The air was freezing in Snezhnaya—it always was—a cold breeze prickling at your skin. You were clad in bundles and heaps of layers, feeling like an imitation of a snowman, but it was surprisingly still cold. Yet, that's how it had always been. It didn't take a genius to realize. Even you, a young child, knew the bitter cold would quickly become a problem if you stood still for too long.

Bits of snow landed on your nose as you stood outside, and pieces of ice poked and prodded at your cheeks every once in a while. It wasn't anything heavy, just a flurry on top of the snow you had gotten the night before, but it was enough to raise you to your feet and draw you outside. Tiny footprints left a trail in the snow, and you hoped the snow wouldn't cover them up, for fear you might lose your way back.

Despite the risk of vanishing into the cold abyss, you weren't scared. You bravely pushed on, trekking through the vast space. But what about the cold? Please. You had seen worse. Plus, you were prepared—you had stuffed a sunsettia in your pocket, hoping your mother wouldn't notice the empty spot in the fruit bowl. This was an important exploration; you didn't have time to ask for permission.

You lived farther out than some of your friends did. It was a journey to get to the schoolhouse every day, and some days you simply had to miss because the snow was so thick. Nonetheless, it was moments like these that made you adore living in a small, cramped house nearly in the middle of nowhere. As the snow fell, it was incredibly clear. The sky was empty, but for the little droppings of white that danced down to your tongue. Not a star or a cloud took place in the sky, just the white overhead raining down. There was a vast expanse of white everywhere you looked, a sheet covering all of your surroundings. You could be as loud as you wished, the only risk being you might scare a few wild animals—though, a high-speed chase with a squirrel seemed like a pretty entertaining idea. You loved the way they froze the moment they saw you, and you tried to get them to stay like that so you could see them up close, but they never seemed to stay. Yet, the change of pace was exciting when it did happen.

However, there was one frightening moment that you had startled a boar. You hadn't noticed it; your mother couldn't believe you didn't notice the animal when you told her the story, it was more than half your size! Yet, you had managed to catch its attention, despite not seeing it yourself. When you did, it was too late, as it was charging towards you. It would have trampled you to the ground if he hadn't been there. "Your hero" was an understatement, it was hard to believe he wasn't a legend passed down to you at times. Yet, he was real. And he scared away the boar before it could truly scare you.

He was the reason you were so brave to step outside in the freezing temperatures. If you got lost, without a doubt you knew that he would come to the rescue. The thought of being left alone in the wilderness was a distant worry, something you hadn't thought about for years. Simply because, even if you were alone without your parents, stranded in the middle of the snow, you knew he would find you.

So, here you were. Doing just that. It was hardly a surprise, you didn't have any goal in mind. You just wanted to explore—to see what nature had to offer today, and what might be found if you explored it now. Any of your findings could have disappeared if you had been any later, so it was an expedition of utmost importance. Who else would handle this if you hadn't? This was imperative.

So far your findings concluded:

It was incredibly cold.

The snow was not soft as it fell, it was in fact quite crunchy, and had caused you to slip a few times.

A sunsettia will get squished in your pocket if you fall on it.

And he was right, you might actually freeze in place if you stopped moving.

With this in mind, you kept moving forward. You didn't stop moving, even if the cold and bulk of clothes rendered you to a waddle. You pushed on—but to be more fitting, you vehemently waddled on.

It was quickly becoming nighttime, which brought on a vengeful cold. You were surprisingly hungry, and all you had was a mess that used to be a sunsettia in your pocket. Your steps were slowly becoming more sluggish, tiredness hitting in.

…Did you know where you were?

How could you know? Everything was the same. Nothing had changed: The sky was empty, but for the little droppings of white that danced down to your tongue. Not a star or a cloud took place in the sky, just the white overhead raining down. There was a vast expanse of white everywhere you looked, a sheet covering all of your surroundings. You could be as loud as you wished…

No one would hear.

And yet, in the middle of nowhere, where even your footsteps had been covered, you heard your name being called. It was said with such happiness, such pure joy, as if you were the only person in the world at that moment. There was no doubt in your mind that it was him.

"Ajax! Over here!" you shouted, waving your arms above your head as broad as you could. You kept at it, until a mystery chunk of snow smacked you right in the face. "Hey—!"

"That's what you get for sneaking out without me!" Ajax shouted back at you with a laugh, and you saw him peeking out from behind one of the huge trees.

"That's no fair! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

His grin spread from ear to ear, only widening when he stepped closer and saw your pout. "Come onnnn, don't be a baby about it. I had to get back at you somehow!"

You brushed the snow off of you with a huff, but it was hard to keep up that angry façade. Deep down, you knew you could never be angry at him.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I thought you were with your dad today? Didn't you go ice-fishing again?"

His eyes lit up at the broach of the aforementioned activity. You could swear he had stars in them just from saying the words.

"I did! We were just leaving, but I heard you shuffling around out here." He wore a smug look, and you rolled your eyes and playfully punched his shoulder.

"What?"

"Sorry, but…" you paused for dramatic effect, "No. Way. I don't believe it." He furrowed his brows together, practically forming a knot.

"What do you mean?!" he blurted, his arms crossing in front of him. "How else would I have found you like this?"

You shrugged and put your hands on your hips, leaning your head to the side and looking away from him.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe you came to visit me after you two finished, and just maybe you got jealous that I went to explore without you, so maybe you decided to go out looking for me." You grinned, looking back towards him. His arms were still crossed, and this time it was his turn to pout.

"I still heard you though! And I had just finished fishing with my dad!" His face was scrunched up, wearing every emotion on his sleeve. In the end, even though you both put up these frustrated acts, you both knew it was all a game. You two were always like this. One was forever ready to tease the other, and it would go back and forth non-stop. It's what made you two inseparable—you stood on equal ground to bicker and argue without any kind of repercussion.

"Fine, fine. You win!" You admitted and raised your hands, finally letting out a burst of laughter as the faux walls of irritation crumbled down. His eyebrows unknitted themselves at your laughter, his smile widening once more.

"And my prize is…?" he said.

You brought a hand to your chin, thinking. The cold was starting to nip at you once more, and you quickly realized the two of you had been standing still for too long. You'd both be frozen popsicles at this rate.

"The pleasure of taking me home!" you said.

He rolled his eyes, shifting his weight to his other side.

"Seriously? That's the best you've got?"

You frowned, one arm dropping down as the other stuck glued to your hip. "Unless you want to freeze out here, Ajax, yep. That's about it."

He barked out a laugh, grabbing your hand and dragging you to stand beside him.

"I'm getting a better prize when we get there though," he countered. "Have anything good to eat?"

You thought back to the stewing problem in your pocket, and laughed. "Hope you like mashed sunsettia."

He gave you a confused look, but you just nonchalantly looked forward again, not before grinning as you left him hanging. He'd have to wait until he got back and got his prize.

Instead of a confused silence, Ajax instead decided to fill the air with the latest tales his dad had told him. They were a staple whenever they went ice-fishing, and every time he came back he rushed to tell them to you. They were like an inspiration to him, and sometimes you imagined they actually were about him. In your eyes, he was already a hero.

"Hey, are you listening? We're just getting to the good part!" he said with a grin, and you blinked out of your reverie to focus on him once more.

"Of course, I never stopped paying attention," you said.

He chuckled, holding your hand tighter and yanking you along as you dawdled beside him.

"Sure, I believe you."

The two of you were silent for only a moment, as you waited for him to continue with his dad's tale.

"You know," he said, "I'm gonna be a hero, just like in all of my dad's stories! Just you wait!"

It was impossible for you to hide the growing smile on your face as you laughed beside him. In an instant he had a shocked expression, one that almost looked hurt, until he saw your smile at him.

"I know, Ajax."

With a huge grin, he tugged at you once more, so forcefully this time he almost sent you tumbling ahead. "Well then, come on! I'm sure Dad will tell us another one when we get back!"

You squealed behind him as he ran and dragged you through the snow. Yet, there was no stopping him now. His determination clouded everything else he had once been focusing on.

"Ajaaax!" you said with a whine. "You haven't even finished the one you started!"

He ignored your shouts, heaving you behind him. Soon enough the two of you would reach your house, get scolded for wandering off—and when you surprised your friend with a mess of baby-food-esque sunsettia to the face. Even so, you still had enough time to listen to Ajax's father tell another story—only to beg him to finish the one Ajax left off. Then the two of you would go home, and you would wait until the next time you'd see him again. It was the perfect cycle of hellos and goodbyes, with a little bit of mischief and tall-tales sprinkled in between.

If only you both could have retained that childlike simplicity.

Notes:

Thank you so much for reading this first chapter, I haven't posted a fan fiction in years, but here we are. I hope you enjoyed the start to this story, and would love if you'd stick with me as it goes on.

I'm brand new to AO3, so I apologize if I make any mistakes with the website, just let me know! I'm still getting used to it.

Lastly, here's my Twitter if you wanna talk! I haven't ever talked about my stories on a public platform (grew up hiding on quotev lmao), but I'm open to it (:

Chapter 2: New Beginnings

Notes:

I can't believe I forgot to say this last chapter, but a big thank you to the amazing WobblyWeasels for beta reading!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

"Order up!" The ring of a bell shocked you into focus, breaking you out of whatever spell you had been in. What had you been thinking about? How long had you been out of it? "Hey, I said order up!" the voice boomed once more, and you quickly jumped to your feet from your chair.

"I'm on it!" Swiftly navigating through the kitchen, you rushed to grab the boxes and tote them outside. Sweeping them away from their place next to the plates ready to be filled, you quickly dashed through the doors and made your way outside. Making sure you kept quiet so as to not disturb the other guests, your shoes gently tapped against the wooden floors as you rushed out the front door.

"Order number 28, one full moon egg?" A man who had been speaking with Yueshu looked up and waved you down. Trotting over to him, you gave him the food and he gave you the Mora, which you counted for safe-keeping.

"Thank you, enjoy your meal!" you said.

He gave a polite smile and walked off. Turning on your heel, you were prepared to head back inside, when you heard tutting from the fellow waitress. She called your name. Shyly turning around, you met her disapproving glare.

"I believe you forgot something," she said.

You stared at her, a bit shocked at first. Forgot something? You brought the correct dish, handled the box correctly so nothing fell out, and collected the correct amount of Mora. What could you have missed—

"The receipt!" you shouted. You groaned as you brought your hands to your head. Yueshu sighed, crossing her arms as she looked you up and down.

"I'm glad I didn't have to point it out this time," she stated, before flicking you on the forehead. "Quiet down though, you're attracting too much attention."

With a nervous glance you turned to see the sheer amount of people in the street looking towards you both; it quickly sent you turning back away from them as you stiffened.

"Yeah… noted," you said.

She cracked a small smile at you and patted you on the shoulder. It loosened a bit of tension, and you tried to sheepishly smile back.

"At least it wasn't a big deal this time," she said. "The customer didn't seem to care that he didn't get a receipt. This is better than last time."

You sighed, shaking your head as you brought your hands up to cover your face. "Can you not bring that up?"

Her smile widened a bit as she scoffed, poking and prodding at you.

"How can I not? It's not every day that someone forgets to collect the Mora for a Golden Crab." Once again, she earned a loud groan from you out of embarrassment. She laughed at you this time, while you focused all of your attention on a loose pebble on the ground. "Oh don't be so downcast, you've only been working here a week!"

Kicking around the pebble, you pinched your brows together. "So, I should have this down by now!"

She rolled her eyes, flicking you on the forehead once more. You jerked your head up, and the pebble went flying away as you kicked it a little too hard from the shock.

"You're getting better, it just takes time. Remember, for this occasion you only forgot the receipt, not the Mora in general. One of those is far worse than the other." You gave her a disheartened nod, which made her groan as she flicked your head even harder this time. "Come on, kid. You're driving me up the wall!"

You rubbed the now likely red spot on your forehead, and she gave you a proud grin.

"Now, show me that confident smile," she said.

Meekly, you tried to do as she asked, still focusing on the aching mark. This only earned her a snort, as she put her hands in the air in front of her.

"We'll… work on it."

You frowned, bringing your hands to your hips.

"Hey!"

She burst out laughing harder at your reaction, which eased the wrinkles in between your eyebrows.

"There's that fighting spirit I like to see. Just, don't go scaring customers off with it—"

You scoffed, dragging your feet towards the door.

"No promises!" you joked, and heard her give an exasperated sigh as the door shut behind you. Not having any place in the dining area, you quickly rushed back into the kitchen. Yueshu was right on the dot, you had been working here for a week. Along with this, you had been in Liyue for a week. It was purely by chance that you had stopped outside the Xinyue Kiosk, and wondered if they had any job offers. Luckily, they did, and on your first day spent in the region you were working at one of the most popular restaurants they had to offer.

Of course, it wasn't that important of a job, so you couldn't say it was much of a feat.

Part of you wondered if you only got the job because they felt pity for you. You weren't experienced enough to be a table waitress, and definitely didn't have the skills it took to be a cook. You landed a job transporting food from the kitchen to the outside, where people got orders to-go.

Being such a popular restaurant, it took nearly three months to get a reservation inside. Therefore, Yueshu did more than just welcome patrons inside and guide them to their table, she also took the orders of those who couldn't get a reservation. Once the food was ready, you transported it back outside for the customers, and they were sent on their way—for someone with absolutely zero experience in the restaurant business, it was perfect. You were just a middle man, but it still took some hard work.

Hence, some of your mistakes. It was true, you were getting better, but you still had some slip-ups. Thankfully, none as bad as the Golden Crab incident. Some of these slip-ups included, but were not limited to, bringing out the wrong orders, forgetting to bring out the orders, and making a bit of a mess in the kitchen when you tried to carry one too many. Luckily, the chefs were never too harsh on you, and seemed understanding.

You were learning, if but a little slowly. They appeared to understand that life here was really different from what you had been used to before. You had left your home all on your own, leaving your past life behind. After what happened… you just couldn't stand it anymore.

Though, it wasn't a subject you preferred to talk about. The other employees understood after seeing your sullen face when they asked what made you want to move here. Being in Liyue Harbor was different, but it was exactly what you needed. At least here, those in charge of governing it all seemed less… dubious.

You promptly shook your head, hoping to rid yourself of those thoughts. There was no reason to mull over the past, you could do that later. Right now, you needed to focus on your job. Without any meals to carry at the moment, you wandered towards the dishes, where stacks of drying plates and silverware needed to be put away.

