𝐈'𝐌 𝐀 𝐕𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒 𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐈'𝐌 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐋! | genshin impact

Birthday Special: Cypressus Custos

𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 : I'm seven days late in posting this (his birthday is on 26 March), but you guys know how I am lol. Also, I feel like I'm giving the male love interests free trauma with these birthday specials... Just me?

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

(Y/n) was sixteen years old when her own mother had cast her aside, unable to come to terms with the fact that her daughter was blooming into a young woman and couldn't maintain the image of Riku. The moment this was known by the servants of the household, the Onigasaki Estate became filled with gossip which soon leaked outside, giving rise to many rumours regarding the enigmatic heiress of the Onigasaki Clan.

"I heard that Lady (y/n) was disowned by Lady Aino."

"But she's the official heir, right? Even if that's the case, Lady (y/n) will still be the future head of the clan."

"The servants say that she'll be marrying a woman to maintain her image as a man."

"Oh my~! Could that lucky person be Lady Ayaka of the Kamisato Clan?"

"But I heard that she had feelings for Lord Ayato when she was younger..."

These rumours reached every corner of Narukami, and not a single ear missed the fleeting words of Onigasaki's heiress.

Even the reclusive young lord of the Kamisato Clan, Kamisato Ayato, was not exempted from hearing the rumours.

Onigasaki (y/n)'s possible future marriage partner was a popular topic amongst the Kamisato's servants, and Ayato would sometimes catch his younger sister eavesdropping on them, red dusting her cheeks as she hid the bottom half of her face behind her favourite fan - which he knew was a gift from (y/n). Normally, he'd take immediate action to make such talks cease within the residence, but Ayaka's smile at her people acknowledging that she's a suitable candidate for the role of (y/n)'s spouse was enough to make him step back.

Besides, it's not as if he disliked (y/n).

He might have favoured her more than he expected.

❀

"Where are you going, my lord? Do you need somebody to accompany you?"

Ayato paused in his tracks when Thoma called out to him from the place he was sweeping in the garden, and looked at the chief retainer over his shoulder.

"I'm just heading out for a little stroll near Konda Village. I won't be away for long, so company isn't necessary," he replied, earning a nod from Thoma. Passing through the gate, Ayato then walked down the path leading to Chinju Forest. With a soft sigh slipping past his lips, he allowed himself to relax as all the tension left his shoulders; it's rare for him to get moments like this to himself, to take off the mask he wears in order to appear as the perfect, capable leader he's expected to be. The responsibility of looking after the Kamisato Clan as its head placed a heavy burden upon him, yet he endured it for the sake of Ayaka and his people; if there was nothing for him to protect, he wouldn't have lasted this long under the immense political pressure the clan head's seat brings.

He stopped upon reaching a forked road. The left path would lead him directly to Konda Village, while the one winding straight ahead would guide him to the Onigasaki Estate.

The Onigasaki Clan. A clan with a rich history that dates back to the beginning of Inazuma. A clan with military power that surpasses even the Tenryou Commission's. A clan that is united with the medically proficient Yagen Clan of the Kanjou Commission.

And the one who has to carry all of that on her shoulders was a mere sixteen-year-old girl, powerless in the face of politics.

As if the world knew who Ayato was thinking about, a familiar figure emerged on the straight path with her gaze downcast. She dragged her feet across the ground like she had just returned from an arduous journey, the simple yet elegant kimono she was wearing accentuating her beauty which Aino had forcefully hidden under a men's kimono and hakama when she was younger. (Y/n) was always one to maintain her image in public, no matter what she's feeling at the moment - and nobody knew this better than Ayato, who almost became her fiancé back then.