Chapter Text
There was one thing in life Kamisato Ayato regretted.
One thing he would change in a heartbeat if the Archons were merciful enough to give him a second chance at it.
Inazuma had begun to flourish once the Vision Hunt Decree was abolished.
Many people had begun to travel to the nation and trade had begun to thrive between all other nations. The people were much happier and more welcoming of outsiders, on top of this, the Shogun herself had begun to walk the streets of Inazuma, getting to know the nation and the people she was sworn to protect in the name of her sister.
It was for that reason alone you had made your way to the nation, despite what a majority of the people had thought, you could somewhat agree with the Shoguns previous methods.
Well, not necessarily agree but you could see where she was coming from.
And for that reason alone, you admired her will and power because it took a lot of it to come to the decisions that she had, knowing full well she may have been despised in the long run.
But, alas, you were a country-side girl, one who grew up in a tiny town filled with farmers and not too close to any major city, in the past, it was a far-fetched dream to be able to stand on the land of Inazuma yet here you were now.
The moment the nation had allowed foreigners to come and go freely, you took your opportunity.
You had been here for a few weeks now.
Three weeks, four days and seven hours to be exact but who was counting?
The excitement when you had first arrived had yet to subside and you were constantly buzzing whenever you tried something new.
You had saved up any money you had earned for five solid years and such restraint had allowed you to live rather comfortably in Inazuma for the short time you'd be here.
Grinning happily to yourself as you thought back on those times, you took a bite out of the Onigiri you had slathered in sauce. Something that had made the chef give you an inquisitive stare but you just grinned back at him before putting your straw sun hat back on and hopping off the stool.
But as you passed one of the Yukata and Kimono stools, you caught a glimpse of a pattern that interested you and that brief moment your attention was diverted, you crashed into someone.
"Ow, ow, ow!" Hopping back from the person you had collided with, you looked up whilst massaging your now sore nose, eyes widening at the mess that was now all over them thanks to the Onigiri you had been eating.
The elegant, smooth blue, gold and white material that the man wore was now adorned with ugly brown thick splotches of sauce, rice occasionally falling from the sticky mess.
"Ahh! I got the stuff all over ya! I'm so sorry, I'll getcha something to wipe it off!" Saying this, you rushed off back to the stall that you had gotten the snack from, grabbing handfuls of tissue and running back to the man who watched you with a partially confused and shocked gaze.
You rubbed vigorously at the mans clothes, bystanders watching with mild shock and amazement at your lack of understanding of the situation you were currently in.
"Geez, it's really not comin' off, huh? Sorry 'bout that but ya know, I'm guilty of not payin' attention but what on Archons name were you doin'?" You asked, looking up at the man, only to find an amused smile gracing his face. His eyes shifted to different points of your face as he observed you with that quiet smile.
He was intrigued to say the least.
You watched him too, a small frown on your face as you arched an eyebrow at him. Time seemed to stop for a moment and he was grateful because-
"The heck are you starin' at me like that? Gee, you're an odd one arent'cha?" He jolted at your bold and almost brusk manner of speaking, he had never heard anything quite like it.
He burst into a light chuckle, once he did, everyone around let go of the breaths that they had been holding, worried of what would have transpired were he not such a light-hearted individual.
"You are quite the character, most definitely not from Inazuma, may I ask where you have travelled from?" His voice was rich, smooth. It dripped of authority and a fine education, had you cared about stuff like that you may have changed your demeanour but you didn't.
So he had the wonderful opportunity to hear your unfiltered way of speaking.
"Dang, ya got me! I'm from a teeny tiny little town very far from here but I love Inazuma so much I just HAD to come over and check it out myself! My town is between Sumeru and Mondstadt, not too close to either but not too far from either as well!" You spoke with such pride, his eyes widened slightly because he couldn't fathom how such an insignificant place could bring so much joy to an individual.
No. He was wrong for that, not 'Insignificant' more like 'Unknown'. Because there could be things of interest and intrigue there.
Like you.
Smiling once more, he nodded along to your words as he allowed the unusual accent to etch itself into his memories, he loved it. It scratched a certain itch in his brain, you didn't sound stupid nor ignorant. You sounded excited.
Excited to see what the world had to offer outside of your 'teeny tiny little town'.
You were a sponge, absorbing anything you came across in this land that you knew so little and so much about.
And yet, Kamisato Ayato did not want you to see the side of him that everyone native to the nation knew. He wanted you to live in blissful ignorance of his role in Inazuma, to keep speaking to him in the way you did even though the two of you had known each other for just about close to five minutes.
"Yeah, this stuff is not comin' out without a fight! I'm so sorry about that but ya know, a lil' baking soda and water oughta do the trick!" He blinked at you a few times, unsure of what you had just said (partially because he hadn't been paying any attention to anything other than the sound of your voice and the contours of your face.)
"Baking soda? You don't have any do ya?" You sighed aloud at your question, instantly knowing that the man did not, in fact, possess it.
"What's ya name? I'll use some of mine, only cause I know it's my fault!"
He forgot his name for a brief second, not at all expecting you to ask.
"Aya-" His eyes widened before immediately hiding what he was about to say behind a cough.
"Kujou Itto!" For such a smart man, that was a very stupid move for him. Using two well known names in this nation was sure to bring him some kind of trouble in the future when you eventually found out and yet he couldn't bring himself to come clean to you.
"Kujou Itto? Whatta name! I'll engrave it in my memory, sorry but could I ask ya to come by at seven this evening to hand me those clothes that I've ruined. I'll fix 'em right up for ya! I'll be waiting by this stall right here!" Pointing to the Kimono and Yukata shop that had stolen your attention prior to the incident, the man followed your finger before turning back to face you and nodding quietly.
"Cool! I'll catch ya later and again, sorry 'bout that!" He watched as you walked off, a small skip in your step as you still didn't quite understand the severity of what you had done.
It was then Kamisato Ayatos retainers finally caught up with him, eyes widening at the very obvious stain plaguing his clothing.
"Ah! What happened?!" Saying this, one of them tried to swipe at his outfit with a cloth that they had pulled out yet he stepped away, eyeing them seriously.
"No, it is fine."
Because to him it was, since he hadn't had the chance to ask you for your name, he supposed he could settle for the mess you had made until tonight.
"Clear any meetings or events scheduled from seven in the evening until ten in the night." He said before spinning on his heel and walking off.