Would I even say something like that?
Listening to Kiana's answer, Miko realized she didn't quite seem to be talking about herself.
Then again, Miko hadn't confirmed that for certain.
So she opened her mouth and said, with exaggerated admiration: "As expected of Kiana-sis — the things you say are just so impressive!"
She kept her eyes on Kiana as she said it, watching to see what kind of reaction she'd get.
"Was I wrong?" Kiana replied to Miko's flattery as though it were the most natural thing in the world — as though what she'd just said was perfectly reasonable and required no further commentary.
That said, whatever she let show on her face, Kiana couldn't help quietly looking down on Miko a little inside. After all, those were Miko's own words to begin with.
This Miko...
She actually doesn't dare admit she was the one who said it...
"Of course you weren't wrong. I just didn't expect Kiana-sis to come out and say something like that," Miko said, nodding vigorously with an expression of full and wholehearted agreement.
I didn't expect Kiana to be so... uninhibited...
Quietly exhaling a small breath of relief, Miko had the feeling that Kiana was going to become someone she could really confide in.
After all, the two of them were far too similar. The things they said — practically identical.
I was only repeating what you said in the first place...
That thought turning silently in her mind, Kiana kept walking as she said: "Of course I can say things like that in front of you."
She'd very much wanted to point out that she was simply quoting Miko back at her — but in the end, she held back.
There was no other way. She still needed to preserve a little of Miko's privacy.
And more importantly, she absolutely could not let Miko get the impression that Kaito told everyone everything. That simply wouldn't do.
Even if, on the surface, both she and Miko were Kaito's girlfriends — that didn't mean everything was fair game to share.
"Oh. I see."
Hearing that answer, Miko understood that her earlier question had been answered. A sly, crooked little smile spread across her face.
"So then..." She'd barely gotten one word out before she stopped herself — adopting a look of deep contemplation that immediately made Kiana suspect she was about to ask something strange again.
No idea what this Miko is about to come out with this time...
Kiana glanced over at her, the thought surfacing unbidden.
— And it was right at that moment that, back in Liyue, Kaito finally woke up.
Two consecutive days of intense... activity. And sitting up now, Kaito found he couldn't quite escape a bone-deep sense of fatigue.
How am I already getting lower back pain after just two days...
He pushed himself upright on the bed, shifted his body, and immediately felt every muscle complain.
"Is Miko really that impressive?" Sitting there on the edge of the bed, he muttered to himself.
He'd only just woken up on this end, but he could see exactly what Miko was up to right now — crystal clear, through Kiana's perspective. She showed absolutely no sign of what had happened the night before. Bright-eyed, rosy-cheeked, perfectly energetic.
Hah...
Well. Fair enough...
It's not like I haven't experienced it firsthand...
He let out a quiet sigh and climbed out of bed, heading for the door.
Back in Mondstadt, he'd already lived through having one body completely wrung out while the other felt nothing at all. At the time, he'd chalked it up to his original body being too weak — but now, it was starting to seem like that wasn't quite the whole picture.
Creak —
The door swung open, and Kaito stepped outside.
The dull ache in his back had made him decide to go grab something to eat first.
One way or another, he needed to properly replenish himself today — after all, there were still a few more of him waiting their turn.
Wait, no.
One is enough...
It all feeds back to the same place anyway...
Heading toward the entrance, Kaito realized he'd thought about it the wrong way around. Not that it mattered much — they were all him in the end, and however things went later would sort itself out.
"You're awake, Kaito."
Just as he was almost at the door, Lumine's voice came from behind him.
"Oh, Lumine — when did you get back? And where's Wendy?"
He turned around to find her walking toward him, and asked.
Not that he didn't already know the answers — but by any normal standard, he was supposed to ask.
"I came back this morning. As for Wendy — she took Miko back to Inazuma. Something about reporting in, I think." Lumine had anticipated the questions perfectly.
Of course, that wasn't the main point right now.
"I see. Got it." Kaito nodded, then continued: "Have you eaten breakfast yet, Lumine? If not, let's go together."
It was nearly noon by now, so he figured she'd probably already eaten — but he asked anyway.
"I have, actually." She paused after that, then added: "I did make a small pot of congee, though. Do you want some?"
She'd originally thought to go out and buy Kaito some breakfast — but then she'd reconsidered. Food left sitting would go cold, and besides, whatever was out there felt too plain and simple. So she'd gone and picked up a few ingredients herself and made the congee from scratch.
Whatever else could be said — something hot, fresh, and made by hand would always taste better than something bought and left to cool.
"You actually made congee? Then I absolutely have to try it — let me just go wash up first."
He'd been planning to head out and get something to eat before washing up, but now that Lumine had already cooked, he could go straight to washing up instead.
That said — having someone cook something for him was a feeling Kaito hadn't experienced in a long, long time. Feeling it again now, he found himself unexpectedly happy.
"I'll go dish it up for you, then." Seeing how genuinely pleased he looked, Lumine felt, from the bottom of her heart, that the decision she'd made this morning had been absolutely the right one.
Cleaning up that kitchen — which hadn't been touched in who knows how long — had taken a bit of effort. But all of it had been worth it.
"Sorry for the trouble," Kaito's voice called back from a distance, slightly muffled by how far he'd already wandered.
Not that it mattered — she needed to hurry and get his bowl ready before it got cold.
Lumine turned and headed toward the kitchen.
— A little while later.
"Can I have another bowl?"
Having finished the first bowl, Kaito found it wasn't nearly enough. He wanted more.
Lumine's cooking was genuinely quite good — and he was only realizing it now. Though even if he'd known sooner, it wasn't like he could have just asked her to cook for him all the time.
And even now, he wouldn't make a habit of having Lumine handle all the cooking. With so many people in the picture, that kind of responsibility couldn't all fall on one person.
As for his own culinary abilities — Kaito had precisely zero confidence in them. If Kiana or Acheron ever produced some kind of culinary catastrophe, he shuddered to think what Lumine's face would look like.
"Of course — let me get you another bowl." Lumine nodded and promptly went to refill it.
Honestly, she hadn't expected Kaito to enjoy her congee this much. Her mood, already good, lifted another notch.
She'd been a little worried he might not like it — but clearly, that had been completely unnecessary.
[Image: Lumine smiling softly, bowl in hand.]
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