(Okay, I did this all in one go, so I hope it makes sense, character-wise.)

Nine: There’s an immediate attachment, but it doesn’t turn into yandere affection for a bit longer. He’ll befriend you pretty much instantly, but realizing that he wants to keep you forever takes maybe a couple of hours or days. At first, you’re a convenient distraction from his loneliness and guilt, but once it crosses his mind that you could be more, all bets are off; like a light switch, he goes from friend to yandere.

Ten: Love at first sight, but the yandere traits come in a “boil the frog” capacity; at first, he’s just affectionate and romantic and fun, and for a while you don’t notice the degree of control he exerts in not taking you back to Earth. Though you might notice his behavior early if something ever puts you in danger; then he unleashes the full fury of a time lord.

Eleven: Love at first sight, and the yandere traits come in pretty quick and blatant, too. He’s so energetic and candid that the revelations pretty much come in the order of: 1. It’s bigger on the inside. 2. He’s in love with you. 3. He’s an alien. 4. You’re not allowed to leave. 5. He can travel through time and space. 6. Whole galaxies fear him. (Or some variation thereof.) But he’s still fun to be around, and he shows you the wonders of the universe like a kid showing off his favorite toys.

Twelve: It’s hard to tell because he’s already started feeling yandere feelings for you before he even shows visible signs that he likes you. You learn that he cares about you through small considerate things that he does every now and then, so when he shows his fiercely protective side, you’re utterly blindsided by it. You thought he was mostly tolerating you, and yet he just obliterated the timelines of a whole alien army for you.

Depends on which Doctor.

Ten I see as more of a monogamous and single-interest type; if he were to get another companion, you must have died or something, and he would spend the whole time inadvertently making them feel inadequate by bringing you up constantly. Honestly, that's putting it mildly; if you died, Yandere Ten would have some major hangups over it, and the new companion would have a front row seat to all that. He would assume a mostly-numb demeanor- more prone to coldly punishing villains than usual, and less prone to giving chances, but numb all the same. But if someone says your name, he goes off.

Eleven might very well have other companions and whole adventures with them just while you're sleeping each night. ("Wait, you went to Earth and you didn't tell me?!" "What is it with you? I'm telling you about moving statues and all you can talk about is that bloody planet. This is why I didn't wake you up.") He doesn't mention you to his companions unless it comes up naturally; if they touch one of your possessions that you left in the TARDIS's front room, he would say, "Don't touch that." They'd say, "Why, is it dangerous?" And he'd reply, "It belongs to someone important." If they ask about it further (or if they just ask about it from the start, instead of trying to touch it), he'd say, "I have a friend sleeping in the back." They might ask, "Can I meet them?" He'd smile and say, "Probably not."

(But he wouldn't go so far as to actively hide you; if you woke up and wandered out to where he and the companions are, he would just be happy to see you; he'd forget the companions are even there until they or you speak up about it.)

Twelve I also see as single-interest. He'll get a new companion after you die, solely to be along for the ride when he exacts vengeance. This would actually be a better time, for the companion, than Ten would be, as Twelve would take more of a lackadaisical nihilist route with it. Like, he'd be flashy and cracking jokes while absolutely ruining the creatures that took you from him, the ones allied with the creatures that took you from him, the ones pulling the strings of the ones influencing the creatures who took you from him, etc. The companion doesn't have to worry about any of the heat coming their way. After all, they're not there for him to vent on; they're there because you aren't and he needs someone to fill space. Someone moving in the corner of his eye so that some subconscious part of him can be soothed by the momentary delusion that you're still there.

Thirteen would have other companions alongside you and think nothing of it. They're her companions, her friends, and you're her very special friend. She shows you off to them and always compliments you and makes sure they acknowledge how awesome you are. You never have a moment alone with any of them, because you're just that special. And (though she would never think of them as exactly disposable) it's nice to have a few extra sets of hands around that wouldn't be catastrophic in their loss. It's important that you stay with her and stay safe, but the companions can split off from her to explore and do tasks. Covers more ground, that way. Efficient, without putting her most precious companion of them all at risk.

This was the following answer I posted to a similar question on Reddit, as well as in a Tumblr post here and here. It has since been modified with the release of news from “Cursed Child”, but this post is spoiler-free.

