The Fate-Breaking Romcom - (Honkai Star Rail, Caelus x Firefly)

Caelus was a simple guy: after two world-ending scenarios behind his back, he wanted to actually enjoy a good break from the trouble... while also being out of the Astral Express.

As much as he would love to spend hours teasing poor Pom-Pom while the conductor tried to catch a break from March, it was also true that it sure felt a bit 'claustrophobic' to remain inside for long. Mr. Yang had told him that it was 'natural' for him to feel like this since he spent a lot of time in open places and...

He was also worried Penacony was not going to be a break from the usual adventures. Not when he had the opportunity to meet a strange sword-wielding woman that literally hit him at the end of that strange dream while the Express approached the place.

Caelus was not a believer of coincidences, but after dealing with Heliobi, 'ghosts', and other odd situations, he could spot some apocalyptic issue in the making. And he was sure as hell bracing for impact as he slowly wandered around the Golden Hour.

The fact that the IPC was here, with the ever-so mysterious Aventurine giving him some weird vibes didn't help him soothe his mood and... then something else happened that he actually couldn't explain. The Trailblazer had to face so many mysteries before now, but not one as simple and yet so confusing as the one that fell from the sky.

Turns out that he wasn't the only one that had to deal with a crashlanding entry in Penacony.

One moment he was looking around, trying to get to the shop March mentioned before his phone's signal died and then- he was instinctively moving to catch someone falling from above. Luckily for them both, she had shifted in a proper position to safely land on his welcoming arms but... she instantly appeared ashamed of what had just occurred.

"I-I am so sorry. I slipped!"

From one of the building's edges?

It was through this situation that he made a friend in Firefly. Also a guest to the invitation of the Family, and someone that had a bit more experience with Penacony than he did. In fact, she was so apologetic for what occurred despite Caelus' words of appeasement that she was soon pulling him around... by holding his hand.

Now, Caelus was not a stranger to people dragging him around, but there was something unusual in the way this happened with Firefly. The giddy attitude to be helpful for him felt similar to how March behaved around him, but there was something somewhat less 'childish' about the way Firefly was doing it.

Then again, his newest friend was quite experienced with Penacony, to the point of pretty much being even more of a guide and letting him try the local food and games by her own expenses. He had credits, he could have bought those thing just as easily, but the way Firefly indulged in this selfless effort truly left him breathless.

And stunned. And confused. And fuzzy inside.

Caelus had crushes, yes, but this was- this wasn't a crush. The way the girl smiled as she looked delighted of his reactions felt like being utterly showered by pure care and... and he liked that. Hence why he was smiling despite how confusing this whole experience was.

Penacony suddenly turned into a true source of entertainment for him or, better yet, he found Firefly to be an endless source of delight the more they talked, played and spent time together.

If only this dream could last forever.

Firefly had fucked up. Massively so. Yet, she was blissfully ignoring that.

Usually she had some basic lines to follow from Elio's script. This mission was nothing new for her, yet she had somehow messed the fine line of being caught by some of the groups there. Elio mentioned her getting caught by some unsavory people, and then being 'rescued' by a 'kind person'.

That should have been an interesting change from her usual chores as Sam, but then a slippery edge of a rooftop messed her plans. She fell towards the ground, aware that it wouldn't kill or hurt her, but still frightened by the height... only to be saved by a very kind person.

Caelus was definitely the young man Kafka, Silver Wolf and even Blade spoke about. Quiet, but friendly and even a bit quirky when coerced to be more familiar around others. Firefly could feel the Stellaron within him, tame and yet strong as it sustained such an intriguing young man.

What the other Stellaron Hunters had failed to mention was... W-Well, how cute he is.

Maybe it was a subjective view of things, but Firefly felt her breath lost the moment she took a glance to his nice eyes. The mere exchange had her heart skip a beat. And that was before she fumbled and ended up playing the guide for Caelus. She could tell he was flustered by her silly antics, and was holding back from being too rude out of niceness.

This only made her not only more self-conscious, but even more compelled to do a good job. She wasn't a master of Penacony as a whole, but she had spent enough time around to have a good reading of the layout over potentially good and fun places to spend time with.

