"I was wrong."

"Huh?"

"Master Diluc is cleaning very thoroughly tonight," Venti reported, placing one hand on his hip and waving the other. "But he said if you're willing to wait, he'll set you two up. Oh, and he has some seat cushions for Paimon to sleep on in the meantime, in case we decide to wait at the tavern! We'll have to stay out of the way, though."

"We?" Lumine repeated, trying not to sound too excited. "Are you planning to wait with us, Venti?"

"Sure!" Venti nodded enthusiastically, but then he calmed down and held out his palms. "Unless you don't want me to, of course."

"What? No!" Lumine blurted out in shock, nearly jerking Paimon in her lap. "Of course I want you around, Venti!"

Venti giggled awkwardly and scratched his cheek, a grin on his face that showed his teeth. "That was awfully quick." He folded his hands behind his back and smiled. "Don't worry, you're not hurting my feelings if you want to be left alone for a while. I know I'm quite a handful and humans get cranky when they're tired, so..."

"That's not what I meant!" Lumine cut in, then took a deep breath. "I just freaked out a bit at the idea that you would just up and leave."

"That so?" Venti hummed pensively. Lumine guessed he remembered his earlier outburst, because eventually, he heaved a sigh. "Alright. But for the record, I don't think it's a good thing."

Lumine chuckled darkly. "You don't say."

For a moment, they just looked at each other, their shared abandonment issues hanging between them like a smothering blanket. Then Venti bent down to pluck Paimon from Lumine's lap. "You okay to walk now?"

"Yeah," Lumine muttered and slipped into her shoes to get up, then reached out to take Paimon back into her arms.

But Venti shook his head and smiled. "I'll carry her, no problem."

Lumine smiled back. "Thank you."

Venti's smile turned into a grin, and without another word, they made their way towards the street leading to the Angel's Share. Lumine wouldn't have minded walking in silence, but Venti had other ideas.

"You know, your Serenitea Pot is really handy. Just set it up anywhere, et voilà! Your very own mansion! No stress, no walking around asking everyone for lodging, no monsters, no sleeping on the floor, or in the cold, or in a storm... and it's rent-free, too!" He chortled. "And it has cats in it that I'm not allergic to!"

Lumine laughed through the nose. "And they love you to bits."

"I know," Venti chuckled. "Cats are wont to do that."

"Venti the Cat Whisperer..." Lumine smirked. She certainly couldn't blame the felines. "And quite literally, too. Maybe Valerina should've asked you for help with her Furball Fortress!"

Venti stuck out his tongue. "Just because I can talk to animals doesn't mean they listen. Also, just tell me directly you wouldn't miss a chance to see me in agony, why don't you?"

Lumine responded with an innocent smile. She did think Venti's sneezes were adorable, but neither would she provoke one nor voice these feelings. Apart from the fact that 'I find it pleasing when you're sick' was not a sentiment to be proud of, it wasn't even true when it came to full-blown reactions. A harmless sneeze was cute. Everything beyond that just made her wish that pain was transferable, so she could take it all off of him.

Not that he would let her if it was. In fact, they'd probably end up fighting about who got to shoulder the most pain.

She couldn't help but snicker at the mental image. Somehow, it was a lot more comical than it should be.

"What's so funny?" Venti's voice reached her ears, bringing Lumine back to reality. "I want to laugh, too!"

Lumine turned her head to look into her friend's eyes. In the darkness of the night, the bright aquamarine that made up the lower half of his irises nearly melted into the navy blue of the top halves, but it did nothing to dim the expectant sparkle in them.

Always so eager to talk about anything and everything... It was unfortunate that Lumine had to disappoint him.

"It's not that funny, actually," she said with a dismissive wave. "I'm not so sure myself why I laughed."

The anticipation on Venti's face vanished and he turned away. "Because it's better than crying, would be my guess," he suggested, the tone of his voice much too casual for the content of his words. Lumine didn't need to see his entire face to recognize the resignation in his relaxed features, eyes closed and lips slightly parted to let out a long, heavy sigh. "I'm sorry for dragging you down. That's not how the night was supposed to go..." He shook his head. "Urgh, I'm doing it again..."

