; this is my submission for fluffvember by @maehemthemisfit!
; Tighnari x Reader, fluff, romantic
; When Tighnari was gifted a Kamera by the Traveler, after taking a photo of you by accident, decided how he'd put it to good use.
"Hey, you haven't touched your food!"
"I will in a second."
Already at your wit's end to keep your hunger at bay, you finally bit into the delicious pita pocket Collei had packed for your patrol today.
While Tighnari continued to tinker away at the device in his hand as the cuisine next to him sat neglected. It was a gift from the Traveler from their recent trip to Fontaine, an enhanced(?) version of the Kamera that has the ability to both print the captured photo immediately as well as store the image in data form.
Naturally, scholar that he is, the forest watcher had been poking and pinching the device to fully understand it.
He even brought it with you during your patrol together, it capturing his attention even as you sat on one of the picnic tables scattered around the forest to eat your lunch.
... heh, capturing, captured, Kamera. Oh no, Cyno's infected you -
CLICK. And a flash after almost made you drop your food on the table.
"What the heck?" Desperately rubbing the white spots in your vision, you briefly saw a surprised expression pass by Tighnari's face as his attention still stayed on the device.
"My bad, I guess that's what that button does." He seemed content, you can tell just by looking at his tail that wagged enthusiastically behind him so openly. You were about to groan a complaint at him when the sound of gears and grinding caught you both off-guard.
Leaning close, you both watched as the Kamera began sliding out a piece of white paper. And there in all its glory is your face:
Pita pocket held near your chewing mouth as your cheeks were stuffed, your gaze off to the left signifying your preoccupied thoughts beforehand as a breeze gently swept your strands. Despite the impromptu shoot, somehow it turned out really well.
"Ohhh, that's some high quality print." But before you could take the photograph, his deft hands picked and pocketed the thing. Tighnari was already pulling away from the table as he cleaned up the place.
"The film for this is expensive and exported, every print is precious." He watched as you huffed to yourself, gathering your items into your bag as he reminded you that break time is over. Perfectly oblivious to the cheeky smile he dons as he decides how he would use his new toy.
The patrol continued as usual with the occasional small talk, but it relatively stayed in peaceful silence without much to say. His mind was elsewhere, you can tell by how his brows furrowed and his attention fleeting here and there.
His fingers twitched again when you spoke up. "Sooo, why did you bring the Kamera with you?"
"I was thinking of updating the field guide, perhaps a less comprehensive version, a digest with accompanying images."
Tighnari bit back a smile at the sight of you perking up at the idea, watching you copy his movement earlier to inspect the forest floor for any interesting floras to add into the digest. Flowers, flowers is a good start, can't go wrong with them.
You were always so eager to help, your companion shook his head endearingly as you started mumbling local flowers under your breath, completely enamored by the new task.
Patrol soon became a foraging trip as you lead the way with Tighnari following behind, Kamera already in his hand but not yet taking a photo of anything. Instead, he would point at a flower that looked to be the healthiest in the bunch which you would carefully pluck to join the bundle growing in your arms.
Lotuses, Viparyas, Sumeru Rose, Mint, Padisarahs, huh there's not really a lot of flower variations in the Avidya Forest actually.
"I think I got all of the flowers? Well, I added the mint despite not being a flower." Tighnari looked up from the mushroom he was inspecting to see you grinning at him, flowers overflowing in your arms. "You think we should add mushrooms into this -"
"Can you hold that pose for a second?" His eagerness seeped through his request as he raised the device. Even his ears twitched with excitement.
Nodding, you made sure that all the flowers (and mint) could be viewed in the shot. CLICK!
"Nice, did the flowers look good? I thought it would have been better to lay it out instead." You don't see the printed photograph this time as you focused on bunching up the flowers for an easier hold.
"Yeah, the flowers..." Yet when you looked at him, his attention was on the photo again with a soft and satisfied smile.
The patrol was thankfully uneventful after that. Something as engaging as a spinocrocodile or rishboland tiger encounter wouldn't really be good for a fragile Kamera in hand. You wouldn't be much help to Tighnari if you want to maintain the quality of the flowers you gathered either.
Some of the forest rangers already went back to Ghandarva Ville after their respective patrols well into the early evening, making the place livelier than it was that morning.
Stepping up to the platform, you were pleasantly surprised to see a familiar figure sitting under a lantern outside.
"Ah, Master Tighnari, (Y/N)! Welcome back from your patrol!"
"Why are you out here?" Placing your haul on the table, you took a seat next to Collei while the Forest Watcher sat across. "Studying?"
"Yeah, I can't quite grasp some of the concepts still so I thought a change of scenery would help." Leaning over as Collei tapped her pencil on her notes, Tighnari leaned his cheek to his palm, watching the two of you talk animatedly about the topic at hand.
"Oh, I remember this! Tighnari LOVES to make this topic difficult in his tests," the man in question scoffs and rolls his eyes. "But if you look at it this way -"
Eager to get some help, Collei passed the pencil to your awaiting hand as you started writing a new section in her notes. The way the trainee forest ranger presses against your side to get a closer look, how you make eye contact when emphasizing an important note to which Collei earnestly nods to, when you smile when you sense her progress -
CLICK. The both of you looked up from the study session with wide eyes, just in time to see Tighnari lower the Kamera with a smile.
Shaking your head, you kicked his foot under the table gently. "Precious print, my ass."
"A section highlighting the forest ranger's mentoring capabilities could be good." Was his immediate response, which you scoffed at with an easygoing smile.
"Don't worry about it, Collei." Your attention shifts to the younger female to ease her confusion on the matter. "He's just being a goof. Where were we? Right, so..."
The next day started beautifully for the Chief Officer, happier than when he finished his research, happier than when he ate his favorite mushroom.
