You sighed and stared at the sight from the corner of the ballroom. Originally, you had agreed to join your friend, Kaeya, to come to the dull Mondstadt Ball held by the royal Gunnhildr family every year. While slightly expected, it was a little shocking to see Kaeya drink himself silly after an hour into the ball. At least the two of you had gotten a few snickers out of attending. You had laughed over how some people seemed uncomfortable with their suits, a noblewoman accidentally pouring chocolate onto her dress, and a little boy who nearly fainted from the taste of the exotic Jueyun chillies.

You shift a little uncomfortably on your feet, praying that Kaeya would notice you soon and stop his drinking session with a few of the nobles. Instead, he continued to pour wine and laugh along with them. You sigh again and lift up your long dress, ready to ditch him to get back to your cosy little house. If he gets a terrible hangover the next day, it was all on him.

Just as you were about to leave, another person who was making their way over to the exit caught your eye. He was wearing a light beige suit with a brown jewel embedded into a necklace. His hair was a light, ashy blonde and was tied in a ponytail. He noticed your presence and the two of you locked eyes, holding gazes for the next few moments.

"Ah, am I blocking the way?" The man asked, his teal eyes seemed to shine brighter from the reflection by the chandelier hanging from the middle of the ceiling.

"No, not at all," you quickly replied. "You leaving too?"

"Not exactly," the man said. "I'm not allowed to leave the ball till the Gunnhildrs announce the end to it. So I plan to take a short stroll. Personally, I don't really enjoy partaking in these kinds of events."

"Same here." You sigh, as your gaze slowly shifts to the ground. "I had to come here since a friend of mine's a noble himself, even if he's adopted. He wanted someone familiar to join him since he doesn't like these kinds of events much. Now he's off drinking with five other people without me."

"That's rather rude if you ask me," the man said.

"Eh." You shrug your shoulders. "He likes drinking at this time. Kinda expected if you ask me."

"But still," the man continued. "As you are his guest, he should be making sure that you're fine, no? Even if he wanted to go off to drink, he should have told you about drinking with strangers, and asked if you were fine, before going off."

"Well, some of them are his sort-of-friends. They go hunting together, and do hang out kind of fine I guess. I'm the only exception since I just work at a bakery all day," you laugh to yourself. "I'm still not sure how we even became friends. One day many years ago he just showed up saying that he was lost and wanted some bread, so I gave him one while we waited for his folks to pick him up. Didn't know he was a noble till the carriage arrived, and the people who came out of it had a bunch of jewelry and stuff. After that he would swing by to talk, and we would even try to fish together. He always gets lesser fish than me."

The man chuckles quietly, the noise sounding light in your ears. "Sounds rather interesting, the story to your friendship."

"Yeah, it really is. Usually these things happen in books, guess I got lucky then," you laughed again. "He is a good man though, he just needs to reel back on the alcohol a bit."

"Perhaps he does," the man said.

The two of you stayed silent after that, not sure of how to continue the conversation. As sudden as a bird diving into a lake to snatch its prey, the man jumped a little bit out of his trance.

"Well," he started. "Mind accompanying me then? Usually I'd just walk around the gardens until I get the message that the ball is about to end soon. It can be quite boring, however."

"Sure, why not?" You replied. "I don't have much else to do anyways. I probably should stay back, just to make sure my friend's fine before I see him passed out with his face in a plant pot or something."

The man laughs and opened the door.

"Well, shall we?"

__________

The two of you have made your way to the palace gardens, and you couldn't believe the sight you are seeing. The number of dandelion plants glowing softly under the moonlight was slightly overwhelming. You could make out Cecilias that surrounded the edges of the garden, but apart from that, everything else seems foreign.

"Some of the plants here are from Liyue," the man spoke suddenly, causing you to jump a little. "The Gunnhildrs like to appreciate the beauty of the flowers from other nations too."

"You seem to know a lot about them," you noted, as he walks towards a flower bed that houses pale blue flowers, kneeling down to gently grab one and observe its petals.

