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You had left Dottore's office, slightly unsure of what to do next but unable to hide the smile on your face.
That was until loud knocking was heard on the lab door. You took a few steps forward but stopped when you heard Prime's office door open, you turned to face the man confusion painted on both of your faces.
The knocking stopped for a moment, then it turned to frantic slams.
The Doctor practically ran towards the door quickly undoing the locks before swinging the door wide open.
Capitano stood on the other side panting heavily with Ocean stood behind him staring intensly up the stairs.
"I'm getting too old for this shit," Capitano muttered, placing a hand on Dottore's shoulder, "Scaramouche is coming and you two are his targets."
"Get in here," Dottore ordered.
Capitano and Ocean both walked into the lab and Dottore tightly locked the door behind them.
You were still stood in the same place, even more confused than you were before.
"I want every detail and I want it now," Dottore spoke quietly but his anger couldn't be hidden as he pointed a finger at The Captain's chest.
"As soon as he woke up Pantalone begun teasing him, 'taken out by just one hit, how pathetic' and 'even your dear assistant wouldn't help you after that embarrassing show' and other comments along those lines. Scaramouche snapped as soon as he mentioned Y/n and grabbed his collar and pinned him against the wall, he began threatening him and told him if he didn't answer one question he would kill him on the spot,"
"What question?"
"Where are they now?" Capitano stated.
Dottore ran a hand through his hair, tugging slightly towards the back of his head.
"We slipped out after he said that, so we aren't sure of where he is now or what he plans to do. We thought it was best to come and warn you immediately." Ocean added.
"You did the right thing, thank you both," Dottore said turning to face you.
He walked towards you and grabbed you by the arm, pulling you effortlessly into his office, closing the door behind himself.
When he had done so he let go of your arm and leant his head against the wall, sighing as he did.
He took a moment to breathe before walking over to the bookshelf behind his desk.
You looked at him with astonishment in your eyes, "You think now is a good time to be reading Dottore?"
"My dear assistant," He said pulling a book out of its place on the shelf, smirking as hidden gears began to turn and the bookshelf retracted into the wall, revealing a lounge area equipped with wine, food and a fire, "Never question me,"
Dottore extended his hand out to you and you took it without hesitation. He led you to a couch which you sat down on and immediately sank into the cushions.
"So, what? Do you propose we stay here until he just loses interest and leaves?" You were trying to rationalise why he would bring you into this room in the first place, you weren't amazingly strong, but you knew how to calm Scaramouche down, so you knew you could help if he was actually trying to hurt you and Dottore.
"I propose you stay here until I'm finished with him," He took your hand in his and held it up to his lips, he placed a small kiss on your knuckles before placing it softly on the couch, "It won't take long, I promise."
He turned away from you heading toward the entrance but you stood up and caught his wrist, "I am not sitting in here while you fight Scaramouche,"
"You really don't have to worry, there is a reason why I am Number 2 and he is Number 6,"
"It's not that, but if he's really as angry as Capitano claims then he is a force to be reckoned with and I don't want you getting hurt. I really don't want too clean blood off the lab either,"
"My dear-"
"No. At least let me sit in your office where I can see what's happening,"
"I can't. I don't want you to see that side of me, not today, not ever," He gave you a bittersweet smile, "Just stay in here, please. That way I know your safe and won't be caught up in the fight. I'll come and get you when it's over,"
"There's a chance there won't even be a fight,"
"I can't risk you being hurt, Scaramouche is unpredicatble, we both know that,"
You sighed, "Fine, but I'm not happy about it,"
"You don't have to be, I'll make it up to you, anyway that you choose," Dottore said while walking towards the door.
"Good luck," You said as he shut the door. You weren't sure he even heard you, but you had faith in him.
It wasn't long until you heard muffled shouting from outside the room, you couldn't make out a word, but the sound of glass breaking and metal crashing together told you the fight had broken out quickly.
You leaned over the arm of the couch, quickly pulling yourself up after your head hit something solid. You turned around to see piles of books. Most of them hidden under mountains of dust.
They seemed to have been forgotten in this secret lounge, only to be touched by the dust that obscured their front covers.
However there was a smaller pile that drew your attention, the dust had not yet been able to claim them. First you noticed the tabs sticking out of the books at the bottom of the pile, then you noticed the title of the top book.
"How to tell if you've fallen in love"
It didn't exactly seem like the type of book Dottore would be interested in, so you removed it and inspected the next one.
"How to confess to your crush"
You were unbelievably confused now, but there were still two other books that had yet to be annotated. You place the first two carefully down on the floor before returning to your investigation.
"Signs they are interested in you: A guide to reading the behaviour of your potential love interest"
"Preparing for and dealing with rejection"
Now you were intrigued, Dottore can read minds so why would he need to read this mystery person's behaviour? Also why is he preparing for rejection? Surely he can't be that bad, or perhaps he was afraid he couldn't meet this person's standards?