"Don't say that," Lumine cut in, sensing another apology. She stopped walking as well, and Venti automatically came to a halt with her, a quizzical look on his face. Lumine took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. "When depression strikes, it strikes. Nothing to it. Besides, I'm happy to lend an ear whenever you need one. Or a shoulder, or a lap." She gestured vaguely. "Whatever helps you get through it. I'm happy you trust me so much that you're willing to let your walls down around me, and Venti..." Lumine stepped up and carefully wrapped her arms around her frozen friend. She would've preferred it without worrying about Paimon getting squished between them, but she took what she could get, nuzzling into Venti's shoulder to make up for the physical distance. "I want them down. I want to share your burdens. I know you're a god and all and it's your duty to care for everyone, but that doesn't mean you can't let anyone care for you, too." Lumine paused briefly as she felt a weight on her shoulder and hair tickling her neck. It was the closest they could get to Venti hugging her back, so Lumine counted it as a success. And also as an invitation to brush her fingertips across the back of his neck. "You're one of my dearest friends, Venti, and I'm here for you. You don't have to suffer alone."

Venti shifted in Lumine's embrace. "You say that like it's no big deal..." he muttered into her shoulder, then slipped out of her grasp with a smile on his face that, although unexpected, did not look forced or insincere. It was a complicated mixture of emotions – there was grief in it, gratitude, yearning, regret, combined into a certain serenity that reminded Lumine of Nahida in her cage.

Stuck, but content.

It made him look as ancient as he was, and Lumine suddenly found herself struggling to remember whom she was talking to. Barbatos. Venti. The Anemo Archon. Her friend. A 2600-year-old deity.

The boy she loved.

"I'm lucky to have a friend like you, Lumine," he said, still smiling. "But that's a chat I'd rather have over a glass of wine on a plushy sofa, with a clear schedule and everyone well-rested, instead of in the middle of a street at half past two in the morning with a drunk pixie in my arms."

The words felt like a punch in the guts. Not because they had any right to – what Venti said was sensible, and Lumine knew it. She was exhausted enough as it was, and if the situation escalated the way it did before, she wouldn't be able to handle it. They'd just both get overwhelmed. There was nothing to gain here. Plus, the conditions he'd listed for a proper talk weren't exactly unattainable, so counting them as a rejection was premature at best.

Still, she couldn't shake the fear that this wasn't about shelving the conversation, but about pushing it so far back that everyone forgot it existed.

A slight twinge startled Lumine into looking up, and she discovered that Venti's smile had faded into something more... tense. His eyes were narrowed and his lips were pressed into a thin line that was not quite angry and not quite sad, but not happy, either.

And he was tucking the hand he'd used to flick Lumine's forehead back under Paimon. "You're acting weird. Is there a specific reason why you can't just let this go for now?" His features softened and he turned away, pain and uncertainty written all over his face. "You're not... still doubting me... are you?"

Lumine froze. The air left her lungs, her heart skipped a beat, and she felt an awful pinching in her stomach as she realized that this was exactly what was happening.

She was doubting him. And what was worse was that she was doubting him over something she had no right to in the first place. She wanted to help... but how much was she helping, really, when all she did was press her friend for information he wasn't ready to give? Venti's traumas were none of her business – if he didn't want to share them, that was his prerogative, and she had to respect it.

The turmoil must've shown on her face, or perhaps it was the silence that gave it away. Either way, Venti took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. "I see. That's okay," he said evenly and turned around to keep walking.

It hurt, but it finally spurred Lumine into action. "Venti!" she cried out and sprang forward, throwing her arms around his shoulders and hugging him tightly enough for the brooch at the back of his cape to dig into her collarbone – but it was a prize she was willing to pay. "I'm sorry."

She had closed her eyes by that point, but she could feel Venti's chest inflate in her grasp, drawing in a deep breath that was eventually released in the form of a heavy sigh. "Me, too."

Lumine buried her face in Venti's shoulder, somewhat relieved. At least he wasn't upset anymore. "But you're right. I am acting weird."

