GENSHIN CHARACTERS WITH A NEURODIVERGENT READER HEADCANONS
pairing(s) xiao, yoimiya, kaedehara kazuha, beidou, albedo, barbara, thoma, hu tao, zhongli, fischl x gn reader
content gn reader, bulleted hcs, can be read as romantic or platonic !
a/n rewrite of my genshin x autistic reader hcs i made like 2 years ago except this is supposed to be inclusive to more types of neurodivergence, but it's a bit difficult because theres so many of them😭
might make another part with other characters if ppl like this
due to his lack of socialization he has no perception of how people are "supposed to act", the adepti have their own etiquette of course, but when it comes to human standards of how people should act, he's lost.
even with adepti, they’re rather blunt and to the point, so regardless of what you are, when he sees you acting 'out of the ordinary' he has no clue thats something that not everyone does. to start he just thinks you’re naturally blunt and don’t play annoying mind games other mortals do or you’re just a regular adeptus. he doesn’t know that you do it because you're neurodivergent until you tell him
once you do, though, it doesn't change how he sees you at all
if anything, it probably makes him more comfortable with you?
don't like crowds or loud noises? he doesn't either, so all of your hangouts/ dates will consist of sitting together at the wangshu inn balcony, having a picnic on a mountaintop, or treks through more inhabited places in liyue that people never go to so that no one bothers the two of you. he's actually glad that your idea of a fun outing isn't dragging him into the middle of the bustling harbor
if you have a very monotone voice or speak very bluntly, he literally does the same thing so it doesn't bother him at all
struggle with social skills? you two can work on it together
in spaces like the harbor he aims to speak as little as possible but for you he doesn’t mind ordering things for you or speaking to someone when you’re anxious
struggle with coordination? xiao is very coordinated and precise as a result of his training, so if you struggle with this he offers to train you to help with your coordination skills. if you get injured due to it he sighs while treating your wounds, telling you to try to be more careful though he knows it isn't your fault
he's also very quick to catch you if you trip alot
mood swings? xiao experience bouts of irritation due to his karmic debt so he understands. hes a bit harsh with his words unintentionally, so if you're feeling emotional or angry he takes greater care to watch his mouth
you're nonverbal? he enjoys silence anyway and likes that he's able to spend time with you without the need to speak, however the fact that you probably won't be able to call out his name if something goes wrong worries him
he'd try to create some sort of alternative way of calling him when you need him because you can’t say his name out loud, potentially some sort of adepti amulet that is able to summon him, and if not him another adepti to protect you in his stead
xiao isn't a talker, so even if you're someone that rambles a lot whether it be about your hyperfixations or special interests or just how your day went, that still doesn't bother him and he enjoys having you dominate the conversation and not having to speak other than the occasional "mhm" to let you know that he's still listening
the sound of your voice is therapeutic to him, sometimes he'll literally just slump down next to you after a long day or when his karmic debt is especially bad and just ask you to talk, it's like it heals him
even if he doesn't understand your hyperfixations he listens 100%
to him, any of the things you're hyperfixated on are just another part of everyday life and he doesn't see the excitement about it, but because it makes you happy, hes happy (he'll never admit that though)
so overall nothing about you being neurodivergent makes him see you differently
the only thing that does irritate him is that if it makes you tardy often because you’re forgetful, since he values punctuality. if you’re late to train or whatever it is with him it actually irks him. to the point he literally becomes your personal alarm clock and teleports into your room or climbs through the window to wake you up or remind you of responsibilities. no matter how many times you tell him it’s odd as hell to just randomly materialize in people’s rooms unannounced
whenever he's about in liyue, if he sees something that reminds him of your hyperfixation or special interest or is related to it in any way being sold by a vendor or something, he gets it immediately (with what mora i'm not sure..) to give to you
he'll pass it off as something he just found while patrolling because he's too embarrassed to admit that he thought of you
when you tend to misplace objects, at first he finds it amusing watching you run around like a chicken without its head trying to find something that's very much in his field of vision, but once it starts to become an actual problem and you misplace important things like your wallet, keys, papers, etc he starts leaving notes around to help you, and if he sees something misplaced he'll put it where you can easily find it
whenever you get overstimulated or anxious he probably knows exactly how to deal with it and does so very quickly
people tend to think that just because he's emotionally constipated and socially awkward he wouldn't know how to deal with that sort of thing but i beg to differ
he literally fought in a war if not him then his comrades have had panic attacks or became overwhelmed so he knows how to deal with them
plus he's constantly haunted by karmic debt & trauma ? he's had his fair share of anxiety, so he's quick to notice when an attack is coming on and take you away from the trigger if theres a specific one
with stims, he'd be confused by your stims at first, asking you why you're doing that (not out of judgement but just curiosity on what you're doing)
if any of them involve hitting or hurting yourself in any way he'll try redirecting you, even telling you that you can hit him instead😭
(please don't do that though..)
