pc; kaeya

[shouldbe]

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[schmooze]

[Oh, Kaeya is the last person you'll catch complaining about having his hair played with. He loves it, humming out his approval while he recalls the terrible deeds he inflicted upon Rene earlier.]

I embarrassed him a couple of times and must've gotten on his nerves a fair deal too... but it seems someone coached him on how to handle me. Unlike before, he caught his tongue before he could lash me with it. I was quite impressed!

[shouldbe]

In your defense, it's really easy to embarrass him. I teased him about blushing during spin the bottle last week and he got a little grumpy over it.

[He'd refused to kiss her back and everything! It was pretty funny.]

But I thought you liked tongue-lashings? [Innuendo? Yes. But he's also never seemed to mind when she teases him (verbally) right back, so...]

[schmooze]

[The innuendo gets a laugh out of him, and he turns so he's flat on his back so he can more easily angle a smirk at her.]

I can't imagine Rene would willingly put his tongue on any part of me. [Though it is quite funny to imagine. Kaeya would allow it, of course.] He brought me my favorite flowers, Wave. The boy has grown so much...

[forever misaged, poor rene]

[shouldbe]

He has. I thought he was going to run away from everyone the first week, but he's starting to hold his own. I sat in his lap for a couple rounds of Kings earlier and in spite of how much he was blushing at first, he handled it pretty well.

[Though the fact that pretty much immediately after she did so, they had that conversation about Top 4s probably helped to get his mind off the embarrassment. Still, it's a big improvement from the party the previous week!]

I hope he finds someone that's worthy of how good a person he is. [Because it's probably not likely to be either of them.] He deserves that.

[But anyway, isn't it bad form to be discussing other men when you're in bed with someone? (COMPLETELY IGNORING THAT THAT'S EXACTLY HOW SHE STARTED THEIR FIRST ENCOUNTER, AND ALSO THAT THIS ISN'T THE SAME,,) Wave looks up to find the flowers Kaeya's referencing.]

He gave you lilies? [They are pretty.] Is there a reason why they're your favorite, or do you just like the way they look?

[schmooze]

[Oho, now there's a thought... Rene holding his own during king's game? He really has come a ways. That's heartening, truly— with any luck, Rene will have the confidence to open up and let love into his heart by the time this little game is through. He deserves to find The One, Kaeya thinks, and so he nods his agreement.]

He does. I felt bad that he ended up stuck on a date with someone like me, [emotionally unavailable, that is,] but he certainly knows how to spoil. He deserves a partner as considerate and loving as him.

[And it's a shame he isn't deserving of someone like Rene, but that boy grown ass man has no shortage of options here. Now, as for the flowers—]

There's a story behind these flowers. When my brother and I were younger, he'd pick them from the lakeside and bring them to me when I was feeling under the weather. Kaeya lilies, he'd call them, because he thought that sounded nicer than calla lily.

[shouldbe]

["Someone like me," he says, and maybe she'd give him grief for it but right now she's feeling the same way, proactively guilty about the coming week. So instead, she'll set it aside for now, turning her attention instead to what Kaeya's sharing about those lilies.]

That's really sweet. I can see why you'd be fond of them.

[As they talk, she'll brush back his hair from his face, pulling it back from his forehead and beginning to twist a few pieces into a loose braid. His hair is going to be so out of sorts after this, but that's fine, she's not doing any of this with the intent for it to stay once they're done here!]

You haven't talked much about him so far. Will you tell me?

[schmooze]

[Oh, he hardly minds— she can do with his hair as she pleases so long as none of it gets snipped off. With a hum, he closes his eyes.]

My brother? Well, I suppose I'm the only one still calling us that, [And only in places where Diluc will never hear it,] but we used to be quite close. He was fun, a real ball of sunshine and energy... but he's quite the opposite of that now. Such a shame.

[shouldbe]

[She wouldn't do that because she's got bad taste and thinks he's cute, sighs... but good!! She'll continue playing with his hair as they chat.]

But you're not close anymore?

[She can read between those lines.]

What happened?

[schmooze]

[He doesn't hesitate before shaking his head— it's an old hurt, unfortunately. One he's largely accepted even if he's yet to reconcile with it.]

We had an argument, you might say. A pretty ugly one at that. [Kaeya taps his eyepatch.] See this? He got so angry the night we fought that he poked my poor eye out. I've been traumatized ever since.

[And if that sounds a little too dramatic to be anything but bullshit, that's because it is.]

[shouldbe]

[Sir, can you please stop reminding her of Ai, she likes you for being Kaeya, thanks.

