like you wanted it to, but you were almost there. You had a few days to perfect it anyway.
Though, the Flins situation kept plaguing your mind. Lohen’s undesired appearances were none of your concern anymore and you couldn’t help but wonder why he was lingering around you so much in the first place; why did he have so much interest in you? You had almost forgotten about the walking death flag he was but, for some reason, it seemed that was not his objective at all. He was supposed to be close to Lady Lumine, yet he was always running into you at the most inconvenient times, with his ever so unwavering smile.
Ah, no matter. You just had to get better at baking already.
A few days had passed and you were getting ready for the big day. Of course, your father had instructed you to attend with Lohen who, needless to say, was absolutely ecstatic about the news, but you would have to work with it. It didn’t matter who accompanied you, considering the herculean task you had put upon yourself.
The anxiety settled in. What if one of the women you sent the letter to decided to tell Flins? What if they simply did not care enough? What would happen to you if he found out and did not get caught in the end? Maybe Flins had become your death flag instead. Though at least, when it was supposed to be the young assassin, his schedule was more or less clear. Flins did not appear at all in the story, not even as a side character. His moves were unpredictable, and he proved to be quite the dangerous opponent.
...opponent? This word had always been in your mind, but never in your vocabulary. Some things from your previous life remained, and it made you a little sad inside. BUT!
In the meantime, you had finally gotten better at baking and were ready to give Lumine her cake. Your father wanted to tighten your family links to the Melusine household? Say less! Your amazing daughter is going to bake a cake everyone will remember. And… also attend with a chaos agent— but that was besides the point.
Your old man was, in fact, very proud of you for once.. or rather, proud of the effort you had put in to make this cake and tighten your relationship to Lady Lumine even though it was already pretty good in your opinion. But a bit of recognition definitely didn’t hurt. It was a good thing that neither your father or Lohen knew the true reason behind this reception. You obviously hadn't told them since the latter seemed like a tattletale, and your father would have been confused anyway. In any case, neither of them would be of any help.
The big day came at last, and you were ready. Matching outfits with Lohen again, dressed up all in lace and black— though this time, he had let you pick your outfit and decided to get his afterwards, you two made your way to the reception, sitting silently inside the carriage. He was eyeing you for the entire duration of the trip, as if he knew something was going on, but decided to remain silent.
Once there, you made your way inside, your arm and his intertwined, and went to greet the guests again. There were way more people than you thought, but what reassured you was the knowing looks some of the other ladies gave you. You weren’t alone, though the fae was nowhere to be seen, probably hiding somewhere, aware of your plans. Whatever, you stepped deeper into the grand hall.
Of course, Lady Melusine jumped at the first occasion to talk to you, very happy once again. “Oh, Lady (Y/N)! It is a pleasure to see you again!”
Ah, what a little ray of sunshine she was. In the end, maybe she wasn’t so bad; the heroine role suited her pretty well. You gave a bow, and so did Lohen. Signaling your servants to bring forth the box, you let them settle it down on the table. Her eyes grew curious and she couldn’t resist but open it, eyes glimmering with surprise when she saw a tall, delicious looking cake.
“Oh my! Did you get this for me?”
“No, Lady Lumine. I baked it.”
She blinked a few times and her smile grew even wider. “Oh, did you? I’m so happy to hear that! I am so glad you and I get along so well!”
You could feel Lohen’s grip on your arm tighten a little, seemingly getting a little overwhelmed by her overexcited attitude, and you two excused yourselves to the balcony while slices were being served. Resting your elbows on the railing, you let the breeze soothe you while the assassin rested his chin on his hand.
“You are hiding something.”
You gave him a side eye. “Gods forbid a lady has her secrets, Sir Lohen.”
He gave a dry chuckle, but did not pry any further. After all, who knew what this man could have been up to the entire time? Bullying the new recruits, slaughtering monsters and whatnot, and probably using his coworkers as living target practice.. or making them practice on him, which seemed to be a far more believable option. Was this any better than your secret, trying to protect other women from a potentially dangerous individual? No, of course not. You were convinced of it.
Looking up at the night sky, you couldn’t exactly feel the stare you usually did. No, in fact, all you could feel was Lohen’s eyes on you; not mocking, not condescending, but seemingly content. You couldn’t exactly tell why, but that was slightly comforting. You gave a small smile and turned to him.
“SIr Lohen, it seems you—”
“AHHHHHHH!”
A scream pierced through the night. Had someone finally spotted Flins? Everyone rushed outside, looking for the source of the terrified voice. After long minutes of thorough searching, both of you reached a young woman, standing still in place, paling and cold sweating.
You didn’t even have time to ask, as you followed her gaze and found a corpse, already starting to decay. The skin was getting darker, the fingers rickety and the eyes were completely dug into the skin of his face, though… the clothing and the hair were unmistakable. You had, at last, found the fae, stabbed in the neck with what seemed to be a very simple, iron tableknife.
No words left your mouth. He was… dead? Was that why the spell was lifted? But who could’ve killed him? Lady Lumine? No, she was too innocent for such an act… Sir Lohen? But he was with you the entire time, pestering you about one thing or another… A jealous suitor? Maybe…
You were unresponsive from the shock for a few minutes before Lohen shook your shoulders quite violently. “Lady (Y/N), snap out of it!”
Huh..? You blinked once, then twice, and your gaze met his. He sighed in relief and wiped some sweat off your brow with his glove. “I thought I had lost you there. Are you alright?”
You stood speechless. It was your first time seeing a body in this world, in a much more fragile and sensible vessel, especially one decaying. The skin was slightly bloated and already taking on a dark color, disfiguring the once handsome man; the skin on his fingers stuck to his bones as if he had been emptied of his blood; the wound on his neck was completely gangrened and—
Lohen turned you around, cupping your cheeks with his hands and giving them a very slight slap. “My Lady, do not lay eyes on such a foul display any longer. Let the capable authorities deal with this, yes?”