he'll give you little trinkets like crystalfly cores & things he found in the wilderness for you to fidget with
his outfit has so many fandangles on it that are probably so fun to toy with, one day before he realized you enjoyed fidgeting with things, when sitting next to him you started mindlessly playing with his necklace and he was like ???
he actually has alot of repetitive behaviors himself and doesn't even realize they're 'stims'
like swinging his legs while sitting on the inn balcony, fidgeting with his sleeve, running his hands through his hair
he stops when he realizes what hes doing especially the first one (he gotta stay mysterious)
if you ever come to him upset because some mortal said something hurtful about you he doesn't even need a name, he immediately asks what they look like
for some reason, the next time you see that person they refuse to even look you in the eye...
amazing at taking care of other people, so she always knows what to do when it comes to you
yoimiya can easily read you and tell when you're having a hard time or when you're overwhelmed, you blink and there's suddenly a bunch of snacks and blankets in your lap before you could even ask
she's quick to bring you away from the source of your overstimulation if theres a particular cause, you don't even have time to react before shes dragging you away
"oh! lets go to that food stall over there, they have egg rolls!!! :3"
is such a great listener when you ramble about your hyperfixations/special interests, or when you need to vent about anything in general
goes out of her way to learn about your hyperfixation/special interest, and she'll run up to you and be like "guess what i just learned about __!!!"
unfortunately, if you're not good at keeping organized, thats the only thing where yoimiya is the wrong person to help you...
she's infamous for being reckless and unprepared, so you can just imagine how much chaos two disorganized people together is
"oops, looks like we forgot.." is something you now hear from her on a daily basis
the both of you never remember important plans until last minute and you're rushing to prepare, the both of you asking why the other didn't remind you😭
randomly showing up to your home unannounced to take you somewhere with absolutely no schedule or plan is also within her nature. you're either as spontaneous as she is, or the lack of preparation and scheduling drives you absolutely mad
if loud noises such as fireworks overwhelm you, she tries to create silent fireworks
that or she'll get you noise cancelling headphones so you can still enjoy her firework shows <3
owns an insane amount of plushies, fidget toys, and trinkets that she lends to you, a lot of them she found with the children she takes care of
super upbeat, so if you're high energy she matches you
yoimiya talks at a very fast pace, so it's either so healing to your attention span, or you need her to slow down because you have no idea what shes saying no inbetween
since kazuha is very observant, he probably already had some idea before you even told him
when he first met you, he noticed you said things in a rather blunt or harsh manner but figured it was unintentional and didn't take it to heart
he also noticed you had a lack of control over your volume
he noticed even more unusual or repetitive behaviors you had over time and eventually put two and two together
he doesn't treat you any different, other than accommodating you to make you more comfortable
if you ever stim around him, he doesn't point it out at all to not make you feel self conscious, and probably just starts mirroring whatever you're doing, not to mock you but to just do with you so that you don't feel alone
kazuha also has some stims of his own, like cracking his knuckles/joints and fidgeting with rings if he's wearing them
he doesn’t even get mad when you accidentally interrupt him or blurt things out when he's speaking, most of the time he’ll just let you talk or APOLOGIZE LIKE HE WAS THE ONE THAT INTERRUPTED YOU??