But oh, the drama. Poor baby. There's truth in here too, though, it's just a matter of sorting it from the shit.]

But not enough to stop caring about him, huh?

[Kaeya wouldn't still refer to him as his brother if he didn't, she thinks. There's a reason she doesn't refer to Coriolis as home.]

[schmooze]

[so what you're saying is he has to fight ai for supremacy, got it

Ah, but as always, Wave's aim is true. Nothing stops her from striking right at the heart of the matter, and Kaeya chuckles, shakes his head.]

Oh, I wouldn't go that far. I'll bail him out of a tough situation if the need arises and bring him the occasional gift to ensure he doesn't forget me completely, but that's about it. We're cordial.

[shouldbe]

[Literally a fight she would never want to see ever, dear gods. It would be so ugly, please keep separated at all costs.

There's a lot about Kaeya he tries to keep hidden, she thinks, but she chooses to leave it for the moment, humming noncommittally and letting it slide.]

Even that sounds nice to me. I don't remember much about my brother.

[schmooze]

[Thanks, Wave. It's a subject he's never been too fond of, not that he resists digging into Wave's sordid past.]

Oh my... Are you estranged?

[shouldbe]

Nah. He was killed when I was a kid.

[Her hands still in his hair; if Kaeya looks, he'll be able to see her debating on whether to say more.

...Fuck it.] Actually, that's the reason I won't use the elevators. We were hiding in a place like that when it happened.

[schmooze]

[you ever just regret opening your mouth

He's looking at her, of course. He wouldn't blame her for not continuing and certainly wouldn't press her either, but...]

...I had no idea. I'm sorry for teasing you.

[He very nearly hauled Wave over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes into that elevator on more than one occasion. He's very thankful now his shenanigans never went that far.]

[shouldbe]

[There's a small laugh, a little huff of air as she gives him a wry look.]

If you'd ever pushed it too far, I would've let you know. You don't need to apologize.

[Sure, he's teased her, and yeah, he's got carte blanche to pick her up any time he wants, but she wholly believes he would have noticed when the mood changed and her panic spiked. She trusts him.]

Besides, it was a long time ago.

[schmooze]

That's a relief. You're one person I'd seriously regret angering.

[Considering she's willing to slash throats on his behalf. Pretty sexy, he must admit, but now's not the time to get weirdly turned on. Lifting a hand, he strokes his fingers along Wave's cheek.]

But it's still hard, no? Family is family.

1/2

[shouldbe]

[It's sweet, and the feeling of his fingers on her cheek is nice, but she can't help the way her expression goes flat.]

You don't know the half of it.

[shouldbe]

[BUT LET'S NOT GO THERE RIGHT NOW. Instead--subject change! Let's talk about something else!]

What's going on between you and Fai?

[schmooze]

That was a sharp pivot. [DON'T EXPECT HIM NOT TO COME FOR YOUR JUICY SECRETS LATER, WAVE. The sharp drop of her smile has him concerned... but her question distracts him, makes him itch with frustration instead.] Fai, was it? Nothing at all. Why do you ask?

[It's obviously not nothing.]

[shouldbe]

My pivot was about as good as your deflection. [The difference is that he let her get away with hers...] Normally I'd say that if nothing's going on, there's no reason for me to share, but my curiosity's been piqued.

During the King's Game earlier he did what he said was an impression of you in the haunted house--just the first floor, I'm guessing, but...

[But it left a bad taste in her mouth. It wasn't quite on the level of friends teasing friends, especially when Kaeya wasn't there himself.]

[schmooze]

Oh? He did?

[Petty bitch mode: Engaged.]

Please, give me all the juicy details. I just love being talked about.

[Not. He doesn't derive any pleasure from being mocked by the likes of Fai either.]

[shouldbe]

Hey.

[Kaeya's just going to... get a firm tap to the head with a finger. Not hard, just enough to get his attention back on her. You shut that petty bitch mode off right now, sir. You can pick it back up when she's done with you.]

I'll tell you what he did once you tell me why he did it. What the hell happened?

[schmooze]

[Ugh, he's being scolded. Fine, fine— this is Wave, so he'll fess up without much fuss... and he'll be honest to boot. A genuine rarity, but she's earned this privilege.]

I rejected him. Simple as that.

[And as Wave might imagine, Fai didn't take it well.]

[shouldbe]

Wait. Seriously?

[She wasn't expecting that.]

Do you mean in this week's Top 4 picks, or...?

[Fai can't have been that dumb, right?]