A nod is the only response he received, your body frozen in shock as if you too were in rigor mortis. The only reason you were able to walk away from the scene was because Lohen slowly dragged you away, back to the grand hall. You were thankful without even realising it, though right now you were too busy processing the information. The source of your anxiety was dead, why were you not relieved?
When you regained lucidity, Lohen was kneeling in front of you, seemingly worried. When your eyes met him, he gave a relieved smile and a small sigh, standing back up. “Do not think about this anymore, my dear. I believe it is time for you to return home, you have a well deserved night of sleep in front of you.”
You couldn’t agree more, and took the hand he offered towards the carriage. As per usual, the ride was silent, yet he couldn’t help but throw glances at you. Your mind, on the other hand, was preoccupied by something new. As much as Flins was a menace, exposing him would have been quite enough. He was also quite a powerful opponent, or so you believed, and it would require some skill to beat him. Your father would be incapable of such feat, Lohen had been with you the entire time— when he wasn’t busy bullying the trainees, and your suitors probably never stood a chance.
Then who had killed Flins?
No matter how hard you tried, you couldn't sleep. And in all honesty, no one could blame you after what you had witnessed. Tossing and turning in your bed, cold sweating and clutching your chest at the memory of the image still stamped vividly into your mind. Every time you blinked, it felt as though you were discovering it for the first time all over again.
Which was strange, really, since you could remember that before you impersonated the real Lady Du Randier, the last thing you saw was a battlefield and a combat. Had your trip or luxury made your mind so weak and squeamish? Ah, whatever… It felt like you had a growing fever, your mind almost filled with total nonsense.
However, one thing other than the gruesome vision slipped into your mind, not something you wanted to catch yourself thinking about. Of all the time you had spent in this world, Lohen was, on many occasions and to put it as politely as possible, a piece of shit. An absolute, total asshole, a prick of a—
But somehow tonight, and also at the time you learned about Flins being a fae, he had been rather supportive, and… quite gallant, if you accepted to admit such a thing. Very gentle and behaved, unlike the chaotic gremlin attitude he kept displaying when you two were alone or, for that matter, in public as well. It didn't matter. Not one bit.
Though you couldn’t deny that his original attitude differed wildly from the one you were witnessing. He proved to be more of a gentleman than you had expected and, not to compliment him too much, he was also quite handsome. Handsome and apparently gallant enough that you didn’t even mind if you had to attend another soirée with him…
…which in fact did happen. Of course, now that Flins was gone, the household he belonged to organised his funeral, and who better to accompany you than the man who had supported you through this? Your black lace dress would finally come in handy again. Your maids gave your hair a simple thin braid tieback, no ornaments necessary and attached a black, semi transparent veil to the sides of your hair, giving you black lace gloves and a simple charcoal makeup. You didn’t know what to make of all this, really— well, not the outfit and hairdo, of course, but the amalgamation of all the things that had happened; the letter, Flins’ murder, the funeral… Even Lady Lumine being so nice and out of character.
In truth, you were scared of two things. The first one you had already accepted was that you had changed the story too much. The second one you had also accepted; you had nothing left to figure out what the characters were doing. Now on to the things that did not scare you per se, but confused the hell out of you. Which secret was that letter in the beginning talking about? Who had sent it? Why did every single character act out of their style? Because surely not all of it could be your fault. You had been asking yourself these questions for a while now, and every time you thought you could investigate them, one thing or another would happen and mess with your ideas.
Things were moving too quickly. You hadn’t even been in this world for a long time, yet the plotline was already so altered you couldn’t help but wonder. It was an idiotic, surreal and very improbable idea, but.
pairing: lohen x fem! witch, dendro user reader
summary: lohen expected to pick up a shipment for varka. he did not expect to get pinned to a post by magical ivy and immediately fall in love with the woman threatening him with a dagger.
warnings: varka being varka, love at first sight, lohen is down bad, flirting, accidental meet cute, suggestive themes and sexual tension, weapon threats, no use of Y/N, third person narration. english is not my first language, i apologize if there are any spelling or grammatical errors.
word count: 5.5k
a/n: this was supposed to be something much shorter, to post while i plan and write other things, but oh well… i hope you like it as much as i do! thank you so much for reading :))
The cottage sat at the edge of Starfell Valley where the trees thickened enough to swallow the noise of Mondstadt whole. Ivy crawled over the stone walls in dark green spirals, silver bells hung from the eaves chiming softly whenever the wind brushed through them, and faint golden light glowed behind the round windows despite the late hour.
Inside, dried herbs hung from wooden beams in neat bundles. Lavender, mint, valberry leaves and more. Jars of powders and glowing fungi lined shelves beside simmering cauldrons, and the entire house smelled faintly of cedar smoke and flowers after rain.
She preferred it that way. Silent, warm, and calm, away from the city, far from the daily hustle and bustle, far from the endless bustle of knights and commissions and people who only ever sought witches when they needed something. Which, admittedly, was often. She enjoyed being alone in her own space, in her cottage accompanied by her ingredients, her books, her record player and her cat. And although she enjoyed solitude, there were some people in Mondstadt whom she liked, or at least tolerated much more than the rest.
Like Lisa, who always arrived with some dessert and gossip to share, as well as new books that might interest him.
Mona, who would go to see her for advice and support as if she were an older sister, while enjoying the food she prepared for her, knowing about the issue Mona had with money.
Jean, whom she adored for her tranquility, for the peace she transmitted to her every time she went to visit her at her home, especially since Varka’s return as she had a little more free time.
And Varka himself.
Although Varka had somewhat forced his way into her life, and unfortunately for her it was difficult to say no to him, he had become, much to her dismay, a good friend. Which was exactly why she had spent the last three days preparing medicinal tinctures and accelerated healing potions for the expedition team currently stationed far from Mondstadt.
The final vial clicked softly onto the wooden crate. “There,” she murmured, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “Everything ready, I think I have everything Varka asked for,” she said to the air, even though it was just her and her cat there.
A soft meow answered from nearby, her black cat blinked lazily at her from atop the counter. “Yeah, I know, you don’t have to tell me,” she sighed. “He’s late, again, to no one's surprise.” He had promised he would retrieve the shipment before sundown, and the sky outside was already sinking into indigo.