kazuha is another one with great coordination, being a samurai
he'd be very patient and understanding, he can immediately tell whenever you're getting overstimulated or anxious, and would be swift to remove you from the situation and bring you somewhere quieter
he wont touch you at all unless you want him to, knowing unnecessary contact will likely just make you more overwhelmed, he'll just guide you elsewhere
the crux fleet can be very rambunctious to say the least, so when you get overwhelmed by all the noise, he won't say anything to them as to not dampen their spirits, instead he'll take you away from all the fuss and bring you to his quarters where it's quieter
he'll distract you with poetry, or if you prefer, you both will just sit in silence for a bit or he'll guide you through breathing exercises until you calm down
after you calm down he'll go down to the galley to bring you a glass of water
if you become so overwhelmed that you have a verbal shutdown, he'll communicate with you in a way that doesn't require you to speak, asking you yes or no questions so you can just nod or shake your head, or giving you options using his hands, asking you "do you wish to leave, or stay?", one hand being to leave, one being to stay and you'd point to whichever one, and he'll speak to you very softly, almost whispering
his gentle voice ends up calming you down
kazuha is prone to sensory overload himself due to his heightened senses, so he completely understands & is super sweet about it
the two of you often disappear from the ship to recharge together, leaving the crew wondering where you ran off to now
the crew is always joking around and laughing, whenever you’re confused during dinner because you didn’t get a joke he always whispers the meaning so you aren’t left out and to not put you on the spot <3
soon enough you two are the ones with inside jokes referencing your interests or vocal stims and the crew are the ones having zero clue what you guys are talking about
with mood swings, kazuha will act accordingly as to not set you off
if you're more irritable, he'll be more laidback, and dry towards other people that approach you two, kind of brushing them off and cutting the conversation short quickly so that you don't get agitated
sometimes you get very confused with all his poetry and complicated language so he'll put it in simpler terms for you
while kazuha loves flowery, poetic metaphors, he also appreciates the blunt honesty you offer in return
kazuha helps you read any text you're struggling with without question, and in such a pretty voice too, he literally sounds so eloquent
kazuha is also a listener, so he'll listen to you ramble whenever & with a smile on his face
he'd compose some haiku about the way your eyes light up when you talk about something you're passionate about
when you zone out, unless its mid-conversation or during something important he'll just ask if you're alright and then let you be once he knows you're just daydreaming and it's nothing alarming
if there's something important going on he'll bring you back to the present by gently tapping your knee (or if you dont like being touched he'll just whisper your name)
when you get distracted by something during conversation he'll acknowledge whatever you got distracted by, then redirect you back to the conversation
"that butterfly is pretty, isn't it? you were telling me something?"
he doesn't even get angry if you get distracted while he's speaking to you, no matter how many times it happens
he'll just lightly smile and go, "no worries, would you like me to start over?"
kazuha has an outstanding memory, so if you're forgetful theres no need to worry, he's like your walking agenda book
whenever someone gets upset or hostile with you because of your tone of voice, he swiftly steps in to defend you, informing them that you have no control over it
"please, refrain from being so harsh towards them. i can assure you that is simply the way their voice sounds, they meant no harm by it."
if you dislike loud and crowded areas that'll never pose a problem because he prefers quiet, tranquil spots himself & you'll almost never find yourself somewhere crowded when with him
really the only time that happened was when he took you to see inazuma, his home town and the city started to get packed & all the noise created a cacophony in your ears
kazuha was quick to place his hands over your ears and bring you away from the city
beidou is one of the most understanding people about your neurodivergence
she has a designated area for you somewhere on the ship for when you get overwhelmed, with snacks, pillows, & blankets, and she'll leave you to relax but occasionally check up on you
"you okay? need anything? food? water?"