So, I ship Tomione, or Tom Riddle/Hermione Granger.

This is for several reasons. For one, when one gets down to details, they both share some similar character traits. On a personal level, I ‘ship Tom and Hermione because they are among some of the most intelligent characters in the series.

Both are logical and driven to succeed academically, to be “the best” when it comes down to who achieves the most in classes each year. Hermione can also be quite ruthless, cunning, and cold at different parts of the series, especially in Order of the Phoenix - her face-disfiguring hex and having Umbridge be kidnapped by centaurs - and DH. 

In fact, Hermione even states in Order of the Phoenix that she directly got the idea for using the Protean Charm, as a means of D.A. communication, from Tom Riddle - more specifically, from Tom’s implementation of the Dark Mark. 

[…] Harry looked sideways at Hermione.“You know what these remind me of?”“No, what’s that?”“The Death Eaters’ scars. Voldemort touches one of them, and all their scars burn, and they know they’ve got to join him.”“Well … yes,” said Hermione quietly, “that is where I got the idea. But you’ll notice I decided to engrave the date on bits of metal, rather than on our members’ skin.”

Likewise, the skin-disfiguring hex - which Rowling confirmed was, indeed, dark magic - seems otherwise out-of-character for Hermione. Gee, I wonder who she could have gotten that idea from?

“That was a really horrible trick of Hermione Granger’s,” said Cho fiercely. “She should have told us she’d jinxed that list -”“I think it was a brilliant idea,” said Harry coldly. Cho flushed, and her eyes grew brighter.“Oh, yes, I forgot - of course, if it was darling Hermione’s idea -” [Cho said nastily.]

If it wasn’t for Hermione, Harry and Ron would also be in a world of trouble in Deathly Hallows. In a way, Hermione - even in Philosopher’s / Sorcerer’s Stone, helping Harry with the Potions room - helps to foil Tom Riddle’s attempts to capture and kill Harry. We’re not just talking about one time, either; she helps to defy the Dark Lord, time and time again.

Even from the start, Hermione proves herself to be a very intelligent, bright, capable, remarkable, and ambitious witch. One which Tom Riddle, as per J.K. Rowling, would have likely tried to recruit to his side in the first Wizarding War, despite Hermione being a Muggle-born. 

This is because Rowling confirmed in an interview that Riddle also tried to recruit Lily Evans-Potter, Harry’s mother, to his side. Tom Riddle recognized Lily as a gifted and valuable witch and potential ally, even despite her “Mudblood” heritage.

To me, Hermione also has some very Slytherin traits - trapping Rita Skeeter in a jar for weeks as a beetle, among several others - and she almost reminds me of a young, albeit Gryffindor-esque, version of Bellatrix. (…and we all know how Bellatrix views Tom Riddle, or Lord Voldemort. Especially now, given the spoilers from Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.) 

Hermione is even able to lie convincingly to Bellatrix, and fool the Dark Lord’s right-hand woman into believing a falsehood. That, in itself, is incredibly impressive.

In Chamber of Secrets, Hermione is also the first one to “figure him [Riddle] out”. I’ll c/p the portion I wrote for the HP Wiki, all of which is canon.

…Hermione, after fully recovering from her Polyjuice mishap, was shown T. M. Riddle’s Diary by Harry. At first enthusiastic that the book might have “magical powers”, Hermione first came up with the theory that it was Tom Riddle who originally “caught” the “Heir of Slytherin” when the Chamber of Secrets had been opened fifty years prior. She also correctly guessed that the Diary contained the answers to the Chamber’s location, how to open it, and the true identity of Slytherin’s monster. 

Thinking that the Diary was written in invisible ink, she attempted to use the spell Aparecium, and then a Revealer, on the object, but to no effect. Later on, when Harry went to the trophy room to try to learn more about Tom Riddle, he was accompanied by an “interested” Hermione.