"That's fine. I'm sure you're under a lot of pressure, being Teyvat's wandering hero and all." Venti paused for a moment, and Lumine felt clumsy fingers brushing along her waist.

It was the wrongest move he could have made. Lumine was certain that the pat on the back that followed was meant to comfort her, but as drowned out as it was by the tingling sensation Venti's feeling around for the best spot for it had left in its wake, she barely even noticed. Her heart skipped a beat while the bag of hormones with no regard whatsoever for time and place which she called her stupid, stupid body went rigid, leaving her wanting for more and wishing it never happened at the same time.

She never would've thought she could bury her flaming face even deeper in Venti's shoulder, but somehow, she managed. She just hoped he wouldn't notice her frantic breathing before she got it under control.

Not that there was any way to conceal it from the god of wind of all people, especially when she could safely assume he was focusing all of his attention on her. But Venti didn't remark on it – in fact, he remained completely silent, waiting the whole thing out with her.

Eventually Lumine calmed down, but she still couldn't quite bring herself to stop clinging to Venti's back. Couldn't quite relinquish the warmth of his body when all that waited for her was the cold of the night.

And he had such a nice smell, too. Like a warm spring breeze after a light rain, with a hint of apples and Cecilias.

It was such a comforting feeling, but it couldn't last. No one kept hold of the wind – not even his favorite humans. So when Venti finally grew restless in Lumine's arms and started prying at her wrists with one hand, she obliged and took a step back, shifting uncomfortably while she waited for him to turn around.

"Venti, I..." she began, then trailed off. She had no idea what she wanted to say – she just couldn't stand the silence. For a brief moment, she even wished for Paimon's endless chattering back.

Venti snickered softly. "Don't force yourself," he said as the comforting laugh turned into a smile of encouragement. "Come on. With any luck, Master Diluc has enough seat cushions for you, too!"

"It's not the seat cushions I'm worried about..." Lumine muttered, causing Venti to tilt his head with a questioning hum. Lumine refrained from elaborating, though – instead, she stepped up and turned around to snuggle into Venti's side, her shoulder touching his as she grabbed a half of his cape and wrapped it around herself.

It seemed to amuse him to no end. "Someone's mighty cuddly tonight," he chirped, playfully bumping his hip against Lumine's and eliciting a chuckle from her. It was okay. She was okay. "But do be careful with my cape. You rip it, you fix it!"

"Wouldn't occur to me to do otherwise."

"Great!"

"Oh, and Venti?" Lumine leaned a little more into her friend's shoulder. There was still one matter that needed addressing right now. "I do trust you. I was just..." She sighed. She didn't even know how to explain herself without revealing her crush. "...being an idiot."

"No, I was unfair on you, too," Venti sighed. "Turning my back like that when you were clearly going through something..."

"I don't blame you," Lumine replied. "I was being pushy, so you removed yourself from the situation. Nothing wrong with that. So..." She took a deep breath. "I'll try not to be like that anymore."

Venti hummed noncommittally. "If you say so... Then I'll try not to jump to conclusions anymore. Alright?"

"Alright." So they would only fight over who got to carry both their pain for ninety-nine percent of the time – and regret the one percent they didn't. "No hard feelings?"

Venti shifted Paimon to one arm in response, then wrapped the other around Lumine's waist. "No hard feelings."

"Ugh, I'm beat!" Venti whined as he belly-flopped onto a bench in a corner of the Angel's Share's second floor, dramatic as ever. "Master Diluc specifically said he wouldn't ask for our help! Why did you have to go and offer?! Bad Lumine!"

Lumine tried very hard not to look at the back of the knees stretched out in front of her like the world's hardest try-not-to-tickle challenge. Were gods even ticklish? "Well, I don't recall anyone asking you for help!" she laughed. "Also, don't pretend you didn't enjoy yourself, because no one will buy it!"

