With You | Thoma x Ayaka | Genshin Impact

A Trial

     Ayaka was busy with an inhuman amount of work. Ever since it was officially announced that she would be the Acting Head of the Kamisato clan and the Yashiro Commission, the work just began to flood in.

   It had only been yesterday since that announcement so Ayaka knew that she would need to work faster if she wanted to finish everything that day.

    While Ayaka was busy at her desk, Thoma, along with every other housekeeper, were put to hard work.

     "Asahi! Hurry up! We gotta run to washing the laundry after this!" Haru reminded as he cut onions at a surprising pace.

     "I know!" Asahi exclaimed, "Thoma! Are you done cooking the rice?"

     "Almost! It just needs one more minute!" Thoma replied.

     "Thoma, let me take over the rice." Bronya said, coming up the orange haired housekeeper.

     "Really?" Thoma asked and then breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you Bronya, you're a lifesaver."

      Thoma was told to cut up the green onions next so he grabbed a cutting board, two bunches of green onions and began chopping.

    "Looks like you are all hard at work." Itsuki noted calmly and with one swift motion, Thoma's teacher poured the fish into a pot of boiling dashi water.

    "Teacher!"

     "Aiya," Itsuki shook his head, "When will you stop calling me that?"

     "Actually Teacher, I was wondering how you were able to throw that knife so nicely yesterday." Thoma said.

      Itsuki paused and stopped stirring the pot of fish, he looked like he was recalling very, very old days.

     "Well, I wasn't always a chef," Itsuki started, "I worked as something else for a long time before running away to Inazuma."

     "Running away?" Thoma questioned.

    "Oh, I didn't exactly 'run away', it was more like... I decided to come back to where I knew I belonged." Itsuki explained.

    "What happened?" Thoma asked.

    "I used to be something called a Harbi-" Itsuki stopped himself, "It doesn't matter what it was called. Well, then some woman who I believed had better potential than me came in and to make room for her, I stepped aside and quit."

     "Wow, that sounds intense." Thoma was in awe, "No wonder why you're my teacher!"

     "Honestly," Itsuki shook his head, "At any case, I'm worried about Lady Ayaka. Being the Acting Head must be stressful."

     Thoma fell silent. He would be lying if he said that Ayaka wasn't on his mind. In fact, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Ayaka was the only thing Thoma was thinking about.

     "Itsuki! Thoma! Why are you two not moving your hands?!" Kiana demanded and ran over.

      "Let me guess, onions." Thoma said.

      "Oh! You got it." Kiana nodded.

      Itsuki sighed and Thoma grinned. Just another normal day in the kitchen... except all of the housekeepers were in a rush.

                                                                                ...

     It all started when Thoma began to hang up the laundry. Darn it! It started cool and then ended with something lame-sounding. Anyway, back to the subject, Thoma was hanging up the laundry like any other day when he heard the voice of a little kid behind him.