When Ron compared Riddle to Percy “in disgust”, mentioning the former as being “Prefect, Head Boy…probably at the top of every class”, Hermione responded in a “slightly hurt” voice, “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

Later on, she also correctly deduced that Riddle had “caught the wrong person”, and that “it was some other monster [not Hagrid’s Acromantula, Aragog] that was killing people”. Later on, after Harry mentioned “hearing the voice” again before the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, Hermione ran immediately to the Library to research, where realised that Slytherin’s monster was a basilisk. Tearing the page out of the book, and putting it in her right hand, she left the Library, where she warned the first person she met, Penelope Clearwater, to look around corners with her mirror. However, both Hermione and Penelope were petrified by Salazar Slytherin’s Basilisk, which was controlled by Tom Riddle’s memory.

I definitely feel that, to an extent, Hermione was the Irene Adler to Tom Riddle’s Sherlock, in the sense that it was Hermione who outwitted Riddle, particularly in Deathly Hallows.

From the books, Riddle and Harry are also directly paralleled, especially in Chamber of Secrets. While Harry and Hermione do not end up together romantically at the end of the series, they are, however, best (and good) friends. 

If Harry is paralleled with Tom Riddle, and Harry is good friends with Hermione and views her “like a sister”, chances are, Tom Riddle also would have at least felt some sort of kinship with Hermione as well. 

Riddle and Hermione also share, again, several similarities: Hermione has some Slytherin traits; she can be cold and ruthless at times; she’s clever, cunning, conniving, and intelligent; and, like Riddle, she became a Prefect, and likely in her 7th year, Head [Girl].

In Chamber of Secrets, as stated above, Hermione also shows “interest” [as per canon] in Tom Riddle, if purely for the fact that Riddle was a Prefect and Head Boy.  We can reliably deduce that Hermione - to some extent - is “interested” in Tom Riddle, if not outright “fascinated”.

Later on, in Goblet of Fire, Hermione displays the same admiration for Cedric Diggory (also a Prefect), to which she has this interesting conversation with Ron:

“That idiot, Hogwarts champion?” said Ron, as they pushed their way through the chattering crowd towards the staircase.

“He’s not an idiot. You just don’t like him because he beat Gryffindor at Quidditch,” said Hermione. “I’ve heard he’s a really good student — and he’s a Prefect.”

She spoke as though this settled the matter.

“You only like him because he’s handsome,” said Ron scathingly.

“Excuse me, I don’t like people just because they’re handsome!” said Hermione indignantly.

Ron gave a loud false cough, which sounded oddly like ‘Lockhart!’.

Speaking of Lockhart, we all know that Hermione had a rather large crush on him, also in Chamber of Secrets. 

Combined with the Cedric Diggory interaction with Ron, it’s clear that Hermione is apparently attracted to intelligent, seemingly accomplished, handsome men - and Tom Riddle is not only those things, but highly charismatic.

And we know that Harry described young Tom Riddle as “handsome” several times in the series - at least 7 times alone in Half-Blood Prince. Dumbledore also described Tom as such in Chamber of Secrets.

“W-what’s that?’ said Mr Weasley in a stunned voice. “You-Know-Who? En-enchant Ginny? But Ginny’s not … Ginny hasn’t been … has she?”

“It was this diary,” said Harry quickly, picking it up and showing it to Dumbledore. “Riddle wrote it when he was sixteen.”

Dumbledore […]

“Brilliant,” he said softly. “Of course, he was probably the most brilliant student Hogwarts has ever seen.” He turned around to the Weasleys, who were looking utterly bewildered.

“Very few people know that Lord Voldemort was once called Tom Riddle. I taught him myself, fifty years ago, at Hogwarts. He disappeared after leaving the school … travelled far and wide … sank so deeply into the Dark Arts, consorted with the very worst of our kind, underwent so many dangerous, magical transformations, that when he resurfaced as Lord Voldemort, he was barely recognisable. Hardly anyone connected Lord Voldemort with the clever, handsome boy who was once Head Boy here.”

And we know for a fact that Hermione admires “brilliant” individuals and their work, part of why she had such a massive crush on Lockhart:

“Brilliant,” said Hermione. “This isn’t magic — it’s logic — a puzzle. A lot of the greatest wizards haven’t got an ounce of logic, they’d be stuck in here forever.” (PS/SS)

[…] “Rubbish,” said Hermione. “You’ve read his [Lockhart’s] books — look at all those amazing things he’s done —” (COS)

[…] “At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in,” said Hermione sharply. “They got in on pure talent.” (COS)

Given the above, I think it’s pretty obvious that if Hermione had met a teenaged Tom Riddle - even if she was aware of his identity as Lord Voldemort - she would definitely feel attracted to him. This is especially true, given her imitation of at least one of his techniques in Order of the Phoenix, and their similarities otheriwse.

