Chapter Text
A tired groan slips past your lips as you observe the wooden cart in front of you. Bolts of cotton and silk lay piled on top of one another, stacked so tightly together you’re not quite sure where to begin. It’s a miracle in itself that the porters were able to drag the cart from Ritou to your shop in Inazuma City- too bad they were smart enough to leave before you could start unpacking.
With another tired huff, you step up into the wagon bed to face the mountain of fabric you’ve ordered. Normally, your small dress store is fairly quiet during the summer. You get occasional orders for new yukata as festivals pass through – especially whenever Naganohara fireworks are involved – but you’ve never faced a demand like this before.
You can thank Yae Publishing House for the sudden influx of work. A series of light novels have been booming recently, romanticizing whirlwind summer loves and sending Inazuman hearts aflutter. You’re not typically one to look down on a good romance story, but the most popular novel’s climatic confession happens during a romance festival. Which, coincidentally, happens to line up with the very same, very real romance festival at the end of this week.
So for the past month you’ve been receiving a flood of orders. Hopeful men and women asking for yukata that look as stunning as the light novels describe; secretly wishing that, they too, will catch the eye of someone special. Couples who are already head-over-heels, wanting matching garments to show the whole world how enraptured they are with one another.
And you’re glad to make them. You love creating something that others feel amazing in. Particularly during festival season, when you get to see for yourself how confident and happy they look while wearing something they love.
You don’t, however, love over-committing yourself and getting a whopping 4 collective hours of sleep each night.
Soon, though, these bolts of fabric will be transformed into stunning yukata. You’ll have a nice financial cushion for your shop. And, most importantly, you’ll get to sleep.
You wedge your hand under one of the top bolts and place just enough pressure to finally pop it out of the stack it’s packed in. You’re just about to pat yourself on the back when a low whistle startles you.
“That’s a ton of fabric! I mean- that stack is almost as big as me!”
You can’t stop the grin that pulls at your lips when you recognize the voice, turning your head over your shoulder to look at the infamous oni.
“Almost? If they weren’t packed so tight together you could swim in this thing!” you chuckle down at him.
He shakes his head stubbornly, as if he’s challenging your ability to see, and takes the bolt you managed to break loose from your grasp. He slings it under one arm and motions for you to keep them coming.
“As if! Maybe you could swim around in there but it would basically be at my ankles. Doooon’t worry though! I could always pull ya outta there if you needed me to. They don’t call me ‘The Ultimate Life Guard Arataki Itto’ for nothin’, y’know.” He grins up at you, knowing full well that he’s talking out of his ass.
You bark out a laugh, shaking your head as you wiggle another bolt free and hand it down to him. “I’ve never heard anyone call you that. But thanks for helping bail me out of this thing anyway.”
He shrugs, taking more bolts from you, his contagious grin never once leaving his face. “S’no big deal. If those guys down at the Ritou harbor are too lazy to help ya, I might as well step in ‘ta finish the job!” He stumbles back a bit as you place another bolt in his arms, the pile he’s accumulating growing up to his chin. “Although, this would've been way easier if the boys were here to help.”
Shaking your head, you pause your unloading and look down at him. “I think you’ve already got about twice the amount those porters could carry– and the boys would definitely just turn this into some kind of competition.” You watch him puff up a little at that. “Why don’t you set those down on those crates over there, though. I’ll need to sort them before they go inside anyway.”
If he had the available hands to salute you, you think he would. He marches over to where you directed him militantly, trying his absolute best to set the bolts down as gently as possible. You have to admit; he may be a total goofball, but his oni pride makes him a surprisingly hard worker.
You decide to make good work out of his focused attention while he still has it. That, in combination with his large stature and pure strength, gets the job done pretty fast. You only banter back and forth for a seemingly short time before each bolt has been stored in its rightful place.
You’re about to thank him for the free labor when it suddenly occurs to you that your employee is Arataki Itto, of all people.
Something doesn’t add up.
“So what really brings you here?” you ask, arms folding as you lean against the now-empty cart.