"You don't have to worry about those, you know." Glancing over your shoulder, Heli had walked into the kitchen. He was one of the waiters—he handled the inside, with the guests who had reservations.

"Oh, I know, but… It feels odd to just sit and wait to be needed. Everyone is busy with work, I figured this is the least I could do."

He wore a small smile, and sighed as he shook his head.

"Just don't break anything, please," he said.

You both exchanged a laugh, though yours could definitely have used a bit more confidence. You started putting the dishes away, standing on your toes to reach the top, but he didn't leave. Raising an eyebrow, you gestured to the plates with a fork in your hand.

"Would you like to help or are you just standing there to watch me?" you said sarcastically, making him exhale a short laugh.

"I was just thinking, it's about time for Mr. Francis' reservation. Once he gets here, after I bring all of his plates to him I won't need to worry about much, since he likes to book the whole restaurant. I can handle any of the to-go orders, so you won't need to worry about them."

You put some spoons in a drawer and gave him a confused look. "Is this your way of telling me to cut my shift early?"

He quickly shook his head, putting his hands out.

"No, not at all. I was wondering if you would be interested in doing some of the shopping for the restaurant," he suggested, piquing your interest. "We need some more supplies, and someone needs to get them; obviously the chefs can't leave, and Yueshu needs to stay outside to take orders, and I have to stay in case Mr. Francis needs anything." As you reached out to grab the last dish, he reached it before you, placing it in its spot on the highest shelf. "That's why I have this proposition: I'll provide you with a list of the supplies we need, and you can go to Dongsheng's shop, Second Life, to pick them up. Until you return, I'll cover your shift, so that I can still be here for Mr. Francis." He gave you a hopeful look as you wiped your hands off with a nearby towel. "How's that sound?"

"It sounds… doable," you said.

He smiled, his eyes brightening a bit.

"That's a relief to hear. I promise, it won't be anything too difficult."

You nodded, stepping over to your chair to sit down while you waited. "So, I won't need a huge cart in order to drag everything back? Just some simple supplies?"

He nodded, taking out a small pad of paper and something to write with.

"You definitely won't need a cart. It's just enough to ensure we don't run out and have to make an emergency run in the middle of the day tomorrow." With another nod, he started writing down a list of everything needed.

The most impressive part was the fact that he didn't look around the room once. Everything he wrote seemed to be from memory, whether one of the chefs told him or he'd observed it on his own earlier in the day. Over the past week, you'd realized that your coworkers were quite remarkable—you'd even seen Yueshu perform a balancing act carrying an unrealistic amount of plates to tables when the restaurant was behind on hands. Everyone there seemed perfect for their jobs, which caused you to worry a bit when you thought about your own. In the back of your mind, you hoped that the others had gone through this same struggle you were facing.

"And, there we go. That's all," Heli stated, placing the list down in front of you. "Once all of Mr. Francis' dishes are placed, you'll be good to go." Your eyes trailed down the list, skimming over the words; he was right, the list didn't seem too difficult.

"Alright. I'll be back as soon as possible!"

Heli smiled, before giving a curt nod and heading back into the dining area. With a sigh, you rested your head on your arm as you leaned against the table with your elbow. Now you just had to wait.

After about half an hour of taking out several more meals and handing plates and bowls to Heli to bring to Mr. Francis' table, everything was finally set for you to go. A fatigued Heli waved you off, as you briskly rushed out the door before Mr. Francis could mistake you for one of the table waitresses again. The man had eaten here every single night, but he was always too excited for his food to even remember who was who.

Standing outside, you took a deep breath of fresh air. Yueshu playfully poked your shoulder. "Don't be slacking off already! We still need you here, got it?"

You nodded, a small smile on your lips.

"I know, I know," you chimed, lazily waving your hand towards her. "Do you need anything while I'm out? Standing out here all day must be exhausting."

She rolled her eyes at you, a hand on her hip.

"I'm fine, trust me," she paused, reaching in her pocket. "Here, Heli told me to give you this. It should be just enough Mora to pay for everything you'll need. If you have to pay anything out of pocket, we'll pay you back." She handed you a small pouch, and the coins clinked inside of it as you shifted it into your own pocket. "Though, that man has a penchant for perfection. I'm sure it's the exact amount you'll need, not a single Mora more or less."

You laughed, shifting on your feet.

"You're probably right, thanks Yueshu." You started to walk, before stopping and turning back to her. "Are you sure you don't want anything?"

"What I want most is for you to hurry on up and get what we need!" she said.

You playfully let out a dramatic sigh, and picked up the pace down the road. Once you were almost out of sight, you heard a faint shout behind you. "Pick me up an order of Crystal Shrimp, please?"

Letting out a quick laugh, you turned back to her and gave a thumbs up in the air. You could barely see her, but you noticed the smile on her face.

As you walked down the road towards Second Life, you took a moment to give the list a closer look. Heli had everything jotted down incredibly neat—it would take a fool to mess this up.

You hoped that you were, in fact, not a fool.

Shaking your head, you looked back down to the list. Twenty parcels of shrimp meat, ten sacks of rice, five trays of potatoes, and three canisters of salt. You weren't buying singles of anything, you were buying in bulk, and hoped he hadn't run out of stock during the day. You didn't worry about being able to carry it all back or not, you were far from frail, but hoped that Heli had given you the right amount for this huge purchase. If he hadn't, you weren't sure if this was something you could pay out of pocket or not.

"Sir, please, if you would let me just make a few more sales, I'll have my entire debt paid off."

You paused, nearing the store. Was that Dongsheng?

"I don't have enough right now, but I just need a few more days."

Okay, that is definitely Dongsheng. You walked closer towards his booth, and saw there was a man standing in front of it as Dongsheng panicked. You couldn't see him, only his back, but you could see a mask swept to the side of his face.

Fatui.

Oh, what a way to end your first full week. A run-in with the exact kind of person you were avoiding? Not a chance. You wouldn't ruin your night like that. It was dark out, you were getting tired, and you did not have the patience for this. You had moved here to get away from the Tsaritsa and her Fatui goons, what was one doing here?

"If you'd just let me make a few more sales—" Dongsheng was begging the man, and without sparing him a glance you strode next to him, pulling the pouch of Mora out of your pocket.

"Not to interrupt, but I have urgent business here." Okay, it wasn't that urgent, but you were pissed off and were needed back for your position. "I have a list of supplies needed for the Xinyue Kiosk, do you have all of these?" you asked, handing the list to the still quite shaken man. He started reading it and backing up to search his wares and collect everything you needed, and you hoped the shuffling of his feet and the chatting of passersby would remain the only sound you'd hear.

Instead, your name filled the air.

This was different, though. It wasn't like when Yueshu was preparing to scold you, or if one of the chefs was trying to catch your attention. This made you take a sharp intake of air, suddenly feeling a chill as your face took on a pallor hue. You didn't want to turn your head—you didn't want to face the truth. In your heart, just hearing the voice was enough. Yet, when he said it again, the tone more edged this time, you couldn't help but direct your eyes towards the sound.

"Aj—" you went to say his name, surprise and dread pooling in your gut, but before the words could come out he clamped a hand over your mouth. Oh, this was not how you wanted to spend your evening. Why was Ajax here? What was he doing? You narrowed your eyes at him, plucking his hand from your face. "What's your issue?" you snapped, and the wide-eyed look he gave you was priceless. If only you were less irate, you might have appreciated it while it lasted, because it quickly disappeared into a cool, neutral look.

"I don't go by that name anymore."

You frowned, glancing up and eyeing his Fatui mask.

"…I see," you stated, turning away from him and back towards the merchant. He said your name again, this time placing his hand on your shoulder, but you shook it off. "Sir, if you could please hurry, I need to return to my station."

Dongsheng nodded, holding what looked to be about half of the goods you needed.

"I'll be right there! This is quite a large order you have." You nodded, fidgeting with the strings of the pouch in your hands.

"I hope this will be enough to pay off the rest of your debt?" The air was tense as you spoke these words, a coldness to your tongue. You could feel Ajax's eyes on you, and you tried not to cringe away from it.

"Yes, yes it should be…" Dongsheng mumbled, writing something in a notebook as he sat down the last of your goods in front of you. "That comes out to… exactly 29,800 Mora." You handed him the pouch, where he counted them out quickly. It seemed Heli had given you the exact amount, as he quickly closed it back up, sitting it down without asking for less or more. Though, you could still see the reluctant look on his face as his fingers drew back around the strings, the coins clinking once more as he shakily handed the bag to the man next to you. The Fatui man.

Ajax sifted through the coins, and you hated the pleased look on his face as you drew your eyes up to him. He plucked out a few, tossing them back towards Dongsheng, who caught them desperately.

"You got lucky, Dongsheng, this just paid off your debt."

The shop owner gave a heavy sigh of relief, his hand placed anxiously against his forehead. You picked up your bags, starting to walk off as you heard his next words. "I'll be back next week to collect the rest of your second. Surely, you haven't forgotten about that loan as well?"

You didn't turn around. You couldn't stand to see the sick expression his face must be wearing. You just tightened your grip on your bags, your knuckles turning white as you walked back to work.

Then your name, for a fourth time. Of course, you couldn't have a quiet walk back, could you?

Notes:

Only about a day after posting, and this already has 18 kudos?! I wasn't expecting any lol, thank you so much! Here's my Twitter if you want to talk, and thank you so much for reading!

Chapter 3: Ignorance

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

You didn't turn around, despite hearing your name called from him. Footsteps echoed towards you, but you kept your gaze locked ahead. Then your name a fifth, and even a sixth time. Finally, you snapped, seeing your childhood friend standing right behind you.

"Would you please stop? Don't wear my name out." You glared at him as you spoke, a fierce look in your eyes.

"Is this how you treat an old friend?" he said.

You ignored him and his stupid grin.

"You looked awfully cheerful to ruin that man's life," you retorted.

He ignored your jab.

"I don't remember you being this angry when we were younger."

"I don't remember you being in the Fatui, either."

He stared at you as you continuously berated him with your venomous tone. Yet, this was off. He didn't show a single expression of hurt or even confusion. The boy you knew would be wearing his face on his sleeve, but you couldn't tell just what this version of him was thinking.

"I'm sure your parents told you, it wasn't exactly hidden—"

"That's not what I mean," you snapped and turned back around, making it clear you didn't want to elaborate. His footsteps continued pacing behind you, quickly catching up to you this time.

"Let me help you with—"

"I don't need your help," you spat, not even glancing at him this time. You both had stopped walking, standing still. Neither of you said a word. People walked around you both, some tossing a glance your way, interested in what was happening. Most kept their eyes averted though, not wanting to accidentally get mixed up with a Fatui Harbinger. There it was again, a seventh time.

"…Why are you here?" he asked.

You kept your eyes locked on the stone below you, as if it would help keep you grounded. Your thoughts were bouncing from end to end inside your head, nearly sending you tumbling.

"I could ask you the same."

He let out a gentle laugh, one that sounded far too forced. Nothing like the times the two of you spent at home in Snezhnaya. "That should be obvious. The Tsaritsa." He paused, and let out another laugh. "Well, that and the Northland Bank."

Now, that piqued your interest. You looked up, whipping your head towards him.

"The Northland Bank?"

He raised an eyebrow, his grin still spreading across his face.

"Yes? It's right across the road from your work." Seeing your confused look, he pressed on. "It's run by the Fatui? Founded in Snezhnaya…?" The gasp that came from your lips only sent him laughing once more as you put the pieces together.

You left Snezhnaya to get away from the Fatui.

And in moving to Liyue Harbor, you landed a job at the first place you stopped, directly across from the same group.

If your mind was reeling before, now it was worse than ever. A series of "No"s, a few "Why"s, and a bunch of "Dear Archons how could I be this stupid"s were racing in front of your face, nearly clouding your vision.

An eighth time.

"Stop, just stop," you practically begged, shaking your head as he broke you out of your daze. "How do you even know where I work, anyways?" You wished he'd wipe that cocky grin off his face.

"I don't think Xinyue Kiosk just pulls random people off the streets to do their shopping for them." You scoffed, turning back away from him.

"Okay, yeah, whatever." Just ignore him. Ignore his footsteps. Ignore his presence. You could see his shadow on the ground from the lights hanging around you both, but you simply ignored it.

A ninth time.

You couldn't take it anymore. Your bags sat at your feet, hands achingly balling into fists at your sides. You had been standing there for too long. Despite there not being a bitter chill, you felt as if you had been frozen in place. You couldn't move your legs, despite wanting nothing more than to run back to the safety of Yueshu and the kitchen. Your breathing became ragged, as if your weak lungs were trying to force in the biting, cold air. And worst of all, you couldn't stop shaking, as if trying to warm your body up to feel something, anything.

You were taught this in Snezhnaya long ago. Never stand still in one place for too long. But, Archons, why hadn't you learned your lesson?

A tenth time.

You stood perfectly still. You knew he was in front of you. You could see his feet in front of yours. He was close, awfully close, but you hated it. Maybe if things were different, if they hadn't turned out the way they had, you could have appreciated this. His warmth, the coziness you missed from all those years ago. Yet now, all you felt was a distant cold.

" ...Ajax, why? " you whispered, barely audible, where you knew only he would hear. He didn't smack a hand over your mouth this time or raise his voice for you to stop. For a moment, all you heard was a sigh; he gave no hints to the meaning behind it, but all that came to mind was a deep-rooted irritation.

"It's Childe." He didn't even try to answer your question. Of course he wouldn't. Things were different now. As much as you hated it, you had to accept it. You couldn't run away from the truth any longer. This wasn't the same Ajax you knew and loved—this was Childe.

"Right. Childe." You paused, forcing the energy to crane your neck to get a glimpse of his face. You wouldn't be looking to see it for quite a while. "Please, just leave me alone," you muttered, yanking the bags of goods from the ground. He didn't say a word, just simply watched as you pushed past him, the fire back in your eyes. He hadn't warmed you up, only sent you fumbling back into the cold. Not wanting to disrupt your night more than you had, you set back towards Xinyue Kiosk.

Finally, you heard neither his footsteps nor your name called from behind you.

When you finally stepped foot back in front of the restaurant, Yueshu was quick to be at your side and help carry the goods. Though, it didn't take her any time at all to notice your demeanor.

"Did something happen?" You paused, the rest of the bags going slack in your hands, hitting the ground with a soft thud .