It was true. Diluc had still been busy with the first floor when they'd arrived at the tavern, so the second floor had been quite the mess. Lumine hadn't even hesitated – once she'd cleared a table and gotten Paimon settled on a pile of seat cushions, she got busy clearing the other tables as well. From there, Venti had been fairly quick to offer taking the plates and tankards Lumine collected off of her hands and flying them down to save her the stairs, and they'd just continued like this. It didn't even take them ten minutes to finish getting everything into the sink, and during that time, Venti's feet hadn't touched the floor even once. Even Diluc had felt compelled to remark on the unexpected benefits of having an archon with a wine-fixation around to help tidy up your tavern.

And they hadn't stopped at clearing the tables. Wiping them was also a lot easier when there was no need to keep track of crumbs (although Venti still managed to turn it into a whimsical little game of cat-and-mouse by moving them across the table in a tiny whirlwind which Lumine had to catch with the table cloth), sweeping the floor was a complete non-issue, including under the chairs, tables, benches and cupboards (even if it did result in a bit of a dust shower), and even the usually back-breaking work of wiping the floorboards became a lot less back-breaking when your team consisted of one person who could shoot water from their hands, and one who could just stand on the cleaning rag and kind of... drive it.

After that, however, not even Lumine could convince herself to keep going, and she was content to leave the scrubbing and dish-washing to someone else. Partly because neither of them had powers suited to these tasks, and partly because she was just so, so done with the day and very much ready to lie down and go to sleep. Perhaps she should follow Venti's example and find herself a nice bench...

Or at least that was what she would have done if Venti hadn't chosen this exact moment to sit up and pull a cushion out of the pile under Paimon, fold his arms beneath it on the table and pillow his head in the resulting contraption so he could close his eyes for a bit. Which seemed like a brilliant idea, so Lumine sat down next to him and did the same, careful not to shake her sleeping travel guide.

It still wasn't the most comfortable arrangement, but it beat balancing on a bench. Those weren't exactly made for people to lie on, after all... At least not for people who had to concern themselves with gravity.

"We must be quite a sight..." Lumine mumbled into her cushion. "About to pass out in an empty tavern like three minor drunkards."

"Underage drunkards," Venti corrected. "It's grammatically sound, though... and has a nice ring to it, too!" A muffled hum reached Lumine's ears, and it sounded absolutely thrilled. "It would make for an awesome band name! Or maybe it should be a rhyme!" Venti giggled and started chanting, "Three minor drunkards sitting on a bench, wallets empty, glasses full, and a major thirst to quench!"

Lumine buried her face deeper in her cushion. "That sounds so wrong on so many levels..."

"I'm not the one who started it!" Venti chortled, and Lumine didn't even need to lift her head to see his expression. The self-satisfied grin was palpable – although for some reason, the image she saw on the backs of her eyelids came with cat ears and a swishing tail. Hmm... If she commissioned Marjorie to procure a pair of the former, would he wear them?

Yes, absolutely. He would give Lumine a weird look and then let her do as she pleased, because it made her happy and he had no reason to stop her. The more pertinent question was: Why was her brain doing this?!

Because Venti was adorable, and cats were adorable, and monkey brain wanted what monkey brain wanted. Simple as that. Still, it was a good thing that Lumine already had a seat cushion on her face, because she wasn't sure what she would tell Venti if he started worrying about its color.

"I'm surprised, though," the wind spirit in question mused, interrupting Lumine's fantasies. "Paimon downed a whole glass of cider without noticing the alcohol. She must have been really distracted."

Lumine hummed questioningly and unburied her face from the cushion to look at her friend. "What are you talking about?"

"Well..." Venti sat up and crossed his arms, though not without briefly turning up one of his palms. "That stuff burns like fire when you drink it for the first time, and the taste is overwhelming. Even I couldn't keep it down!"

"Uh... what?" Lumine had no clue what to do with that information. "What do you mean, 'keep it down'?"