It’s also heavily implied that Hermione researched Voldemort as well - including his illustrious past as Tom Riddle. Why? She “knows all about” Harry, before she even meets him, in Philosopher’s / Sorcerer’s Stone.

“Are you really [Harry Potter]?” said Hermione. “I know all about you, of course.” […] “Goodness, didn’t you know, I’d have found out everything I could, if it was me.”

Not to mention the identical parallels between Hermione manipulating Lockhart for information in Chamber of Secrets, and Tom Riddle manipulating Slughorn for information in Half-Blood Prince.

Tom Riddle and Hermione Granger even address the people they are manipulating the same: as “Professor” and “sir”.

Hermione Granger

“Granger, Professor,” [said Hermione.] “I was wondering if you could tell us anything about the Chamber of Secrets,” said Hermione in a clear voice. 

[…] “Please, sir, don’t legends always have a basis in fact?” 

[…] “The Chamber of Secrets has been opened before?” Hermione said. 

[…] “I think,” said Hermione, “that if we made it sound as though we were just interested in the theory, we might stand a chance…” 

[…] “Er — Professor Lockhart?” Hermione stammered. “I wanted to — to get this book out of the library. Just for background reading.” She held out the piece of paper, her hand shaking slightly. “But the thing is, it’s in the Restricted Section of the library, so I need a teacher to sign for it — I’m sure it would help me understand what you say in Gadding with Ghouls about slow-acting venoms—”

Tom Riddle

“Sir, is it true that Professor Merrythought is retiring?” he asked. 

“Tom, Tom, if I knew I couldn’t tell you,” said Slughorn, wagging a reproving, sugar-covered finger at Riddle, though ruining the effect slightly by winking. “I must say, I’d like to know where you get your information, boy, more knowledgeable than half the staff, you are.“ 

Riddle smiled; the other boys laughed and cast him admiring looks. 

[…] “ - I confidently expect you to rise to Minister of Magic within twenty years…”

[…] “Sir, I wanted to ask you something….I wonder what you know about Horcruxes?”

[…] “Project for Defense Against the Dark Arts, is it?”

“Not exactly, sir,” said Riddle. “I came across the term while reading, and I didn’t fully understand it…but you obivously know all about them, sir? I mean, a wizard like you  - sorry, I mean, if you can’t tell me, obviously - I just knew if anyone could tell me, you could - so I’d just thought I’d ask -”

It was very well-done, thought Harry, the hesitancy, the casual tone, the careful flattery, none of it overdone. He, Harry, had too much experience of trying to wheedle information out of reluctant people not to recognize a master at work. He could tell that Riddle wanted this information very, very much; perhaps [he] had been working towards this moment for weeks.

“Well,” said Slughorn, […] “well, it can’t hurt to give you an overview, of course. Just so that you understand the term…”

[…] “I don’t quite understand how that works, though, sir,” said Riddle.

[…] “Yes, sir,” said Riddle. “What I don’t understand, though - just out of curiosity -”

[…] “Of course,” [Slughorn] muttered, “this is all hypothetical, what we’re discussing, isn’t it? All academic…”

“Yes, sir, of course,” said Riddle quickly.

As for Tom Riddle? I think that he would be attracted to Hermione for the same reason he has Bellatrix as a Death Eater: he would see Hermione as both a potentially dangerous threat, as well as a possible, powerful ally. 

In Chamber of Secrets, as soon as Hermione discovers the true identity of Slytherin’s monster, what does Tom Riddle do? He orders the basilisk to petrify (or kill) her. 

One might say, “oh, it’s because she’s a Muggle-born”. However, I fully believe there is far more the Riddle’s motivation in deciding to take Hermione out than that. 

For one, why not just take her out in the beginning of Chamber of Secrets? Why did he bide his time, and only order the basilisk to petrify her only when she was beginning to unravel his secrets?

T.M. Riddle - and his Diary - present to her what many Tomione writers (ironically) write as why Tom is attracted to Hermione: it provides a mystery - a puzzle - for Hermione to “solve”.

