Work Text:
"I don't recall giving you leave to peruse my sketchbook," came a familiar, soft voice from behind her.
Lumine whirled around to see Albedo standing by the open door, his enigmatic gaze fixed upon her with his lips pressed into a thin line. She hadn't even heard him come in, and now he was looking to her with cool disapproval. The traveler stared back at him in dumb shock. The floors in Favonius Headquarters were made of marble. She was sure any normal person's footsteps would've resonated loud enough to give her warning well before they entered the lab. How did he even—?
"U-uh..." Lumine's eyes darted about uncomfortably. How did she end up being the one who felt caught in this situation? "I-It was just sitting open here on the desk!" she defended. "I didn't think you'd mind or anythi—"
A quiet chuckle suddenly escaped Albedo's lips, his severe demeanor from the moment before now seamlessly switched out for a more relaxed one. Lumine was confused.
"Forgive me for my levity," the researcher said, his voice still a mirthful half-chuckle. "I'm afraid I simply couldn't resist the opportunity to tease you."
Lumine exhaled pointedly in a mix of relief and exasperation. "Don't scare me like that! I thought you really were angry!"
"Deception is a key component in many an effective prank," Albedo replied with a faint yet cheeky smirk. "At least, that's what my observations of Klee's pranks tell me."
The blonde adventurer rolled her eyes. "Well, now that you've had your fun—" She turned the open book around to indicate to the current page "—would you care to explain why nearly all of the drawings in this book are of me?"
Albedo just smiled that quiet smile of his. Sometimes it was so annoying to Lumine how impossible it was to make the researcher lose his composure. "Ahh," he said calmly. "Do not misunderstand. There is simply something in your appearance I find a unique challenge to capture. If I am ever to improve my rendering skills, such challenges must be conquered, however many attempts it may take to do so."
Lumine was secretly a bit disappointed by this nonplussed response, especially after he'd managed to ruffle her metaphorical feathers so easily just moments before. She had at least been hoping for a few seconds of an averted gaze or a subtle blush of embarrassment at her discovery. She turned the book back around to see the portrait of herself once more. "Well, I guess you can move on to your next subject then," she mused aloud. "You've clearly succeeded."
"That was one of the first sketches I made, actually."
Lumine's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait what? But it's so good!"
"And yet it still lacks a certain quality that the original subject possesses," he stated matter-of-factly. "Though I've yet to ascertain exactly what that certain quality is."
Lumine studied the drawing again for a few moments, her lips pursed and eyes narrowed in concentration. "Color?" she offered.
"A reasonable hypothesis," he admitted. "But by this I gather you overlooked several pages."
Intrigued, Lumine quickly flicked through the sketchbook until she came to a more vibrant depiction of herself. It seems he had indeed given color in his drawings a try. The portrait was just as painstakingly detailed as the others, though the various new hues and shades portrayed even more dimension than the previous charcoal sketches.
The adventurer sighed defeatedly. "Are you sure you're not just being overly critical of your skills? I mean, these look amazing to me."
Albedo chuckled once more, absentmindedly brushing a stray hair from his face. "You flatter me with your praise. But I am certain that something is missing nonetheless."
Lumine's lips downturned into a small frown. How was anyone supposed to find something if they didn't know what they were looking for in the first place?
"Perhaps," Albedo began,"it is that those sketches are made from memory. Now were I to have a reference available to me as worked..." He gave her a meaningful look.
"You... want me to pose?"
"If you would not be opposed to doing so, then yes. It would be most helpful. And I would recompense you for your time. It would be a commission... after a fashion."
Lumine felt a bit of heat rising to her cheeks. "U-uh... sure. I mean, I don't get what's so special about how I look or whatever, but I'm not going to turn down easy mora."
Albedo quirked an eyebrow. "Easy?"
"Well, yeah." Lumine had thought it was an obvious fact. "I mean, you just want me to stand or sit still while you draw me, right?"
"Indeed. However, given your energetic nature, I thought perhaps remaining idle for hours on end would pose something of a unique challenge for you."
"Hours on end?" Lumine repeated, her tone betraying that she hadn't anticipated the request to take that long.
Albedo laughed softly. "Second thoughts?"
"N-no. Mora is mora."
"You're certain?"
"Yes."
How Lumine wished she had said no.
Thankfully, Albedo had been considerate enough to choose a seated pose, but after what she was sure must've been three or four hours, her backside was starting to feel unbearably stiff in the minimally cushioned wood chair - though admittedly the one Albedo was seated in across from her looked exactly the same, and he had been sitting just as long as she had.
Albedo had to periodically point out whenever Lumine was fidgeting out of boredom so she would stop. And why was her nose so darn itchy?! When he'd sketched that drawing of Paimon once upon a time, it hadn't taken him nearly so long to finish. Had it?
From behind the easel Lumine could see his eyebrows knit together in deep concentration. Every brushstroke seemed to be carefully calculated and measured before it was applied to canvas. She had wanted to ask him to turn the artwork around so she could see how it looked so far, but this was a commission even if it was from a friend, and she was determined to strive for professionalism.
She could sure go for a glass of water right about now though.
Lumine observed as Albedo suddenly leaned back in his seat, his eyes flickering between scrutinizing his work as a whole and comparing it to the original subject. Then she heard him sigh quietly to himself. Was he disappointed in how the artwork looked? Frustrated with her subpar modeling? Fatigued by the long hours he'd just spent trying to capture her likeness?
