Genshin Impact | "The Last Night in Aaru Village" | Alhaitham x Lumine

Genshin Impact | The Last Night in Aaru Village, Part 1

This story follows after the 3.1 Archon quest (AQ Chapter 3 Act 4 - King Deshret and the Three Magi)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lumine POV

She ruffled her short, blonde hair while staring at the door of her chambers, undecided on whether to leave it locked or unlocked for tonight. Excitement crept her belly as she playfully considered leaving it unlocked.

It was their last night in Aaru Village. Her, Cyno, Al Haitham, and Dehya had decided to part ways the next day to prepare for their journey to crush the Sages and save Nahida, the Sumeru Archon. 

Her throat went dry just thinking about whatever may come ahead. It would be no easy task to fight for Sumeru, and the possibility of her fighting The Balladeer was drawing sooner that she hoped for.

Lumine clutched the door knob as she recalled their last group conversation a few hours ago.

"Crush the sages and rescue our god, that is our ultimate goal," Cyno said to the group definitively.

A chill ran down her spine. The time has come, she thought.

"Well, let's brainstorm a little more about what other resources we can draw on," Al Haitham said to them, eyes lingering longer on Lumine than the others.

"The next time we gather here, we must have a solid plan," said Dehya.

"Yep! It'll work out for sure," Paimon cheered. 

Hours dragged on as they discussed their plan. The light in the desert faded as the sun set. Yellow sky turned to red and then to black, signaling the shifting of twilight to dusk.

Having lost themselves to time, the group decided to spend one last night in Aaru Village as Candace had suggested.

Tomorrow, they will embark on a journey outside the village to pursue their individual preparations.

A gust of cold wind rushed inside and bit on Lumine's skin when Cyno opened the door to the village chief's home. The shutters creaked gloomily as it swung open. He led them out so they could head to their own chambers, private quarters Candace had assigned to each of them when they arrived. 

They left the hall one by one and Paimon, who was already yawning, floated away from Lumine's side to get to her own bed. Even the flying creature was given her own space. Lumine had thanked Candace for that because sometimes she wanted a little quiet from her talkative companion.

As she strode to the door, something tugged behind her skirt which made her stop and turn. Al Haitham's broad chest flashed to her face. He stood so close she could smell his breath and the scent of his body, the musk of a whole man. The light in his teal eyes glinted as he stared down at her.

Too close! she thought. She had been close to him before but never this close. From her peripheral vision, she saw they were the only ones left in the house. 

Lumine tried to step back to preserve her personal space, but he caught her elbow to keep their proximity. "Running away from me already?" he asked dryly.

"No. I-I..." she stammered. She'd be a liar if she did not admit that his demeanor had changed ever since they started investigating the village keepers. He had stopped calling her Traveler and now simply called her Lumine, and not a lot of people did that. 

Sometimes, she caught him staring at her. He would drag his eyes away and refocus on whatever he was doing. Sometimes, he didn't. And during those times, he looked at her with alarming focus. It felt like he was stripping her clothes off. She would then be the person who looked away, flushed.

Alhaitham ran the tips of his fingers from her elbow down to her arm, leaving a burning trail on her skin as if electricity coursed between his finger. She took a sharp intake of breath.

"You felt that too, didn't you?" he asked in a seductive voice. Lumine didn't answer. "Tell me that you did," he demanded.

She had known the Sribe as someone who was always calm and collected but also knew when and how to apply pressure. There was gravity in his voice, so she gave him a small nod.  "Al Haitham, what has gotten into you?" Her voice shook a little and she immediately hated herself for it.

He slipped his hand around hers and lowered his head, smelling her hair, leveling his lips next to her ear. "Lumine..." he whispered, his voice full of aching. "I want you."

Butterflies sprang from her belly as her heart pounded in her chest.

"If you feel the same, leave your door open tonight. But if you do not," he paused as if already disappointed by the mere thought, "then you are free to lock me out."

He darted away from her and was gone before she could respond, leaving the space next to her so empty.

So now she stood behind the door of her quarters wondering what to do next. Her hand dropped from the knob, leaving it unlocked. She licked her lips and swallowed. Surely, he wouldn't do anything crazy, right? It was their last night in Aaru village after all. They shouldn't be doing anything improper... right? She tried to reassure herself. Perhaps they would simply engage in a long drawled out conversation about the Scarlet King, Sumeru's culture, the eremites, maybe even the origins of Paimon and whatnot, all until they feel tired and decide to settle in their own beds.

But Al haitham didn't look like the type who would casually walk into someone's bedroom at night to discuss about scholarly things lest you are a scholar like himself. And she's not even a scholar. He said he wanted her and if she felt the same, leave the door open. But what did that mean?

He wanted something from her. She locked the door again impulsively. Yet, her curiosity got the better of her, so she unlocked it again.

Sauntering to the bed, she decided to just leave the matter altogether and go to sleep. Maybe he wouldn't even come. Perhaps, it was all a prank. Lumine knew he was the weird one in the Akademiya. She wouldn't put passed him to play tricks on people as a sick joke. 

-the end of part 1-