It Had Been An Instinctive Reaction For The Traveler To Seek The Closest Form Of Shelter As A Sudden

It had been an instinctive reaction for the traveler to seek the closest form of shelter as a sudden downpour began to fall from dark clouds that had appeared with little warning. Unfortunately for Kaminari, said 'shelter' had been the wide hat that the puppet so loved to wear. As Aether practically stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the wanderer, he gave Kami a sheepish grin, golden eyes somewhat pleading.

"I don't suppose I could convince you to share?" He knows what he's requesting is akin to asking Paimon to share her favorite food, but he can't help but hope that Kami might take some pity on him in the midst of this bit of bad weather.

If not - well, Aether would just have to make a run for it and hope he could find an alternative before he got TOO soaked.

he's not sure why the traveler enjoys his hat so much. for that matter, kami can't understand why ANYONE finds his hat so fascinating. surely they've all seen equally decorated hats? humans. they have strange fascinations with even stranger trinkets.

well, aether isn't exactly a human, but he still mingles among them well enough to PASS for one. kami offers himself no such similar luxuries. THOUGH, it's also probably why he feels a little more comfortable around aether. kami can relate to him just a touch more. not that kami feels comfortable overall ― the traveler is still a cautionary tale, a living reminder that kami still has a lot of amends to make. aether is wholly GOOD, someone kami could never fully be, or even WANTS to be.

the strange companionship they formed is nice though. if only that annoying floating creature calling herself paimon didn't try to insult him every two words. her lack of presence would make aether even more tolerable.

"you have the audacity," kami chides, no actual scorn in his words. "to try and cozy up to me, JUST to use my hat." TSK. with anyone else, the answer would be a hard no, and he'd get some mild amusement in watching them run for shelter. but perhaps because aether's been kind enough to him in the past, there's no real harm in returning the favor, even just a tiny one.

"fine, but only until it stops raining."

kaminari takes the hat off his head, and rests it atop aether's head. "also, if you even look like you're about to take off with it, i am revoking all hat privileges forever."

Tonia holds out a bucket full of ice to Kami. She doesn't say anything, just staring right at him, turning to glance at a certain gambler for a second, then looking right back.

Hopefully he gets what she means...? (Does she have to say pretty please also? Hopefully no right)

he takes the bucket of ice and peers down into it. see, he KNOWS what she wants. once upon a time in a land far away, he had considered the idea too. it would have been FUNNY, a glorious spectable of epicness...or something along those lines.

"once upon a time," kami says dramatically. "i would have done the very thing you wanted. but i am a man now. i have desires, you see. and those free drinks are calling my name. they have become my very destiny."

it's 7am and I'm sleepy but I have a lot of thoughts about chongyun this morning, especially concerning trust.

I've never really explored the concept of trust in rp very much, probably because for me it's always been a given. but I'm thinking hard about the use of blindfolds and how chongyun would most likely use them in training to enhance their reflexes or in meditation. and I'm toying with the idea that chongyun would bring a friend into this to also work on trust levels.

like maybe chongyun wants said partner to throw attacks his way, so chongyun can block the attacks either with his claymore, his cryo, or both. and honestly the idea of chongyun being nervous and really pushing boundaries and trust here is so appealing.

and blindfolds themselves are incredibly intimate. you're cutting off one sense: your sight. so in that regard one would have no choice but to rely so heavily on trust and camaraderie to get through whatever the scenario would be.

hold on. hold on a minute, i need a fucking minute.

chongyun crumbs. MY BOY. MY BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL BOY.

randomly, can i just talk about how much wanderer respects nahida? she did not look at him with fear or contempt, she offered him a chance. her breaking the news to him, in his mind, was a GOOD thing, because it meant he could actually do something with the information he has now.

and in kaminari's case, BECAUSE nahida was willing to tell him the truth about niwa and store a fairtale inside irminsul, kami was able to reflect on it and come to the conclusion that no one else in recent times would have given him the time of day.

he doesn't see nahida as a mother figure or even some sort of family member. she is a guiding hand, a mentor, someone who is pushing him to be a better person without trying to change him too much. kaminari holds a ton of respect for her, and it's because of nahida that he stays in sumeru to help watch over the people there.

because sumeru is now his nation, the place he can finally, TRULY, call home. it's been more of a home and a place of healing than any other nation has been.

nahida isn't perfect, kaminari is aware. she has her faults and her slipups. she's learning too, she still has a lot of growing to complete. but just she's been patient and gentle with him, he'll be gentle and patient with her.

if kaminari HAD to swear any sort of allegiance or loyalty, he wouldn't dream of anyone else than nahida.

that's all it takes, really. that's it, head empty, no thoughts.

my mood and entire being is just chongyun now.