"…I forgot your Crystal Shrimp." By now, tears were forming in your eyes, and Yueshu hurriedly ushered you inside before you broke down. The restaurant was about to close up, so she brought everything inside and didn't bother heading out afterwards. Sitting at the chair you had waited in all week, she pulled one up opposite of you.

"What happened."

You didn't meet her gaze, fidgeting with the hem of your sleeve.

"I told you, I forgot your Crystal Shrimp," you said.

She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"I know there's more to it than that." She gave you a look, one that clearly said she meant no-nonsense, and you let out a sigh. "Come on, did something happen? Do I need to get one of the Millelith?"

"No, no, nothing happened." You shook your head. "Thank you for your concern, but I'm fine."

She frowned, narrowing her eyes. You had calmed down from how you were outside, but it wasn't hard to tell that you were still in a sour mood.

"I still find that hard to believe." She eyed you, and you gave her a helpless look, not having anything to say. After a few moments, her eyes softened. "Does it have to do with why you came to Liyue?"

"…Maybe."

She shook her head, standing up and patting your shoulder.

"If you won't talk about it, I won't force you. Just remember," she paused, gesturing with her hand for you to look at her. "You can talk to me if you need, alright?"

You gave her a small smile, feeling a bit embarrassed from the conversation. You appreciated her efforts, they really did mean a lot to you, but everything was still so fresh… It hit you in a way that was surprisingly personal.

"I'll just need to sleep it off. I'll be fine in the morning."

She cracked a small smile at you, but it was clear she still didn't believe you. You both stood there, and after the moment of silence she exhaled a soft laugh and gently punched you on the shoulder once more, just like earlier in the day.

"I'm counting you on that. Bring back that fighting spirit, or we'll have a problem."

You gave her a smile, a genuine one, and you both got ready to head home. She walked you out, and you both waved to Heli, who had just finished collecting the last of the plates from Mr. Francis' extravagant meal. After you left the door, you both parted ways, heading in the direction of your homes.

It didn't take long to get to your temporary abode. Until you could get more income to your name, you had been staying at the Baiju Guesthouse. It did make everything feel like some sort of long vacation, but you didn't exactly have many options. At least it was fairly close to the restaurant—the worst part was having to walk up the mountain of stairs every day. It was a trek you were willing to make though, since this was a job you did not want to lose.

You quickly stepped inside the building, noticing no one was outside. Usually Xiuhua, a waitress there, stayed outside and welcomed people. Yet, it seemed incredibly late, and you were just glad they hadn't locked you outside the massive doors to get inside. Quietly pulling out your key, you unlocked the room you had rented and stepped inside.

For the place you lived, it was pretty bland. It only added to that hotel feel—none of it was you. Maybe if you had brought more back with you, but… you didn't have much you felt like bringing with you from home. There were a few books you enjoyed sitting on the table, and a small plant you had bought on your first day, but other than that… there wasn't much to see. Instead of inspecting the near empty room for something, anything a little interesting, you chose to lie down and get some sleep. Flopping down on the bed, you were too tired to do much else.

And yet, sleep did not come easy. Your thoughts were loud , abhorrently loud. It was as if someone was screaming in your ear, ready to chew it off. You would admit, you had thought of Ajax—er, Childe—before this. He was a distant memory, a fond one that you missed. You wondered how he was doing, if he was okay, when he had last seen his family. Yet, you also wondered what had changed in him, why he joined the Fatui, and why he had left you behind. He left everyone when he left, and Archons know why he did.

While he was on your mind, it had been a long time since he plagued it like such. Seeing him again after so long… it made you realize that a lot had changed. He wasn't a child anymore, and neither were you. He wouldn't catch you when you fell, he wouldn't save you from a boar, and he by no means would tell you one of his father's stories. At the same time, you couldn't mess around with him like you did once before. No holding his hand, no playful games, and no sneaking out together. You were both separate people now; after growing and changing, what was once between you was gone.

You were sure that you weren't an important factor on his mind like this. After the night passed, whatever spark of interest he had in you would likely fade away.

Plus, you did tell him to leave you alone. You would hope that he still knew how to take a hint.

Turns out, he never did in the first place. Your jaw went slack and your hands balled into fists when you saw him standing right outside the Xinyue Kiosk. Right by the door you needed to enter. Speaking to Yueshu.

You'd have to sneak by if you didn't want him noticing you.

Of course, Yueshu was absolutely clueless. She did seem pretty baffled, surprised Childe was there, and was still there. Was he even ordering anything?! From your perspective, he was making idle conversation to pass the time.

Finally, she caught your eye and saw you standing there. You gave her the strongest "I Need To Go" look you could give her; if only she had paid attention. Instead of being a distraction, she said something else to Childe—probably "Oh, my coworker just got here!" or "Excuse me, I need to help one of our employees before the restaurant opens," in her naturally polite way. Instead of sneakily passing by, the Fatui man you were planning to avoid was now looking right at you.

You didn't want to see him smiling at you like that. As if everything was fine.

Yet, you didn't have much choice. Putting a pep in your step, you pushed yourself towards them—reluctantly stopping in front of Childe. Yueshu greeted you by name, smiling towards you. Then, as much as you didn't want to deal with it, it was Childe's turn to speak.

"Well, if it isn't Sunshine. I was hoping I'd run into you here."

You opened your mouth to speak, but found yourself going rigid when your brain processed what he said. Suddenly Childe was poking you in the forehead, that stupid grin still on his face.

"Hello, anyone in there?" he teased, making you swat his hand away in frustration. Your eyebrows furrowed as you stared up at him.

"Sunshine? What's that supposed to mean?"

He laughed—the same laugh as last night—and glanced towards Yueshu, who was barely stifling her grin.

"I think it means just what it looks like," he said as you put your hands on your hips. By now, Yueshu was barely holding in her snickers. Rolling your eyes, you went to step past them.

"Well, I'll leave you two to your fun little conversation. I have work to do," you stated simply, but someone didn't let you pass. Instead of walking by easily, an arm shot out in front of you and blocked your path. You looked up at Childe with a sigh; he appeared awfully proud of himself.

"Do you mind?" you asked him, fed up with his antics.

"Not at all."

"Well, I do."

"Oh, do you?"

"I do. Move ."

After your momentary bicker, Yueshu's laughter filled the air instead of your argument. You both glanced towards her as she wiped tears from her eyes.

"Oh my—" Yueshu paused, catching her breath, "I don't think I've ever heard you this frustrated with someone, kid."

You pouted and crossed your arms.

"Am I done here?" you asked, looking between the two with an impatient glare. Childe stepped forward, his arm still held out to block you.

"I was hoping to speak to you after last—"

"That's too bad."

You shoved his arm down, pushing him aside. You heard his footsteps behind you, and you gritted your teeth as you prepared for him to speak again.

"Sunshine, wait a minute," he said. Luckily, he knew better than to start a scene in the middle of the street, and kept his voice fairly low. With your last bit of strength, you took in a sharp breath.

"I'm going to have to pass."

Not giving him another look, you pulled open the heavy door and let it slam behind you. There weren't any guests, so you didn't have to worry about the sound. You blocked out everything around you, simply stomping towards the kitchen. He could have said another word; if he did, you didn't hear.

The chefs were already in the kitchen, getting early preparation done for some of the most popular dishes. The supplies you had gone out to get the day before were already tucked away, some of them even broken into as people moved around the kitchen and took what they needed. Stealing a few breaths to calm yourself down, you headed towards the back, where your seat was empty and waiting for you.

"Well aren't you a ball of sunshine," Heli said from behind you, and you whipped your head around to glare at him in shock. He was walking toward you with his notepad in hand.

"Did Yueshu tell you about that?!"

He gave you a confused look, raising an eyebrow at your sudden proclamation.

"Tell me what? It doesn't take a genius to see that you're in a bitter mood."

You had an internal sigh of relief, as you realized—and cursed—the coincidental name.

"Nothing, nothing," you said with a sheepish look. "Just forget I said anything."

He gave you a look, but after a moment seemed to realize it wasn't worth the effort to figure out what had you bent out of shape. He shook his head, flipping the page in his notebook.

"Well, now that that's out of the way, I need your help setting up some of the tables. We're a bit behind schedule, and these need to be fixed before anyone arrives."

With a quick nod, you followed him to the dining area, hoping to be of some use.

It was another long day of working, and luckily by the time you brought out the first order Childe was long gone. Yet, that didn't necessarily mean he had left your thoughts. Despite wanting to get away from him so badly, he had shoved himself right inside your mind and had a tight grip.

It was a miracle you got through the day without any accidents, as it seemed he was at the corner of every thought you had during your shift.

Notes:

I swear this is a romance I promise it is O(-(

Thank you for all the lovely comments and kudos! It really made my day when I woke up the morning after posting to see them (: I'm glad you're enjoying! Thank you to WobblyWeasels for beta reading, and here's my Twitter if you want to talk. Thank you for reading!

Chapter 4: Late Nights

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Despite such a long day, in the blink of an eye it was all over. Mr. Francis had eaten his extravagant meal, and you were washing the dishes of their grease and grime. The plates and bowls were piled up like some sort of sad tower, tempted to fall over at the wrong breath of air. It was amazing to you just how many dishes Mr. Francis went through—the man had quite the palate. You were tired after your shift, and this was just more to bear through. Either way, you battled through the mess of forks, knives, and spoons hidden between the dishes; your bed was calling you, but you weren't ready to leave just yet.

"Kid, you're putting our dishwasher to shame."

You snapped up, surprised with the sudden voice. As you turned around, you saw it was only Yueshu.

"Don't scare me like that!" you whined, setting down another clean dish. She practically snorted out a laugh, shaking her head.

"It's not my fault you're cooped up in the kitchen all by yourself. Even the chefs have left, kid." She pointed out with a gesture. Following her hand, she wasn't lying—the kitchen floor was completely empty. By the looks of it, even Heli had packed up and left for the day. He never left early, so that was enough to show you how late it was.

"How come you haven't gone home?" you asked, picking up another bowl.

"Well, someone had to remind you to leave as well. For a moment I was worried you were going to spend the night here washing dishes."

You rolled your eyes, placing the now clean bowl down. There were only a handful of dirty dishes left, and you'd be done.

"I only have so many dishes to wash, you know, I'd finish up and go home eventually," you said with a laugh, and she shrugged.

"Who's to say you wouldn't suddenly decide to wash the clean ones because they were 'getting dusty' or something?" she said, and raised an eyebrow as she saw you deflate a bit. "The kitchen's not exactly the most pristine place in the building, I was a little scared you'd decide to mop and scrub the whole thing down."

You scoffed, picking up some of the silverware. It was much easier to focus on the small items in your hand as you cleaned than to look at her.

"And why would I do that? I'm tired, you know."

She sighed, and from the corner of your eye you saw her pick up a spare towel.

"You should have left an hour ago," she stated and started to dry off one of the wet plates. "You've been happy to get home every day since you started here. Some days you looked so tired I thought I'd have to carry you out myself, but you always pushed through in order to leave. With the exception of yesterday, since picking up those supplies set you back a bit. Otherwise, you're the most diligent person to leave on time whom I've ever met."

She paused, putting away her plate and picking up another as you frowned. "Don't get me wrong, you're a hard worker, but no one goes from punching their clock as soon as the second hits to staying an extra hour to wash dishes that quickly without good reason."

You were on your last dish, slowly running your sponge over the smooth porcelain. It was already clean, but finishing it meant you had to meet her eyes. You had been weak enough in front of her and didn't want to add even more to the growing pile. Eventually it'd get to be too much, and just a little bit of fuel would set everything burning ablaze.

Sternly, she said your name.

You nearly dropped the plate out of shock, having spaced out for a moment as you washed it. After fumbling to hold it, she took it from your hands, washing the soap off of it and drying it herself. You just stood there, unable to move.

When she was done, she wiped her hands off on the towel, and placed them upon her hips.

"Kid, talk to me. I won't make you talk about your past if you don't want to, but if for some reason you feel unsafe to leave or scared to go home, I need to know." Her eyes burrowed into you, and you let out a sigh, knowing she wouldn't let you off the hook.

"It's… not exactly that. It's more like I just don't want to leave this room," you explained, picking up one of the bowls and putting it in its proper place. She picked up some plates of her own, quickly putting them away even faster than you could.

"Now I know you don't want to replace your surely very comfy bed at the Baiju Guesthouse with this cramped sink," she joked, making you huff out a soft laugh. She smiled before continuing with a gentler tone. "Is it because of this morning?"

You froze, and she gave a small nod. "So it is."

"I don't know what you're talking about," you retorted, eyes locked on the inside of a drawer as you placed the silverware away. Most guests used chopsticks, but you still had enough to offer in case anyone traveling couldn't use the chopsticks and needed them.

"Oh, come on, Sunshine," Yueshu mocked. Your eyes snapped to hers and quickly met her playful look with a harsh glare. "I knew it," she said with a small smile, completely contrasting your own expression.

You huffed out a breath of annoyance, shuffling around to put away more of the plates. You didn't speak, too irritated to say anything. After a moment, she sighed, and reached out to the last plate just as you did.

"I can get that," you said, eyes locked on it.

"Just wait a minute," she said gently. "As soon as you put that up you'll have reason to go somewhere else and avoid this conversation." Okay. She got you there. Taking your silence as your answer, she smiled and pushed the plate away from the two of you. "Alright, no more teasing, it's serious time. Sit down with me." She took your hand, leading you to your chair and pulling one up—it mirrored last night near exactly.

You both were silent. She crossed her legs as she rested her arms on them, looking at you closely. You stayed rigid, and after a moment realized that that was what was taking her so long to say anything. You relaxed a bit, reclining back in the chair and meeting her gaze. She smiled and sat up.

"So, I assume whatever happened last night has to do with Childe," she said.

You nodded, pressing your lips together nervously, knowing you couldn't dodge this conversation any longer.

"You hit the nail on the head."

She gave you a soft smile, putting a hand on yours.

"Well, now that we have that out of the way, is there a specific reason you're so pissed at him? I'll admit, I was happy to see your fiery spunk back, but I wasn't expecting it to be directed at a Harbinger."

You gave her a sheepish look, realizing how surprising it must have been for her.

"Yeah… sorry about that—"

She put a hand out, nearly smacking you in the face as she put a finger over your lips.

"Don't you start apologizing now! I trust that whatever he did was well-deserving of your fit of fury," she snapped, making your eyes widen out of shock. Now that was unexpected—you weren't prepared to get away scot-free after mouthing off a Fatui Harbinger right in front of the restaurant.