"You may be at ease," came Albedo's voice, abruptly breaking the silence. "I believe this is the best I can do at my current skill level."
"It's finished then?"
"Yes."
Lumine felt a wave of relief wash through her body as she finally took to her feet. It felt so good to at last be free to move about as she wished. She gave a satisfying rub at her nose to relieve its longtime itchiness and quickly made a beeline for the nearby lab countertop - the one with the full water jug and the empty cups.
Over the rim of her tilted glass as she greedily gulped down its refreshing contents, she briefly noticed Albedo's quietly amused gaze on her. This was because most subjects would've immediately moved to see the finished piece after all that posing, but not so Lumine.
"My apologies for causing you such exertion whilst you were so parched," Albedo remarked smirking.
"Ha ha, very funny," Lumine replied with an eye roll. "So are you finally satisfied with the results?"
"Hmm." Albedo looked to the canvas once more. "I would say my work still lacks a certain je ne sais quoi. Yet even I must admit there has been a noticeable improvement in the final product." He smiled softly at her. "It appears your discomfort the last hour and a half was not entirely in vain."
"Wait—It was only an hour and a half?" Lumine couldn't help but blurt out, unable to hide her shock at the realization that it hadn't been much, much longer.
Albedo exhaled mirthfully through his nose, clearly stifling out of politeness the slightly more substantial laughter that was attempting to bubble up to the surface. "Ahh. Yes, I suppose the clock wasn't visible from your vantage point. Though the estimation of an hour and a half was even being a bit generous."
Lumine sighed loudly. It was exasperating to hear her suffering effectively diminished to a mere overreaction by such a simple fact, especially when her discomfort had felt so acute just moments ago. It seemed Albedo had been correct in his assessment regarding her restless nature and its incompatibility with idleness.
The researcher failed to repress one last chuckle following her loud sigh.
Ignoring the hobbyist artist's delight at her expense, Lumine took one last gulp of her water and set the empty cup aside to march over and see Albedo's handiwork. It didn't really matter to her how the finished piece looked as long as she got paid, but it was only natural to be curious.
Coming around to stand behind a still seated Albedo, she took in the appearance of the artwork from over his shoulder. And what she saw audibly took her breath away.
The portrait was a realistic, yet flattering take on her appearance. Her expression was neutral, yet the way the warm light fell across her features made them appear all the more soft and feminine. Her lemonade eyes looked soulful and reflective, like a cool lake when the morning sunrise kisses its surface after a long night of respite. Her face was framed delicately by her honey-soft hair, and though there was certainly great attention to detail in her elegantly rendered adventurer's dress, it still maintained a comely simplicity that did not do the overall piece the disservice of detracting attention from the subject herself.
"Is the painting to your liking?" Albedo asked, snapping her from her reverie.
"Wow. Albedo. It's... beautiful. I don't think I've ever looked as pretty as this. You're like... an actual art genius or something."
Albedo thought to himself that it was fortunate Lumine's standing position didn't afford her a good view of his face, as he was sure his cheeks were quite flushed with crimson from how warm they suddenly felt upon hearing her compliments.
"A-ah." Albedo quietly cleared his throat, attempting to regain his composure before she could notice. "Thank you. Though, I still maintain it needs improvement."
"You really are a perfectionist," Lumine said with a shake of her head, completely oblivious to how she had momentarily disarmed him. "Welp, if you'll give me my mora now, I should head out. I've gotta collect Paimon from daycare."
"Of course." Albedo stood up from his place by the easel to make his way to the spot on the shelf several yards away where he kept his mora box. He abruptly paused, quirking an eyebrow in Lumine's direction. "Daycare?" he repeated.
"Oh, I left Paimon with Xianling for the day," Lumine responded simply, her eyes still fixed on the painting. "Paimon wanted to 'help' her cook something, and I still had a few commissions left to do."
Albedo smiled in understanding. "I see." He considered for a moment more. "Come to think of it, I never did ask you why you were here in the laboratory in the first place."
"Oh my goodness!" Lumine exclaimed. "I completely forgot!" With that she reached into an unassuming pocket on the side of her skirt and held out its contents to him - a small purple pouch fastened closed with a bit of twine. "It's the luminescent spines Sucrose put in a request for at the guild," she explained.
"Oh, excellent," said Albedo, accepting the item gratefully. "This will be indispensable in our latest experiments. I shall collect enough mora to cover the cost of both commissions presently."
Once the luminescent spines were put away and Lumine had her mora in hand, the adventurer bid a fond farewell to the researcher and turned to leave. She hadn't even made it to the door however, when she was suddenly stopped by Albedo's voice.
"Lumine," he began pensively. "I... don't suppose you'd be willing to pose for me again? When you have time."
The blonde adventurer involuntarily grimaced, her face contorting unpleasantly in consideration a few moments more. She sighed heavily. "Well... I guess."
Albedo's lips twinged upwards at the corners. "I look forward to it."
"That makes one of us."
Albedo chuckled, eliciting a small smile from the adventurer in response. "Give Paimon my regards," he said.
"Will do."
The door closed softly behind Lumine, leaving Albedo once more to his cherished solitude. But surveying the room, he thought to himself with a tinge of melancholy... that perhaps he much preferred the solitude... when Lumine was present in it.