"Mask people?" Lu Wen glanced over at Scaramouche, then at you, "What does he mean by that, Y/N?"

♢♢♢

Shocked by the question, you quickly lock eyes with Scaramouche, hoping he'd know what to do. He always had something to say in these situations. Harbingers had to be good at coming up with things on the spot. So surely he must've had something to come back with. Right..?

To your surprise, Scaramouche stayed silent.

Then it hit you; why hide it from her?

Lu Wen was your best friend, you shared everything with each other, even the negative things. Perhaps she wouldn't mind?

So you decided to just tell her. It would be easier than having to lie to her all the time. Then again, if it went badly...

"Lu Wen.." you looked over to Scaramouche, almost as if you were looking for approval. As you expected, he knew what you were trying to achieve, so he nodded in agreement. Maybe he felt the same way as you did. "I need to tell you something, and I don't think you're going to like it."

Lu Wen seemed worried. Of course she would be. If a friend comes to you starting with "I need to tell you something", it was probably nothing good.

You took a deep breath, just praying to the archons to let it end well, "Scaramouche is actually-"

Lu Wen stopped you, "Y/N." Her saying this caught your attention, making you stop. She continued, "I don't care who he is, or what he does. As long as he loves you endlessly and makes you happy, I'll support you, no matter what."

You didn't know what to say. Even Scaramouche looked visibly surprised. You were sure she knew who he was based on context, but she still didn't care, as long as you were happy.

"Lu Wen.." you started to tear up as you embraced her in yet another hug. It was such a comforting feeling, knowing that you had a best friend who supported you no matter what you chose to do.

Of course, you were almost positive that Lu Wen still had her doubts. She might've been worried that he'd turn on you eventually, but she didn't let it show. Probably to spare your feelings.

Lu Wen quickly changed the tone to a more happy one. She got up from her chair to go over to Tobi. "Now Tobi, what do we say to the man?"

Tobi glared at Scaramouche once more until he rolled his eyes and gave in, "I'm sorry for calling you a bad guy.."

"Good job, Tobi." She smiled, looking over at you.

The young kid continued to glare at him as you walked up to your little brother. You leaned down to match his height, "Hey, I have an idea! How about we take you somewhere! I'll get to spend time with you, and you'll get to see that Scaramouche here isn't so bad. What do you say?"

He rolled his eyes. Though he looked annoyed, it was obvious he really wanted to go, "Fine.."

You stood up, turning to your friend, "Well then, we'll be off! See you in a bit!"

Lu Wen just smiled and waved as the three of you left. You were really grateful to have a friend like her.

♢♢♢

Walking down the streets of Liyue, the smell of the delicious food filled your noses. Tobi, who was currently holding your hand, tried to pull you towards a particular stall.

"I want this one!!" Tobi smiled happily, as if he'd never seen street food before.

You started digging through your stuff when a hand touched yours. You glanced up to see Scaramouche holding a bag of mora.

"Oh, you don't have to-" you started.

Scaramouche interrupted you, "Let me pay."

He said it in such a demanding tone almost, it made you shiver a bit, but it was cute at the same time. He was trying so hard to make a good impression on your brother.

Not to mention, he was a Fatui harbinger. They were all probably filthy rich. You never really thought about that before. Mora was never something you looked for in a person. But hey... if they happened to make tons of bank, then that's always a plus.

Eventually you gave in, and Scaramouche handed the mora to the woman at the stall. She quickly handed him the snack, as if she was terrified of not being quick enough.

Scaramouche leaned over, holding the snack out for Tobi.

Tobi just looked at him. He carefully took it from his hand and immediately hid behind you. To this, Scaramouche sighed. You gave him a pat on the back as you chuckled, "At least he took it from you! That's a start."

Tobi began to munch on the snack he'd just been handed. His eyes lit up as he smiled happily in approval. Being able to see your brother smile again filled you with an overwhelming sense of home.

To you, home was wherever Tobi was. Though you weren't able to see him all that much due to your job, you loved him so much. You had promised yourself that when you avenged your mom, you'd settle down somewhere. Somewhere quiet, away from all the evil in the world, just you and Tobi, just like your mom wanted.

As the time flew by, you noticed how late it was getting. You looked to Scaramouche, "I'm going to go get us some dinner, watch Tobi for me okay?" Your smile turned into a glare, "If anything happens to him, I'll kill you."

To his surprise, Scaramouche felt a shiver down his spine. He actually found your threat quite amusing, he'd never really been treated that way before.

The two sat on the edge of a wall that overlooked the beautiful harbor. Scaramouche never had the time to just sit and admire how beautiful this nation was. It was way different than both Snezhnaya and Inazuma, it was refreshing to him.

He had been caught up in the fascinating scenery that he almost forgot about the kid. Then, Tobi tugged on Scaramouche's sleeve, causing him to turn to face him.

He looked away, maybe out of fear, "Do you.. love Y/N?"

"Huh..?" Scaramouche was taken aback.

"How much do you love them?" Tobi asked again.

He was shocked that such a young kid would ask questions like that. Guess he was really mature for his age.

Scaramouche looked to the horizon once more and cracked a smile. Tobi had never seen his true smile before.

"I love your sibling very much. They're like.. the light in my life that I didn't know I needed. They've taught me things I never even considered," Scaramouche glanced over at Tobi, staring into his small brown eyes, "Y/N is such a kind and loving person, so much so that they actually tolerate me. You should be really proud of them."

Tobi just looked at him, almost as if he wasn't expecting such soft words to come out of Scaramouche's mouth. He looked away, flustered, "Y-You better be nice to them!"

Scaramouche chuckled, "Don't worry bud, I'll take care of them, I promise."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tobi crack a smile.

Of course, you were standing behind them, listening to all of this go down. You returned earlier, but you didn't want to interrupt the moment. What Scaramouche said about you almost brought you to tears.

Plus, you were shocked at how surprisingly well Scaramouche is with kids. You'd never expect it.

You returned to them with the food in hand, "I'm back! Who's ready to eat?" You gave Tobi and Scaramouche their shares.

"Me! Me!" Tobi happily started to dig in.

Scaramouche took a deep breath, closing his eyes.

"Something wrong?" You asked.

All he did was smile, "It's nothing. I'm just happy, that's all."

💀