"Oh— Well…" You paused, taking in a deep breath. "It has to do with when I was little. I used to know Childe, when we were younger. I'm from Snezhnaya." She nodded, listening intently. "To put it simply, I left because of the Fatui. I wanted to get away from their reach, and to do that I had to go far from home. That brought me here, to Liyue." You stopped, running a hand over your head. "I knew Childe was Fatui. I knew his position, I knew everything . I just didn't want to believe it. I didn't want it to be true. Coming here and seeing him, and seeing that it all was real… it hurt."

She had a sympathetic look on her face, and her hand squeezed yours for just a moment in a comforting manner.

"So, it sounds like you need a break from seeing him for a while."

You gave her a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of your neck.

"Yeah, that would be nice."

She smiled, standing up and helping you to your feet.

"Consider it done."

You gave her a confused look, shocked by her confident tone.

"…How?" you asked, clearly baffled from it.

She grinned and walked over to the sink. "Simple. Just tell him to back off."

You flashed her an incredulous look.

"Just…? What?! Are you crazy?!" you shouted, and she rolled her eyes.

"You're the one who told him it was 'too bad' when he wanted to speak to you, and don't forget shoving your way past him."

You tried to speak, but only croaked out of shock when you couldn't find the words to say. You held up your hand defensively, but it wouldn't have done much, as Yueshu took hold of your palm and walked you towards the exit.

"Come on, I'll walk you home."

You stuttered out a rough "thank you" as she pulled you along with her. It wouldn't take long to get to your room, but you did appreciate the notion. Yet, you were worried about her. You knew Childe; you knew where you could and couldn't push him. The two of you had drifted apart, but seeing how he remembered you from then it appeared like you still had the right to be tense with him. You knew he wouldn't hurt you if you were a little annoyed, because to be fair, he should understand that you had every right to be annoyed. Yueshu was different. She was just a random civilian. If she got in his way, it worried you what he might do.

You wanted to trust him, but how could you? You trusted Ajax, not this Fatui Harbinger he had become. How could you be sure no one close to you got hurt? That's what scared you the most. You didn't want your influence rubbing off on anyone and sending them into the line of fire.

"Well, would you look at that?" The Baiju Guesthouse was within sight, but that isn't what caught your eye as Yueshu spoke. Your hand tensed around hers, as your eyes landed on the back of the Fatui man standing on the docks. It was clear it was Childe. One look at his red hair made him stand out like a sore thumb amongst the rest of the late night wanderers, and the bow strapped to his back didn't calm your nerves one bit.

"Let's just get inside before he sees us," you whispered, trying to step towards the safety of the guesthouse.

"It makes sense for him to be here, I would assume he figured out on his own that you must be staying here if you only just got here a week ago. Yet, the idea that he's tracked you down? Yikes, that's just too weird for me," she rambled, seemingly trying to help and empathize with your annoyance for him. Instead, it made you groan as your nerves were put even more on edge. Seeing him twitch but a moment after the sound practically set your nerve endings on fire.

"Yueshu, lets go inside. If you want to help me rant about him we can do that there," you practically begged, and seeing your trepidation she nodded. The two of you started walking towards the building, and to your relief Xiuhua had retreated indoors for the night.

Of course, as soon as you both opened the front door, there she was, ready to call your name in surprise.

"It's good to see you! I was beginning to worry something had happened," she exclaimed. He had to hear, he had to. Gritting your teeth to keep from saying anything, you waveringly turned your head. His eyes met yours.

He didn't look happy.

Your stomach dropped, and you worried you might squeeze Yueshu's hand off. Your heart was beating in your ear, trying to tell you to go. It was so loud that you almost didn't hear Yueshu's next words.

"Go on inside, I'll speak to him."

No. No, no, no. You couldn't let it be her. Not when he looked this angry. It might have been concealed enough from the two women beside you, but you could see it. He wore it in his eyes, something meant for you and you alone. He must have gotten tired of you avoiding him at every possible moment. How could you be so stupid? Of course he would get tired of that. You could only avoid and back talk him so much before he became exasperated.

"That's not happening."

Yueshu gave you a harsh stare, her brows quickly knitting together.

"I'm not playing around, kid. Go inside."

"I'm not either," you countered. "Lets go, now."

She said your name, an even harsher tone upon her voice.

"Yueshu," you replied desperately, but she wouldn't have it. Before she could put in another word, Xiuhua squeaked out from the doorway.

"Um… is there a problem?" she asked awkwardly, undeniably lost. Yueshu took this moment to her benefit.

"Not at all! Please, could you bring my friend here to her room? I need to speak with someone, but it's terribly late and I don't know how long I'll be." She stepped forward, whispering to Xiuhua as if you couldn't hear, "She gets pretty worried about me, but everything's fine. Just take her in, please?" Xiuhua nodded quickly, a bright smile on her face. Taking your hand, she brought you inside with a surprisingly strong grip. The door shut behind you just as Childe's footsteps stopped behind you both.

In an instant, you were in front of your door, with Xiuhua fumbling with the keys on her large keyring.

"Don't worry about her, she'll be fine out there! It's late though, you should go ahead and head on to bed. If you're still worried, I'll keep an eye on them from the window to make sure everything's fine!" She gave you a genuine smile as she spoke, and it was almost depressing how quickly she had been convinced to bring you in.

"Thanks, Xiuhua," you breathed out, disappointed, and she finally unlocked the door.

"It's no problem!" she replied with a cheery smile. "Sleep well!"

"…Thanks."

With one final bright smile, she turned around and left as you shut the door. The one good thing that came out of this all was that Xiuhua had given you a pretty good idea. Without a second to spare, you rushed to the window, seeing if you could find the two.

No luck.

You stepped back, but your worries quickly creeped back into your mind. Too many "What if"s were plaguing your thoughts, and soon you were back at the window. Unlocking the window latches, you hurriedly pushed it up, making enough room for you to lean your upper body out of it and look around. After a moment of twisting your body and craning your neck, you finally spotted them by the docks.

You couldn't see Yueshu's face—her back was turned towards you—but you could see Childe's. To your relief, he wasn't wearing that same angry expression. It seemed that once you were gone, he had no need to share that emotion with anyone; it wasn't like they had noticed it in the first place. Yet, it was a relief to see that Yueshu was, in fact, still in one piece. Childe's bow hadn't even been moved from its place on his back.

Why had you been so worried? Of course he wouldn't just up and murder some random civilian just for snapping at him. You hated the Fatui, but they weren't that merciless, right? He would understand that she was just the messenger, nothing more than a middle man. She wasn't the person to be mad at, if anything he should be mad at you. You didn't exactly want him to be mad at you, but it would be better you than for someone else to get hurt.

You wanted your break, but you'd give it up if it meant putting someone else at risk.

Either way, if you spoke with him and got it out of the way, maybe you could tell him how you felt. Surely, he would understand that trying to have a heartfelt and understanding conversation with you when you were in a mood like this would not work. It didn't work when you were younger, it wouldn't work now.

You hoped that it would be as easy as it sounded to speak to him about this.

Watching as they spoke, he wore a calm expression the entire time. It had been a long time since you could just watch him and see how he acted when your company wasn't around. Yet, the distance away didn't hinder you a bit. Even if you had been right next to him, you wouldn't have been able to tell what he was feeling behind his cool expression. He was practically unreadable, leaving you guessing as to what he was thinking about. You tried not to let unpleasant thoughts of anger and frustration directed towards yourself form ideas in your head, though it wasn't unrealistic. You hadn't exactly been friendly towards him. He wasn't even able to speak to you this time—he had to go through your, very patient, good friend.

Even with the window down, you couldn't hear much of their conversation. Words drifted in and out, but not enough for you to make sense of anything. They spoke fairly quietly—which was probably for the best, since there wasn't any loud yelling or fighting, like you worried about.

As soon as it began, it seemed they were done speaking. You didn't know how much you had missed, but they did seem to part peacefully. Childe wore a smile as Yueshu walked towards the front door of the guesthouse. You watched her disappear from sight, and trailed your eyes back to Childe, expecting to see him walking off or at least turning away.

Instead, you found his eyes staring at yours. Your grip loosened from the windowsill, and you almost slipped out of pure shock. He was staring at you without a hint of surprise, a small smirk materializing on his lips. You sent him a glare—he was getting entertainment out of the fact you were nearly falling out of a window to see what was happening!

How had he not been surprised when he saw you? There's no way he expected you to nearly throw yourself out just to see him and Yueshu… Right?

Had he known you were there the whole time?

Trying to pull yourself together, you retreated back inside the room, hearing gentle footsteps coming towards your door. Quickly, you peeked your head back out, holding up a finger and mouthing, "One moment." You could see his chest rise and fall from laughter as he shook his head, turning away from you. Unsurprisingly annoyed with him once again, you pulled yourself back inside and shut the window. Only a moment later there was a knock on the door and Yueshu's voice following it.

"It's me, can I come in?"

Soon, Yueshu was inside the room as you sat on the bed. She paced in front of you proudly.

"I don't think you'll have to worry about him any time soon," she bragged, "I really put him in his place."

You raised an eyebrow, thinking back to the peaceful conversation you had watched. "You did?"

She grinned, a hand on her hip as she stopped and shifted her weight.

"I did! Really scared him out of his wits. I'm surprised he didn't run off crying." She crossed her arms, a pleased look on her face. "You mess with Yueshu's friends, you get what's coming for you!"

You had to hold in a laugh—she obviously didn't realize you had been watching.

"Thank you, Yueshu, I appreciate it."

She gave a small, humble bow, seeming satisfied with herself.

"It was no problem. Let me know if he messes with you again—I'll make him regret it," she affirmed. It was getting difficult to hold in your laughter, but you swallowed the giggles as best as you could.

"I will, Yueshu." You paused, looking back towards the window. You were sure he was still waiting out there for you. "You know, it's pretty late. I think it would be best for me if I just turn in for tonight and sleep this out."

She smiled and patted you on the shoulder.

"That sounds like a good idea," she replied gently, but she wasn't leaving yet. Her eyes were drawn to the window you were looking at, and she started walking towards it. For a moment you were worried she'd see him, but it would be more suspicious if you tried to get her to not look out the window. She stopped in front of it, letting out a gasp.

Oh, she definitely saw him. She must have.

"Kid, you really need to lock these windows. You never know who could try to bust in here! Keeping them unlocked like this is practically asking to get robbed!" She reprimanded, and you let out a soft sigh of relief, knowing she hadn't seen him.

"Oh, I— I must have forgotten to lock them the other night. I left it open to get some fresh air." You left out a small pfft. "How dumb of me to forget."

She sighed, locking the window latches into place, and turning away from them.

"Well, don't forget again, or someone might try and steal something!"

You paused, looking around the room.

"Yeah, I would really hate it if someone stole my potted plant. He's really important to me," you jested, and she rolled her eyes.

"You know what I mean," she said and walked towards the door, patting you on the head as she passed you. "Get some sleep, okay?"

"I will," you lied. She believed it, though, and smiled as she left the room. Once her footsteps faded away, you jumped up towards the window, opening it and looking out.

You watched her walk away from the building, but Childe was nowhere in sight.

Notes:

I hope you guys enjoyed! Thank you all for the comments and kudos 3 they really make my day. If you're not new to this story, you may have noticed I got rid of the tag for graphic depictions of violence. I decided that where I wanted to take the ideas I have that might include that definitely wouldn't be as graphic as I thought, so for now I've taken it down. If later they get to be pretty bad, I'll definitely put the tag back up and warn you guys when that will be coming.

As always, a big thank you to WobblyWeasels for beta reading, and here's my Twitter if you want to talk!

Chapter 5: A Good View

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

"Ajax, there is no way I am jumping down from here!" Below your window, a young, frustrated Ajax stood below.

"Come on! It's not that far of a drop!" he retorted.

You frowned, your upper body leaning out of the window as you shouted.

"Not that far?! This is the second floor of my house! I'll die if I jump!" you argued, staring down from the safety of your room. Ajax had already hit double digits, but you were a year younger than him and hadn't yet—you didn't want to die before your birthday! He laughed at you, crossing his arms.

"No you won't! It's not even that far!"

You pressed your lips together, eyeing the ground below you. Sure, the snow might break your fall, but there was nothing else. This side of your house was a flat drop, with nothing else to support you on your way down. You trembled for a moment, looking down with pleading eyes.

"…I'm scared, Ajax…" He frowned for a moment, thinking to himself, before breaking out in a broad smile as he threw his arms into the air.

"I'll catch you!" he shouted. "Just jump into my arms!"

Your eyes widened. Was it really safe? You weren't sure. Your grip loosened just a bit on the windowsill, and you noticed the excitement building in his eyes from the small action.

"Why can't I just sneak out the back, like usual? I want to explore just as bad as you, but this is too much!"

He sighed, kicking some of the snow around as his arms dropped.

"Your parents are talking in the living room. You'll never get past them! This is our only option!" He did make a good point.

"…Alright."

His eyes lit up, and he quickly thrust his arms back into the air.

"Then come on! Jump!" he shouted, before quickly quieting his voice so he didn't get the two of you caught. "Or are you still a baby?" he teased, and you pouted.

"I am not!"

"Prove it!"

Taking a deep breath, you placed a shaky hand against the window rail and swung a single leg over the edge. Then another. Soon, you were sitting on the very edge of the windowsill, your arms bracing you from falling too soon.

"You ready…?" you squeaked out, your voice cracking from the pressure of it. Ajax laughed, his arms still up in the air.

"I'm ready! Come on!" he urged, and foolishly, you listened. Before you could realize it, you were falling through the air towards the ground. And the ground was becoming incredibly close.

Though, instead of meeting your doom, Ajax caught you.

Well… technically, he did. He seemed more like a landing pad than anything. He broke your fall. Luckily you didn't break him, but it still wasn't the most comfortable way down.

"That wasn't too bad," he said with a laugh as you tiredly pushed off of him, collapsing down on some of the snow surrounding the two of you.

"I've never loved the ground more than this moment," you said, in a daze of relief and terror all swarming in one. You sat up at the sound of his laughter, and saw that he had stood and was brushing snow from his clothes.

"I told you I'd catch you."

A small smile curved upon your lips, and soon you found yourself laughing with him. Maybe it hadn't been too bad. You were, in fact, still alive and kicking. You didn't die, and your birthday was only a few months away.