when you stim she treats it as a completely normal everyday occurrence (because it is, except for some reason people don’t think it is), and she wont even really react to what you’re doing. she doesn’t mind at all unless you’re hurting yourself, then she’ll have to stop you
if the crew is being too loud and it's bothering you, she orders all of them to shut it (ultimately she ends up being louder than all of them even were in the first place.. but its the thought that counts ????)
she can be a bit loud at times, so if loud noises cause you to become overstimulated she makes sure to control her volume for you. she will tone it down say sorry to you if she notices that you got startled
beidou has a no nonsense attitude so if you ever tell her about a crew member poking fun at you for your neurodivergence, before you even get the first sentence out they've already been tossed overboard
on numerous occasions you've had to stop her from punching some random person that said something rude about you while you two were in the harbor together
beidou has a very boisterous personality, but all the other crew members can't help but notice how her voice takes on a much softer tone when she's speaking to you
if you enjoy the feeling of something pressing on you, like weighted blankets, you honestly wont even need one what with the bone crushing hugs beidou gives you (if you're fine with physical touch)
if you're very clumsy and uncoordinated beidou will constantly be worried about you. with the rocking and swaying of the ship it's even easier for you to go off balance, so she keeps a close eye on you to make sure you don't somehow slip and fall overboard
her office is open for you whenever you need to unwind
albedo 100% understands and relates to you
if you dislike socializing he's literally the exact same way, albedo finds socializing and relationships incredibly complicated and troublesome and doesn't even bother with them
he could never find you troublesome though
when you two DO end up in a situation where you have to interact with others … with you both finding emotions confusing you guys always end up offending at least one person because you said something that was taken the wrong way
out of ALL the things albedo helps you with, socializing is NOT one 😭
when your social batteries run out you go to eachother to recharge
whenever you rant about your hyperfixations or interests he literally takes notes ???
he does literal research on you, he picks up on your behavioral patterns and why you do what you do to better understand and assist you
when he sees you doing a certain thing he full on studies it or will question you about it so he can understand you, except when he does it, it feels like some sort of check up or doctors appointment 😭
if there's something you're struggling with in particular, he'll study and create ways to help you
he's knowledgeable in so many things, so whenever you're ranting about an interest he occasionally chips in his two cents and tells you more about it if its something he's familiar with, and if it isn't he learns about it and writes down his findings to then mention it in conversation with you, just to watch the way your eyes light up when he does
you both take turns ranting about your hyperfixations aswell, he'll ramble to you about some alchemy experiment or arithmetic while you smile and nod even if you have no clue what in teyvat he's talking about
he listens to you infodump as background noise while he works on an experiment
when you're overstimulated hes a bit lost on what to do at first, he'd try to say comforting words to you and if you'd prefer to be left alone, he does so while occasionally checking up on you
if the cause of your overstimulation is loud noises, most of albedo's time is spent in dragonspine where it's quiet so it wont be an issue
he gets alot of blankets with the textures you like, not only because it's cold in dragonspine but also for your comfort & for when you become overwhelmed
due to being a synthetic human albedo is pretty much immune to the cold, so when sucrose suddenly sees him frequently carrying no less than 50 pounds of blankets up to the lab at a time.. needless to say she's confused😭