"What I mean is I spat it all out!" Venti laughed and slapped his hands down on his knees. "I didn't even mean to, it was just that the alcohol hit my mouth and my body said 'nope, not doing this'." His eyebrows suddenly rose and he cupped his chin, apparently lost in memories. "I think it was my first experience with coughing, too..." he muttered, then relaxed his arms again and grinned. "Anyway, that was when I just became an archon. My people had nothing under Decarabian's rule, and they had even less after he fell, but I had no idea what humans needed aside from food, shelter and medicine, and I couldn't even provide the last one." He shrugged helplessly and sighed. "My people couldn't tell me, either. They were stumbling around as blindly as I was in that big, big world, after all... So I went and asked Morax for help."

"Oh..." Lumine could see where this was going. "Osmanthus wine?"

Venti nodded enthusiastically. "Exactly! The word 'wine' didn't exist back then, though, or the common tongue, so it was just called what roughly translates as 'osmanthus alcoholic beverage'. And Morax's coat ended up covered in it, hehe..."

Lumine raised her brows, a little concerned. "I guess that didn't bode very well for the rest of the conversation, did it?"

But Venti shook his head. "Not at all! I think he actually set me up. You know that smile he gets when he tries really hard not to show his amusement? He had that exact smile on his face when he picked up a cloth to wipe himself off, and kept trying to interrupt when I fell over myself apologizing. I didn't know him well enough to read his expressions back then, and I couldn't afford for that meeting to go south. My people's lives were on the line, after all."

"Really?" Lumine muttered. That didn't sound like Zhongli at all. "Seems like a rather cruel prank, given the circumstances."

"Oh, it wasn't like that!" Venti waved his hands defensively. "I did say I had no idea what I was doing, right? And that I couldn't afford any mistakes? I tried to stick to local customs as much as possible, and the people of Liyue are not exactly what you would call direct, so... yeah. We'd only gotten through the formalities at that point, so he thought it was just a social visit and tried to lighten the mood. I'm sure he wouldn't have done it had he known the actual reason for my... admittedly pretty obvious anxiety." He scratched his cheek with a flustered grin. "I still remember grabbing my wings when he wasn't looking... They were poofier than a cloud of dandelion seeds and wouldn't stop twitching. Iiiiiiiiiit... helped for about two seconds."

Lumine huffed out an awkward laugh. Imagining Venti as a bundle of nerves was quite the endeavor, and she'd only ever seen his wings on statues and in pictures. What did they look like in reality? What did they feel like? She would love to find out. But she had to content herself with listening to that little anecdote, and she quite enjoyed that, too. "Sounds like Zhongli hasn't always wanted to toss you out the window on sight."

"Aww, it could be worse!" Venti laughed. "I don't mind getting tossed out a window! But anyway, that was my first encounter with alcohol, and I promised myself on the spot that it would be my last."

"Well, that worked out great."

"Right?" Venti crowed with a toothy grin. "Thing is, even though I only went to Morax for advice, once he heard of my people's plight, he promised to help out on the condition that I provided safe roads to transport relief supplies."

"Huh..." Lumine pondered. "Is that why Stone Gate looks so... out of place?"

"Pretty much." Venti hummed pensively. "I was really more concerned with getting it done as quickly as possible than with making it look nice. The people of Liyue could provide what I couldn't, and there was no time to lose. They mostly brought medicine, but they came to exchange knowledge, too. They didn't get very far with the latter, since Mondstadt had been isolated for so long that the only person in all of Teyvat who spoke both languages was me, and I couldn't stick around to play translator all day. I basically limited myself to pharmaceutical instructions and went back to terraforming, so... long story short, I only found out that some of the relief caravans carried shipments of alcoholic drinks when someone asked me to tell my people not to go overboard with them. They were a huge hit, both because of the warming effect and as a morale booster, so I decided to give the whole alcohol thing another go as well. I still didn't like it, but I didn't have to to get someone to teach me how to make it and see to it that my people would be able to make their own someday. And once I figured out that you could get alcohol out of pretty much anything, I found myself getting super into it. It was so much fun making all sorts of things into alcohol and see what they tasted like that I got used to it before I even knew it! And now we're here." He grinned. "'Wine', or rather Wein, is actually what I named grapes when I created them. Says a lot about their popularity for wine-making that they eventually came to be used synonymously, doesn't it? And that they entered the common tongue the way they did."

