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[ She looks on with affection and gratitude as Diluc guides Thoma back to his seat, although he will most certainly have to fight her for the distinction of being the one to eat the slice she had squished earlier.

With one more smile at Thoma as he sits back down at the table, she stands up from her own seat and moves around the table to retrieve clean plates and utensils with which to serve the cake - and all the while, she can't seem to stop simply staring at the view before her, of two people for whom she cares so deeply. She hopes she can remember this scene for a long time to come.

It also occurs to her then, as she's stacking plates, that she has no idea how this is all supposed to work? She hasn't had much experiencing being in a relationship with someone, let alone two someones. Her blessing is that she trusts Thoma to be patient with her (and Diluc, she suspects) as they navigate all of this.

In any case, she returns to the table dutifully to continue slicing the cake while Diluc works on tea - and of course, she will set the wonky slice in front of her place at the table, while Diluc and Thoma will have perfectly sliced pieces set in front of theirs. All the while, she glances up at Thoma and asks, ]

How do you normally celebrate your birthday?

[Don't think that Diluc doesn't notice where you put the smashed slice of cake, Ori. But he lets it go. A slice of cake is hardly worth picking a fight over, even a well-meaning one, and if it makes her feel better to take that one far be it from him to stop her. Honestly, in her position he'd have done the same.

Besides, Diluc has tea to put on. It should feel strange, helping himself to someone else's place like this, but for some reason with Thoma is simply doesn't. Yet another sign that this sort of falling in with them was meant to be, perhaps.

He contents himself with listening as Thoma and Ori chat, as he has so often before. At least now, he doesn't feel quite so conflicted about the fondness he feels as he does so.]

[ It is a bit strange for him to be the one on the receiving end of being cared for, but he finds he doesn’t dislike it. There’s something almost comforting, new and yet strangely familiar, about watching Ori and Diluc move about his living space as easily as if it were their own. It’s a testament, he thinks, to how closely intertwined they’ve all become in each other’s lives.

He’s so caught up in dreamily watching them that he almost doesn’t realize he’s been asked a question at first. ]

Oh, me? Um, usually I’d spend time with Lord Ayato and Lady Ayaka and do something a little like this.

This is probably my favorite birthday dinner in recent memory, though.

[ Ori cannot help but giggle at Thoma's response, warmth finding its way onto her lilac cheeks once more. Naturally, she can imagine why exactly it is that Thoma's dubbed this his favorite birthday dinner, but the playfulness with which he says it lifts her spirits, as he always does so easily. She has always admired that about him. ]

I hope Lord Ayato and Lady Ayaka don't mind that we've taken the title from them, then.

[ She wonders if she'll ever get to meet them. Or maybe see them in a more pleasant sort of dreamscape. Not for the first time, Ori wishes that she could see more of the world that Thoma and Diluc are from, but she'll always be happy to hear them both talk about Teyvat instead. ]

Do you think they'd enjoy apple cider from Mondstadt's Dawn Winery and strawberry-chamomile cake, too?

[Thoma's assertion gets a chuckle out of Diluc.]

Well, it's not every birthday that you end up with a girlfriend and a boyfriend all at once. Your lord and lady can't be expected to compete with that.

[There's playfulness in his voice as he says it--as much playfulness as Diluc is able to express, anyway--but it's an accurate statement all the same.

Really, it's trying to compare apples and oranges. Thoma's relationship with the Kamisato siblings is no less dedicated, but it's very different from the one they're establishing here tonight. Diluc knows this both from conversations the two have had and from his own comparative relationships with Adelinde and Elzer.

Now that he's added his two Mora to the conversation, he returns to the business of their tea. He finishes steeping the pot and pours Ori and Thoma's cups, carrying them to the table and setting them down before returning to the counter to pour his own.]

Edited (I can't use the same icon twice! It's unseemly!) 2022-01-27 23:14 (UTC)

They probably would. I’ve told them both about Mondstadt a lot. Plus, I can’t imagine anyone disliking your cooking, Ori. You might put me out of a job!

[ He’s joking, of course. Though he has no doubt that his lord and lady would be happy for him, and would welcome his new partners just as warmly as they welcomed him.

Oh… he wasn’t prepared for how happy it would make him to hear Diluc refer to them as his boyfriend and girlfriend so easily, so casually, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. His expression lights right up - literally and figuratively, as beams of warm sunlight pour from his skin. ]

[ Despite the clarity of Thoma's joking tone, she shakes her head rather vigorously at his claim. ]

I could never...!

[ For a myriad of reasons, but most of all the fact that she holds Thoma in such high regards. All is forgotten the moment that he starts to glow happily, though, and Ori can't help but let out a quiet little sigh both at the sight of him and, much in the same vein, the sound of boyfriend and girlfriend slipping out of Diluc as easily as it does. Not for the first time this evening, she finds herself just looking at the both of them, her amber eyes wide with wonder and affection pouring out of her.