He looks at you and covers his heart with his hand, aghast that you’d even suggest he has ulterior motives.
“Whaddya mean? Am I not allowed to show up and help out a fellow Arataki Gang member?”
You raise an eyebrow at him and try to send him a skeptical look, but you can’t help but let your amusement seep through. He picks up on it immediately.
“Oh, so you conveniently showed up right when I needed help unloading my cart? Mr. All-play-and-no-work, Itto?”
You swear his grin could light up the entire sky. For you, it does.
“Alright, alright. Maaaaybe I got word that a buncha fabric was makin’ its way to Inazuma City this mornin’. And maybe I thought I’d help a buddy of mine out! I’ve been arrested a lot, but surely that ain’t a crime?”
You roll your eyes at him, despite being entirely thrilled by his effort to be here with you. “No, it’s not. But I think you’ve sufficiently buttered me up. Go on and pitch whatever nefarious plot you have stewing under those horns.”
“First of all, I don’t even know what nefarious means, so how dare you suggest such a thing…” He smirks, knowing he’s been caught, “But I guess I do have somethin’ I wanted to ask ya.” He clears his throat with a sense of grandeur, but all it does is send a flush of nerves through your system.
Surely he’s not going to ask you to the festival… right?
You’ve known Itto ever since you took over your parents’ shop. It was your first day running the place by yourself after they moved to Liyue, and just as you started reviewing orders the big guy burst through your back door. He was on the lam from the Tenryou Commission, after doing archon knows what, and decided to take refuge in your little store. He hadn’t expected anyone to be there, and you most certainly hadn’t expected to harbor a fugitive.
But something about him compelled you to let him stay. You’re not sure if it was because of how flustered he was, despite being the one to bust into your business. Or maybe it was because of how goofy he looked, with his hair a wind-blown mess and clutching a large onikabuto to his chest. Regardless, you let him hide out in your storage room while the Tenryou Commision searched the streets for him. And the next day he came back, accompanied by Shinobu and an apology basket filled with lavender melons.
You became fast friends after that, growing close enough to him and his friends to become an honorary member of the Arataki Gang yourself. They took you under their wing and treated you like you were always one of their own. With them, time seemed to fly by, and you can’t recall a time in your life when you were this happy. Everything was absolutely perfect… until it hit you that you were in love with your leader.
If you’re being completely honest, you really aren’t quite sure when you started developing feelings for Itto. They seemed to have crept up on you while you weren’t looking, and you realized just how bad you had it when you were far past the point of no return.
You’ve been looking for any sign that he might feel the same way about you. But Itto is… well, Itto. All of the signs you’d typically use to help suss out if someone likes you are rendered useless. Itto’s friendly with everyone unless you’re being an asshole or trying to order him around. He’s never been one to shy away from physical contact, slinging his arm over friends’ shoulders and ruffling the hair on their heads. Terms of endearment? Everyone is his ‘bro’, ‘guy’, or ‘dude’, with little exceptions.
You are not one of those exceptions, it seems.
So you’ve resigned yourself to the fact that you’re stuck being hopelessly in love with him, while he operates blissfully unaware of your feelings. After the amount of effort you’ve spent combing over your time in the friend-zone, there’s no way he’s going to ask you out to the festival.
…Right?
“Uh, hello? Earth to Y/N!” The subject of your innermost desires waves his hand in front of your face, and your ears turn a bright shade of red from embarrassment. “I was building up suspense but then you totally just zoned out on me. I’m not that boring, am I?”
Your hand comes up to cover your face briefly but you quickly try to laugh it off. “Itto, you couldn’t be boring if you tried. You were actually so good at building suspense, I got lost in it.” You offer him a goading smile, hoping it’ll be enough for him to forget your awkwardness. “Now go on, ask me your question before I explode or something.”
