It's a Genshin Christmas

[startraveler]

Who: Genshin cast!
Which: Log
Where: Aether's (and Childe's) house
What: Genshin cast meets up for dinner and a small party, chaos ensues
Warnings: alcohol, will add more if anything happens!

[The temperature dropped, snow started to fall and it seems like Reverein is preparing for some kind of holiday. Aether observes all of that with fascination and decides that this is a perfect moment to gather everyone for a dinner together. Surely, a meeting at such a time will help them all get along!

...Hopefully.

Every person from Teyvat will get an invitation as Aether gets to work, and when the day comes around, all invited will be welcomed by the traveler and lead inside to the living room.

All kinds of dishes can be found on the table and everyone should be able to find something they like. Apart from various specialities from Mondstadt, Liyue and Inazuma, there are also Snezhnayan dishes, all thanks to a certain Harbinger who helped Aether prepare this feast. You can also find various drinks and teas to warm you up (likely a contribution from Diluc and Zhongli), though Aether did not foresee that a certain bard may be trying to add something to those drinks. Be careful not to get drunk!

Apart from food, you can warm up by the fireplace and there are also blankets stacked on the couch in case someone felt particularly cold today.

In the corner of the room there are many small boxes with bows, each one having a name tag. Apparently, this is a gift-giving season so the traveler felt the need to include that in his plans. The gifts are really not too much, many will find cookies and a colourful holiday card inside, but it's the thought that counts!

Sadly, not everything is planned. Aether could not expect that his house will be so inviting for Gumdrops. The small creature will float around, urging you to hug or kiss... or fight! Aether definitely does not like that last kind.]

Comments

[creationary]

[ The argument he makes is a compelling one.

How compelling it would be, were Albedo sober and not listening to the gumdrops chanting in his ear, is another question, but for better or for worse, both of those things are true tonight. It isn't as though he has specifically gone out of his way to avoid encounters like this before, and in his present state, he sees no moral objection to continuing.

It's as Kaeya says. This is a subject he knows so very little about, and one that can really only be conveyed through experience. ]

...Alright. Some further investigation is needed if I am to collect enough relevant data...

[ This logic may be difficult to parse once he is sober, but for now, it seems perfectly reasonable. Absently, his fingers drop to Kaeya's knee next to him, and his gaze drops to Kaeya's mouth, soft and inviting, before he leans forward to close the distance between them once more. His eyes flicker closed as his lips press to the corner of Kaeya's mouth and linger.

What a strange, yet pleasant sensation it is, to touch another person like this. ]

[whatsthehurry]

[ a compelling argument, perhaps, but really, kaeya is just convincing albedo to kiss for his own benefit, because he wants to kiss albedo, because he's feeling warm and tipsy and amorous and albedo is beautiful, smart, alluring as an out of reach fruit. but kaeya reaches for it anyway, and finds his fingers wrapped around its tender flesh.

albedo leans forward, and kaeya's pulse spikes; he grins, and the touch of those lips presses to the corner of his mouth. kaeya purrs, low and soft, and whispers: ]

You missed.

[ then turns his head to capture his mouth again, with a bit more force than he'd used before. humming against albedo's lips, kaeya presses forward, tilting his head, and lifts both hands to cradle albedo's face, thumbs smoothing over the hills of his cheeks, fingertips just barely dipping into the fluffy hair at the nape of his neck. kaeya tugs him forward, closer, slotting their mouths together, coaxing albedo's lips apart. it occurs to him that they're absolutely doing this in the middle of a party, surrounded by friends and coworkers, and that perhaps they ought to move this someplace a little more.. private.

perhaps soon. ]

[creationary]

[ He missed. Were he not being kissed at the moment, he might've chuckled at that - but he is being kissed, and that revelation alone is enough to fill up all the spaces in his mind, between the cottony cracks left behind by the alcohol. Kissing is such a fascinating human behavior, one he has witnessed, but never indulged in before. He never saw a reason to. It was a sign of emotional intimacy after all, and Albedo...has never had that sort of relationship with another person.

Relationships for him are strange, tenuous things, difficult to manage. Usually, he doesn't make the time to bother. However, he would be lying if he didn't admit to seeing that change in himself. Is this...yet another change?

Or is he simply taking advantage of his inhibitions being cast off, and a unique opportunity presenting itself?

It's difficult to conjure up such thoughts when it feels so nice, however. When he feels warm and relaxed, buzzing from the wine, tasting it on Kaeya's lips as he coaxes his own open. A long-neglected part of him eases so quickly into Kaeya's touch, eager to drink up every little sign of affection and contact, even as he studies the other's movements and learns from them. His lips hold his own firm yet loose, and the breath from Kaeya's lungs gusts against his skin. Turning his jaw, Albedo angles the kiss to further slot his mouth against Kaeya's, until his tongue grazes the other's bottom lip - accidentally so, and his draws in a breath of surprise, heart slamming like a mad fist in his throat.

Was that going too far? ]

[whatsthehurry]

[ albedo catches on quickly, which shouldn't surprise kaeya. he might be an awkward little thing sometimes, but he's sharp and quick on the uptake, even while mildly inebriated. their mouths slot together nicely, and it isn't long before he feels the gentle touch of albedo's tongue.

bold.

a bolt of heat drives straight into his stomach, and kaeya rewards albedo's forwardness with the curl of his own tongue, dipping past his lips and into his mouth, tasting wine, tracing his teeth. he groans, soft and low, one hand slipping into albedo's hair and holding tightly, a warm wave of heat trickling down his nape.

though soon enough kaeya comes back to himself. things are heating up, and they're in the middle of this party and that is inconvenient!! after several long, delicious moments kaeya breaks the kiss, their mouths parting with a soft snap, and kaeya's star-shaped pupil is flickering wide when he looks into albedo's face, leaning to tip their brows together. the hand not in albedo's hair drags forward, his knuckles smoothing along the soft skin of albedo's cheek. ]

Come home with me.

[creationary]

[ They're good kisses, warm and inviting in a way that stokes heat beneath his skin, an utterly new and fascinating sensation. Yes...it was important to study this new burgeoning warmth. He can see how people lose themselves in this, forsaking time and sense in pursuit of the simple pleasure of kissing and being kissed. It's easy to follow Kaeya's lead, and respond in kind. He tastes...exquisite.

But it must come to an end eventually he supposes, even if the offer afterwards takes him entirely by surprise. His eyes widen as he meets Kaeya's intense gaze, the meaning behind his invitation not lost on the alchemist.

It's not the first time such an offer has been made to him, but it's probably the first time he's really considered accepting. Kissing at a holiday party is one thing, but going home with a friend and colleague is...another. Is that really...would that be...

Gods, but he is out of his depth.

Albedo draws in a steadying breath to calm his charging heart beat, and to edge some of the adrenaline and nerves out of his voice. It only partly helps. ]

May I...have a bit of time to consider?

[ Maybe it's the sort of decision one makes rashly, but it isn't one that he makes rashly. ]

[whatsthehurry]

[ honestly, that's.. a more favorable answer than kaeya had been expecting. asking albedo to come home with him seemed like a long shot at best, but he'd had to try, hadn't he? and there's still time to hook him, to draw him in. ]

Of course.

[ he says, with all his customary ease, drawing a little further back, to lounge comfortable against the cushions again, though his arm is now flung over the back of the sofa behind albedo. his lips still tingle pleasantly, and kaeya can easily recall the flavor of albedo's mouth on his tongue.

playfully, he ruffles albedo's pale hair, just to take the pressure off, a quiet way of letting him know that the ball is entirely in his court. kaeya won't push. ]

My door is always open.