After carefully finishing sealing the jar, she placed it to one side with the others, and then headed towards the stove to heat the kettle.
And it was then that she could perceive the sound of a series of footsteps, soft footsteps, almost mapped out on her garden patio, as if whoever was there was treading deliberately with too much care.
That wasn't Varka, the mere sound of the footsteps was more than enough to know it wasn't him, because Varka stomped around like the Anemo Archon himself had personally declared stealth illegal.
There was an intruder. No one went to that area, and those who did, her friends, usually warned her beforehand, no one appeared unannounced, and knights and travelers were advised to avoid that specific area.
Moving carefully, without making a sound and avoiding being seen through the window, she approached the kitchen counter where a dagger was resting next to the chopping board, gripping it tightly between her fingers. She could hear the sound of the wind ringing the bell outside, and along with that she heard the sound of the gate being opened, which was then preceded by the sound of footsteps again.
Her eyes narrowed and the air in the cottage changed immediately, dendro energy threading beneath her skin in quiet anticipation as she extinguished the lantern with a flick of her fingers. Through the window she could see the shadow of a figure, she couldn't glean too much information from it, but it was clear that it was a man, perhaps a little taller than her.
The sound of knocking on the door echoed through the place, the music that had previously filled the air was now completely silent, and his cat watched curiously from its spot, as if it were not a critical situation. For a few seconds there was silence, only the tinkling of the bells outside, and then the handle of the front door moved slightly, as if someone were trying to open it.
And the moment it opened, vines exploded from the wooden floorboards.
The man barely had time to react before thick green ivy snapped around his wrist and yanked him violently forward, his spear clattered across the floor. Another vine coiled around his ankle while a third wrapped around his waist hard enough to slam him against one of the support posts near the staircase. She hadn't even given him time to defend himself, quickly gaining control of the situation in her favor.
“What the hell— “
A stream of dendro that shout out of her made the vines' grip stronger, causing his body to slam against the post again, stealing a groan from his lips, before he opened his eyes disoriented, surprised.
The dagger she held in her hand rested near his neck, its edge gleaming in the rays of the setting sun. “Who the hell are you?” she said, bringing the dagger's edge closer to his neck, allowing him to feel the cold metal.
The stranger blinked once. Twice.
And then, to her utter disbelief, he smiled.
It wasn't a nervous or scared smile, but a real smile, as if he were enjoying the situation.
Her eyes narrowed further.
Slightly taller than her, broad-shouldered, silver-haired, with a mole under his right eye and with sharp eyes that should have looked intimidating if not for the fact he currently seemed entirely distracted by staring at her face, and that smile on his lips, as if he were living his best moment.
“…You’re not Varka,” she muttered, analyzing his face, looking for something that might tell her who the hell he was.
“No,” he agreed softly, with a voice that sound warm, the kind of voice that sounded entirely too amused for a man currently tied to a wooden post by aggressive magical ivy.
The vines tightened slightly around his arms when he shifted. But instead of complaining, of uttering a curse, of letting an expression of pain appear on his face, his smile deepened.
Something flickered across his face, something that seemed similar to enjoyment, entertainment, even pleasure.
Her brows slowly furrowed, confused by his reaction. “…Why are you looking at me like that?”
His gaze deliberately slid, slowly as if he were performing a detailed scan, from her face to the delicate, shimmering dendro vision hanging at her waist. And finally, he raised his gaze again, settling on her lips, unable to resist licking his own at the sight of those lips that seemed to beckon him.
“I am trying to decide,” he said, smooth as silk. “If getting attacked by beautiful witches is a common occurrence around this part of Mondstadt or if I’m uniquely fortunate.”
She watched him silently, the confusion more than evident in her gaze, which made everything more entertaining for him. For a few seconds they both remained silent, simply observing each other face to face, he being able to feel the cold of the dagger's edge still grazing his neck.
Then another vine snapped around his chest and tightened hard enough to pin him flatter against the post. His breath caught slightly, but not in pain. Not if she took into account the way his face had contorted in an expression of excitement, of anticipation, as if he were waiting to see what else she wanted to do to him. As if he even longed for it.
Archons preserve her.
Was he really enjoying being in that position with her? Wasn't it just a facade?
“You broke into my house,” she accused.
"I didn't even open the door," he said, as if that were nothing.
"That's still trespassing."
He tilted his head slightly, nodding. “Well... you have a point.” His eyes glittering, still smiling, still entirely too calm. Her grip on the dagger tightened.
“Who sent you?”
The question finally seemed to drag him slightly back to reality, though not much.
“Varka,” he answered immediately. “I am the Vice-Captain Lohen, Fifth Company of the Knights of Favonius.”
At the title, she hesitated slightly. Only slightly.
“And why,” she asked carefully, “would Varka send you here instead of coming himself as we had agreed?”
“To retrieve a shipment of healing tinctures, Varka was busy training the new recruits and sent me in his place.” His gaze flicked briefly toward the crate behind her before returning immediately to her face. “Though admittedly, he neglected to mention the part where I’d be assaulted upon arrival.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“You could always search my coat, feel around to see if I have anything unusual.” The way he said it made her narrow her eyes instantly.
“That sounded intentional, as if you really wanted me to do it.”
“It was, sweetheart.”
The bastard actually looked pleased with himself.
Her cat jumped onto a nearby shelf, tail swishing judgmentally while she continued glaring at him.
“You’re lying.”
“I’m not.”
“Varka would have warned me.”
“That,” Lohen said, “does sound like something he should have done. But it seems that wasn't the case.” The ivy around his wrists shifted again as he adjusted experimentally, he looked down at the vines and then back at her. “…These are impressive, by the way, and very tight.” She raised an eyebrow, he was trapped under her control and now he was praising her? There was something wrong with that man, what he had in good looks he probably also had in his madness.
And something must have been very wrong with her too, because she felt a tingling in her stomach at that.
His smile widened. Archons, he was absolutely doing this on purpose.