"I happen to have a few of them back in my own manor," he replied. "I enjoy coming here to see if there's any differences between their plants and my own. Sometimes I even ask how the gardeners care for them, to see if I can somehow improve the conditions of my own flowers."

"That's rather nice of you to do that for them," you said.

"Yes, but the niceties stop when I pluck some of the best ones out and attempt to dissect them."

You stare at the man with shock in your eyes. He didn't seem to notice the silence until a couple minutes later.

"Is it true?"

"Yes. I actually do this to try and understand these flowers better. Legends say that they once hold the powers of the elements, so I dissect them to see if the theory is true. I actually managed to procure results after a few months, through observing and dissecting dandelions. In some of these plants, you would be able to feel some kind of power. It's hard to explain... imagine that you're floating in the air. Whatever feeling you think is associated with the action, the power the dandelions have I mentioned gives it to you when you touch them. When I dissected them, I managed to see a few teal particles before they disappear. While the colour looks closely similar to that of the dandelions themselves, these were glowing slightly and looked as if they had shrunk. I concluded that they were the source of the mysterious power the dandelions hold, as the floating feeling they give disappear when I try to hold on to the dissected plants."

You stare at the man, shocked that he managed to say all of that without taking more than a few breaths.

"W-Well," you said, overwhelmed by the information he had just given you. "What made you think this is all true?"

"In the legends of the gods that protect these lands, the God that looks after Mondstadt is known as the God of the Wind. I presume that the dandelions used to be infused with such power. Since dandelions aren't seen in anywhere but Mondstadt, it's safe to assume that they do hold the power of the God," he replied.

"Huh... well, good for you I guess. You managed to get results from these plants."

"I understand it sounds rather skeptical. Perhaps I should demonstrate-"

"No! No, we don't need to be driven out of here because we crushed some of the royals' plants," you hurriedly declined.

The man stared back at the flower and sighs. He stands up and turns to face you.

"Sorry for subjecting you to my research talk. I found that a number of people don't understand what I'm saying, and even think that I'm insane for doing this to these flowers whenever I tell them about it. The talk of this just interests me so much, it can be hard to restrain myself from not telling someone about it. Even if it's a person I had never met before tonight."

The man bows down a little before you. With the clear light of the moon, you could faintly make out the light blush on his cheeks.

"It's fine," you said. "It's actually kinda interesting. Just that it's a lot to take in at once, you know?"

"Right," he said. "Yes, it does make for a rather weird conversation starter."

"Yeah," you laughed. "You're just passionate about doing the things you like, there's nothing to be sorry over."

"Thank you," the man replied, standing upright once more and smiled at you.

"It occurs to me," he said. "That I haven't properly introduced myself to you yet. Even after I told you about my hobby, this is quite embarrassing."

"It's fine, it's fine," you said. "I should have said mine too after I ranted a little about my friend, so we're both even here."

"Well, my name is Albedo. It's nice to meet you," the man said. He moves closer to you and grabs your hand gently, before bowing down and bringing it to his forehead. After that, he gave it a light peck and stands up, gently letting go of your hand.

"M-My name's (Y/N)," you said, praying your cheeks didn't look as red as they feel. "Nice to meet you too, Albedo."

He smiles in response, and you quickly begin to feel more comfortable again.

"Sorry about that," he said. "It was taught to me from a young age to respond to potential intimacy from others in this manner."

Intimacy?

You could see his smile was growing into more of a sly grin, his body was shaking ever so slightly, most likely to stop his laughter from your expression which was definitely red.

"Hey! You think we commoners ever get to experience stuff like this?" You quickly retort. He smiles back.

"Not at all, it was fun to see your expression though."

You pout a little more at him before you laughed slightly.

"Yeah... I guess it was kinda funny." You sigh and walked over to the balcony, staring at the tiny lights from the village, most likely from lanterns that were lit to celebrate the ball in their own way.

"Why'd you say that by the way? The intimacy thing," you asked him. You could hear Albedo shifting around slightly behind you. You were wondering if he finally wasn't able to form a proper response.

"I don't know," he finally said. "You just caught my eye. This conversation is rather pleasant too."

"I can say the same thing," you replied. "It's been real nice talking with you, Albedo."