Your laughter continued to fill the air until he held your hand to help pick you up. Instead of smoothly coming to your feet, you whimpered out in pain and fell back down when he let go in surprise. At that moment you realized that he hadn't caught you completely—one of your hands helped to brace your fall.

A lot of firsts occurred that night. You jumped out of a window for the first time, nearly crushed Ajax for the first time…

and broke your wrist for the first time.

You couldn't lie, you were a little disappointed when you didn't see Childe outside the window. After working yourself up so much, you were ready to let out the truth and finally talk to him. In all honesty, you were unsure if that bravery would ever come back, or if you would just slink back into ignoring and dodging him left and right. You closed the window and walked back towards your bed, but something caught your attention.

"Hey girlie!" You perked up, surprised by the sudden shout. Slowly stepping over to the window, you pushed the glass up and looked outside. Yet, you didn't see Childe anywhere. That is, until you heard a whistle below you. Looking down, Childe was casually propped up against the wall of one of the adjacent buildings below. He was staring up at you, that same smirk on his lips as before, if not even wider.

"I thought you bailed on me, you know," you stated, propping your elbow on the windowsill and leaning your head on your hand.

"Well, I had to move somewhere else if I didn't want your friend to put a hole in me," he joked, and you rolled your eyes.

"She told me about how hard she went on you. For a moment I was worried you'd actually ran off crying like she said," you teased, and he barked out a laugh.

"Even if I did, I knew I'd have to come back. I wouldn't miss my chance to have an actual conversation with you."

You raised your eyebrows, looking down at him.

"Well, here's your chance. I'm here and listening, which is rare for you."

He laughed and shook his head as he pushed off from the building.

"Not here, let's talk somewhere else. Somewhere where I don't have to squint to see you."

You sighed, looking back at your door. Xiuhua definitely would still be downstairs and would insist with a passion that you go back to sleep. Or, she'd tell Yueshu that you snuck out, which would likely be much, much worse.

"No can do," you stated with a shrug. "There's no way I'm getting past Xiuhua down there. This is the best you're getting."

He raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sure you're forgetting an option," he said, and you stared down in confusion. "Sneak out once more, for old times sake?"

You furrowed your eyebrows, and then it hit you.

"No," you said sternly. "Not happening."

He laughed, crossing his arms.

"I knew you'd say that. But, you're going to have to get out somehow. You don't have many options."

You sighed, mainly because you knew he was right. If it was just him wanting to talk to you, you wouldn't go to this length. But… you knew you needed to clear the air now, or it might never be clear.

"At least it isn't a straight drop this time. You've got some leverage with the roof—" he added, but you snapped before he could finish.

"Fine."

"Fine?"

"I'm coming down."

"Attagirl."

You groaned at him, but it didn't stop you on your journey. You briskly stepped into the window frame, slinking your way through to stand on the roof below. There wasn't too much room, and you slowly and carefully made your way down the tiles to find your way to the edge of the roof. Yet, once you got there you realized the predicament you were in. The drop was very far, farther than you had realized, and there wasn't much to climb your way down on.

"Now what?" you asked, peeved with him as he had to have seen how far away it was from your window.

"Oh, come on, you're a big girl now. You can make this jump," he joked, and you sat down at the edge. Looking down where your feet swung high up above the ground, you shook your head.

"Yeah, no, that's not happening. We'll have to talk some other time, I can't make that."

The ground was so far away, and yet he acted as if this was just a puddle to be hopped over. He sighed, which caught your attention, and you saw his arms raised.

"Come here, I'll catch you."

No. Oh no, he was not doing this! You could hardly trust him not to murder your friend and coworker, how could you trust him for this! He'd already failed before, anyway!

"Last time I took a leap of faith into your arms like that I ended up with a broken wrist. Not. Happening."

He kept his eyes on you, and his arms didn't waver. You slowly started to stand up, prepared to go back inside.

"Like I could trust you after that! It took a long time to heal, you know. I still have a pop from it, see?" You popped your wrist. "It never goes away! All after that! If I break it again, how am I supposed to work at my job? And that's just considering I actually survive! So much could go wrong! That's not a risk I'm willing to take! I could end up with broken bones, or worse, lose my life! How am I going to explain that to my boss?! I won't be able to! Because I'll be dead! There's no way I'm—" Your ramblings were cut short when, as you turned around to head back up towards your window, your foot slipped on a loose tile. Instead of catching your balance, you were suddenly tumbling backwards through the air.

Luckily, you tumbled right into Childe's arms.

"Caught you this time."

You grumbled as he put you down, knowing that now there was no turning back.

"…Thanks," you mumbled, smoothing down your clothes. His laughter echoed from behind you, and you turned to meet him with a glare once you were finished. "Is the near fall to my death that funny to you?"

He calmed himself down, turning toward you with a small smile as you flashed a burning glare.

"It's not that, it's—" He paused, laughing once more. "Forget about it, it's not important."

He started turning and walked away from the building. You frowned, hurriedly following to keep up with him.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" you shouted, angrily walking behind him.

"It means, keep it down if you don't want to get caught," he said with another laugh. Yeah, that's definitely not what he meant.

But, he had a good point.

Okay, quieter this time, controlling your rage, you quickened your pace to walk side by side with him. Despite the closeness, you still didn't turn your attention to him. You might have wanted to talk, but that didn't change the fact that you held deep grievances against him. This was the best he was going to get.

"Any particular reason we couldn't just, you know, talk by the window? This seems like an awful lot for a one-and-done conversation," you pointed out, walking with your hands in your pockets.

"I figured some fresh air would be nice," he said simply. That was a lie.

"I can get fresh air from an open window, and you were standing outside. Nice try."

He shook his head with soft laughter, and you nudged a loose pebble on the ground in front of you. You both must have been a sight—him, getting a kick out of everything that happened, and you, prepared to strangle him on the spot.

"I did say I wanted to actually be able to see you," he said.

You grumbled. "And what if I was perfectly fine looking down from my window?"

He shrugged, catching your attention to look up at him.

"That's too bad," he mimicked, making your eyebrows knit in frustration as your eyes pierced him with another glare.

"Ha ha, very funny," you said sarcastically, and Childe let out a sigh.

"Calm down, Sunshine. I was hoping a nice walk might set you less on edge," he said, which… might have been true. You were angry, but you wanted to talk. Deep breathes, deep breathes.

"Okay, fine. I'll do my best."

He crossed his arms, looking down at you in mock surprise.

"So hardworking!"

"Don't push it."

He let out another laugh, a hand moving to his stomach. Yet, the more he laughed like this, the less you could tell if it was genuine or not. The small bouts of laughter seemed fake—they would be easy to toss in-and-out of a conversation—but these moments where he physically had to hold himself because of it… What would be the point of that much exaggeration?

The two of you had gone up a large flight of stairs and under a circular archway, looking as if you were headed to Bubu Pharmacy. At this point, you were just glad that he wasn't taking you towards the restaurant.

Turns out, you definitely were not headed towards the pharmacy to get a prescription filled. Looking down at the pools of water that surrounded the pathway, you hoped that he might stop there. At least that gave you something to focus on, like the fish swimming around or the lotus flowers speckling the area. Instead, he headed past these entirely, taking you up even more steps.

It wasn't long before you noticed that the stairs you were walking on were not as well cared for as the ones within town. Weeds were poking out between them, and soon there was soil and grass where there should have been stone.

"Childe, where are we going…?" you asked, pushing back your anger a bit for pure confusion as you looked around.

"You'll see."

You huffed in annoyance.

The walkway was becoming even more terrain than anything. You'd walk through hills, only to find a small patch of stairs weathered with age popping up in the distance. If it weren't for them, you wondered if you'd even be able to find your way back or if you'd end up lost without your new waypoints. Eventually you weren't even just walking, but came upon a ledge you'd have to climb over.

Childe easily pulled himself up and over it, but you, not so much. You propped your foot on a small ledge, hoping to climb over it as easily as him, but… things did not go according to plan. Of course, you heard soft laughter from above you as you struggled.

"It seems you're enjoying this much more than I am," you said snarkily, and he wore a smile down at you.

"Come on," he said, reaching his hand out towards you. With a frown, you hesitantly took it, letting him help pull you up. Once your feet were on the ground, though, you noticed a bit of white on his hand. It looked like a bandage, but as soon as he saw your eyes lingered towards his hand, it was swiftly in his pocket as if you'd just imagined it being there in the first place.

Without another word from either of you, the two of you continued on your way. You were tired and your feet were sore—you wondered how in Teyvat you were going to make it back, much less sneak back inside at this rate—but eventually Childe stopped.

"Please tell me we're here," you whined, a hand on your head.

"Unless, you feel like climbing some more," he joked, "we're here."

You let out a sigh of relief, stepping over towards the ledge. The two of you were on a small, flat platform of grass, and you quickly dropped down to the ground. It was nice to rest your legs, letting them dangle in the air. As soon as you were on the ground, you had closed your eyes, taking in a few slow breaths of air to relax. Then, you opened your eyes, and were suddenly glad you had taken those breaths, because in an instant you forgot to breathe. The whole of Liyue Harbor was in front of you, softly glowing in the distance.

"I figured if you hadn't been here long," Childe said, walking over and standing beside you, "you likely hadn't decided to come up somewhere like this."

You frowned, keeping your eyes forward. He was right, and he knew it. Yet, you just wanted to have a simple conversation. What was the point of all this effort? It'd just make it harder for you in the end.

Be that as it may, you couldn't deny how pretty the city was from here.

"No. I can't say that I have," you said, keeping your eyes drawn toward the flickering lights. To be honest, you were glad he had taken you somewhere where you could focus on something other than him. Though, you saw him shifting in the corner of your eye, and soon he was sitting down on the ledge next to you.

Shit.

"It's a lot easier to have a conversation up here. It's quieter, and there's fewer people who might hear…" He paused, gesturing with his hand. "… details that they shouldn't." Ah— details about him. His past. Who he is.

Yet, this was not something you wanted to talk about yet. You wanted to clear the air, but not enough to reveal everything. You just wanted a break from him. That was all you wanted. A conversation about your pasts was not what you were prepared for.

"…Five more minutes," you breathed out, staring ahead of you. He let out a soft chuckle, standing to his feet to give you some space.

At least he wasn't an idiot.

You wanted to be angry at him. You wanted to have a riot. You wanted to throw things at him left and right, to tell him off. You wanted to yell, to shout, to let him know how you really felt. Years had gone by, years filled with confusion, doubt, hatred, and a desperation for it to not be real. And yet here he was in the flesh.

You didn't want to tell Childe you hated him, but it was hard to keep put when he had that stupid mask on.

It wasn't long before your "five minutes" were up. You felt something hit the back of your head, thumping on the ground a few inches away. Looking down, it was a small pebble. Looking up, you saw the culprit: Childe—with a grin on his face.

"Time's up," he teased, and you rolled your eyes.

"Impatient," you said with a huff, but couldn't help wear a small smile from the childish action. He simply stood there, looking at you, and you couldn't tell what was behind his eyes. After a moment, you sighed, gesturing with your hand for him to come back.

"Come on, you don't have to just stand there. Sit down," you muttered, and in a moment he wore that same signature grin and sat beside you. The two of you were silent for a few more moments, looking out to the scenery in front of you. It was too far away to see anyone passing through the streets, but lights were slowly turning off as the night ticked on.

"I'm sure you understand what we're here to talk about, right?" he asked, and you both clearly knew the answer.

"Yeah… that," you whispered, and he sighed.

"That," he stated, and you both kept your eyes locked away from each other, both staring ahead. Letting out another sigh, he spoke up. "So, who's going to start?"

Notes:

Holy Jesus Christ? Over 1000 hits? And over 100 kudos? This is mind-blowing, thank you guys so much! I'm glad you're enjoying this (:

Thank you to WobblyWeasels for beta reading, and here's my Twitter if you want to talk!

Chapter 6: A Simple Conversation

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

You both sat there, staring into the open. Waiting, waiting, waiting, for who might speak first. Eventually, you took in a deep breath, and got ready.

"I've been—" the two of you started at the same time, quickly cutting each other off. After an awkward moment of looking at each other in shock, Childe quickly wore his grin and laughed.

"Go ahead," he said with a wave of his hand. You nervously pressed your lips together, turning back towards the city.

"Well, I'm sure it's obvious that I've been pretty angry with you lately."

He laughed, raising an eyebrow.

"Really? I couldn't tell," he said sarcastically, making you huff in annoyance.

"And, I'm sure you've put the pieces together that it's because you're Fatui," you said, sharper this time, making him go silent for a moment.

"Yes, I did." He paused. "I've been Fatui for a long time, Sunshine."

You narrowed your eyes, looking down at the space below you. Your feet dangled, and it was a far drop before they would touch the ground.

"I know, but…" You paused, taking in a deep breath. "It was so sudden. One day I went to visit you, and you weren't… you anymore. Something was wrong. I tried talking to you about it, and nothing." You stopped, your hands gripping the green below you. "I was worried, you know. For the longest time I thought I'd done something. Suddenly you could never hang out, and the spare moments you could you weren't interested in any of the things we used to do. It wasn't until later that I realized where you were going." You didn't need to elaborate. He knew where he was going. Without even saying the words, you were practically screaming it.

Fatui, Fatui, Fatui.

He stayed silent, letting you continue.

"Though, that isn't what made me mad. Sure, I was upset. I was hurt for a long time—I lost my closest friend. Yet, I still admired you. I didn't care about the Fatui aspect, in my eyes you were finally becoming the hero you always dreamed of." You paused. The hero I always knew you were, you silently added in your head. "Of course, that idea faded once I actually interacted with the Fatui."

You wondered, did he know what happened? What you'd been through? How the past few years had been for you? He kept staring out in front of him, and even if you could clearly see his face you wouldn't be able to see what he was thinking. At least he wasn't wearing that stupid grin. He was silent, though. He wouldn't say a word.

"My parents went into debt, Childe."

He turned toward you, but even as you looked him in the eyes, nothing. You couldn't find a speck of sympathy. As you expected.

"They wanted to pay for me to go to a nice school," you said, keeping your eyes locked on him this time. "My dad was looking for ones away from Snezhnaya. Somewhere warmer, he'd tell me. Eventually they found one that they could nearly afford, but they just didn't have enough. Since they knew you and your family, and you were Fatui, they figured it would be okay to take a loan out." You stopped, narrowing your eyes at him as the grass between your fingers started to rip from the ground. "They trusted you, Childe."

You both were silent, but after a moment he finally spoke up, albeit quietly.