“You enjoy being restrained?” she asked before she could stop herself, the question slipped out sharp and incredulous.
Lohen looked genuinely delighted by it. “Only under very specific circumstances.”
Heat flashed instantly across her face and his eyes immediately caught it, which only motivated him more.
“Oh, you’re blushing now,” he murmured, his tone full of mischief.
“You’re tied to a post.”
“And having a wonderful evening so far, sweetheart,” he smiled sincerely, to confirm his words. "Aren't you?"
She opened her mouth to respond when suddenly a shrill chime echoed through the cottage. Both of them glanced toward the table, a small device no larger than a lantern sat glowing softly and vibrating atop the wood. A modified dodocommunicator, with a small screen that allowed you to see who was on the other side.
The screen flickered and then Varka’s face appeared. “Well! There you are—”
She stared at him in disbelief, releasing her grip on the dagger to reach for the device, Lohen still tied up behind her.
“You.”
Varka blinked, then squinted. “…Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You forgot to tell me you were sending someone,” she murmured,
“Oh.”
She raised an eyebrow, slightly moving the device to show Lohen that it was still attached to the post with glowing ivy, still smiling.
Seeing that, Varka burst out laughing, so loudly it crackled through the device. “Oh, this is incredible,” he said, laughing, moving closer to the device to try to see them better.
Lohen sighed deeply, without losing his smile, a playful sparkle in his eyes. “She’s very welcoming, another thing you forgot to mention Varka.”
“You deserved it,” she muttered.
“I absolutely did not,” Lohen shook his head, trying to look innocent, but his smile and mischievous gaze gave him away completely.
Varka was still laughing, actually wiping tears from his eyes. “This— this is the best thing that’s happened all week.”
“You could have warned me,” she snapped.
“I thought I did it, I swear.”
"It would have been useful to know that someone I didn't even know by sight was coming, so I wouldn't think they were trying to rob me."
"But— But he was wearing the knights' uniform, didn't you see?" Varka said, trying to get out of the situation, he knew how fierce she could be when she got angry.
"Oh, please Varka, as if anyone couldn't steal a uniform and pass themselves off as one, it wouldn't be the first time."
Varka sighed, knowing that she was right. “Okay, you’re right. Sorry, I forgot, but I was busy.”
She snorted. “Your favorite pastime is delegating your responsibilities to Jean, tell that story to someone else.”
Lohen made a very poorly concealed sound that suspiciously resembled a cough hiding laughter. His eyes watched her in wonder, he really liked that she didn't keep quiet about anything and stood up to even the Grand Master.
Varka pointed accusingly through the screen. “You're lucky I adore you, not everyone talks to me like that.”
She rolled her eyes, knowing that Varka cared for her too much to seriously reproach her, and all three of them were aware of the truth in her words when speaking of Jean. “How can you say that to me when you practically begged me to be friends? “
"Shhh, that had to stay between us! I have a reputation to uphold."
“Mhm, whatever you say Grand Master,” she blurted out with amusement, while Lohen continued to gaze at her in ecstasy, as if she were the most incredible person he had ever seen.
“So,” Varka said far too casually, “has Lohen caused any trouble?”
Lohen smiled lazily from where he remained restrained. “None whatsoever,” he said smoothly, eyes fixed entirely on her, almost as if Varka did not exist even though he was responding to him. “In fact, I’d say I’m more than fine, the company is… amazing.”
The implication hit instantly, heat rushed back into her cheeks. And Varka, being so perceptive, of course noticed it.
“Oh, this is even better than I thought.”
“Varka,” she warned.
“What? I’m just saying—“ he began in a playful tone. “The least you can do after attacking the poor man is invite him in for tea.”
"I want to make it clear that I wasn't bothered at all by being attacked by her," Lohen interjected, causing her to turn and look at him, her eyes widening in disbelief. "It was a pleasant surprise."
"For Archon's sake, what kind of people are they accepting into the Knights now? Is there some kind of test to see how mentally unstable they are?” she murmured, still feeling the blush rising up her neck and face, and that tingling again in her belly. "This one here isn't right”
Lohen's laughter, deep and seductive, reached her ears, and judging by the reaction it caused in her, seeing his face out of the corner of her eye and thinking how attractive he looked like that, she wasn't right either.
Varka nearly choked laughing again. “I don't know what you're talking about,” Varka wheezed. “He’s fine! I'd even say he's doing more than well, look at his face, it looks like it's his birthday.”
“This is your fault.”
“Yeah,” Varka agreed cheerfully. “But now you have to deal with the consequences.”
Lohen shifted slightly against the vines again. “No rush,” he said. “I’m quite comfortable.”
She shot him a look, noticing that he looked unbearably pleased with himself.
Varka grinned knowingly from the communicator. “Well,” he said, voice suddenly suspiciously innocent. “Good luck to both of you.”
The screen went black before either of them could respond and silence filled the cottage again. The two of them were alone, because even her cat had left, leaving her with the knight.
Slowly, she turned back toward Lohen. Still tied up, still extremely handsome, still staring at her like she had personally descended from Celestia to ruin him, as if she were a dessert he eagerly wanted to taste.
"You seem too comfortable in your position, even having the nerve to flirt with me so shamelessly,” she said, taking a step towards him, noticing how his gaze seemed to darken, the black of his pupil overshadowing the color.
"I can stop if you want," he replied quietly, seriously.
“…You sound disappointed by the idea.”
“I am.”
Another pulse of warmth spread across her face at his words and the ease with which he uttered them.
With a sigh, she lifted her hand. The ivy loosened immediately, unwinding from his wrists and torso before retreating slowly across the floorboards. Lohen rolled one shoulder once he was free, stretching his arms slightly, and then he bent to retrieve his spear. But instead of immediately stepping away, he walked directly toward her, slowly, deliberately, as if he were a hunter stalking his prey, until only inches remained between them.
Her breath caught despite herself, he was even taller when he wasn't tied up and stood in front of her like that. One gloved hand gently took hers before she could react. Then, with effortless elegance, Lohen bowed slightly and pressed a soft kiss against her knuckles, his eyes never left hers.
