Genshin povs

Kazuha is reading his last poem next to your grave

// angst, character death (specifically y/n) //

"Why must you leave me so early, my songbird..." The young samurai's words were nothing but a whisper amongst the winds. It had already been a few months since your death, yet Kazuha just couldn't seem to move on, the pain of losing you only growing stronger as time passed.

He could still remember that day so clearly, when he held your dying body in his arms. You had fought alongside each other on the battlefield, just barely winning another war, caused by a certain group of people that wanted to reinforce the vision hunt decree. Reinforce something that the Raiden Shogun herself had abolished weeks prior.

Tears were rolling down Kazuha's cheeks one by one, reliving the memories of that day as he sat besides your grave. It was long past midnight and pouring since hours, rain long having drenched the samurai's clothes. Yet he couldn't care less, when the thoughts of you had kept him from falling asleep anyway.

A quiet sigh escaped his lips, raising his head to look up at a sky. He just barely caught a glimpse of the moon before it was covered by the clouds again, leaving him in darkness.
"I wish it would've been me..." The platinum blonde boy mumbled to himself, raising a hand to wipe his tears away. Though that action was rather pointless, as more tears came streaming down once he thought back to the day he had lost you.

Having gotten used to fighting alongside each other over the years, that day was no different. Your fighting styles complemented each other perfectly, showing no mercy to the countless Shogunate Samurai you were up against.

Though it took naught but a second of distraction before a pained scream pierced through the air, causing Kazuha to halt in his movements and look for you. Panic filled eyes watched as you fell to the ground, arrow sticking out of your chest.

Pulling his sword out of the soldier he had just killed seconds ago, Kazuha quickly ran to your side, dropping to his knees as he pulled you onto his lap. One of his hands hovered over your wound, contemplating to pull the arrow out before remembering that it would only worsen your condition. There was already blood drenching your clothes, he couldn't risk losing you. And yet...

"Don't cry, Kazu.. It makes you look ugly." You had said, weakly wiping away the tears that had started rolling over the young samurai's cheeks. Your words made him smile for a second, though that expression of his quickly turned into worry when he glanced back down at your wound.

"How could I not cry when my precious songbird is lying in my arms, dying?" He questioned, turning his head to look at your eyes. Even at a time like this, they were still filled with so much love for him. A love that he treasured so dearly, returning it back through little gifts and countless poems ever since he fell for you.

"I'm not dying, love.. You know how strong I am, you've said it yourself." Though your voice being nothing but a whisper, Kazuha could hear it clearer than anything else. "Besides, Kokomi can just heal me if it gets too bad anyway..."

You both knew that your words were but a lie. Nothing but a mere deception, a small attempt at making your boyfriend feel better. After all, you had never liked seeing him sad  or worried because of you. Even when everything went wrong and you couldn't do anything but sob quietly as he held you in his arms, you didn't dare look at him. Didn't dare look at just how much he worried at those times.

"I'll just sleep for a while, I'll be fine..." You mumbled, closing your eyes as your hand softly dropped down. Kazuha's brows furrowed in worry, moving one hand to cup your cheek gently, as if to not further hurt you. Your lips curled up to a soft smile at the touch, knowing you'd part peacefully.

Soon, quiet sobs could be heard at the battlefield. No one dared disturbing Kazuha, as the battle was coming to an end anyway.
Once his cries had stopped, the platinum blonde boy slowly got up, holding your corpse close to his body as he left the battlefield. His feet took him to the beautiful flower field where he had first confessed his love for you, seeing it as a suitable place for you to rest.
With a last kiss to your forehead and tears quietly running down his face, he had buried your body, laying down a few of your favorite flowers before departing.

As the rain came to a halt, so did Kazuha's thoughts. Deciding it was pointless to cry any longer, he slowly got up from the ground. His gaze lingered on your grave for a while longer, before looking up at the full moon, a soft yet sad smile on the samurai's lips.

Tying his hair back together as it had gotten loose over the past hours, Kazuha cleared his throat. One hand reached down to grab a crumbled-up piece of paper from his pocket, gently trying to flatten it before reading the text written on it.

"My songbird... Today would've been your birthday." He started, trying to hold back new tears forming in his eyes. "So, I wrote a haiku for you. Though you may not be here to hear it, I hope it shall give you some more peace."

A few seconds of silence passed in which Kazuha read over the poem a few more times, unsure if it was good enough.

"I'll never forget,
You had flowers in your hair,
and love in your eyes."

Slowly lowering the piece of paper once he had finished, the samurai once again looked down at your grave, only to find a small flower peeking its head out of the dirt. It made Kazuha's lips curl up in a gentle smile, taking it as a sign that you had heard the poem.

Kneeling down to place the paper alongside the flower after having gently folded it, he remembered the smile on your face whenever he shared his poems with you. And now that he was sure you had found peace, he decided for this to be his last poem.

Slowly stepping back from your grave, Kazuha turned around to walk through the flower field you both had loved so dearly. It was time for him to return home, finally get some sleep, and then return to wandering through Teyvat after months of remaining in Inazuma.