This really does feel like a dream, the fact aside that they are quite literally in a realm made of dreams.

Ori can feel her feelings bubbling up within her, the delight of no longer have to try and suppress or forget them having stoked flames anew with the light of Thoma's happiness as rings of flowers materialize out of dreamotion on both Thoma and Diluc's heads. ]

Oh! Oops. Sorry...

[ She chuckles fondly, though, betraying any notion of actually being sorry. She's not that sorry. ]

[Diluc's crown of flowers hits his head just as he's retaking a seat at the table with his tea, and the sudden weight of it on his head makes him flinch slightly out of sheer instinct. It's not until he reaches up to feel for it--and sees the flowers on Thoma's head--that he puts together what's just happened. Ori's laughter serves as a final confirmation. The sound is as lovely as she is.]

I call tell how terrible you feel about it.

[He removes the crown of flowers from his head and drops it onto Ori's.]

They suit you better.

[One look at his face (or even just listening to the tone of his voice) suggests that this is a form of flirting with her.]

They suit both of you, honestly.

[He hasn't forgotten about you, Thoma.]

[ Much like Diluc, Thoma flinches a little at the sudden weight settling on his head, but he realizes what it is a moment later when he sees one plop onto Diluc’s head as well. Ori can only laugh and Thoma joins suit. It really is starting to feel like the middle of the day inside the house with how brightly his happiness is making him shine. ]

Hey, come on now. It was a good look for you, too Diluc. Right Ori?

[ She's all smiles until Diluc drops the crown of flowers onto her own head. Ori regularly wears flowers in her hair as a gesture of self-comfort; it soothes her to keep a piece of nature with her wherever she goes. She doesn't do it for attention- but Diluc saying that it suits her bids her to feel a bit bashful about it as she chuckles shyly and tucks some of her hair behind her own ear, entirely unused to any flirting, really, but especially the peculiar way in which Diluc delivers his.

She's eager to contribute and add onto Thoma's comment, though, if anything just to deflect the attention, so she blurts out: ]

Yes! I think you both look really handsome with the flowers on...

[ and then she bites down on her lip. Spirits, it feels so embarrassing to say out loud the things she's thought about them for some time now. Is it ever going to not feel embarrassing? ]

[Diluc crosses his arms and leans back in his hair a bit as they both insist that he looks nice with a crown of flowers, actually. He doesn't laugh openly, but there's a hint of one in his voice when he speaks.]

If I didn't know better, I'd say you two are ganging up on me.

[Because they are, albeit lovingly. He has a feeling he's going to have to get used to it, but that won't stop him from pushing back on it with equal fondness for them.

He notices, but doesn't call attention to, the way Ori seems embarrassed by her own observation. Seems he's not the only person with some adjustments to make now that they're in a relationship like this.]

[ Thoma grins, offering a bright and breezy: ]

We are.

[ He also notices the way Ori seems to second guess herself every time she gives voice to her feelings, but for now, he simply logs that observation away for later. They're all a bit overwhelmed by the situation in their own ways, and he won't add to that by digging into Ori's insecurities. ]

Diluc can't be the only one left without a flower crown now. That's unfair.

[ Who would Ori be to deny the birthday boy what he wants? The endeavor is a good distraction from how flustered she feels, too, and so she clasps her hands together and closes her eyes with a small smile as she conjures another flower crown for Diluc's head. This time, however, the one which appears on his head is a little less bright and colorful, and a little more subdued but in a way that Ori feels is more elegant and refined. Maybe he'll feel less awkward about wearing one if it's more in line with his usual attire... ]

I wouldn't want to be unfair to anyone, but especially not to either of you.

[ There, that feels a little less weird to say, somehow. It speaks less of her attraction she feels towards them and more of the values she has as a person, in general.

In any case, with slices of cake and cups of tea set out in front of them now, Ori gestures for them both to dig in. She worked really hard on this strawberry chamomile cake and, judging by the way she just watches them with her eyes full of curiosity, she's eager to hear what they think of it! ]

[This time, Diluc doesn't flinch when the flowers hit his head. He accepts his fate with a soft, fond hm instead. He can't them fussing over being unfair, after all. And the way they're each looking at him makes the hint of silliness he feels about wearing a crown of flowers more than worth it.

At Ori's urging, Diluc takes a bite of the cake. It's every bit as delicious as he expects it to be.]

This is very good, Ori.

[Ultimately, it's Thoma's opinion that matters more. It's his birthday cake, after all.]

[ Maybe in the morning, it will sink in just how lucky it is that this worked out as well as it did, that he now has two affectionate and unfairly attractive partners to call his own, but for now he’s happy to bask in their presence, all smiles and warmth.

He, too, digs into the cake when prompted, and he beams across the table at Ori. ]

It’s wonderful!

[ She really might put him out of a job if it came down to it.

But with that, they’re all free to enjoy their dessert, and each other, until the night winds down and Diluc and Ori take their leave.

Thoma definitely gets his kisses before they go, though. ]

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