He examines you for a second, scanning you from head to toe with squinted eyes before breaking back into his usual grin. “Alright, so – I know you’re like super busy with all of the shop orders and stuff, I mean – just look at all of the fabric I’ve unloaded. But me and the gang have really started to feel your absence from our club meetings. Shinobu is stuck managing us all by herself and nobody roasts lavender melon quite as good as you.”
He still hasn’t gotten to the point and you’re not one hundred percent sure if he’s still trying to butter you up. But the fact that he’s admitted he misses you in a roundabout way has your heart melting.
“Anyway, I came over to personally invite you to tonight’s meeting. You need a break from all of this before the fun in you shrivels up and disappears forever! We’re even gettin’ together a whole hour early so you can get home at a decent time. That’s an Arataki Promise!”
You know you should say no to him. You’ve got about 20 orders inside practically begging you to say no to him. But let’s face it; you’re so incredibly weak. He has to know it too, because he’s pulling out all of the stops. Letting you know everyone misses you, anticipating your typical excuses, and even giving you his best puppy eyes. You swear he’d stick out his bottom lip too if you left him hanging any longer.
“...Fine, but–” you start, and he immediately moves to celebrate. His arms shoot up into the air and he spins around on his heel, before bringing his hands to grasp your upper arms.
“Yes! No ‘buts’! I promise we’ll send you home before it gets too late. I’ll even walk you back myself!” He gives you a gentle shake in excitement before releasing you to put his hands on his hips. “Ah man – this is gonna be sweet! The full gang's back together again! Well – not the full gang, the Traveler won’t be there – but the Inazuman members will be together! Hoo-hoo I can’t wait!”
Any objections you might’ve had die in your throat when you see just how giddy he is from your acceptance. Your own smile grows too, when you realize that a few hours with the gang honestly sounds just as exciting to you as it does for him. You’ve been pushing yourself pretty hard the past few weeks, and Itto’s right – you deserve a break.
“Don’t get too excited! I really do have to get home before it gets too late–”
“Yeah yeah yeah, so you can keep working yourself to the bone. I know, Y/N.”
You can’t help but grin at him, “I mean it, Itto. You won’t be able to whisk me away again until after these orders are done.”
He pretends to buff his nails against his coat at his collarbone, before holding his hand out to examine them. “That almost sounds like a challenge! And I think you’re seriously underestimating my powers of persuasion, I am, after all, THE Prince of Mischief–” he freezes when he feels the glare you’re sending his way.
“Right… Okay,” he clears his throat and starts backing up towards the street. “I will let you get back to work now. But! I will also be seeing you, tonight, at the usual spot – an hour early! Don’t forget it! And don’t be late, or I’ll hafta come drag ya there myself.”
As tempting as the bonus time with him sounds, you decide it’s only fair to make a promise to him of your own. Y’know, since he’s gone through all this effort just to get you to go.
You raise your voice a bit, calling back to him so he’ll hear you from the streetside. “The usual spot, tonight, an hour early. I’ll be there on time, I promise!”
The way he grins back at you tells you he knows you’ll keep your word.
—~~~—
So maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.
Everything started out fine, at first. Your walk down to the cave beneath Inazuma City was pretty peaceful, and you were feeling good about the work you were able to get done before leaving for tonight’s meeting. The booming voices upon your approach told you that the boys might be a bit more wound-up than normal, but, if you’re honest, it’s a commotion that you’ve missed. Your arrival was, of course, met with great enthusiasm by the rest of the gang, and it took no time at all for each of you to slip back into your comfortable habits.
After sitting down in your (technically) unassigned, (habitually) assigned seats, Itto started the meeting as he always does; with a grand speech. Then, he made everyone go around and mention one awesome thing they’ve experienced since the last meeting. You think this is Itto’s inadvertent way of brainstorming new ways to terrorize the city.
But the stories this evening are pretty tame – at least, by usual standards. Akira found a rock to nap on that molds to the right side of his body perfectly. Genta spent a day in Ritou harbor counting the number of ships that came in – 9 in total. And Mamoru mistook a sunsettia for a sango pearl. He took it to Genichirou to be appraised, thinking he’d strike it rich, only to be met with a hysterical fit of laughter. In all fairness, he is colorblind, and it was the most spherical sunsettia he’d ever seen.