Yet, the constant dread of messing up again and again kept her tense a few times... only for her to mellow at seeing his smiles. It was so stupid- she should be a bit less flustered and clumsy, but she was fumbling so hard!

Despite those conflicting thoughts, Firefly dared to think she was doing good enough to not get scolded. She could already imagine the teasing she was going to get from Kafka for 'playing dates with her baby boy'. It had sounded so odd for someone like Kafka, so foxy and yet so independent, to be so 'motherly' around someone.

After meeting Caelus, Firefly could see how Kafka ended up feeling that way. And she couldn't help but be caught in the spell of his kindness. Heck, he even let her win at one of the competition games without her noticing for a while.

That had left poor Firefly in a dilemma to either give him the prize she won, a large bird plushie, to him or keep it as a gift from Caelus despite the situation. Argh! Why is it so difficult to interact with this cute guy!?

Why couldn't he have been a lone wolf like Blade? At least she knew how to tease him into smiling and that would be it.

Caelus was following her around like a puppy, smiling and all- no, wait! She was holding his hand so much! And he was squeezing back at her palm a few times which made her squeeze back in return.

I-Is this proper handholding? Th-The one done by couples!

No, she was getting too far with her imagination! Yet the poor girl was foolishly losing her mind if this was just a kind and friendly hangout or if she was unwittingly coercing it into a more romantic direction. Would he mind? Should he mind? Should she be a bit more conscious and aware of the boundaries?

She heard no complains from him, but it could be because he was being too nice for that to be a thing in his mind. Should she stop? Should she...

Huffing, Firefly diverted her mind on the games, on the fun, and on his smiles. She mustered hers once more, renewed in her delight as they continued to waste hours around Penacony.

Despite that, she couldn't help but have an itching feeling inside her mind that she was forgetting something important... but maybe it was nothing of concern since she was too invested in this unusual activity to mind.

A gasp, then a question. "A-Are you Robin, the famous Singer?!"

"Hm, me? Of course not, I just look like her," the Halovian girl replied with a smile. "Still, thank you for the compliment~!"

If someone was to learn the truth, then she would be put in detention by her brother. And scolded by her manager.

Robin, the beloved Halovian Singer that was part of the Family in Penacony, had a terrible secret: she loved junk food.

Burgers and fries? She would sell her soul to have a comfy life where she could eat tons of that without any drawbacks.

Dieting was her enemy on a constant level, the fact she was expected to be thin and 'petite' all the time meant that she had to exercise a lot to keep up with her own gluttony. Tragic, but that didn't mean the was giving up on her burgar when she was stressed- Sunday was her beloved brother, but he should learn that it was uncouth to question a lady's preference for some 'simple food'.

It's trash food, my beloved sister. You have the money to buy better meals.

The scolding was so unfair as she found some of the 'rich food' to be so bland and hardly filling, but at least she could still sneak out in the Golden Hour to snatch some good and yummy burgers. Of course, she couldn't go around in her normal dress. Her 'disguise' was just her using a less-distinguishable outfit.

She was cute, she was simple, she was Robin and... she found her newest target of interest: a couple- a young couple- a young couple that looked smitten to the bone!

Beside junk food, romances were her thing. Her most known song was, after all, 'If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking' and it was all about love and affection. She always gave the best performance for this sort of chore because she loved romances.

She hardly fell in love with someone- but she did crush on couple's own resolutions. Like a schoolgirl being a bit trashy with her tastes, Robin was staring at these two with intrigue, interest, and a bit of hopefulness as she realized they had just met. And yet they looked so fucking sweet together!

Sighing, Robin's mind was soon occupied by a desire- nay, a duty to pursue the duo and make sure that love triumphed over potential clumsy mistakes and silly misunderstandings. She may have been a singer at heart, but Robin was a romantic within her soul and...

She kind of forgot she had a curfew to uphold as she decided to slowly tail after these two with a trusty bucket full of chicken wings.

AN

Tired Trailblazer meets clumsy Stellaron Hunter. Also, junk food lover famous singer Robin tags along in the name of matchmaking and love (while avoiding her own death in the process)!