It was true. Even though the two of you had barely met an hour prior, you felt as if you were drawn into his presence. Something about him interests you. Was it his manners, or the way he talks about his hobby, or just how he seemed to open up to you, you aren't sure.

"Since we're supposed to attend a ball," he said. "Mind if I ask for this dance?"

You turn around to see his hand opened out towards you, a gentle smile on his face. His eyes were filled with curiosity and expectance, but also a sense of anxiousness.

"Sure thing," you replied, taking his hand.

After that, he held you close to him, his other hand holding onto your waist securely. He began to step backwards and you quickly followed him, attempting to mirror his moves so as to not trip or step on his feet by accident.

It is nice, you decided. The two of you are moving in small circles, twirling around together. The way he held onto you made you feel safe, as if this whole thing is natural. Being in his arms just felt right.

"Mind if I sing a little tune?" Albedo asked. "I think some music would be appropriate here."

"Sure thing," you replied. You didn't mind whatever he was about to do. You feel as if he would simply be able to make the moment even better than it already was.

"Alright," Albedo said, clearing his throat.

"I see the crystal raindrops fall

And the beauty of it all

Is when the sun comes shining through."

Your eyes widen slightly. You didn't think he would sound this good singing. Perhaps noblemen do have more tricks up their sleeves other than buying fancy clothing and such.

"To make those rainbows in my mind

When I think of you sometime

And I wanna spend some time with you

Just the two of us

We can make it if we try

Just the two of us

Just the two of us..."

You smile as Albedo's cheeks flush after finishing his little song.

"That was real nice, Albedo," you said, causing him to smile.

"It just kind of came to my mind just now... glad you liked it, (Y/N)."

The two of you continue to dance, enjoying the other's embrace for a few more moments. Sadly, before you could voice out how you loved this moment to him, the palace's bell tolled three times.

A frown forms on Albedo's face. "Their signalling for everyone to go back to the ballroom, they're about to end the night."

"Oh... okay," you whispered. You pouted back at the noble. "I'm kinda sad that it ended so fast..."

"Same here," Albedo replied with no hesitation. Your eyes widen at his response, and your pout melted away into a smile.

The two of you pried yourselves away from each other and began making your way slowly to the ballroom.

"By the way," Albedo asked. "You work in a bakery, right? What is it called?"

"Oh, it's 'Cecilia Bakery'. Pretty boring, but the owner loves those flowers," you replied.

Albedo hummed in response, and the rest of the way back was in silence.

As he opened the door to the ballroom, you thanked him and walked through. The older of the Gunnhildr sisters, Jean, is standing in the middle of the room looking at all of the guests.

"I thank you all for being able to join us today," she started, her voice sounding strong in the large ballroom. "I'll keep it brief since I know some of you must be tired. I hope you had enjoyed yourselves. May the God of the Wind bless you in your days to come!"

The crowd cheered. Some of the guests stay back to thank Jean for organising the ball once more, while others are patting each other on the back, making their way over to the exit.

You turn to your right to say your goodbyes to Albedo, but the man had suddenly disappeared. You look around and see him talking with a woman who has blonde hair similar to his. You assume she was his mother and walked further into the ballroom, trying to find your friend.

You spied a certain blue-haired man sitting at the buffet table with his head lying in a plate. You make you way towards him and tap him on the shoulder.

"Hey!" You said. "You good, Kaeya?"

"Yup, yup," he laughed, lifting his head up to meet your gaze. "I do feel a little light-headed, but I can assure you I'm fine!"

"Yeah you're definitely drunk... I'm gonna find your brother to pick you up."

You could hear him whining saying that he didn't wish to see his 'dull face on a night that was made to be fun' and found Diluc engaged in a little conversation with Jean. The redhead noticed you and nodded to Jean, who nodded back. He made his way over to you and waved.

"Kaeya?" Diluc asked, his voice sounding bored.

"Yup," you replied.

"All right," Diluc sighed, and made his way over to his adopted brother. The blue haired man protested, but he couldn't move around much because of how heavy his muscles felt, and decided that it was fine for Diluc to pull him back to his carriage to go back to their home.