However, as Hermione follows the trail of clues, getting closer and closer to the truth (she’s already correctly deduced much of it already on the first try in the book), she gets deeper and deeper “down the rabbit hole”.

For this reason, I think this is why the Diary Riddle targeted Hermione to begin with. Riddle recognized that Hermione was getting “too close to the truth”, and saw her as a threat. 

Tom Riddle, the character purported by so many fans to be an “ardent blood purist”, was afraid of a ‘Mudblood’ finding out what he was doing.

To some extent, I also believe that the reason why Tom Riddle saw Hermione as such a threat was because he saw so much of himself in Hermione. He saw her fascination, her interest, her intelligence and cleverness, and her ambition…and how much it mirrored himself.

In Chamber of Secrets, Riddle talks about the “similarities” and parallels between himself and Harry. However, why do you think Riddle noticed this (other than Harry’s Parseltongue ability, probably information fed to him by Ginny) to begin with…if not after a realization of what exactly Harry’s ‘Mudblood’ friend was doing, and just how terribly close she was to discovering the truth?

If Harry reminded Riddle of himself in looks and his Parseltongue ability, what are the odds that Riddle was also reminded of his own ambition and personality in Hermione’s quest to “solve the mystery”? I’d say pretty high.

In a later book, Hermione even says to Harry:

“Harry, he has overpowered the Ministry, the newspapers, and half the wizarding community! Don’t let him enter your mind, too!”

This quote, to me - and particularly, the “too” - shows that Hermione also knows just how dangerous Tom Riddle is. While Hermione with the Diary [instead of Ginny] in Chamber of Secrets, probably wouldn’t work, as she’s suspicious of it from the start, there are other factors to consider. Other ways how Tom Riddle has “gotten inside her head”.

Counting Chamber of Secrets, Tom had already entered Hermione’s mind to some degree. 

Hermione’s previous “interest” in Tom Riddle - perhaps, even, “fascination” - directly led her to being petrified by the basilisk to begin with. She’s gone “down the rabbit hole” before, and is warning Harry not to fall for the “mystery and charm” of Riddle himself.

But that’s not all - Riddle also directly entered Hermione’s mind, through the Locket Horcrux, in Deathly Hallows.

What Ron says is also important, in the context of what happens when Harry opens the Horcrux.

“…that thing’s bad for me!” said Ron, backing away from the Locket on the rock. “I can’t handle it! It’s not making excuses, Harry, for what I was like, but it affects me worse than it affected you and Hermione, it made me think stuff - stuff I was thinking anyway, but it made everything worse…”

[…] Behind both of the glass windows blinked a living eye, dark and handsome as Tom Riddle’s eyes had been before he turned them scarlet and slit-pupiled. 

[…] “I have seen your heart, and it is mine…I have seen your dreams…and I have seen your fears. All you desire is possible, but all that you dread is also possible…[you are] least loved, now, by the girl who prefers your friend…”

[…] …the locket burned, suddenly, white-hot…

[…] the Riddle-Harry was speaking with Voldemort’s voice… “Why return? We were better without you, happier without you, glad of your absence…We laughed at your stupidity, your cowardice, your presumption-”

[…] “Presumption!” echoed the Riddle-Hermione, who was more beautiful and yet more terrible than the real Hermione: She swayed, cackling, before Ron, who looked horrified and yet transfixed… “Who could look at you, who would ever look at you, beside him [Harry Potter]? What have you ever done, compared to him [the Chosen One]? What are you, compared with  him [the Boy-Who-Lived]?”

[…] the Riddle-Harry and Riddle-Hermione were reflected…their hair swirling like flames, their eyes shining red, their voices lifted in an evil duet. 

“Your mother confessed,” sneered Riddle-Harry, while Riddle-Hermione jeered, “that she would have preferred me as a son, would be glad to exchange…”

“Who wouldn’t prefer him, what woman would take you, are you are nothing, nothing, nothing to him,” crooned Riddle-Hermione, and she stretched like a snake, and entwined herself around Riddle-Harry, wrapping him in a close embrace: Their lips met.