Shinobu got a shipment of books from Liyue that she's excited to read. Genta mused that maybe they came in on one of his ships.
When it came to your turn, you shared how much business has picked up since those summer romance novels were released. This, unfortunately, only seemed to remind your dear leader of the deadline you’ve been so stressed over.
“Oh yeah – that romance festival is at the end of the week, right? Why don’t we all go once Y/N is done working! It would be our first gang outing since that whole misunderstanding at the Narukami Shrine!”
You nearly choke at his suggestion. No – how can you choke when the air has been sucked out of your lungs?
“I wouldn’t exactly call what happened a misunderstanding, boss.” Shinobu sighs out beside you, “Besides – what would we do at a romance festival?”
“She has a point, boss. It’s not like any of us have dates to this thing. Won’t we stand out if we go as a group?”
It’s not uncommon to see Itto flustered. He has a habit of talking himself into corners and then frantically trying to spin his story when he’s called out for it. You usually find this trait endearing when he’s not up against the Tenryou Commission. But for some reason the way his cheeks flare up this time makes your stomach drop.
“You’re just not seein’ the bigger picture! We don’t hafta show up with dates – we can pick them up when we get there!” Itto seems to gain confidence with the path he’s chosen, placing his hands on his hips and puffing out his chest.
Everyone in the cave gapes up at him incredulously.
“Pick up a date… at a festival that celebrates couples? I dunno, boss, that seems kinda hard…” Mamoru scratches the back of his head, unsure if he should be pointing out the obvious.
Itto clearly picks up on the doubt in the room but doesn’t falter, moving to help Mamoru to his feet and sling an arm over his shoulder. “Now that’s where you’re mistaken, my bro. Just think about it for a second!” His other hand comes up to pat Mamoru’s chest, “Sure there’ll be loads of mushy love birds walkin’ around. But! There’ll also be a bunch of lovesick loners lookin’ for someone to sweep ‘em off their feet! That’s where we come in.”
Shinobu laughs – actually laughs – beside you. The other guys seem skeptical but you can see that he’s sparked their interest. And you? Honestly, you might just throw up.
“And just how are we supposed to do that? Genta’s been turned down by the majority of Inazuma already. What makes this festival any different?”
“Hey!” Genta jumps in, rising to his feet to defend himself. “I haven’t been turned down that many times!”
Mamoru and Akira snicker at Genta as Itto struts into the center of the three men.
“Don’t sweat it, my dudes! Everyone’s all swept up on those books that the publishing house put out this summer, right? All we gotta do is roll out the red carpet! Hit ‘em with the stuff in these pages!”
He pulls a crumpled booklet from behind his back, presumably from the waistband of his pants (not sure how you hadn’t noticed it there before). Grinning wide, he thumbs through the pages of the book, seemingly looking for something. When he finds what he was looking for, he clears his throat and postures himself in front of the guys.
“‘Care to join me for a walk around the festival, my dear? You can’t spell ‘Romance’ without ‘M-E’’!”
You snort at the written pick-up line (I mean seriously – this is what everyone is going crazy for?) as the gang surrounds Itto. They immediately start berating him with excited questions, snatching the book from his hands and squabbling over who gets it first. As always, Itto thrives on their attention. Each one of his answers is accompanied by a brush of fake dust from his shoulder or over-the-top flexing.
Not that you’d ever complain about watching him show off his muscles.
“What about you?” Shinobu nudges her shoulder against your own, pulling your attention away from the guys and your (embarrassing) thoughts. “They’ve clearly got a scheme in the works, but do you think you’ll go to the festival?”
You chew on the inside of your cheek, trying to put your words together as carefully as possible.
It’s not as if you don’t want to go to the festival. In fact, you’d love to attend. You hardly ever pass up the opportunity to hang out with the gang- especially with how difficult it is for you to say ‘no’ to Itto. But there’s just no way you can spend the evening in a romantic atmosphere, next to the one person you want to be there with. Not when you know that his feelings for you will never be anything more than platonic.