"I never told them—"

"I don't care if you never told them it was a bad idea," you snapped. "It doesn't change how it turned out. I was sent off to the school, had a wonderful two years, but eventually the funding stopped and I learned the truth." You paused, looking forward again, speaking softer this time. "The Fatui ruined my life. Seeing you and that mask… was a painful reminder." The silence returned, and for a moment you thought he would leave it at that.

"I can't apologize for what happened," he said, and you forced your eyes shut. His words were going to sting; you should have been more prepared for this. "But if it means anything, I didn't want them to take the loan. I tried to fix everything, but I was too late."

…Huh?

You turned towards him, eyes wide and unable to hide your surprise. Yet, as soon as you looked towards him he was standing up and walking away from the ledge. He stood behind you, where you wouldn't be able to see him easily.

"What do you mean? You tried to fix it?" you asked, bewildered, and turned yourself around to face him. You were still on the ground, sitting on your knees, but he wouldn't look at you now. He was facing away from you, his back turned towards you. When he wouldn't reply, you let out a sigh, letting your hip fall to the ground and propping yourself up with your arm.

You kept your attention to the side, keeping him out of view. Here, you could see the ocean that surrounded Liyue Harbor. It was dark, to the point you could barely see the waves moving. Though, even if you could you doubted there would be much to see. The harbor wasn't turbulent, and had a peaceful nature to it. It was much easier to dissect than anything that you had learned from your trip here.

Then, something smacked you in the back of the head once again, something bigger than a pebble this time. You let out a surprised yelp, since it actually hurt this time, and turned toward Childe with a frown.

"You know, you could just say my name to get my attention. You don't have to keep throwing things at me."

Childe had turned back to you when you shouted in pain, but you were surprised by the way he looked at you. For once he wasn't hiding anything behind fake smiles or façades—he had a look of genuine alarm on his face. His expression was unsettled as his eyebrows drew together.

"I didn't throw anything," he said seriously, and you quickly stood up, suddenly confused.

"Something definitely hit the back of my head, though…" you said quietly, looking around. Abruptly, your eyes landed on something new in the distance. There was a group of hilichurls coming towards you, and one had a rock in its hand. Tossing it towards the two of you, you dodged it before it hit you, and it tapped its way across the ground until it stopped by another rock of similar size and shape. The one that had just hit you.

You had never dealt with hilichurls before. You didn't fight—there's a reason you looked for work in a restaurant and not the Adventurer's Guild. Yet, looking up to Childe, any worry on his face was scrubbed clean; if anything, he looked excited. He still wore a serious expression, but you couldn't miss the small grin that was forming on his lips. Just as this was happening, you noticed the droplets of water that were beginning to amalgamate at his fingertips.

"You've never seen me fight before, have you?"

You frowned at his statement, looking up at him.

"No, and I wasn't planning on it."

He laughed, stepping in front of you and putting a hand out.

"Just stand back," he said cheerfully. "It's not everyday someone gets to see me on the battlefield that isn't the target."

You crossed your arms, rolling your eyes. You didn't particularly want to watch—mainly because being near was risky. What if while he was focusing on one hilichurl, another came for you? There wasn't much room to run—the ledge was only so big, and the drop backwards was even worse—so you didn't have many options if one came for you.

Yet, before you could even react, Childe was already dashing forward. The water at his hands had merged into two daggers, which he didn't hesitate to put to use. Soon there were flashes of blue surrounding him left and right as he quickly swung his weapon made of water at his enemies. They were loud, shouting an abundance of words in their confusing language, but their speaking was quick to become grunts and noises of shock as he pummeled through them.

When there was a bit of distance between him and the monsters, he'd switch to his bow—though, while it was still impressive, you couldn't say it was as seamless as his work with the daggers.

After watching him for a bit, you weren't sure why you had been so worried. He took the hilichurls down like they were nothing, sending them collapsing in an instant. It made you wonder just how weak they actually were; he didn't seem to be doing much to defeat them.

Though, seeing him in action did allow for one thing. You could finally see his hand. He'd hidden it somehow the entire time, and you hadn't been able to piece together if what you thought you saw earlier was true or not. Yet, in the midst of the flurries of blows, you saw it. There was clearly some sort of white cloth wrapped around one of his hands. It was still too far away to see clearly what it was, but you knew it was there.

Soon, the once bustling area returned to the quiet clearing it had been before, as he swiftly took down the last hilichurl. He was facing away from you, fairly far away, still holding one of his daggers in hand. Letting out a sigh of relief, you called out to him.

"Is it over?" you shouted, hands cupping your mouth. You could hear him laugh as he turned towards you, but it quickly caught in his throat when his head turned around. His eyes were wide for a moment, and were stuck on something behind you as his eyebrows drew closer together.

"Sunshine, hold still."

Confused, and against your better judgement, you turned around.

Coming towards you was a hilichurl who had leapt into the air, holding a wooden club in its hand that was ready to come down on you. Your feet were practically glued to the ground as you went paralyzed, and you let out a quick shriek as you closed your eyes and braced for impact.

Yet, it never came.

Gradually prying your eyes open, the incoming hilichurl was nowhere to be found, the only remnants of it being a broken mask that laid sadly on the ground. Surprisingly, you hadn't hit the ground out of shock from seeing the monster come towards you. You soon realized the reason why—both still upright and still intact—Childe stood right beside you. He had one arm around your shoulder so you didn't fall, the other lowering down from where he had attacked the hilichurl.

Once your fear of death faded a bit, you noticed the proximity between the two of you. Quickly jumping a step away, you tried to find the right words to say. Instead, you looked more like a fish out of water trying to put something together. As Childe's dagger drifted away, he closed his eyes with a small laugh.

"You're welcome," he jested. For a moment, he actually reminded you of his childhood self. It was a hilichurl instead of a boar this time, but you'd say it was an improvement. You couldn't help but let a warm smile cross your lips, even as your eyebrows dipped from confusion.

"…Thanks," you responded, but as soon as his curious eyes landed on your expression, you quickly turned your head down toward the ground and got rid of your smile, abruptly becoming embarrassed by your own thoughts. Bending down, you picked up what was left of the hilichurl mask. This was all it left to prove that it was there, but it was enough to show that it'd been hurt in the battle.

Which reminded you:

"Let me see your hand."

Childe stiffened, seeming surprised by the request.

"…Come again?"

You frowned, setting the broken mask down and rising to your feet.

"You hid it earlier," you said, pointing to his hand, which was now conveniently hidden inside of his pocket. "But I saw it when you were fighting. There's something wrapped around it, and I want to see."

He stared at you for a moment, before sighing and rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. After a moment of raising an eyebrow and shifting your weight, he finally took his hand out of his pocket and put it in front of you.

The white cloth was, in fact, more than just some random accessory. It was a bandage. Without even thinking, your body moved and your mouth spoke at instinct, regardless of what you did or what came out. In an instant, you had rushed over to him, holding his hand with both of yours.

"Childe! What happened?! Dear Archons, why are you fighting when you're injured?!" you shouted, inspecting his hand. It didn't look too bad, but to have it wrapped up was worrying.

He laughed at you, shoulders shaking lightly, which only earned him a glare from you. After a moment of his laughter slowly dying out, he shot you an incredulous look.

"Wait— Don't tell me you don't remember?"

You frowned, still holding his hand in yours.

"Remember what?" you asked, and he let out an awkward laugh—nearly an awkward snort.

"Sunshine, you slammed my hand in the door."

Huh?!

"What are you talking about?!" you shouted, even more confused—if that was even possible on a night like tonight.

"You're squeezing my 'wound,' Sunshine," he said with a softer laugh. Just as quickly as you had grabbed it, you dropped his hand and stepped back out of embarrassment.

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Do you really not remember?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and pointing to his wounded hand. "I was trying to talk to you at Xinyue Kiosk, and you wouldn't give me the light of day. You slammed the door in my face, and literally on my hand," he explained, holding the bandaged hand up in the air where you could see.

Of course, you remembered back to that moment—the day after first seeing him again. You had been so angry, so utterly pissed off, that you weren't paying attention to anything around you. You had wanted to get inside, and to get away from him. It didn't matter what got in your way; you wanted out.

He could have said another word; if he did, you didn't hear.

Well, isn't that just fantastic. Here you were, fussing over how he shouldn't be fighting with an injury, and yet he was protecting you: the one who gave him the injury in the first place. You let out a heavy sigh, running a hand over your face in frustration.

"Childe—" you nervously began, "I think we got off to a bad start."

"You're about fifteen years too late, Sunshine," he said with a laugh, and you swatted your hand at him in annoyance.

"You know that's not what I mean. A bad start… here. Instead of being happy to be reunited with a childhood friend, I just got angry and let all of my frustrations out on you when it wasn't even your fault to begin with."

He raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms.

"Is this an apology I hear?"

You shot him a glare, a hand propped on your hip.

"Be thankful for what you're getting," you snapped. "Because I'm not entirely giving up here. I'm still angry, and I'm still angry with you. There's a lot of questions I have unanswered, ones that I would appreciate getting some answers to." You paused, taking in a deep breath. "I'm not saying I want to go back to being the best friends we were before, but I'm willing to take down a few barriers to get back on the right foot. Especially after you went to such lengths to protect me when I've been nothing but a pain to you since we found each other again."

He smiled down at you, and lightly patted you on the head with a grin.

"Apology accepted."

You groaned, shoving his arm away from your head as he burst out laughing. You wore a pout, stepping towards the path back to the harbor.

"You know, I don't remember you being this much of a tease," you shot.

"The last I recall, I don't remember you being this little of a tease," he countered. You kept walking with a scoff, moving towards the stair waypoints you had seen before, only stopping once you reached the point you had to climb before. Though, once Childe easily dropped down past it, you were left standing above him.

"Sure you don't want any help?" Childe asked, and you frowned.

"I'm good. I got up here, I can get down."

"You got up with my help," Childe pointed out, and you shot him a look. "Plus, I wouldn't want you breaking something. You were so worried about breaking your wrist again, I wonder how you'd serve dishes with a broken ankle?"

You groaned, jutting out your hand towards him.

"If you want to help me so bad, just do it," you said sharply, and he laughed as he took hold of your hand. He helped ease you down, which in the end probably was a much better idea than your plan to leap off and pray.

You both kept walking back towards the guesthouse, which on the way you wondered just how you would be getting back inside unnoticed. It was late, but they had someone awake in the lobby at all hours in case someone needed a room. Somehow Xiuhua would find out, which would lead to Yueshu finding out; you'd surely be in hot water if that happened.

On top of that, you were tired. You thought you were sore on the way up, but now? You could pass out and spend the night sleeping on dirt and be happy. Everything ached, and by this point your bed was screaming for you to come home.

Eventually, you both stopped outside of the building.

"I don't know how you plan on getting me back inside," you said with a frown, "but I hope it's good." You crossed your arms, eyeing him from the side. He flashed you a smile, crossing his own and mimicking you.

"I've got that covered. Look there," he said, and you drew your eyes towards where he was looking. There was someone walking to the building, and the first thing that caught your eyes was the Fatui mask that covered their face. They looked to Childe, as if looking for approval, to which he nodded in response. They hurried inside, and you quickly looked between him and the stranger.

"And what was that?"

He smirked.

"Your ticket inside," he paused, gesturing toward the building. "At a time as late as this, there shouldn't be more than one person working the desk, which is all you'd need to worry about. If someone checks in, they'd leave their station to bring them to a free room, to which you could sneak inside to find yours. It's simple." You frowned, not appreciating that he was bringing the Fatui into your personal life, especially after your talk today. Though, you didn't have any better ideas, and you wouldn't be able to climb in through the window from the ground.

Still, it made you wonder just how many pawns he had to play around with, given his position.

"I suggest you hurry, before they get back," he said.

"Yeah, right…" You stepped forward, grabbing the door and pulling it open slightly. "Bye, Childe."

He smiled, bringing up his hand in a wave.

"Goodnight, Sunshine."

You huffed out a soft laugh, and quickly stepped inside.

Soon enough, you had gotten all the way to your room without any hindrances or anyone seeing you. It was incredibly quiet by yourself now, and you found yourself drifting to the still open window.

Curious, you leaned out of it like earlier that night, almost hoping you'd catch a glimpse of him. Yet, nothing was there, and you let out a sigh as you pulled inside and shut the window. Still, in the motion you could have sworn you saw a dash of red, maybe fabric, for just a moment gliding through the air. Though, it was gone as soon as you had noticed it.

You were nearly unbearably tired, but there was still one thing you needed to do. It was the end of the week, and you'd be getting paid tomorrow. After paying your bills for the room and setting a bit aside for food, you would need to send out a letter containing whatever was left immediately. This was to ensure no one got hurt, afterall, so it was urgent you didn't forget. Taking out an envelope and digging for a pen, you quickly filled out all of the mailing information so that all you needed was to put the Mora inside and send it on its way. Finishing your work, you pushed the letter aside and practically fell into bed, leaving it to wait on the desk.

At least in slumber you wouldn't have to worry about the letter addressed to the order of the Northland Bank in Snezhnaya.

Notes:

Thank you for reading another chapter! Thanks to WobblyWeasels for beta reading, and hit me up on Twitter to talk!

Chapter 7: More Errands

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Admittedly, staying up into the latest hours of the night is not the best idea when you have work in the morning. You nearly slept through your alarm, barely having enough time to get ready for the day. Despite this, you rushed into the building without a minute to spare—luckily with shoes on both feet.

You likely looked like you were about to pass out, because Yueshu was already coming your way with a worried glance, even though it was this early in the morning.

"Kid, did you even sleep last night?" she asked, and you sheepishly rubbed the back of your neck.

"Yes, but… sleep came difficult."

She sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Well, let's just hope today is a slow day," she breathed out. Just as she finished, Heli called out from inside the kitchen.

"Yueshu, have you heard back from our courier?"

She sighed, shouting back to the kitchen.

"Nothing yet—I've been waiting in here in case he tries to come through the back, but there aren't any signs of him."

You could hear Heli's frustrated groan from the dining area, and turned to Yueshu with a curious look.

"Courier?"

She nodded, fiddling with some table decorations and fixing their placement.

"Yes, we placed an order recently for a few supplies that we can't purchase from vendors here in Liyue. They were supposed to be delivered nearly two hours ago, but there's been nothing," she paused, hands on her hips. "It wouldn't be a problem if we weren't running low on stock, but we've got a lot of food to put out and supplies are running thin."