In this scene, Rowling uses clear, visual imagery of lust - “flames”, “desire”, “entwining in a close embrace” [as lovers], "burning”, the color red, kissing, Hermione and Harry being depicted as naked in both illustration and film versions - to set the tone and context. 

(If you don’t believe me, you should watch Disney’s use of similar imagery to also depict lust. Yeah. Pretty obvious, right?)

Dan Radcliffe even said the following in an interview:

“I think it’s just two people on the road together for a few months without nothing else, really, to do…but start fancying each other….a few months of loneliness on the road provokes a bit of lust.”

It was “handsome” Tom Riddle, through said Horcrux, that imagined Harry and Hermione naked and kissing, even though many fans assume Tom to be a virgin; Tom Riddle, who noted the likenesses between himself and Harry.

Tom Riddle, who lived in a Horcrux around Hermione’s neck for days on end, and was privy to all of her thoughts and feelings (”I have seen your heart, and it is mine…I have seen your dreams…I have seen your fears…all you desire is possible, but all that you dread is also possible…”).

It was Tom Riddle who noted harry as “nothing special” in the Chamber of Secrets, and yet his vision of Hermione had his imagining of her attracted to power (”who wouldn’t prefer him…you are nothing, nothing, nothing to him”).

It was Tom Riddle, who, according to Harry, imagined Hermione as “more beautiful, and yet more terrible” as Riddle’s perception of her. Tom Riddle, who imagined Hermione “stretching like a snake, entwining herself around Riddle-Harry, wrapping him in a close embrace as their lips met”.

Tom Riddle, who, in a scene full of phallic and lustful imagery (kissing while ‘entwined’, the sword, focusing on Hermione’s physical appearance, weirdly focusing on Hermione’s ‘preference’), could have envisioned anything, anything at all. Perhaps even go the Pettigrew route, by offering Ron the power and fame he so desperately desired, or even promised ron that Hermione “would be his”, as he did to Snape with Lily…

…and yet Tom Riddle, of all people, chose to present a romantic or lustful scenario with Harry (who Riddle considers “similar to himself”) and his thoughts of Hermione, “sneering” and “jeering” at Ron, as if it was fuelled by his own jealousy.

I also don’t think it was Tom alone who felt this way, either. I think Hermione felt it, too. As Ron said, it would be “stuff she was thinking of anyways”.

Just imagine it: Hermione Granger, who has read and researched and remembered everything she can about Lord Voldemort - Tom Riddle - the enemy - imitates his techniques - even wears his Horcrux, a piece of his soul, around her neck - and yet, she cannot help, like Harry, to think him “handsome”. 

To feel attracted to who he was - “brilliant”, “beautiful”, and so much like her in in both technique and mind and mutual desire for knowledge. 

I’d take a fair guess that Hermione felt attracted to Tom Riddle, felt at least a bit of lust for his mind or body or both - something that Riddle sensed in the Locket. Based on the dialogue, Tom would feed off her interest - her fascination - with him, her admiration of him, of his beauty and brains and intellect. 

And, despite her being a “Mudblood”, he would come to desire her in kind - to become jealous of the man she loved, Ronald Weasley. (For, in his mind, what could Ron Weasley possibly possess that he did not have? That he himself, the “great” and “admired” Tom Riddle, could not offer her?)

But that’s not the only strong indicator of jealousy that could be in the books, as related to Tom. 

In fact, some fans have speculated that Ginny, due to her jealousy of Hermione’s close friendship with Harry, might have asked Tom to petrify her in Chamber of Secrets. 

Personally, I feel that Hermione was far too young for Tom to look at in any lustful or romantic way at that point in time, but it is possible that he looked at Hermione as a potential new follower in the future.

After all, the Diary Tom did plan to be resurrected [through Ginny’s sacrifice], and one of the reasons why he wanted to teach DADA at Hogwarts was to influence students to later join the ranks of his followers. 