“I should tell you,” he murmured. “There’s usually a dinner involved before I let someone tie me up.”
Her lips twitched despite every effort to remain serious. “Oh, really?”
What was she doing? Why was she playing along?
“Mhm,” his thumb brushed lightly against the back of her hand. “Though for you, I’d be willing to reverse the order.”
He was a dangerous man, clearly out of his mind, but that didn't make him any less attractive, any less captivating. It's not like she was entirely sane, after all, she was a witch. And she could play hard to get all she wanted, but she was more than aware that she liked all of it, it made him far more interesting than any other man who had ever tried to approach her before.
She laughed softly then, unable not to. At that moment, with that image before his eyes, Lohen discovered that there were simpler ways to ruin a man completely than with magic, like her laughter for example.
“You use lines like that often?”
Lohen tilted his head thoughtfully. “No,” he said honestly. “You’re actually the first woman who’s ever pinned me to a post with magical vines.”
“…What an honor.”
“It truly is.”
The way he looked at her made warmth curl low in her stomach. Not playful now, not entirely, there was still teasing there but beneath it sat genuine fascination, wonder, like he genuinely could not believe she existed.
“And,” he continued softly, stepping just slightly closer, “if I’m particularly lucky… perhaps the last and only one.” Her pulse skipped, while his gaze dropped briefly to her mouth and the returned to her eyes. “…Though,” he added, voice lowering. “I certainly wouldn’t object if it happened again under different circumstances.”
The implication in his tone sent heat rushing through her all over again. She tilted her head slightly.
“Careful, Vice-Captain.”
“Mhm?”
“You sound very eager to end up restrained again.”
Lohen smiled slowly. “If it’s by you?” he murmured. “Absolutely. No victory on the battlefield has ever felt as incredible as that, and I love to fight.”
Archons.
She should throw him back outside. Instead, she found herself stepping closer too, close enough now to catch the faint scent of leather, steel and cedar clinging to him. Close enough to notice the way his breathing subtly changed when her fingers lightly brushed the front of his uniform.
“Maybe,” she said softly, “next time you should announce yourself before entering a witch’s home.”
“Maybe,” Lohen replied, eyes darkening with amusement, “next time I’ll intentionally forget, if that leads me to this.”
A laugh escaped her before she could stop it. And judging by the utterly smitten look on his face, Lohen seemed to decide right then and there that he had just won the lottery.
She should have stepped away, that was the sensible thing to do. Instead, she stayed exactly where she was, close enough to feel the warmth radiating from him, close enough to notice the smug little curve of his mouth every time her gaze flickered briefly toward it.
Lohen looked entirely too pleased for a man who had been ambushed twenty minutes ago.
Though, admittedly, he also looked entirely too handsome leaning there in the middle of her cottage with his spear resting casually against one shoulder and ivy leaves still caught in the silver strands of his hair. One of the vines had even left faint green marks along his wrists.
His eyes caught her staring, the bastard smiled immediately. “You’re admiring your work.”
“I'm considering whether I should tie you up again and, while I'm at it, shut you up for a bit.”
“Making me promises already, sweetheart?”
He was danger, a temptation made flesh.
A breath of laughter escaped her despite herself. Lohen’s expression softened slightly at the sound, like hearing her laugh had done something irreversible to him. Which, honestly, judging by the way he kept looking at her maybe it had.
The kettle in the kitchen began whistling softly, but neither of them moved. Then finally, she tilted her head toward the doorway.
“Well,” she said lightly, “since Varka apparently volunteered me to entertain his Vice-Captain…” Lohen’s brows lifted with immediate interest. “…I suppose I can allow you inside for tea.”
“Just tea?” he asked smoothly.
The look she gave him was slow and deliberate. “Oh,” she murmured, turning toward the kitchen, “I imagine that depends entirely on your behavior.”
The man nearly looked like he stopped breathing.
She could feel his stare burning into her back as she walked away, entirely aware of the sway of her hips beneath the loose fabric of her dress. And when she glanced back over her shoulder, Lohen was still standing there staring at her like she had personally rewritten the laws of Teyvat.
“…Vice-Captain?”
He blinked once, dragged violently back to reality. “Right,” he said hoarsely. “Yeah. Tea. Of course.”
She smiled faintly to herself and disappeared into the kitchen. A second later, she heard him murmur under his breath: “I’m going to marry this woman.”
Her lips twitched instantly. “You know I can hear you, right?”
“Good,” Lohen replied without a shred of shame.
She laughed softly again as she began preparing the tea set.
Behind her came the quiet sound of boots against wooden floors before his presence settled near enough to send warmth curling along the back of her neck. He leaned one shoulder against the doorway, arms crossed loosely now, watching her with utterly shameless admiration.
“So,” she asked while reaching for the teacups, “do all Knights of Favonius flirt this aggressively after being threatened with a dagger?”
“No,” Lohen said immediately.
“Just you?”
“Just me when I’m standing in a candlelit cottage with a beautiful witch who tied me to a post and then invited me inside afterward.”
“…You make that sound strangely romantic.”
“It was strangely romantic.”
She glanced sideways at him. “You’re unbelievable.”
“And yet,” he said smoothly, stepping closer, “you still invited me in.”
That low warmth returned to her stomach instantly.
Arrogant man.
Though the way he looked at her, like she was something precious, something devastating. Something he already wanted more of… It made it very difficult to stay unaffected.
She handed him a teacup, their fingers brushed. Lohen looked down at their hands briefly before meeting her eyes again. "Did you put something strange in this?" he asked, looking down at the teacup.
"No... what would I gain from that? A body I'd have to get rid of? I'm not in the mood to bury someone today."
No enchantment or potion had ever ruined a man this quickly before, and she managed it even without casting a single spell.
“Well... anyway, if I die tonight,” he said solemnly, “I want it officially recorded that I died the happiest man in Mondstadt.”
Her brows lifted. “That dramatic already?”
“You attacked me, pinned me against a wall, looked at me like you might kill me, then invited me into your house afterward.” He took a slow sip of tea without breaking eye contact. “I found the woman of my dreams.”
