Chapter Text
“Kazuha!!”
The ronin could recognize that melodious voice anywhere. It took him all of his willpower to not leap off the Alcor’s deck and dive into the awaiting general’s arms, especially when he was so nearby, standing on the docks of Watatsumi Island. Perhaps it was due to the small audience waiting for them, that being only Gorou and Kokomi and no other soldiers, that the canine hybrid was jumping with joy, both hands stretched out and waving at the samurai on board. Kazuha’s heart skipped a beat at how adorable he looked right now.
Beside him, the captain of the mighty ship, Beidou, chortled at the sight. “You’re one lucky man, Kazuha, lemme tell you that.” She commended him with a hearty pat on the back, though it wasn’t too strong to knock him overboard. “I know a thing or two about partners, and if the general’s expression is anything to go by, you got yourself a good one.”
The samurai could feel a slight blush creeping on his cheeks. “I humbly thank you for the compliment, captain.” He spoke calmly, only to receive another pat so strong this time that he could have fallen off the deck if he wasn’t careful. “Why so formal? I almost thought you were going to cover your face in embarrassment.” Beidou grinned. “Though I suppose that’s a side of you that I will never understand, isn’t it, Kazuha?”
She didn’t have to see his nod to know his answer. It was an open secret at this point that Kazuha still hid a few things from the captain, despite how close they were. Why he still retained his calm and polite poise like that of a noble, even though the source of his nobility was long gone, Beidou would never know, among many other things that he kept hidden from her. But she didn’t have to worry, not when Kazuha had Gorou by his side. Beidou almost felt like a parent trusting her child to the general, knowing that they would keep each other safe.
It felt like hours had trickled away before the Alcor was finally settled near the docks and the loading deck was set. Kazuha could barely wait for the all-clear signal; his impatience ran out as he called for the wind to propel him off the ship, landing on the hardy wood planks to finally greet his partner.
He was pleasantly surprised at the unbridled joy in his own voice. “Gorou!”
The sight of Gorou bounding towards him like an excited puppy made Kazuha’s heart burst. Soon enough, the general was right in front of him, wrapping his arms around his lover and holding him tightly yet gently. “You’re back!” He tittered gleefully.
Kazuha chuckled as he returned the hug. “It’s only been a few weeks, my dear.”
Gorou whined a little in the ronin’s embrace. “It’s still long… I missed you.”
“I missed you, too.” Kazuha found it far too difficult to ignore the tenderness of Gorou’s voice. He really did miss him as well, after all. “I see that your tail is also very happy to see me.” He chuckled, gesturing to Gorou’s tail swishing left and right
“Oh, come on! You know I can’t control it.” He pouted, pulling away from Kazuha a little, though his hands remained on his body, lowered to his waist. “Not all the time, anyway.”
The samurai laughed at the rare spectacle of his partner acting so flustered, how his tail wagged back and forth nonstop excitedly. As he gazed at his elated expression, Kazuha couldn’t help but stare into his eyes, a shimmering shade of teal that rivaled the rolling crests of the ocean waves, eyes that he wouldn’t mind looking at for the rest of his life, if it weren’t for how shy the general was.
Of course, it seemed that he was about to be proven wrong right then and there. Because after a while of them gazing lovingly at each other, the ronin could sense a shift in the atmosphere, something about the general that felt a little off. It wasn’t long before Gorou suddenly leaned into him, their faces extremely close to one another, and he perched his nose on top of the samurai’s in an intimate act of physical touch.
His eyes bored deep into his lover’s red ones; it was too big of a challenge for him to pull away. And if anyone tried to inch themselves closer to the two of them, they would hear a pair of hearts beating fast, and soft gasps of air that sounded as if they were in sync.
A day seemed to have faded away until Gorou finally lifted his face, looking away from Kazuha as his cheeks darkened to a rosy red. “I… Um… There was a book in her excellency’s collection about customs in other regions.” He began to explain sheepishly. “One of them that I found was about how Snezhnayan folk would … kiss each other.”
“They usually don’t use their lips, because their saliva could cause them to freeze and get stuck together in the harsh cold. So instead, they use their… noses… for kisses…”
Gorou felt like he was about to explode from how sudden this all was, and how he imposed it without so much of a warning. “I-I know it’s weird. I just wanted to try it out, I’m sorry if you didn’t like it-”
“Pft-”
He was anticipating silence more than laughter, so when Kazuha did start laughing, Gorou was purely astonished. Was that uncharacteristic of him? Bad timing? Maybe Kazuha found it amusing that Gorou was looking up love advice from other countries? The canine knew from the very beginning of their time together, even before it blossomed into friendship, that Kazuha had a knack for seeing through his professionalism, and that he could pinpoint every tiny detail about Gorou’s inexperience with aspects of everyday life unrelated to battles, including love.
“You forget that I am a wanderer by nature, my dear general.” Just as he thought of asking him for an answer, Gorou heard the samurai speak once again, his giggles and chuckles dying down as he placed a hand on his cheek. “And that I likely would have heard of such a practice in my travels across the sea. There are Snezhnayan folk living in Liyue Harbor, you know?” He continued with a sly wink.
“ … Oh you-!!” Gorou blurted out, hugging Kazuha tightly again as if it was payback. “I got worried there, you know! I thought you wouldn’t like the kiss…”
“Oh, believe me, I loved it.” His lover reassured him with a soft pet on his head. “In fact… May I daringly ask for another?”
The eventful afternoon on the docks wouldn’t end so quickly, not when Gorou kept giving his beloved one nose kiss after another, much to said lover’s elation, and to the content of the two nearby wing women.