You waved to the two brothers, who both gave you a wave in return, and spun around looking for a certain teal-eyed man.

Sadly, you see that Albedo had disappeared and you sighed.

Nobles don't really like mixing much with commoners anyway.

Kaeya and Diluc are the only exceptions. Since Kaeya always invited you over to his manor to play when you were kids, you had grown acquainted with his older brother as well. The two never thought of you as lesser and treated you like an equal.

Perhaps Albedo wasn't like them, seeing as he never even said a single goodbye.

__________

It is another busy afternoon. You had just finished giving a customer four loaves of bread and rushed over to assist another with deciding on what pastries she should buy back for her family.

It was hard to imagine that you had been to the royal ball the night before, and even danced with one of the nobles.

You sighed for what could have been the twentieth time that day as your mind wandered to Albedo, wondering if he would even remember you.

"Hey, (Y/N), you good?" One of your coworkers, Amber, asked you. "You look kinda down, want me to cover your shift?"

"No, I can't ask you to do that! It's really busy too," you quickly said, shooting down her idea fast.

"Well, the busy period's ending soon!" Amber said. She always had a better sense of time than you did. "I don't mind at all! You got back late last night as well, didn't you? You should probably rest!"

"I can't make you do that, it's not fair to you at all. I don't mind staying here, honest," you argued. Amber shrugged and smiled, moving over to help another customer.

Twenty minutes later and the crowd dissipated until there were just three people left in the shop. You felt happy at this, it means that your shift is ending soon so you could go back home for a nice nap.

Just as you were wondering about what to buy from the bakery for a quick lunch, the door to the bakery opened and your eyes widened at the new customer.

Dressed in more casual clothing, a white shirt with long black and purple pants, Albedo enters the bakery with a bouquet of Cecilias in his hand. He looks around the bakery for a bit until he spots you.

"(Y/N)," he said, a smile forming on his face. He makes his way over to you as you could only stare at him in shock.

"Albedo? What are you doing here?" You asked, finally getting out of the shock of him being in your workplace.

"Well, as an apology for ending our night so abruptly, here you go," he said. He holds out the bouquet to you and you took it, relishing in the smell of fresh Cecilias.

"How did you know I like these?" You asked him.

"You spent a longer time looking at them than any other flowers, even the ones from Liyue," he responded. "I thought these would be the perfect gift."

"That's nice and all," you started, lifting your gaze from the bouquet. "But, why else are you here?"

Albedo's face grows slightly red and he takes in a deep breath.

"It came to my attention that I enjoyed the time we shared together last night. I wish that we would be able to spend more time together, so I asked my mother if it would be okay for me to court a woman of your status. She was more than delighted since this is the first time I'm ever interested in a girl. She doesn't mind that you're a commoner yourself, since her own parents used to be ones. So..." he trailed off, his cheeks growing even redder.

"Do you wish to spend some time with me as well?"

You stare at him in shock, then smile brightly at him.

"Of course, Albedo."

He sighs in relief and smiles back. He reaches out for your hand and pulls you into a hug.

"I hope that this is fine..."

"No worries, it is. You did ask if you could court me, or whatever..."

"So you're okay with me doing these kinds of actions in the future?"

"Kinda late for you to ask that with the hand-kissing thing from last night," you laughed.

"So," you spoke. He turns to look you into your eyes. "Are we like... a thing now?"

"Mmm," Albedo said. He moves his face closer to press a soft kiss onto your cheek.

"We're whatever you wish us to be, as long as it's just the two of us."

(And that's all for this one-shot. It's my first work I've written for Genshin so I'm kinda nervous lol. Even more so that it's my first X Reader with one of my favourites, Albedo.

By the way, this one-shot's inspired by Albedo's English voice actor, Khoi Dao, singing a short cover of 'Just the Two of Us'. It got stuck in my head for so long I decided to write this lol.

Also, I'm not used to writing in present tense. So if you spot any grammar mistakes, do tell me and I'll edit them when I find the time!

I hope you enjoyed this one-shot, and have a great day/night!)