How could he not be extra enthusiastic of the day when it started with him looking at the pictures he had taken, now tucked neatly on his table for later perusal. It looked better seeing it under the natural lighting of the morning, almost as if the image sparkles.
And when he saw you waving at him first thing in the morning, the day just got significantly better.
"Good morning, Master Tighnari." His eyes followed the hand that cards through your nicely dried hair. "Oh, you're taking more pictures today?"
"Yes." Eyes flickering between your form and the Kamera in his hand, a bright idea popped in his head. "Actually, can you stand there for a second?"
Confused but compliant, you watched as Tighnari placed the Kamera on a tree stump nearby, adjusting the angle and distance as he looked at you through the lens.
And when he was seemingly satisfied, he left the device there to join you where he left you.
Before you could ask, his lean arm snakes around your waist securely. "I found out that there was a timer option." That wasn't the question in your mind anymore tho!!
It wasn't until he started leaning forward did you finally realize his intention, hand grasping at his sleeves as the feeling of his warm breathe tickles your waiting lips. Your eyes closed with the distance, the gentleness reminiscent of a good morning kiss.
Just as soft as the flower petals you plucked yesterday, as filling as an afternoon meal, as sweet as the happiness of being with him —
CLICK! Your eyes flew open at the sudden flash.
Oh, that sneaky fox! But before you could comment on it, Tighnari leaned over to chase another kiss, his triumphant smirk melding with your lips.
Summary: it's raining and you and Cyno are taking a walk together, yet for some reason, you have a feeling of deep sadness in your heart.
This was written for the fluffvember event, organised by @maehemthemisfit- go look at her blog :)
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You walked along the desert sands as the rain pit-pattered amongst the sea of clouds. Drops of water fell onto the sand, creating indented circles in the ground. You felt the cool air around you, as the wind whispered through it. You shivered a little from the cold, feeling it run through your blood and veins, as the small drops of water dropped on your skin.
The overwhelming and burning heat of the day had vanished, being replaced with the chill, harsh air of the desert evening.
Grey clouds covered the sky, and you could feel the day end and the fiery sun creep away. Small beetles and insects scuttled away as soon as they heard your footsteps. The wind was still, the only sound that remained was the falling of the crystal-like water droplets as they fell onto the ground and sunk into the sand.
The sands of the desert stretched as far as the eye could see, creeping up into the horizon. You could hear the sigh of a desert sumpter beast- not too far away making its way across the wet desert sands as it stomped onto the wet grounds of the desert.
Cyno walked beside you, his hair glimmering from the wetness of the rain as it fell onto his face, his arms his feet. His previously white and fluffy hair was now stuck onto his face as water droplets hung onto them.
The moonlight bathed his face as his eyes glimmered brightly like the stars in the night sky, his small smile shone softly in the darkness, whilst his snow-white hair glowed in the reflections of the water.
Cyno offered out his hand towards you as you took it and held it in your own. His hand felt warm, yet a little rough from his days in the desert. The formerly soft features of his hand had now hardened yet, his hand still brought comfort to yours.
His usually stern expression had softened- his eye seemed to glimmer in pride and happiness whilst he walked next to you.
His cape lay draped upon his shoulders, covering his previously bareback. Cyno’s crimson red eyes gleamed towards yours, sparkling in the light of the rain.
Rain splattered across the rocks, thumping on the hard surfaces. Nobody spoke. You watched the rain fall from above, feeling your hair and face get soaked whilst you stood there, drenched in the shadows of the darkness and the rain.
You looked up into the sky, gazing into the depths of the darkness, extending your hands into the air as you caught the drops of rain into the palm of your hand, whilst they slowly slithered down your wrist and onto the ground.
Your heart felt heavy, even with Cyno who brought you great joy and happiness. You felt as if a weight had torn through you. You couldn't explain the deep feeling of sadness that now overwhelmed you whilst the rain drizzled down. You couldn't understand why you were unhappy even when Cyno walked next to you.
You intertwined your fingers against Cyno’s hand, holding it closer to your body. You squeezed it in comfort whilst he returned the gesture.
“I love you”
He whispered beside you.
Tears began to fall from your cheeks, as they blended into the cries from the clouds, rolling down in big, round drops. You closed your eyes trying to make them stop, preventing them from continuing to fall from your eyes.
Cyno stopped walking, and he turned to stare at you. he leaned towards you, wiping the tears from your cheeks whilst clutching you tighter as he held you in his arms. He caressed your face and hair as he glanced into your eyes and kissed your hands, your forehead your lips.
You felt Cyno hug you even tighter now, squeezing you into an embrace as your head was brought into his soft, white, silky hair. You could feel the warmth of his breath next to yours, you could sense his heartbeat as it thumped loudly next to yours
You stopped crying then, as your breathing returned to normal. You collapsed on the floor trying to mumble an apology as Cyno gently shushed you, hugging you as he tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ears.
He pointed towards the sky, as he raised your head. The clouds had disappeared revealing a river of stars that glimmered furiously and brightly in the night sky. He gaped into the night sky, as you followed his hand to look at the stars that shone down so ethereally- as they lit up the dark.
Your tears stopped, just like the rain as it came to an end. No one would have known it had rained if it wasn't for the wet sand and the smell of dampness that came with it.
You looked down, Cyno was still holding your hand, clutching it in his, not wanting to let go. His cape now flew with the wind- with his hair.
Cyno’s fiery eyes stared deeply into yours but not with anger, but rather kindness and love.
I love you.
He whispered again.
A small smile spread on your cheeks, you cupped Cyno’s face into your hands, staring deeply into his eyes that looked like flames that were alive and then you kissed him.
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This was written for the fluffvember event so huge thanks to @maehemthemisfit for organizing the event