Indeed. That the name of the plant became the name of the product made from it while the plant itself was renamed... It was funny how languages worked.

"So that's the true origin story of wine. I was wondering which of the legends were the most accurate."

Lumine nearly jumped out of her skin while Venti cheerfully waved at the person who'd just spoken up behind her. "Hey, Master Diluc! Yeah, that one's a bit too mundane to make it into a bard's tale, isn't it?"

Lumine turned around to look at the man standing beside their corner table, a huge glass of sparkling cider in each hand. The sight alone was enough to make her mouth water and her throat run dry – she could use a drink.

"That may be so," Diluc answered as he put the glasses down in front of him. "But I actually prefer it. If only because it makes the most sense."

"Always the practical one, Master Diluc!" Venti laughed. "Though it's true that the Gunnhildr clan had alcohol during Decarabian's reign. Which is to say, one whole barrel of berry pulp that fermented completely on accident and nobody knew why or even what to do with the result, so they wound up ascribing it to some mysterious non-human entity wanting to mess with them, which then turned into a shapeshifting wind spirit over time." He snickered and spread his hands a little. "That's complete nonsense, though. We can neither shapeshift, nor do we have any use for alcohol or the means to make it, so why bother learning about it? There are much more interesting things in this world."

"I figured it might be something like that," Diluc concurred. "That's usually what happens when something cannot be explained by current data – it must be some divine entity's fault."

Venti chortled. "Well, sometimes it is. So, uh..." His eyes wandered to the two glasses of cider. "Are those for us?"

"Well, I could hardly let my two eager little helpers go thirsty. Besides, I wanted to come check on you and your work anyway. You made such a racket up here that the sudden silence was quite noticeable." Diluc crossed his arms. "And I must say, you did a good job. I believe a thank-you is in order."

"You're so generous, Master Diluc!" Venti chirped, placing a hand on his chest. "Who would I be to turn down such a magnanimous gift?"

"You can start talking like a normal person any time now, kid," Diluc commented, eliciting a chuckle from Lumine and a toothy grin from Venti.

"Oh, I can do much better than that. Wanna hear my Schubert impression?"

"Please, don't," Lumine groaned before Diluc could even say anything. "Or I won't be responsible for my fists."

"How rude." Venti brushed his seat cushion aside to reach for one of the glasses. It took off with way too much force and, with way too much precision, landed on top of Paimon like a very stiff blanket. "You're a Knight of Favonius, Lumine. What would people think if they knew one of them is going around threatening poor, helpless bards with violence?"

Lumine stuck out her tongue. "I'm sure they'd be very understanding if I told them I was threatened with a Schubert impression first. Also, there are currently no helpless bards in my vicinity. Poor, certainly, but not helpless."

Venti sighed dramatically and slumped forward, dropping his head on the newly de-cushioned table again. "You didn't have to say it like that!"

An impish smile spread on Lumine's face. With her friend's back exposed to her in such an inviting manner, she had no qualms about giving in to the urge to pat it. "There, there. Poor little bard."

Venti whined into the tabletop. "The Honorary Knight is meeeeeeeean to me, Master Diluc! Make her stop!"

"I don't know, kid," Diluc deadpanned. "She was threatened with a Schubert impression. It's an understandable reaction."

"Et tu, Master Diluc?" Venti lamented and got up to pointedly pull his glass closer. "Fine! I always knew cider was my only friend anyway! Cruelly non-alcoholic as it is..."

Lumine snickered and reached out a hand to ruffle the hair around the back of Venti's ear, careful to avoid the braids. It wasn't that he didn't allow her to touch them, but he was very sensitive about them and she appreciated that it was a minor miracle for her to even get there. As far as Lumine was aware, it was a privilege that only she enjoyed – and even then it was easy to slip up and upset him, so it wasn't one she made use of very often. She was quite content with knowing she could if she wanted to, and she didn't mind playing with his hair anywhere else. "Love you too, Venti!"