Hermione, who was already listed as gaining the ire of the Malfoys earlier in Chamber of Secrets for being at the “top of the class”, would have definitely caught Riddle’s eye.

it's a tale you heard until you fell asleep from repetition - your mother, a favonius knight, was let off early in the middle of windblume, only for your father, a bard, to sweep in and occupy her time. by nightfall, she was given that year's windblume flower, a small lamp grass, with a promise to meet even after the festivities ended.

it's a love story that they're proud to share. as such, growing up she encouraged you to go out during windblume, fully believing that you'll find the 'one' the same way she did. you're gently nudged outside the threshold of your home with an allowance as a bribe before she bids you to have a fun time.

you formed friendships during these windblume festivals, eula and kaeya for one, but never found the 'love' that your mother was expecting. even now, as an adult, you doubt that she'll witness the love story that she's been expecting.

"happy windblume festival."

...that is, until vice captain lohen returned from the expedition and bowed before you in the middle of the city plaza. right hand poised behind his back, his left extends a windwheel aster for you to take.

you hear the varying gasps of shock, and even feel the stone statue of barbatos staring down at you two in curiosity. is your archon finding entertainment from all the way up in celestia? rather than taking the flower immediately, you pointedly acknowledge him first and foremost.

"vice captain," you nod, "it's great to see you again, and on windblume too."

tentatively, you take the windwheel aster from his gloved hand. he smiles at that.

"likewise," he replies now standing upright, murky, dead eyes looking at you in bemusement, "and please, call me lohen. no need for formalities between us, i believe."

"you're right about that," your eyes trace back to the windwheel aster, tempted to ask the purpose of this gift. not all windblumes given are a proclamation of love, sometimes it's given as a friendly gesture. every mondstadter knows that.

but lohen gifting a windblume is... questionable, to say the least. still, better to accept it than to be unreasonably suspicious.

"...thank you for this," you twirl the windwheel aster between your fingers. "i'll be sure to preserve and use it as a bookmark."

he emptily chuckles at that, void eyes curving up in delight. "i'm greatly flattered, mx. (y/n). i'll-"

from a distance, grandmaster varka's booming voice calls out for lohen, insisting that their mandatory patrol rounds must resume immediately. he clicks his tongue in irritation, hand reaching up to tug at his choker (hard) like some form of de-stressor.

after a moment, he addresses you once more, smile visibly forced. "a shame that our reunion was cut short. i'll be sure to find you once i'm allotted free time."

you hesitantly nod, feeling unnerved by how worked up he's getting. you're sure he'll be mercilessly rough on any enemies he encounters during patrol.

"...happy windblume festival, vice captain lohen."

his smile widens, flashing intimidating white teeth. you look into his voided eyes, and the abyss stares back at you,

"thank you, that pleases me." parading as a gentleman, he gently takes and kisses the back of your hand.

to your bewilderment, he doesn't let go of it thereafter. he places it on his chest, where you can feel his heart beat. his grip on you tightens,

enewidenrvonoeni0n2r0fvieb see lohen would never leave his captain while he goes on some years-long expedition, but the concept.... the concept....

lohen picturing coming back to mondstadt and seeing his dear captain welcoming him at the front gate with a wide smile on your face... have you drastically changed in the few years he's been painstakingly away from you? dyed your hair or had some wardrobe change, pehaps? either way, since you're the captain, he's sure it'd suit you perfectly. all that matters is seeing you again.

being part of the frontlines means that lohen sees the front grate first before the subordinates behind him could. the familiar sight of cobblestone and dandelions swaying with the breeze invokes no sense of nostalgia from lohen; such things never meant home for him.

home is the familiar tugging sensation of his choker playfully being pulled by his captain, it's the exhilarating feeling of sparring with you until his bones ached - that's the comfort he's been longing for during his absence.

yet there's not a trace of you at the on-site welcoming party at the city gates. acting grandmaster jean is there, the former knight diluc, the cavalry captain kaeya, chief alchemist albedo, librarian lisa, and even eula got dragged in by outrider amber. everyone is here, except you.

he approaches jean in mere seconds, mouth contorting into a forced, polite smile while he inquires about you.