he notices that you forget certain things so he encourages you to make some sort of to do list so that you don’t forget too much. he'll also try to remind you about certain things that you may have forgotten, or he’ll do the things you forgot to do for you
overall one of the best people regarding this because of his knowledge on different topics including these & his willingness to learn more about them to support you
barbara will absolutely sing or hum to you to calm you down whenever you’re stressed or overwhelmed
barbara owns a lot of plushies for the patients that she heals, if they're a little kid or have a bad injury and need something to distract them, and she gives them to you to squeeze or feel if you like the texture
shes sooo great at comforting you too, she always has the sweetest & motivating words to say
she's usually kind to everyone but does not hesitate to stand up for you if someone is being rude, while you cheer her on in the background <3
barbara is very fascinated when you talk about your hyperfixations or special interests, if it's something morbid she'll get freaked out 😭 but she won't judge you
holds private performances for you so that you can still hear her singing without getting overwhelmed by the crowd and noise
thoma is so supportive of you, anything you require is handed to you on a silver platter the second you ask
he's the best chef, he makes you all your comfort and safe foods no matter how difficult or simple it is to prepare, and he makes sure to include lots of love into the dish
being an extrovert who's excellent at socializing, thoma helps you crawl out of your comfort zone & slowly become more comfortable interacting with people, and encourages you to make more friends (if that's something you want him to do)
if so, he's so proud of you when he sees you finally coming out of your shell and just watches you in admiration
it becomes difficult for you to stay organized and on top of everything, so a bunch of tasks and deadlines pile up on you, your room becomes a mess, you're forgetting to eat and drink water, and you become extremely overwhelmed. you enter your room one day to see it completely spotless, thoma having cleaned your entire room and taken care of everything for you without a word
he always reminds you to take care of yourself
immediately becomes serious when anyone tries to belittle you or disrespect you, it's actually a bit unsettling how quickly his friendly personality changes
thoma is quite busy with work but he tries hard to clear up his schedule for you
loves listening to you infodump while he works or cooks
hu tao has become accustomed to being called and seen as “weird” or "creepy" by others for her personality & the things she does, so she relates to you a lot
loves stimming with you, jumps and spins around with you forever
she'll come up to you, and literally just hold her hands out as cue for you to take them and start spinning and jumping around in circles with her until you guys get dizzy and fall
although hu tao is usually silly and seemingly takes nothing seriously, she drops her playful act immediately and becomes so serious when you're overwhelmed so that she can help you
hu tao LOVES hearing you talk about your special interests or hyperfixations, even more so if it's something morbid, unlike barbara. hu tao loves everything spooky !!! she'll be asking you to tell her more and listens so intently
hu tao is fixated on the dead, vampires, ghosts, the afterlife, just everything scary so she rambles to you .. basically about dead people facts
she'll literally be infodumping to you about bodies with a smile on her face
on halloween if you celebrate, if your hyperfixation/special interest involves fictional characters she asks to dress up as them with you
surprisingly, hu tao is naturally very organized & has good memory. it's a skill she eventually developed as a result of her work, so she'll remember everything you need to do throughout the day and remind you when you forget, even creating a to do list for you if you wish
when you two are together it's just pure chaos, with your lack of social cues, and her just having no filter on her mouth..