Especially if you have to watch him shamelessly flirt at other people.
So you shake your head, giving her an apologetic smile. “No, not after the month I’ve had. It honestly feels like every couple in Inazuma came in to order matching yukata for this festival,” you extend your hands out to her, displaying the colorful collection of bandages that decorate your fingers. “And despite all the wounds I’ve suffered, I still have a handful of orders I need to finish before the festival starts this weekend. As soon as they’re done, I’m going home and taking a nap.”
Shinobu studies you from behind her mask, her gaze making you squirm in your seat. You know she’s calculating something in her head. Breaking apart what you’ve just said to her and piecing it back together. You have to prevent yourself from wincing when you see her move to speak, but you’re both interrupted by another voice.
“A nap!? You’re choosing to skip out on THE Araktaki Gang, just to get a little shut eye?”
You’re not sure when Itto’s attention was drawn away from his preening to overhear your weekend plans – and while you’ve certainly never been one to shy away from his attention before – right now you wish you were anywhere but in your current predicament.
You realize then that all four men have turned their attention onto you, not just Itto. Your face begins to heat up quickly and the only thing you can seem to do is gape up at them, mouth opening and closing like a fish.
“Leave her alone, boss” Shinobu interjects. You’ve never had eyes for anyone other than the rather large oni man in front of you, but in this moment you could kiss her on the mouth. “Unlike the rest of you, she’s been working nonstop for the festival. I think it’s fair for her to want a night off.”
For just a moment, you think you’re in the clear. The guys are always rambunctious but they’ve never been one to dismiss Shinobu when she speaks up. She may not be their leader but when she lays down the law, they’re quick to listen.
But for some reason, Itto isn’t going to let this go.
“That’s EXACTLY why she needs to come out to the festival with us! I mean, what’s even the point of sealing yourself up inside while all your hard work is walkin’ up and down the streets of Inazuma City? Let us take you out for a night on the town!”
The four men clamor closer to you, excitement etched onto each of their faces. You’re finding it increasingly harder to breathe.
“The boss is right! Plus there’s bound to be all sorts of stalls with fun games and delicious food! You can’t possibly pass up on Dango?” Akira hums blissfully at the thought.
Mamoru nods along, “Dango, taiyaki, butter crab! Ugh, my stomach is growling already at the possibilities! We haven’t eaten that good since the Irodori Festival!”
Genta decides to get a little too close, looking you over. “If it’s the date thing you’re caught up on, don’t worry!” He waves around the book Itto had on him, “This thing is FILLED with quality one-liners. We can totally hook you up with someone–”
Your whole face flushes and your hearing starts to ring. Suddenly, your legs are pushing you to your feet and you think you can hear yourself speak but you’re not entirely sure if it was actually you.
“I’m not going to the festival!”
The cave goes silent at your outburst.
Heart beating fast in your chest and embarrassed beyond belief, you shuffle past the others towards the cave entrance. A muttered apology escapes your lips as Shinobu tries to follow after you, pausing her pursuit.
You swear you can feel their eyes burning holes into your back.
Air returns to your lungs once you round the corner and out of their sight. You can still make out some of their confused ramblings, paired closely with Shinobu’s scolding. Tears begin to prick at the corners of your eyes.
You’re mortified. Completely and utterly mortified. How could you lose your composure so easily? Granted, the added stress of the past month and the severe lack of sleep probably isn’t helping. But you’re usually so good at masking when you’re upset.
And what a silly thing to be upset about. I mean really– blowing up because your friends want to spend time with you? Sure, it would suck to watch Itto point romantic attention at other people. But you knew this day was going to come eventually. Your one-sided crush is just that; one-sided.
Wiping at your eyes with your sleeve, you trudge your way back up towards the city. Hopefully you didn’t hurt any of them. You were so afraid they’d see you cry in your state of panic, you hadn’t looked at anyone while you fled. They’re likely beating themselves up about it – a thought that makes you sick to think about.