Seeing the uneasy look on Yueshu's face, you realized that being behind schedule was not something she enjoyed. If this was bothering her, you worried what you might find when you had to see Heli—he'd likely be livid.

It was almost time to open back up, and Yueshu couldn't stand inside the whole day waiting. No one could, really. You weren't a dining area waitress—you didn't know how to be one. Even if you could learn quickly, you doubted Heli, being a perfectionist, would be okay with throwing you out into the field as you were.

All you could do was hope that the courier arrived in time.

Soon, Heli walked out of the kitchen. You expected him to be nearly flaming, but he just walked out carrying his notebook as if everything in the world was fine. You could hardly read the expression on his face—if anything, Childe definitely had some competition in the façade department. Taking in a deep breath, you faced towards him.

"How are things holding up back there?" you asked, hoping to sound nonchalant.

"Perfectly fine," he stated sharply, and the jarring tone surprised you. It came out of nowhere, since his expression was so neutral.

Mental note: don't ever make Heli mad.

"That's… good…?" you replied hesitantly, which only earned a muffled mhm from him as he jotted something down on one of the pages he held. Yueshu let out a sigh, the displeased look on her face deepening as the minutes passed by.

At last, there was a panicked rapping on the front door of the restaurant. Yueshu rushed to open it, and everyone in the room stopped everything to look up.

The courier was there, but his hands were empty.

"Is this Xinyue Kiosk…?" he asked nervously, and Heli stepped up to the door.

"It is," he replied tersely. "Where is the delivery?"

The man fidgeted with his hands, eyes averted from the whole scene.

"Well, you see, I ran into a group of hilichurls on my way here—"

Before he could even finish, Yueshu had already turned away with an annoyed tch. She was walking toward the other end of the dining room, likely trying to keep from fuming in the man's face.

"You still seem to be in one piece," Heli said curtly, and the man shuddered. You would too if you were him—Heli still had that same unbothered expression on his face, yet still spoke so harshly.

"Well, yes…" he stuttered out, "but I assure you! The packages are as well!"

Heli was gripping his pen strongly, and you worried it might just break.

"Well, where are they?" he asked, and the man almost deflated.

"The thing is… I couldn't pass the hilichurls with everything, they would definitely see me. Instead, I had to leave everything there and sneak around. I could have waited for someone to come clear the area, but I knew how popular this restaurant is and figured you should know the situation at hand."

"So," Heli started, his pen seriously looking like it was about to meet its end, "you thought the best course of action was to leave everything we purchased unguarded, near hilichurls, while you ran away so that they could stumble upon them and destroy everything?"

The man recoiled, sweat forming at his brows.

"Well… When you put it like that…"

You tilted your head, confused as you spoke up.

"If it was so easy for you to get around them unharmed, why didn't you just carry everything with you? Wouldn't it have been better to go a little further than necessary if it meant you came back with what you were supposed to deliver?"

He frowned, wiping some of the sweat away with the back of his hand.

"But… I had my cart…"

"It doesn't change the fact," Heli brought up harshly, "that you came back empty handed. We need those supplies, and someone is going to go get them."

Yueshu finally walked back towards us, still looking annoyed, but seeming to have calmed down a bit.

"I'll call in a commission with the Adventurer's Guild—"

"No," Heli cut her off, "We don't know how long it will be until someone accepts it, and we don't have the time to risk that." The two of them faced each other and quietly debated between different names, but each time one suggested someone the other swiftly turned it down. When it didn't seem like they would ever make a decision, you quietly spoke up.

"I can go."

The two snapped their heads at you, neither seeming too impressed with your suggestion.

"Kid, don't play around," Yueshu scolded, and Heli nodded in agreement.

"I appreciate your wish to help, but that's not an option," he added.

"Why not?" you said with a raise of your voice. "My job is easy to replace, you've done it before when I went to Second Life for supplies, Heli. If you need someone to leave immediately, I'm your best bet."

The two exchanged a look, clearly not happy with the idea. Yet, you were right. They'd be wasting time if they tried to get someone else. Plus, you'd seen how easily Childe took down those hilichurls! It couldn't be that dangerous.

"You don't even have a weapon to protect yourself," Heli stated, frowning deeply. "What do you think you'll be able to do?"

You paused, crossing your arms.

"I don't need to fight them. What matters is that I can sneak around them. There is a cart, so I won't be taking a bunch of trips or struggling." You stopped and wore a small pout. "I guess if any did notice me, I think I would be able to hold my own fairly well. And, I can run fast, just in case it somehow is too much for me to take on."

The two were silent once more, but after a moment Yueshu sighed.

"You know what?" she began, "She's got the fighting spirit back in her, and definitely seems more dedicated to going out for it than any of us do. Plus, she's right, we can easily cover her shift, unlike the others. I say we let her go." Your eyes brightened when she agreed, and you felt a smile sprawling across your lips. Turning toward Heli, he still seemed unsure, but after a moment took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

"Fine. It's the only option we have left."

You grinned, quickly turning back to the man in the doorway.

"Alright, tell me where those supplies are."

After a moment, the courier had marked down on a small map for you where the packages were being stored, and where he last saw the band of hilichurls. It was just a small map of Liyue, but it was enough. Luckily, it wasn't too far out of town. Though, it'd still be quite the walk. It was a bad time to be regretting not getting more sleep.

The man gave a few more apologies, all of which Heli and Yueshu practically ignored. It was clear they were far less than pleased. To save him more embarrassment, you saw him out and thanked him for… trying to help, at least.

Stepping back inside, the two were still standing in the dining area debating about something. When they noticed you were back and the man was gone, they walked over to you.

"Kid," Yueshu started, her annoyed look having softened into one of concern, "you don't need to go out by yourself. If anything, we can head out to ask if anyone from the Adventurer's Guild would be willing to take a last minute offer. We'd even pay them more if needed. There's no use putting yourself in harm's way."

You shook your head, crossing your arms.

"No, there's no reason to bring some random person into this. You can't even trust if they'd bring everything back in one piece. They might just be doing it to fight the hilichurls, not even worrying about the cargo," you argued. You didn't want business to be messed up—that's why you had to do it.

Everyone at the restaurant had an important job. All you did was walk dishes from the kitchen door to the front door. Today, you wanted to do something more significant.

"If you're that confident that it'll be alright," Heli said with a sigh, "then I don't see a reason to not allow it. I expect you to come back in one piece."

You quickly nodded, a confident grin appearing on your lips.

"Of course! On top of that, not a single item will be broken, I'll make sure everything gets here in the way it was intended to."

The two exchanged another look, and Heli sighed.

"Just stay safe, alright?" he finally said, seeming exhausted. "I've got work to do in the kitchen before we open; I'll leave this to you," he said and handed you a small list, which seemed to be all of the items that should have been delivered. He stepped away from you both and walked back out of view, but Yueshu was still there with you.

"I don't have much to add on top of what he said," she stated, hands moving to her hips. "But, stay safe. Don't do anything stupid."

You swiftly nodded, still smiling towards her.

"I promise, I'll be fine. It's just some hilichurls, even if they did see me I could take them on," you said optimistically. She sighed, bringing a hand to her head.

"Let's try to avoid that, please? Don't throw yourself into danger just to say you did it," she said seriously, but you could hear the worry in her voice. Your smile faded a bit, but you kept that confident expression on your face as she looked over to you.

"I'll avoid it at all costs, Yueshu."

She gave a small smile, but her brows still dipped in worry. Though, after a moment, she was shooing you towards the door.

"Well then, you better get going if we want those supplies back in time. I don't want it to be nighttime by the time you return."

You laughed, quickly opening the door and hopping outside. Yueshu kept it propped open, waiting in the doorway for you.

"I'll be back as soon as possible," you said with a smile and ran off.

Once you had passed through the city and reached the gates, you pulled out the small map you'd been given and looked it over. Your destination was a little far on foot, and you hadn't treked anything like this before, but you figured you'd be back before afternoon based on how far it was.

After a moment of hesitance, you quickly picked up the pace and headed out. The area was much different now that it was light out, and you could see more of the details of the area around you. As you walked there were steep cliffs, hills, and large formations that looked like they would be a pain to climb over—you really hoped this trip wouldn't require that.

Though, it was relatively peaceful as you walked through the path. The wind blew gently, and the sun kept a gentle warmth to everything around you. It was far different from walking in the open in Snezhnaya, where the sun didn't seem to heat even a speck of earth. If you didn't have a job to do, it would be nice to just stand in the open and bask in the serenity of it for a while. There were no monsters, there was no cold; everything was calm.

That's not to say things weren't lively. The peace of the night before was different—everything had gone to sleep. Here, in the early morning, those animals were slowly waking up. You could hear the chirping of birds in the distance, some flying overhead and some in the path in front of you. They'd all fly away in a hurry as soon as you came too close, but they were quick to flock back together somewhere else. Every once in a while there'd be a lingering butterfly that floated towards you, quickly disappearing when it realized its proximity and had gotten too close.

Now, you weren't the type to get distracted by a butterfly when you had important work to do. Yet, if that hadn't been weighing on your mind you might have easily gotten lost in it. You hadn't taken much time to explore Liyue, other than the Harbor. Childe taking you outside the city was the first time you'd actually gone out aside from your arrival. It was easy to be enamoured by how warm it felt just traveling down the path.

Though, that's the thing. You were on a set path. You'd have to be careful if you deviated off of it, since there was no guarantee what you might find hidden in the woods if you decided to take a peek. It was already bad enough that you were walking down the path towards a known group of hilichurls completely unarmed.

Yet, would it really be that bad? As long as you didn't go frozen as soon as your eyes set on one of the creatures, you should be fine. They couldn't be that strong, or even that smart, with how effortlessly Childe had defeated them the previous night. The only thing you might have to worry about is if they had clubs like the one from before, but even then, you could easily run away. They'd only chase you for so long—eventually they'd have to give up and realize it wasn't worth it.

After a while of peacefully walking in the open, you soon started to hear muffled sounds of rustling and some sort of garbled speaking. Pausing to listen, it was clear that it was the same language that the hilichurls from the night before had been shouting—of course, between the grunts and groans of defeat. It had to be them ahead, which meant you needed to act with an air of caution.

Slowly coming closer, you saw the small band of monsters sitting around in the middle of the road. There was no way to get by them, unless you completely deviated from the path. You felt bad for any passing travelers who might come across them like the courier had, but you weren't here to clear the area. Even if you wanted to, you didn't exactly have many options on how to.

You quietly, and much more vigilantly, kept walking forward up the path. Your footsteps were quiet, but still made the slightest of sounds as you stepped into the dirt each time. After a while, you could get a closer look at them; some were crouched down and digging while some sat and lazed around. Spying your eyes around the area without drawing any attention to yourself, you quickly hid behind a tree before one of the monsters could see you had come upon them.

You pulled out your map, hoping to spot where the delivery had been left. The man had circled it in an area that wasn't far away from you, and should have been right in your sights from your position. It would be sitting in a small wooded area next to a pool of water. Peeking out from behind the tree, you strained to look and find an area that matched that description. Then, you spotted it—the branches and leaves, the small pond, and the wheel of a cart. Looking closer, the rest of the cart was there as well, blending in with the trees that surrounded it. Luckily, you wouldn't even have to go close to the hilichurls this way—it was just a bit around them.

You scooted your way out from behind the tree, briskly and quietly finding your way to the small area without making too much of a racket. Branches soon helped to camouflage you, as you peered through the items in the cart to make sure everything was there. Pulling out the list Heli had given you, you mentally checked each item off. Crab roe, cream, butter…

…Everything was there aside from an order of jam. There were several crates for the other items, but where there should have been one small crate of it, there was nothing. Frantically, you looked around the area to see where it might have fallen off to. Under the cart? Nope. Off to the side? Nope. Other side? Nope. Even looking under the brush that covered the ground and into the water in case anything was floating on top or sinking below—everything led to nothing.

You weren't sure how important this jam was, but the entire order was something necessary. You couldn't risk heading back without it, since who knows, maybe it's the star of one of the dishes, or something can't be made without it. It was times like this that you wished you had a bit more knowledge of what happened in the kitchen.

Almost miraculously, you soon spotted a small box. It was farther away, not even close to the rest of the items. Outside of the patch of trees was a hill, one that stretched up before dropping off suddenly, and it sat right at the top. It seemed like the package must have fallen off the cart when the man was moving it to hide it, yet it seemed like an odd place to have ended up. Hesitantly, you stepped away from the cart and towards the package.

Once you arrived at it, you noticed it had been opened. Great. Not much was missing, at least, other than one jar. It sat a bit over to the side, having been broken open with some of the contents spilling out as glass shards mixed in between. Had someone opened it, but not actually eaten anything?

Then, you heard the strange shouts below you. Looking down, the hilichurls you had seen earlier were directly below you. They, luckily, hadn't noticed you, but there was no denying that they were there. Had they found the package after it fell out of the cart, and decided to give it a try? You didn't know what hilichurls liked to eat, but you doubted they were refined enough to top their meals with jam or cook with it for different flavors. It seemed like they had just opened it up, tasted it, realized it was something they didn't like, and immediately discarded it.

Heaving out a sigh, you started gathering the bits and pieces that were left unbroken. There wasn't anything you could do about it, other than hope that one jar of jam missing wouldn't cause too much of an issue. You couldn't bring it back after it was opened—there was no clue what had gotten into it, but whether it was an animal or a hilichurl like you thought, it wasn't fit for anything that would be served in the restaurant.

You quietly rose to your feet, carrying the misplaced goods in your arms. Though, as soon as you stopped, something far less quiet made you freeze in place. There were footsteps, but they were nowhere near as light as yours, and much too heavy to be from an average hilichurl.

Turning around, you came face to face with a mitachurl, as it drew its large axe behind its head in preparation to swing.

Notes:

So sorry for how long it's been for this chapter to come out! I've been pretty burnt-out lately when it comes to writing, and haven't had much energy to put out anything. It's spring break for me this week, so I'm trying to get over that and update more chapters for you guys (:

Anyways, this chapter doesn't have a separate beta-reader, so I'm praying there's not many mistakes lol. Feel free to let me know in the comments if you see something that's bugging you!

Thank you so much for reading this, I hope you're enjoying! As always, feel free to hit me up on Twitter if you'd like to talk!

Chapter 8: An Unexpected Kindness

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

How had a simple trip out to retrieve some goods turned into your life flashing before your eyes? You stood on the edge of the hill, two steps from falling backwards into the ground below, with the mitachurl ready to crush you to bits. Even if you managed to dodge the giant axe, would you even survive a fall from this far?