the amount of times someone has gotten mad at you or hu tao because one or both of you said something out of pocket by accident is insane
she doesn't have any volume control either, her voice is so loud without her even realizing it because it's just her personality, so its either you speak really quiet while she's super loud, or you're both loud and it's so noisy when you guys are together
poor zhongli gets a headache whenever you guys talk to him😭😭
if you have a monotone voice you guys are like opposites attract, because her voice is so upbeat and animated
some people find it off putting, but she’s not judgmental and it doesn’t scare her away from you. when she first met you it actually made her want to know you more, like how she bothers xiao all the time ☠️
if anyone pokes fun at you she pranks them so hard they have nightmares for weeks
the moment she sees anyone being rude to you she's already plotting , the amount of times you've had to stop her from scaring someone that was rude to you to death is too many to count
she tells you not to listen to them and reassures you that ur perfect, she literally just adores u and doesn't care about what anyone wants to say <3
she's neurodivergent she's not fooling anyone
honestly prefers the fact that you're also neurodivergent because she gets along with you so much easier
maladaptive daydreaming, adhd, probably autism too she has the full package
99% of your conversations with fischl are a yap fest about your hyperfixations/special interests, both of you taking turns rambling
fischl is always monologuing about the fantasy books she reads, especially her favorite book, "Flowers for Princess Fischl", where her personality came from
she gets so flustered when you genuinely seem interested in the things she likes, and go along with her 'prinzessin' roleplay & just tell her how cool she is instead of calling her weird or seeing her differently
you're one of, if not the only ones that don't find the others interests or behaviors weird and just deeply understand eachother. the both of you just click and are inseparable
people may look at the both of you like you're strange, but it doesn't matter because you guys get eachother like no one else does
similarly to hu tao, fischl will ABSOLUTELY want to dress as characters from your hyperfixations/special interests. it literally doesn't even have to be halloween, this girl roleplays and dresses up every day of her life
if your interests dont involve characters, you're dressing as someone from one of her favorite fantasy stories no objections. you're doing the fancy talking aswell
just like yoimiya, fischl is also very forgetful so you cannot rely on her to remind you of things, she has to write down everything she needs to do for the day to remember
that voiceline where she left her clothes hanging and forgot to take them down and it started raining... yeah
since understanding others & what they mean isn't really your strong suit, especially when they constantly talk like they just jumped out of a fantasy novel, fischl may show more of her 'amy' side to you so that you don't get so confused and you can understand what she means better
you also have oz to translate, so it's actually no big deal
fischl learns to open up to you without being embarrassed about breaking character, she actually does so fairly quickly compared to her other peers like the traveler, or bennett. shes just never met someone she relates to so much
owning so many books, having extensive knowledge on many topics, living for so long having seen so many things theres a likely chance that zhongli understands a lot about being neurodivergent and he's so good at helping you. for things he doesn't know, he reads up on them
like albedo, also a walking encyclopedia
the best to talk about hyperfixations and special interests with, he will literally sit down and listen to you talk for hours over some tea, with a smile on his face, asking you thoughtful questions and never rushing you
if one of your interests is history, it always leads to such a great conversation with zhongli since hes so well versed in it
if you have a stutter he's so patient while you speak, nodding and not missing a single word
when zhongli is the one going on about something, he never demands eye contact and knows you’re still listening regardless
when you're overstimulated, zhongli is quick to go through a list of things in his mind that he should do to help you, the first being brewing you some herbal tea to help you relax, and talking you down
the hot tea blended with soothing herbs, combined with his smooth voice does wonders to calm you down
if you don't like tea, he brings you something else that's warm. the heat helps to ground you in the moment
when you're overwhelmed by tasks, zhongli is more than happy to take some of the workload off of your back, especially if it it involves reading something. zhongli has no problem reading through whatever it is for you and summarizing everything, and he explains everything in such an easy way for you to understand, this also goes for when you're struggling to decipher some block of text
certain situations and topics are difficult for you to process, and zhongli is amazing at breaking it down for you
in a situation where another persons upset, more specifically at you, and you don't understand their complex emotions and why they feel that way, or maybe you don't even understand if they're upset at all, zhongli easily explains how they may be viewing everything and what they could be feeling and thinking, and gives you advice on how to solve it
zhongli is even good at analyzing your own emotions that you may not understand, and gives you tips on how you can navigate & regulate your feelings better
all while you struggle to get your thoughts into words, zhongli immediately understands what you mean and it's so refreshing to not have to say anything
this is especially refreshing if you're nonverbal, or if you have verbal shutdowns. zhongli can easily assess what your needs are, and even if he doesn't know automatically he figures it out through your body language or other means so you didn't even have to talk
if you like the feeling of hugs or are a touchy person, zhongli always opens his arms for you and isn't bothered by it at all
gets so internally mad when someone won't be considerate and patient with you, he doesn't show it but you can just feel it radiating off of him
overall so helpful and polite