"has the fifth company captain been so well that they don't deem the expedition's grand welcoming worth their time?"

jean frowns, "i'm sorry, vice captain lohen, but barbara's been taking care of them in the cathedral. an anomaly in dragonspine appeared a few days ago-"

he takes off running before she could finish elaborating. an injury,

where? why? being taken care of by someone that's not him? outlandish. he bites down on his bottom lip, immediately piercing skin as he boils with mixed emotions of jealousy and concern.

he had imagined tricking you into a spar session first thing after he comes back, but to think that this city neglected you to the point of putting you in danger... his hands itch, body tingling in a primal urge to grab the nearest beast he can find and disfigure them beyond recognition.

your willing dog on a leash...

the concept of the knights of favonius all being dog-coded and lohen specifically acts like an overeager puppy bringing you bones before rolling over to show his belly, fully expecting praise... except the bones are hilichurl masks and treasure hoarder insignias... ^^

you scold him now, but you know he'll be going off unannounced in a few days to collect materials from monsters that you honestly don't need. just in case, he says, dragging a sack behind him that's overflowing with mitchurl horns and whopperflower stems. thanks... you suppose...

thank u !! >< it's vv easy to say that lohen is obsessive and toxic and he wants to hurt you the same way you'll hurt him, etc. but i often find myself wondering what that would mean in practice.

i've talked about wounds, battling, and power imbalance with him before, so lately i've been focused on bodily fluids >< sharing saliva outside of kissing is an underutilized concept because with lohen being obsessive, it's only logical to assume that he'd be attracted to every inch and part of your body.

passing food through the mouth, tasting his breakfast, lunch, and dinner, knowing that it's all soaked in your saliva... that's bliss to him. sharing bubblegum, using your own toothbrush to brush his own teeth, etc. it's beyond saliva, too - there's your sweat, tears, vaginal discharge, and cum.

it doesn't have to be sexual in context - it's all hauntingly intimate, and that's enough for him. no other friend of yours (should you have one...) can ever gather the courage to savor and gurgle your spit or lick up your sweat with devotion the way he does - because unlike them, his love for you is truly boundless. he means what he says; the concept of hyperbole and exaggeration doesn't exist in his mind.

tw; stepcest. pre-release lohen >< outsider pov (mika) because lohen is so funny to observe. pls pray for mika

i see it... kinda.

others may find it hard to believe, but lohen frets over you daily. he deviates from the areas he's supposed to keep watch over in favor of visiting plains closer to where you are. if unavoidable, he fights with a snappy, edged quickness so he can see you again as soon as possible. he discards his tendency to toy with his enemies so long as you're involved -- he can never be too far from you; it would physically feel like tearing muscles apart. you're not some withering flower but lohen just can't trust other people with your wellbeing. he may not appear to be the best candidate for words like 'gentle' or 'loving' but... he is. bloodied and intimidating he may be, his touch on you never applies more pressure than necessary. he keeps it as light as dandelions and as tender as an anemo breeze. you are the one who introduced him to love, after all. it's only right that he repays you with nothing less than true, faithful love and care.

world is mine core... i loveeee

it's a well-known fact in mondstadt that you have unusually high standards in dating. a dashing knight in shining armor who can double as your armrest slash butler slash minion slash-- they get the point. really, they do. even heard all about it from some knights' failed attempts, case in point: huffman's bleeding heart after you stood him up on a date because he was quote-unquote 'giving me the ick!'.

a bouquet of freshly picked flowers sourced from other nations, a steady source of income to keep up with your spending habits, date nights every sunday at 8PM sharp, 'how are you?' letters sent through carrier pigeons with a cute bow on their neck, cake slices as greeting gifts, holding your purse for you, and never letting you raise a single finger during battle are to name a few of your... infamous expectations.

in angel's share, your attitude is a frequent topic. people who tried their chances with you gather around in a bitter circle, expressing their hopes that you'll never, ever find the person you're looking for -- because frankly, they don't exist! you're a naive young woman who needs to be humbled by the real world! flaws are part of people. in fact, yours is glaringly obvious.

when they see you leading lohen around by an imaginary leash after the knights' expedition finished, it's certainly... unexpected. lohen? lohen? the same lohen who runs off from practice to do his own thing? the same lohen who only asks permission from grand master varka only when he's in the middle of his self-assigned task? that lohen with you? it's comedic, they'll admit. akin to watching fire and ice try to co-exist.

bets are made in the tavern that night -- one day before they start fighting like crazy, another bets a week, a brave one settles on one month.

six months have passed since, and your relationship with lohen only grows... huh. he's agreeable with you. jumping high, rolling over to show his belly, and clearing out the path up ahead, all for you.