(I'm so sorry for my hiatus T^T. I'm currently in the process of moving.)
Bit of a slowburn, sorry about that!
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Scaramouche's Perspective
I yawned, waiting for the guest to enter with impatience. Childe, the 9th of the Fatui Harbingers, sat adjacent to me on the spectating bench of the throne room, teasing one of the maids as always. Harbingers were not allowed to marry, but Childe compromised for his insatiable lust anyhow.
I stacked my third glass of wine on the table, my cheeks flush.
"You sure have been drinking tons these days, Scaramouche," he snickered. "You sure you won't be tipsy?"
"Will you shut it, Ajax?" I scowled, though I already was a bit dizzy.
A loud creak brought me back to my senses, and I spotted a girl, by far the youngest in the room but not particularly "little". She was smaller than Childe but taller than me, and when the wind swept back her long silver hair, a pair of round, curious eyes peeked out from beneath, framed by thick lashes. Instead of the uniform of the Fatui, she wore a pale pink kimono embroidered along the hems.
Wait.
Those light, soundless footsteps, that perfect posture, that prim and proper smile . . .
She was . . .
The Shirasagi Himegimi?!
I leaned forward, my knuckles turning white from my grip on the balustrade.
Were my eyes deceiving me?
No, no ordinary girl from Inazuma would carry herself with such confidence, especially not in a foreign country.
How did La Signora come across such a person? I thought, glancing over at my colleague. Her forehead was creased and her lips were pursed, as if waiting to critique her candidate down to each and every step she took.
I needed no reminder of Inazuma. I needed no reminder of that wretched place.
"You are weak," my creator had remarked, her long violet robes sweeping on the ground as she grasped her lightning-imbued sword. "You will faint if you even touch this blade. Leave my sight."
I lowered my vision, angered.
The hollow space where I should have had emotions, the concave pit in my chest that longed to feel the beating of a heart . . . was empty.
If Inazuma couldn't cure me, if Inazuma couldn't make me whole, then nothing could.
The girl walked to the center of the room and knelt down, not uttering a single word.
"Rise, and do speak your identity," the empress ordered, her expression amused.
"Kamisato Rin, Your Majesty," the girl began. "Eldest daughter of the noble Kamisato clan and heiress of the Inazuman Yashiro Commission."
Turning to glance at Childe, I saw that his hands were clasped in front of his mouth, though a slight smirk was visible from behind his fingers.
Without even following his line of sight, I could tell she had piqued his interest.
"Little girl, why do you venture to my nation, so far from your home? Snezhnaya harbors no jewels or toys that would interest you." the Tsaritsa asked.
The girl contemplated an appropriate answer. "I am currently on leave for official business. I have an elite travel permit issued by the Electro Archon."
Pondering Rin's response, the Tsaritsa finally replied. "Acceptable. I believe further behavioral inquiries should be skipped. Don't you agree, my delegates?"
Childe recorded the synchronized hums of the rest of Harbingers before peering at me.
"And you, Scaramouche?"
I curled my lip, tapping a finger on the armrest of my chair.
"No objections," Childe declared, beaming.
The Tsaritsa returned her attention to Rin, but suddenly stared up at me once more.
"Scaramouche, I do recall that you are from Inazuma, correct?"
I glowered, wishing I could deny the fact, but nodded anyway.
"Yes, I am from Inazuma, Your Majesty," I answered.
"Then, is there any chance you have crossed paths with this little girl once before?"
Reluctant, I stepped down the stairs with curses on the tip of my tongue.
"Hmm . . ." Childe whispered as I passed him, cupping a hand over my ear. "You sure are a lucky guy, Scaramouche."
Ignoring him, I walked up to Rin, my fists clenched in determination.
Now that I was in front of her, I could see that there was a violet tint to her hair, and an adornment on her right ear shaped like a string of cherry blossoms. She had wide, dreamy eyes, as if she was staring into the sky at twilight, and wore a beaded rosary that hung over her neck, symbolizing her lifelong commitment to the Grand Narukami Shrine.
From afar, she looked no different from the rumors: a simple Inazuman beauty, graced with a whimsical charm, like a heron in human form. But from up close, Rin seemed to carry an invisible burden on her shoulders, and though her face was the picture of youth, her eyes were filled with age, like an ocean of wisdom swirling and twisting with every change in the light. She was soft rather than striking, modest rather than glamorous, subdued rather than bold, and yet, she was breathtaking.
But beyond her delicate smile, I saw a certain something that made me doubt myself, something vaguely familiar.
Someone I hated.
The very person who had created me.
Raiden Ei.
Rin blinked, reaching her hand out politely.
"Uchi--"
Remembering myself, I grimaced, scolding myself for falling into the trap of her sweet voice and mannerisms.
"What do you think you're doing?!"
I watched as she leaned so closely to me I could feel her soft breaths on my lips and the shimmering facets in the indigo of her irises. She was so close that I could see the traces of pigment in her hair, the slight blush on her porcelain skin.
Rin placed a cold hand on the nape of my neck and extended a delicate finger to lift up the rim of my hat gently.
I glared at her, my anger fading into hesitant shock.
"Uchikatsugi," she said, so softly that if we were an inch further apart I wouldn't be able to hear her.
"Uchikatsugi," she repeated, this time, louder and clearer.
H-huh?
How did she know . . . what my hat was called?
All of a sudden, I felt something light up within me, a warmth that I couldn't describe, a sense of fulfillment that was completely foreign to me.
Ba-dump.
Ba-dump.
Ba-dump.
"Anata no namae wa Scaramouche desu ka? Yoroshiku onegaishimasu, Scaramouche-kun!"
(Translation: Your name is Scaramouche, is it? Nice to meet you, Scaramouche!)
YOU ARE READING
𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜'𝙨 𝙜𝙡𝙤𝙬 // scaramouche x oc
Fanfic--DISCONTINUED-- As the former heiress of the Yashiro Commission, Rin's past in Inazuma is . . . complex, to say the least. She was the true Shirasagi Himegimi, before her sister, Ayaka, took over that role in her stead. But when she left the nation...