She laughed under her breath, shaking her head. “You don’t even know me, Lohen.”
“I know enough, sweetheart.”
“And what exactly do you know?”
Lohen stepped closer again, close enough now that she had to tilt her head slightly upward to hold his gaze. “I know,” he murmured, “that you’re beautiful when you’re angry.” Heat flickered across her cheeks. “I know you live alone in the middle of nowhere because peace matters more to you than attention.” His fingers brushed lightly against her wrist. “I know you’re powerful enough to disarm a knight twice your size without hesitation.”
His voice dropped lower.
“And I know,” he continued softly, eyes darkening with unmistakable intent, “that every time you threaten me, I like you more.”
Her breath caught slightly, that man was impossible. Impossibly irresistible.
“Careful,” she whispered.
“With?”
“You’re looking at me like you plan on staying.”
Lohen smiled slowly. “If you keep looking back at me like that,” he said, “I may never leave.” It was no longer the vines on his wrists that kept him there in the cottage, but her, with her words, her gaze, her smile...
Silence settled between them then. Warm, heavy and charged.
The candles flickered softly around the room, golden light dancing across his face while the wind outside rattled gently through the ivy climbing the cottage walls.
Neither of them moved away.
Lohen simply kept looking at her with that same devastating expression, amused, fascinated, hungry. Like he still couldn’t quite believe she was real.
And the feeling was becoming dangerously mutual.
“You’re staring again,” she murmured softly.
“I know.”
“At least you’re self-aware.”
“I don’t think self-awareness is helping me much right now.”
A quiet laugh escaped her.
Lohen visibly melted at the sound of it, actually melted. His shoulders loosened, his smile softened, and for one brief moment the shameless flirting slipped enough for her to catch something unexpectedly genuine underneath all that confidence.
He was completely gone for her already.
That realization sent a dangerous little thrill through her chest.
She took a slow sip from her teacup without looking away from him.
“What exactly is going through your mind right now, Vice-Captain?”
Lohen exhaled a soft breath through his nose. “You truly want an honest answer?”
“That depends. Is it scandalous?”
“Extremely.”
Her lips twitched upward. “Then there's no doubt that I want to know.”
He set his teacup down carefully onto the counter beside him before stepping closer again. Not rushed, not hesitant either, just certain, until there was barely any space left between them at all.
“I think,” he said slowly, voice low and warm enough to send heat down her spine, “that if you asked me to stay here forever, I would.”
Her breath caught slightly despite herself and judging by the look in his eyes… He noticed. Of course he noticed.
“You’re very bold for a man who got overpowered in under a minute.”
Lohen grinned lazily. “In my defense, I was distracted.”
“By what?”
“You,” the answer came instantly, too instantly. Like there had never been any other possibility. His gaze dipped briefly to her mouth again before returning to her eyes.
“And now,” he continued softly, “I’m standing in a witch’s cottage drinking tea while she looks at me like she’s deciding whether to kiss me or ruin my life.”
“Maybe both.”
His smile widened immediately. “Archons,” he murmured. “Please, I would gladly submit to that, to you.”
Heat curled low in her stomach at the sound, the confidence, the teasing in his tone. The fact he somehow made wanting her sound almost reverent.
Her fingers toyed absently with the edge of her teacup before she tilted her head slightly. "Don't you think people will start talking if they see you've been gone for so long?"
“I intend to stay much longer than I already have… If you’ll have me.”
“And the shipment for Varka?”
“He can wait,” he quickly dismissed the matter.
“You’re abandoning your duties?”
“More like I’m prioritizing my future.”
That made her laugh again, softer this time. Lohen looked entirely too pleased with himself for causing it. Then his expression shifted subtly as his eyes traced over her face once more. Slower now, more intent, while his hand brushed gently against hers where it rested near the counter.
“I’m fairly certain I’ve found the woman I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life bothering.”
She watched him, raising an eyebrow. “That quickly?”
“I’m efficient.”
“You’re insane.”
“I’m in love already, actually, but insane probably too.”
That one caught her off guard enough that she actually looked away for a second, smiling helplessly despite herself. Lohen noticed that too, his voice softened immediately. “There it is again.”
“What?”
“That look,” his thumb brushed lightly against her knuckles. “The one that makes me want to stay.”
The warmth in her chest deepened dangerously.
Archons, this man.
She should have been alarmed by how quickly he affected her.
Instead, she found herself stepping even closer until the fabric of his uniform brushed lightly against her sleeves.
Close enough now that his breathing slowed.
Close enough that his eyes darkened instantly.
Her voice dropped softer.
“Careful, Vice-Captain,” for archon’s sake, how he loved it when she referred to him that way.
“With you?”
“Mhm.”
Lohen smiled slowly.
“I don’t think careful is a word in my vocabulary, sweetheart.”
Then his gaze flickered toward the hallway leading deeper into the cottage before returning to her face with unmistakably sinful amusement.
“…So,” he murmured, “is this the part where we continue pretending you invited me in only for tea?”
Heat flooded straight through her and he looked devastatingly satisfied by the reaction.
The smug bastard.
She reached up slowly, fingers curling around the front of his uniform near the collar. And then, leaning just enough to brush her lips near his ear, she whispered, “That depends.”
Lohen went completely still. “On?”
Her nails dragged lightly against his chest as she pulled back just enough to meet his gaze again. “Whether you behave,” she murmured. The sound that left him was somewhere between a laugh and complete surrender.
“Archons, I will be the most obedient man if you ask me to,” Lohen breathed, staring at her like she was something catastrophic for his self-control. “You do realize I’m completely at your mercy now, right?”
Her brows lifted faintly, amused. “Oh?”
“Mhm,” his hands settled loosely at her waist, careful despite the heat simmering in his gaze. “I’m serious. I don’t think there’s anything you could ask of me tonight that I wouldn’t do.”
A slow smile curved against her lips. “That sounds dangerous.”
“For me? Absolutely.”
She hummed softly, her fingers still curled around the front of his uniform. “And if I asked you to get on your knees?”
