This story is finished, yes. And I haven't touched this for 2 months, so why did I write another one? Because I really need to write the fluff – and now that this story's finished I can just dump whatever ideas that come flying into my head here! No need for plot or development or anything! YAY! ...But I'm saving some of my ideas for my other story... They're too good...

[ Extra No.2 ]

Chapter 6: Kotatsu

"So... what exactly is this?"

Keqing stared at both Paimon and Aether, currently sitting underneath a low table with a thick blanket in between the frame and the actual table, taking the beloved position of her coffee table. Thanks to Aether's request, she was now given a free day every Sunday – and even when she attempted to get back to work, Ganyu would simply... shut the door on her with a semi-guilty but still happy expression on her face. There was no way of getting work done because all the files were taken from Yuehai Pavillion.

Only when the Sunday was over would she be able to enter and take home with her all of the work that she could have done on that Sunday. She could've gotten more work if she did the work on Sunday! More work was important! Work, work, work!

What she hated was that Aether was never there to be with her on her free days, so it was pretty much useless and boring, including strolling around Liyue aimlessly, mindlessly. However, she had begun to talk with others, managing to strike up a conversation with the heir of the Feiyun Commerce Guild unrelating to any business or talk to the current Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlour. But today was a good day – a great day, in fact. The traveller had returned to Liyue after his long journey from Inazuma, dragging along with him many souvenirs and... this.

"A kotatsu. Man, Kazuha had one of these, and – seriously, you gotta try it. You gotta."

"Wh-why do I need to–"

"YOU GOTTA!" The two of them yelled out enthusiastically as if they were children, hands clumped into fists, eyes determined, a pout on both of their lips. Yes – both of their lips; Aether had softened so much in their time together. With a sigh, she walked over, entering the blanket beside Aether. To ensure that they wouldn't need to sit up, Aether took a bowl of fruits to the table, her teapot and teacups, water just in case Paimon didn't like the tea, as well as some books – most of them lent to Aether from Xingqiu.

"It's warm," she stated, huddling the blanket closer to her, "How do these work?"

"There's a small heater underneath using electricity to run and, uhh, Kazuha said something else... it was... Yeah! The material surrounding the heater's a heat insulator so even if you fall asleep and touch it with your leg, it's gonna be fine."

Paimon reached over and peeled an orange. Aether set to pouring tea before reading a book, and Keqing... The Yuheng had absolutely nothing to do. But the kotatsu was warm, and with the carpet underneath, it was seriously comfy. It was winter – all the leaves had blown away, and it was far too cold to go outside. Keqing turned around and grabbed a cushion from the sofa, lying down as she went a bit closer to the heat source. Thankfully, her hairpin was out of the way – and she had just taken a shower so this was pure, uninterrupted bliss.

It may as well have been too comfy. Heck, she'd say this was better than Aether as a blanket. Slowly, sleep was taking her. And now combined with Aether's hand stroking her hair, the rate at which her eyes were becoming heavier was increasing. Paimon hummed as she munched on an apple, and the traveller was pouring tea for himself, momentarily leaving her headpat zone for a minute.

"P-Paimon thinks Paimon's not gonna last..." Somehow, she had kept the blanket close to her body whilst still floating. She really needed to buy a seat for her, otherwise, it would exhaust the poor girl having to float all day – on the premise that floating took any effort at all.

Aether tapped Keqing on the back, intending for her to turn around – holding in front of her a segment of an orange. The Yuheng, along with the fruit, jokingly put the tip of his finger into her mouth, eliciting a small jolt from the blond. Was that seductive? Upon letting go, a sly smile spread on her face, enjoying his faintly pink cheeks and turning back round to enjoy the wonderful technology he and Paimon had so thankfully provided. If she'd wanted to, then maybe Keqing could stay cooped up here forever.

Paimon had stopped floating, pinned down by the blanket's weight. Her eyes were shut close – and as she let out a final sigh, the girl fell into a deep sleep. Lo and behold, the first victim was taken within a minute. Maybe it had something to do with how exhausted she was, but Keqing found it amazing – inspiring, even – that sleeping in a minute could be achieved.

Was the power of the kotatsu almighty? Probably.

"Aether?"

The Yuheng turned around, finding his head slumped on the table. Could that really happen? She sat up, also putting her head on the table as Keqing looked at him. Her finger went up, prodding his cheeks, then his forehead, then moving to the nose, then to his hair, then to his... lips.

"What if I distract you?"

"You never would."

She could hear the fireworks again, bursting in her ears. His breath, so hot it could melt her. His eyes, so deep she could be forever lost in them. And his lips, so... so...

Exhilarating.

...

"Sorry I made you wait so long," Aether softly said, releasing himself from her lips. He brought her body to him, the girl's skin feeling the long lost warmth she had yearned for. No – Aether was better than a kotatsu, but being realistic, the kotatsu was a better choice. She dug into his clothes, finding pleasure in the fact that he was wearing the ones she had picked out for him. They smelled like him, so much so that Keqing couldn't stop from giggling.

"Smooth," she teased.

"I am, aren't I," he smirked proudly. His head leaned into hers, the kotatsu finally taking its effects on him. The girl gladly accepted, bringing his head closer. It may not have been his intention, but Keqing found her heart racing when around him more so than often. She had missed the feel of his hands, the feel of his embrace, those joyful laughs he'd give her, that atmosphere that followed that made eating a simple sandwich seem much more exciting than it actually was.

I missed you.

She pushed herself away, but not too far – just enough that she could see his face, "Were you just pretending to be asleep?"

He looked away sheepishly.

"You're a dork, you know that?"

"So I've been told," Aether laughed. "Keqing, you sure you wanna continue staying here? The kotatsu, I mean. Because," his face took on a jokingly serious look, "once you decide to stay, you can never leave. I'm already stuck, go save yourself! Ah, no! My body... it's... it's too late...!"

"Quiet down, will you? Paimon's gonna wake." She moved, taking a more... suggestive position. That is, the Yuheng had moved up on his thighs, arms surrounding his neck. Well, they've done this more than just several times – and without Paimon in sight, if that implied more strongly why it is they did so. "And I'd rather be stuck here if it meant being with you."

That was terribly embarrassing to say, but seeing as she had managed to get a blush out of him (that may have been more due to the way she was sitting on him), it earned her a lot of points. Fufu, not bad, Keqing. Not bad at all. She moved away, retreating to her cushion before coming to a sudden stop. In front of her, blocking Aether's face, was a white, fluffy pillow.

So that's why they were white. Because they were divine.

"Gimme that." She swiped it from him, laying down as the warmth seeped into her body. "That's... mmh...better."

"Not gonna share?"

"If you can fit," Keqing brought her hair to the front of her body, shifting a bit to the side to make space for the traveller.

"Eek!"

A few seconds later and she felt his lips on her nape, her sudden yelp high enough to be on par with a boiling kettle. Aether brought his hands around her hips, just slightly away from touching her stomach. The boy's legs bent the same way as hers, just behind her own legs, lips moving away from her neck. Her hand went to cover his, and within a few minutes, they both fell into a deep sleep.

Seriously, a really deep sleep. It was night by the time they awoke.

Pretty short but that's what I like about it! I swear Keqing's gonna get her own story quest, as far as I know from the video Genshin set out about 1.3, and she might get her own banner, but I don't really think that's gonna happen since she's a vanilla 5 star.