Venti glanced at her from the corner of his eye and huffed into his cider one last time before dropping the act as well and putting the now half-empty glass down. He grinned. "Does that mean I can have your cider?"

Lumine grabbed her glass with one hand and her seat cushion with the other, holding it up like a shield. "No. My cider."

"Aww, come on! Just a tiny sip!"

"You haven't even finished your own!"

"That is irrelevant to the current discussion."

"My. Cider. Mine! Also, I need it more than you, because I'm a human and I need to rehydrate. And you, my breezy friend, are not."

Venti grumbled and puffed up his cheeks to pout. Oh, now he was playing dirty, weaponizing his cuteness like that!

But Lumine did not waver. Instead, she twisted in her seat, cushion still in one hand, and poked his nose. "No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please, please, please, please?"

He'd gotten closer with every 'please', crouching lower and lower until he succeeded in making himself small enough to look up at Lumine with his big, blue, adorable puppy eyes. So adorable, in fact, that it took her a moment to notice that he'd even changed his position to do so more comfortably, now kneeling sideways on the bench. When did that happen? How? She shouldn't have been distracted enough to miss him swinging a foot across the bench, right? Maybe he'd folded his legs back when he turned around, getting his feet behind him instead of in front, but even then she should've seen it... right?

Or maybe not. Maybe Lumine had to admit that she had indeed been that distracted. For someone who had no human instincts, Venti sure knew how to work them... but Lumine was up to the challenge. However, while she was still debating if she should push that big ball of eye-catchiness away, pull him up or hit him with her seat cushion, a grunt interrupted them, reminding her that they had an audience. Red-hot humiliation flooded her from the tips of her ears to the tips of her toes as her brain went into overdrive, trying and failing to come up with something to save the situation. She turned around ever so slowly, but her mind remained blank. All she could muster was an apologetic look.

Diluc pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is painful to watch..." he muttered, then waved dismissively. "Never mind. I'll give you the whole bottle if it gets you to pipe down."

Venti sat up faster than Lumine could blink, cheering and jerking back his shoulders with his fists raised. No sign of embarrassment whatsoever. "Really?! Thanks, Master Diluc!"

Lumine was grateful as well – albeit for a different reason. Slowly but surely, her body temperature returned to normal.

It probably showed, because Diluc gave her a slight nod and continued, "But only if you let me finish cleaning in peace. I don't care how you choose to express your affection, but I would appreciate it if you didn't bring down the roof while you're at it."

"Sure!" Venti nodded, as cheerfully oblivious as Lumine expected him to be. "No need to worry about us, Master Diluc! We'll be quiet as two mouses! Right, Lumine?"

"Right..."

Venti giggled and turned towards the table again, primly placing his feet back on the floor and his arms on the tabletop while Lumine finally returned her seat cushion to the Paimon pile and took a sip of her cider, washing away the last traces of embarrassment. At first, she'd been quite suspicious of what was basically carbonated apple juice, but she'd changed her mind very quickly. Not only did it taste heavenly, it was also very refreshing and quenched her thirst like nothing else.

Truly a drink fit for a god.

She took her time finishing it – a time during which the excitement of the past hour faded from her veins, leaving her tired and worn. Before she knew it, she found herself resting on Venti's shoulder again, drawing a gentle laugh from her friend.

"Sleepy?"

"Mh-hm."

A soft snicker. "Get some rest, then. You deserve it."

"Are you sure? Won't you be stuck if I fall asleep on you?"

"Aww, it's so sweet of you to think of me! But don't worry, I can keep myself entertained for a while, and it won't be that long anyway until Master Diluc is done and you'll have to wake up."

Lumine was too drowsy to answer at this point, so she just nestled deeper into Venti's side and let out a grateful hum when she could feel his cape being draped over her shoulders. Though this was not how she'd imagined the night to go, she was content. She was safe, she was warm, she was home...

She could go without a bed for a while.

I'm doing it, guuuuuuuuuys! I'm writing a romaaaaaaaaaance! :D

I think. Maybe. It's not exactly a conventional approach, after all. But if people have half as much fun reading it as I have writing it, I'll be satisfied~