The answer came immediately. “I would.”
No hesitation, no embarrassment, just complete and devastating sincerity. Lohen had met plenty of witches before and none of them had ever made him willing to kneel without using magic.
The heat that rushed through her nearly made her lose composure entirely.
Lohen noticed instantly, looking unbearably pleased with himself.
“And if I told you to stay?” she asked softly.
“I’d stay.”
“To leave Mondstadt behind?”
“I’d pack my things tonight.”
“To jump?”
“I’d ask how high while already doing it.”
A laugh escaped her before she could stop it.
Lohen looked completely ruined by the sound, smiling like he’d just been handed the greatest treasure in Teyvat. “There,” he murmured quietly, almost dazed. “That laugh again. Archons, I’m finished.”
“You’re dramatic.”
“I’m devoted… to you,” the words landed warmer than they should have. Especially with the way he was looking at her now, teasing still, yes, but underneath it sat something frighteningly genuine. Like he truly meant every word.
His forehead dipped lightly against hers. “And the worst part,” he murmured softly, “is that I don’t even mind.”
Her fingers slid slowly up the front of his chest, feeling the steady rise and fall beneath the fabric of his uniform. “No?”
“Not even a little,” his smile turned dangerously soft. “I think you could ruin my entire life and I’d thank you for it afterward.”
She shook her head, laughing quietly under her breath.
“Looks like you fell hard, uh?”
“I fell the moment you pinned me against that post.”
“And here I thought knights were supposed to resist danger.”
“Oh, I fully intend to surrender to this one.” The warmth in her chest deepened helplessly at that. Then Lohen’s gaze flickered once more toward the hallway deeper inside the cottage before returning to her with shameless intent.
It should’ve concerned him how quickly he became obsessed with her. Instead, Lohen found himself hoping it would only get worse.
“…So,” he murmured, voice dropping low again. “Should I continue proving how obedient I can be, or are you finally going to kiss me?”
In which you reflect on some memories of your life; nothing can take that away from you.
❥ Lohen x fem!reader ₊˚⊹
—
words: 1.1k
additional info: a bit of suggestive content, written before Lohen release
"I don't want to hurt you."
Lohen laughed. "You won't. These aren't real bullets, remember?"
"But they still have to hurt even just a little, right? I can't imagine there being any bullets specifically made to not hurt," you said with a shake of your head.
Something softened in Lohen's expression. With long strides, he crossed the shooting range until he reached you.
"Here, you hungry?" He offered the apple to you.
Your eyes widened. "Is this a joke to you?"
Lohen chuckled. "Just feeling merciful today. No special training for you."
You watched him suspiciously. "You sure?"
The corners of Lohen's mouth quirked up in amusement. "Of course! I wouldn't lie to you."
"I find that hard to believe," you said skeptically.
Lohen brought a hand to his chest in mock hurt. "Do you really doubt my character that much?"
"Forgive me, Vice Captain, I do."
Lohen sighed dramatically. "Do you want this or not?" He waved the apple in his hand.
"What if I said no?"
"Then I'd be sad."
You rolled your eyes. "Yeah, right."
You accepted the apple anyway, fingers brushing against Lohen's gloved ones. You didn't notice how he seemed transfixed on your touch.
After turning the apple over in your palms, you took a bite into its red skin.
"Good?"
"Yeah." Your words were slightly unintelligible with your mouth full.
"It's rude to talk with your mouth full, y’know?" Lohen said with no real admonishment.
You simply stuck up your middle finger at him.
★ ★ ★
"If I win, I get a favour from you."
"What if I win?" You challenged.
Lohen shrugged. "You can order me around for a whole day."
"That doesn't seem very fair," you pointed out.
"I don't play fair. Besides, I'm winning this easily. It's a losing fight for you," Lohen smirked, full of confidence.
You huffed. "We'll see about that."
Despite your best efforts, you lost the sparring match.
"I'd like to claim my favour now."
You tensed, preparing for the worst.
"Come here." Lohen gestured you over.
You obliged, albeit with much hesitation.
Why did you agree to this?
Lohen sighed, exasperated. "Can you walk any slower?"
You glared at him but picked up your pace regardless.
"So what do you want-"
You were cut off as Lohen captured your lips with his own.
You made a muffled sound of surprise.
The kiss was chaste at first, almost experimental. But it soon deepened into something hungrier.
You don't know how long it had lasted, but Lohen eventually pulled away with a smirk.
You touched your lips; they tingled. Your face was bright red.
Lohen gently brushed his thumb against your lips.
"You're so cute when you're flustered, y’know?"
Somehow, you became an even brighter red.
★ ★ ★
You huffed, tapping your foot impatiently.
Spotting a familiar head of mint green hair, you called out.
"You're late!"
Lohen gave you an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I got held up."
"What do you have behind your back?" You questioned.
Lohen grinned, expression conspiratorial. "It's a surprise."
"Come on, let me see!" You exclaimed, completely forgetting about your irritation.
"Not yet! Close your eyes."
"Fine, fine." You decided to indulge him.
You heard a rustling sound but kept your eyes closed.
"Okay, you can look."
You were greeted with the sight of Lohen bowing as he held out a bouquet of red roses.
"For you m'lady."
You crossed your arms. "This isn't enough of an apology."
"But this was the reason I was late!" Lohen protested.
"Hm, I don't know if I believe you." You tried to speak sternly but failed to keep a straight face.
"Believe what you want. I know you love me too much to stay mad." An infuriating smirk adorned Lohen's face.
"Not true!"
★ ★ ★
You had an idea.
You faced the mirror, applying your lipstick on as heavily as possible. Once you were satisfied, you began searching for Lohen.
"Lohen, my love, where are you?" You called out.
Lohen appeared before you. "Right here, babe. What's up?"
"Come here," you gestured at him. You're sure you had hidden your mischievous intentions well enough.
Lohen chuckled. "You're up to something, aren't you?"
"Me? Never." You said innocently. Or at least, you hoped you sounded innocent.