What if he means... me? No. No way, it can't be I mean come on I'm his assistant. It probably someone he knows from outside the Fatui. Or another Harbinger. Oh my Holy Tsaritsa that would be adorable.
You moved the books over to see the title of the annotated book beneath it.
"Asking your coworker out; A comprehensive guide by ████ ███████"
Okay so Harbinger it is.
You opened the book to the front page to reveal a key, four tabs were placed next to neat handwriting outlining what each one signified.
"[Red Tab] Not Applicable in my situation
[Blue Tab] Awful ideas
[Black Tab] Could work
[Pink Tab] Y/n would never agree to/would hate the idea of"
Pardon the fuck?
Your jaw had practically dropped to the floor. You looked at the side of the book where you could easily count each tab.
Fifteen red tabs, twenty-three blue tabs, five black tabs and thirty pink tabs.
You flicked to the first red tab page, quickly scanning over the advice.
"Ask them to teach you something about the job, whether you already understand it or not. It's a great way to get closer to them and spend time with them, after a while you can ask them out while they teach you. Their mind will be preoccupied therefore they are more likely to say yes."
Dottore had written below this with a large arrow pointing to the last sentence.
"Manipulation?? That's the advice??"
To be fair, he did have a point, it did have a very manipulative undertone to it.
You flipped to a page with a blue tab on it.
"Buy them a fancy outfit and take them out to dinner."
"What are we? A married couple?"
That one wasn't that bad. I mean sure my anxiety would go through the roof but it's a nice sentiment.
You flicked to a black tab page, expecting to see something more in character for Dottore.
"Make them something nice, but let it be personal to you. If you like to knit, make them a scarf. If your interested in ruin machines, make them a small replica. Please remeber to take into account their preferences and what they may need at the time."
You were surprised to see no notes under this advice. Though this was a solid piece of advice, you were glad that Dottore unknowingly agreed with you on that.
Finally you turned to one of the pages with a pink tab next to them.
"Take them somewhere you enjoy, sometimes seeing somebody happy and excited about something they genuinely enjoy can spark the fires of love in somebody's heart."
"After the ruin guard incident I won't be taking them to a ruin guard factory for a long time."
Ah. He still remebers that.
You didn't know what to make with the information you had found. Emotions were swirling around your head, not letting you rest for a moment.
You places the books back in the order you found them, after making sure they were all back where you had found them you laid down on the couch.
You were contemplating what to do now. You were still unsure about your feelings, afterall he was one of the most powerful people in Teyvat, you would have to be sure you wanted a relationship with him before diving head first into it. If you didn't, and changed your mind, he was likely to kill you.
You laid there for awhile, staring at the ceiling in silence.
Silence?
You quickly sat upright and looked towards the entrance to the hidden lounge. It was still closed.
You listened intently but could hear no noise from outside.
The fighting had stopped.
You heard the muffled sound of a door opening and closing before you heard the hidden gears turn and grind against each other again before the door retracted into the wall again revealing a bloody and tired Dottore.
You rushed over to him, grabbing him by the shoulders, "You idiot!" You exclaimed, shaking him slightly, "You told me I didn't have to worry and yet you come back here covered in blood, clearly injured and exhausted. For fucks sake Dottore!"
"You should see how bad Scaramouche is, the broken jaw look really doesn't suit him,"
You slapped him across his head, "How stupid can you be? Pierro is going to be furious,"
Dottore grabbed your hands, "Y/n, relax. I'm fine, he will be fine. One of my clones is tending to him and Capitano and Ocean are helping some other clones clean up. All of the evidence will be long gone before Pierro even gets word of what happened."
"I'm sorry. You're right. Are you okay? Do you need help?"
"I'll be fine, I can get myself sorted, you should get some sleep though, it's been a long day."
Dottore slowly released your hands from his grip, once he had you buried your face in them.
"Why come and get me before tending to your wounds, I could have waited another few minutes."
"So can these injuries. You're my top priority in this situation. Enough talking, go get some sleep,"
"I will, thank you, Dottore," You went to leave the room before turning back to him, "Make sure you do something about your wounds." You said in a stern voice.
"Trust me, I will,"
You nodded before leaving. You smiled to Ocean and Capitano along with the clones,who were to fixated on cleaning to see your gesture, before making your way out of the lab and up the stairs to your room.
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A/N
WHOOO OMG IM SO EXCITED TO SEE HOW YOU ALL REACT TO THIS YOU HAVE NO IDEA
ICL I HAD NO IDEA HOW MUCH FUN IT IS WRITING BEFORE I STARTED WRITING THIS FIC AND THE BEST PART ABOUT ALL OF IT IS YOUR COMMENTS AND REACTIONS TO EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS
ANYWAYS I HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED READING THIS I LOVE YOU ALL AND MAKE SURE YOU TAKE CARE OF YOURSELVES 💙💙