You should really apologize to them later. You gave them absolutely zero context for why you would’ve acted that way, and it wouldn’t be fair to leave them thinking that it’s their fault you’re upset.
Well, not directly their fault anyway. How could they know you’re head over heels for your dear leader?
You need to suck it up and focus.
There will be time for apologies after the festival. Until then you can just shut yourself inside, pump out the rest of your orders, and then wait out the weekend. Maybe they’ll be more inclined to forgive your outburst once they’ve had their fill of butter crab…
Yeah, that’s it. Nobody can stay mad after butter crab.
—~~~—
Itto sits on the cave floor, hanging his head in his hands, and lets out a loud groan.
“To be fair, I did try and get you to drop it.” Shinobu offers from beside him, looking out on the calm water that pools into the space.
He raises his head to prop his chin up on his hands, heaving out a great sigh. “I just wanted to spend some time with her. It’s been weeks since we got to do something fun together, and I thought this stuff would be right up her alley! I mean – she loved the Irodori Festival.”
“We had a great time there- bean debacle aside- but that festival was about something totally different.” She raises a brow at him and leans towards him a bit, hoping he’ll understand what she’s insinuating.
“Well, duh, this is a romance festival! I thought ladies were totally into that kinda thing?”
Shinobu sighs and shakes her head. “And what reason, do you think, would someone have to want to avoid going to a romance festival?”
He pauses to think on it for a moment, silence filling the cave… It doesn’t last very long.
“Oo, I know! The broken hearted!” He grins like he’s just won the lottery. “Yeah, yeah, yeah! Y’know like people who just got dumped. They wouldn’t wanna mope around a love festival, watchin’ a bunch of couples canoodle and whatnot.” He falters as another thought crosses his mind, and his confident expression twists into confusion. “But Y/N doesn’t have a broken heart?”
Shinobu’s patience is provided by Celestia itself. She sighs again, resting a hand on his shoulder, hoping that reason will somehow pass through her and into him.
“I think she does, boss. She might not have been.. ‘dumped’, per say, but she’s definitely intentionally avoiding the festival.” She gives him a second to process the information, waiting for him to catch on. When she’s met with the same confused stare, she finally releases him and sighs, turning her attention back to the water. “I think that she has feelings for someone she’s worried doesn’t feel the same way about her. THAT’S why she doesn’t want to go to the festival.”
There’s another pregnant pause before Itto speaks again.
“Oh…"
"Oh.”
A wave of something Shinobu doesn’t recognize washes over his features. “I don’t blame her for leavin’ tonight. She’s been so stressed and sad and we were pushing her to go to something that’s only gonna make her feel worse.”
Shinobu nods, crossing her arms and resting them on her knees. “You didn’t know, boss. I’ve only suspected it myself for a little while now.” She hums thoughtfully, “But now that you do know… I think you and the guys were partly right.”
Itto whips his head over to her, giving her a disbelieving look. She almost laughs.
“I think it would be good for her to get out after shutting herself in for so long. Maybe you could take her out somewhere during the festival– take her mind off of things and lift her spirits a bit. She’s always in a good mood when it’s just the two of you.”
He looks at the water for a moment, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“You think I could help her?”
She chuckles, shaking her head. “Boss, I think you’re the only one who could help her.”
His smile grows and he lets out a pleased huff. After taking a second to mull over their conversation, he slaps his hands against his thighs and stands with a renewed vigor.
“Well, what are we sittin’ around here for? We got a lotta work to do, Shinobu! I’m gonna need to wrangle the boys back together to make this work – let’s see, Genta could probably get his hands on a red sheet, and Akira definitely knows where we could scrounge up some good grub. Bean-free, of course. Oh! And of course I’ll need to get in contact with the Traveler–”
Shinobu grins triumphantly from behind her mask as she follows Itto and his ramblings out of the cave. This is one Arataki scheme she’s more than willing to go along with.