He sighed, shaking his head. "Fine, I'll humour you."
As he approached, you closed the distance and cupped his face. You pressed a kiss to both sides of his cheeks.
"Wait, do I have something on my face?" Lohen touched one of the marks you had left.
The tips of his fingers returned with red residue. The contrast of the bright pigment on his pale skin was decidedly very pretty to you.
He stared at his fingers. "Is this lipstick?"
You pouted. "You didn't even notice I was wearing any?"
"Your beauty is just so blinding that I can't see anything else."
You crossed your arms. "Flattery isn't getting you anywhere."
Lohen tilted his head. "Then where will it get me?"
You grinned playfully. "Punishment."
Leaning in, you kissed along Lohen's jawline. Backing him against a wall, you left open-mouthed kisses lower and lower down his neck.
Lohen shivered at the contact.
You smirked. "Let's take this elsewhere, shall we?"
By the time you were done with Lohen, his entire body was covered in your red lipstick.
★ ★ ★
You spoke without a trace of hesitation in your voice.
"I do."
"Then you may kiss-"
Before Seamus could finish with the formalities, Lohen pulled you in for a passionate kiss.
The crowd cheered; Seamus simply sighed but still afforded a small smile.
You were the first to pull away, albeit reluctantly. The wedding still had to go on, after all. Looking over at Lohen, you couldn't help but giggle at the pout on his face.
The rest of the ceremony went smoothly. After much congratulations from guests, the two of you finally had some downtime.
Lohen poured two glasses of red wine and offered one to you.
You graciously accepted and studied the glass in your hand.
"Cheers?" Lohen looked at you, awaiting your answer.
"Of course!" You tilted your head. "But what do we cheer to?"
Lohen raised his glass. "To us."
You smiled as you mimicked him. "To us!"
Clink!
The red liquid in your glasses sloshed around at the movement.
Your respective rings caught the light, shining like the stars in your eyes as you looked at Lohen lovingly.
★ ★ ★
Red. So much red.
Dark crimson stained your hands.
You stared at the body you cradled in your hands.
"Stay with me, Lohen!" You begged.
"I'm right here." Lohen tried to laugh; it came out as an awful choking sound.
"Shut up, this isn't funny!" You sobbed.
Lohen's hand reached for you weakly. Blood smeared across your cheek as he caressed it; you didn't care.
He sighed, a pitiful wheeze. "You're right. You're always right."
You pressed his hand against your cheek before it could slip away. It was as if you were hoping that would tether him to you.
"Please, don't go..." you whispered.
Lohen gave you a sorrowful smile.
"I'm sorry."
He took one last shuddering breath.
"I love you."
A/N: This was kinda inspired by a little One Piece fic I read a long time ago on AO3. I would've tagged this with angst but I didn't want to spoil anything. Sorry lol
taglist: @k3na0o @soonette @salmonsaw @trangmuahe
let me know if you want to be added ^^
⋆. 𐙚 ˚𝓣hinking about how much you guys mischaracterise Idia and say that he is subby and shit, when it's in fact the opposite. (Suggestive MDNI)
Guys, did we read the same manga? Did we play the same game? Because the amount of times that I see headcanons characterizing him as a shy subby person irks me. That man is literally me if I didn't change myself for the better good, so sue me for getting mad.
He is so egotistical that it's actually so annoying, like if we put him in an environment where he's comfortable with talking he spouts shit. He is the epitome of all bark no bite, he is sarcastic, he has an ego large as my ass, and he is prideful and spiteful. That man is not at all that stuttering soft puppy boy you imagine him to be, he is bratty at best— like where are those bratty sub! Idia fics? Please guys I am begging you, if you want to write about sub Idia write about bratty sub Idia, there is literally a drought of fanfics about that.
If he gets comfortable enough with you to initiate a relationship, then he is comfortable with showing his true prideful and sarcastic ass. The reason why he stutteres most of the time is because he's in an environment where he is not comfortable with being himself. So if you wanna write about him being mean and rude put him in a situation where he is comfortable with showing his true self like: playing games in his room, bickering with his brother, etc. It's literally not that hard.
I'm so sorry if I'm being rude here it's just that I can see myself in him sometimes.
Anyways. Y'know what's good food? Tsundere Idia, Idia who: even though he's blushing and the tips of his hair are turning pink, even though he's stuttering, avoiding eye contact. Denies it because his ego is too big for him. Mhm. And then he'll bully you while you guys are playing together in his room with you on his lap as revenge. Mhmmmm. And then he nips your neck when you fluster him further because you distracted him and now he's mad at you. Mhmmmmmmm. Okay I'll stop sorry. (We can't talk here, email me)
Idia is for the people who wants someone that seems subby to other people but in private degrades you and gives sarcastic praises. Wait hold up I'm cooking.
Idia is for the people who likes being provoked. Saying shit like: "you poor thing" or "good job, stupid" to get under your nerves. Mhm— and then when you get mad at him he lowkey gets more condescending because you getting mad at him gives him a boner. Then when the argument spirals too far he lowkey makes out with you aggressively hehehe— alternatively, you brat taming him because his mouth talks too much and gagging him with your fingers hehehehe
He's actually really freaky but his stamina holds him back, that man literally needs vitamins to survive so you can imagine how fucked up his stamina is.
Loves biting you. If you have a thing for biting get ready for this man because your thighs? Shredded, your neck? Savored, your cheeks? (the one on your face not your ass, although...?) Obliterated. Especially if you're sitting on his lap and your neck is near his mouth? Yeah you're not getting out of that chair without hickies and bite marks— he has awful fiddling habits, he needs to fiddle something or do something to concentrate so be prepared to be a chew toy for him (I'm so down bad for him I swear I'll bark for him)
But also, overstimulated bratty sub Idia that gets forced to behave by overstimulation mhmmmm yummy.
Okay I'll stop sorry
𝗔/𝗻: I was ovulating and Doja cat was playing I'm sorry. But also............. Cockwarming him while he's playing his games as punishment because you made the mistake of beating him in a game— OKAY OKAY I'LL STOP I'M SORRY