There wasn't much time to think, but it seemed like all you could do was tremble with fear as you slowly stepped backwards. Though, the drop of a pebble as you reached the edge stopped you in your path, hearing it drop to the ground below. There was nowhere to run, and you had no chance dashing past such a large monster. The goods in your arms were pressed tightly against your chest, your hands trembling as you held them.

Was this the end? It couldn't be, this was such a simple job. You came out here to help the restaurant, to make sure nothing went wrong, and yet here you were: everything was as wrong as possible. They wouldn't get their supplies, and they'd lose an employee as well.

While thoughts rushed and collided with each other in your mind, the mitachurl raised its axe, getting ready to hit you in one fell swoop. You stood frozen, staring into the eyes of its mask as it stared at yours. Paralyzed, you waited for the worst and prayed that you'd have enough willpower to survive and escape.

"Sunshine, whatever you do…" you froze, recognizing the voice coming upon you instantly, "…don't move."

Splashes of blue filled your vision, as the axe that was meant to come down on you suddenly halted. The mitachurl was stumbling to the side, surprised by a sudden blow to its stomach. Out of seemingly nowhere, Childe had emerged and was taking on the beast. Drawing it away from you, its murderous gaze was lifted from you for a moment and you could compose yourself. Childe was swinging around his two daggers, which at moments merged together to form one long lance.

You had broken free from your paralysis, but that didn't keep you from being frozen in place as you watched him in awe. He moved with the same simplicity and dedication as he had with the normal hilichurls the night before, even against something so threatening.

Though, the normal hilichurls below you reminded you of their presence when a rock hurled up towards you. They had finally noticed you above them after hearing the commotion between the mitachurl and Childe, and saw you standing at the ledge. Surprised, you let out a quick gasp, unfortunately bringing attention to the mitachurl again. Childe was still berating it, but something in it urged it to stomp toward you. It readily swung its axe into the air once more, prepared to go through with the motion this time.

"Look out!" Childe shouted, bringing you back to reality and sending you into motion.

You practically threw yourself to the ground, doing whatever you could to dodge the weapon with a small cry of fear. Your foot caught on a rock—you didn't exactly have much time to look for the safest route away—and you fell to the ground with a hard and painful thud. You landed on your side, luckily not breaking the rest of the jars in the package in your arms. You had dodged the weapon, successfully still in mostly one piece. Your ankle was throbbing, but at least it was still attached to you. You were left quivering on the ground, just hoping the mitachurl wouldn't come after you again.

It was only after Childe had grabbed its attention again with his daggers that you realized where you had fallen. Your hand had slammed right into the broken jar of jam, effectively slicing your palm open. Droplets of blood were intermingling with the sticky mess on the ground, clinging to your hand as well. You could feel your heartbeat in your hand, pulsing along with your ankle. It hurt, but at least from here none of the hilichurls could throw their rocks at you.

The mitachurl was still fighting, though it was away from you now. Childe had lured it off, keeping you effectively out of—more—harm's way. You were thankful for this, since your body was hurting enough. Yet, it was a mystery to you how you would get the supplies back now, or even how you would get back. You hadn't put any pressure standing up, but… you doubted it would go well if you did.

Though, Childe was handling it much better than you were. The mitachurl was quickly getting weaker and weaker, its movements slowing and becoming more desperate. Soon, it came crumbling to the ground. He stood over it, making sure it was defeated, before glancing back to you. He opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by the sound of more hilichurls shouting. After the mitachurl had fallen, it seemed to attract their attention enough to come and fight him.

Needless to say, he returned the favor. Pulling out his bow he shot them from a distance, switching over to his daggers and lance as they came closer. It was the same deal as the night before—he took them out with ease with the same excited grin. You wanted to believe that they were simply just weak, that if you confronted them you could do the same. Yet, when you saw how easily he defeated a beast such as the mitachurl… you couldn't help but worry your thoughts had been focused on the wrong party's strength.

The familiar echoes from the night before filled the air once more, the only difference being you could see everything better in the light of day. You watched them fall one by one as they were each easily berated by Childe and his weapons. They didn't stand a chance against him—especially with how easily he took down their biggest defense. Soon they had all disappeared one after the other, only bits and pieces of their masks left behind.

Then, quiet. The last hilichurl dropped, and Childe got rid of his weaponry. The two of you were the only ones left in the open, him standing over the pile of masks as you sat down the small package to nurse your ankle with your unwounded hand. You watched him waver for only a moment, before turning back to you with that same smile.

"I did a pretty good job, huh?" he said as his grin widened, walking towards you. You rolled your eyes, ignoring his question.

"How'd you even find me here?"

He laughed a bit, looking down to the cart still hidden in the trees.

"I thought I heard you shuffling around up here," he teased, and you groaned. "That, and I noticed a peculiar commission people were talking about."

You frowned. Yueshu had put out a commission, even if you were going to handle it.

Well, you couldn't be that mad. In fact, you should have been thankful—it was that commission that caught Childe's attention and saved you from a very painful experience, if not death. You remained quiet, eyes downcast as you focused on the pain radiating from your hand and ankle.

Childe seemed to notice that something was wrong when you didn't reply with some witty or snarky remark. In a moment you heard his footsteps get faster, and he was kneeled down beside you. When you glanced up to look at him, it was almost shocking to see how serious his expression had become.

"Let me see."

Your eyes widened at him, and you quickly used your other hand to cover the gash.

"It's nothing, really. I'll be fine," you objected, and then your name rang through your ears. Childe was surprisingly stern, and he used your moment of shock to his advantage, swiftly grabbing your wrists and separating your hands. Quietly, he looked down at your bloody hand, his eyes trailing the wound.

"It's not that bad—" you squeaked out, even though you knew it was a lie. The glass cut deep, and it was still bleeding. The jam was a mess, but it almost helped as it slowed the blood's journey out. "It's really just a big hassle, you don't need to help—"

"Stand up. We need to clean this off," he essentially ordered, and you looked up at him in confusion. The two of you weren't close—he had no reason to help you like this. You were sure he didn't do this for any random civilian who happened to get caught up in the battles he fought with those monsters.

"But—"

"There's a pool of water over there, come on," he stated, a bit more light-hearted this time, pointing to the small pond near the cart. Yet, that wasn't the issue.

"Childe," you started, voice breathy from the pain, "I don't know if I can get over there," you explained, and drew your free hand down to your ankle. He furrowed his brows for a moment, but after noticing the action seemed to understand what you meant. Without a word, he sighed and stood up, holding out his hand for you.

You gave him a dumbfounded look, to which he huffed out an impatient breath of air.

"Let me help you."

Still shocked, you hesitantly placed your hand in his, and he pulled you to your feet without putting any weight or strain on your ankle or wounded hand. Standing on one foot, you were left clinging to him.

"Just hold onto me; we'll walk over there," he said surprisingly gently, and you gripped onto him tightly, worried of falling once more. Though, you flushed from how dependent you were on him as your hand grasped his. In one motion he moved his arm around your waist, using his other hand to hold yours.

You hoped he was focused on what was in front of him and couldn't see the dark splotches of embarrassment that coated your cheeks.

Slowly hopping your way along with him, he walked you down the hill and safely directed you towards the pond. Once you reached the edge, he tenderly helped sit you down. Without a word, you let him guide your hand to the water—though, you hissed from the sudden sting as the cold liquid bit at your cut.

"Come on, deep breaths," he instructed, and you closed your eyes, trying to follow his advice. It hurt, but he must have known what he was doing. You felt his hand touch the pulsing laceration, making you breathe in sharply. It was painful, and you wanted nothing more than to rip your hand away from him. Though he was probably right, it needed to be cleaned. Otherwise, it'd get infected. So, you shakily took in a deep breath, weakly letting it back out.

"Good girl," he teased, and you could feel your face getting frustratingly warmer. This wasn't the time to snap at him, though. You'd have to remember to give him hell later.

His hand continued to brush over yours, washing away the sugary, sticky mess. Tears were pricking at your eyes, but you kept breathing like he said. After what felt like an eternity, he raised your hand out of the water and let the droplets drip away from your skin. Opening your eyes, you met him with a frown, which he countered with a warm grin. You huffed, looking away from him.

"Ease up, Sunshine."

You held your frown, focusing off into the distance. Of course, this didn't last long, as he splashed you with some of the water in his reach. You groaned, turning back to him with a glare as water dripped from your hair, which only sent him laughing.

"Archons, Childe, stop acting like—well… a child!" you shouted, and he held his stomach as he shook with laughter. You frowned, shoving at him. "I have half a mind to push you into this pond right now."

"And you call me a child," he spoke between fits of laughter. You rolled your eyes, and poked at him.

"Don't test me," you teased, earning a grin from him.

"Noted, Sunshine."

His hand was still holding your wounded one, and his grip moved to your wrist.

"There's got to be something in one of these packages that we can bandage it with. Let's head to the cart," he said and helped you to rise to your feet once more. Moving you back into the same position as before—though this time droplets of water coated his jacket as they dribbled from the strands of your hair—he moved you over to the cart. Since you only had one leg to work with, he let go of your hand and moved his arm down behind your knees, easily picking you up from the ground to set you down on the cart.

"Wait here," he instructed, stepping out into the clearing towards the hill. You watched from where you sat as he went and picked up the small box that had held all of the jars of jam. He walked back with it in his hand, looking through it with a close eye. With a small smile, he seemed to find whatever he was looking for as he arrived back to you.

"Find anything?" you asked, peering at the package in his hand.

"Yep," he said casually, pulling out a white sheet of cloth. "I figured these jars would have something surrounding them to keep them from hitting each other whenever the cart shook," he paused, showing it off in front of him. "I was right."

You raised an eyebrow at him, nearly scoffing.

"Nice job, genius."

This time he actually scoffed, making you crack a small smile.

"Keep at it, and I could just leave this all to you to handle. I have other things I could be doing," he joked, and you rolled your eyes.

"I could handle it either way."

He gave you a look, one that said he obviously didn't believe you, and you turned your head with a huff. Moments later, you heard a ripping sound. Looking back, Childe was tearing the cloth into thinner strips. You frowned as he used his teeth to start another rip after getting nowhere with his hands.

"That's going to be on my hand, you know. Don't give me your germs," you said, lazily waving toward him. He laughed, doing the same action once more.

"Would you rather I kiss it to make it better?" he teased, making you flush from embarrassment once more.

"Shut up," you said quietly, and he laughed.

"Your face is a little red, Sunshine."

You frowned, the color deepening.

"I said, shut up."

He shook his head as he laughed softly. Though, he heeded your request and went quiet. Gently, he took your hand once more and started to tightly wrap the strips of cloth around your hand. It still stung, but you trusted he would do it right. It needed pressure, and that's what he was applying as he wrapped it.

Though it hurt, you could tell he was still being tender with you. He could have gone quickly and wrapped it up enough to stop the bleeding, but he went slowly, taking his time. Each piece was placed with attention to detail, his hand being as soft as he could to lessen the pain. You didn't want to jump to conclusions, and he was by no means easy to read, but it seemed like he was going through every hoop he could jump through to keep from hurting you.

You wondered if this was something normal for him, with his siblings. Surely, they got into trouble back home—you remembered the times his younger siblings would greet you with bandages covering the remnants of their latest adventures when you visited. Maybe he simply was treating you as he would one of them after seeing the injury, given your past together.

You appreciated the gesture, but it only sent your mind reeling in even more confusion. Why did he come out all this way? Was he just itching for a fight? Or was he worried about what you'd run into? How did he even realize you were on your way here? There was no way Yueshu would have told him. Why didn't he just send you on your way after he finished with the hilichurls? He could have left you to your own devices. It's entirely possible for him to have left before even learning you were hurt. It wouldn't have weighed down on his conscience—there was nothing between you two for him to be so worried about.

There was no way he still saw you in the same way as you both did when you were children.

"Did you die on me or something?" Childe joked, and you quickly snapped out of your thoughts.

Blinking, you looked up to him, then back down at your hand. It was now fully wrapped up, the ends tied in place so it was snug and secure. You paused for a moment, running your fingers over the place where your wound had been, feeling the slight sting against the smooth cloth.

"…Thanks," you mumbled, and Childe looked down at you with a grin, hands on his hips.

"What was that?"

You knit your brows together in frustration, biting your bottom lip as you tried to flush your previous thoughts out of your mind.

"Thank you," you muttered a little louder, eyes kept off of him. He laughed a bit, turning around.

"No problem, Sunshine."

You watched as he moved to the front of the cart, confused as he picked up the front of it as if he was prepared to pull it behind him.

"What are you doing…?" you asked, and he turned back to you with a laugh.

"Don't tell me you think you're pulling this back yourself," he replied, and you frowned.

"Well, I don't see why you'd pull it back for me," you paused, going to push yourself off from the cart. "And you don't need to carry me in it, I should at least walk—"

Before you could finish, he was already at your side, easing you back into the cart just as your foot hit the ground. You scowled with a flush along your cheeks as he brought his hands to the back of your knees and the small of your back once more.

"You can't even walk on your own, Sunshine. Just sit back and enjoy the ride," he said as he set you down. Noticing you still wore the sharp glare, he let out a small laugh. "You're not heavy; it's not a problem, Sunshine."

Knowing this wasn't a fight you'd win, you huffed out a sigh, and he turned back with a smile. Taking the front of the cart, he walked as your legs dangled off the edge between the wheels. Wanting to help in some way, you at least grabbed the package of jam, holding them so that no more jars would fall out or shake around.

The two of you traveled silently, Childe walking in front of you as you bounced in the cart behind him. The silence was nice, and you took the moment to look around your surroundings. Your plan at getting back before the afternoon had failed—the sky was already turning a golden color as you passed underneath it. The light made everything around you even more beautiful: the trees had a soft glow surrounding them and the birds flying in the sky cast gentle shadows on the ground below, which occasionally had animals scampering around to find their way back to their dens and nests for the coming night.

You looked to the man who walked in front of you, how the light bounced off the metal parts and pieces on his jacket and intermingled with his hair—

—Before quickly pushing the thought from your head. You were tired, surely your mind was just wandering because of that. There was no other logical reason for you to think about him in that manner.

"You doing alright back there?" Childe called out, tossing his head back slightly to take a peek at you. Surprised, you quickly straightened up and tried to hide the fact that you'd been looking at him.

"I'm fine," you stuttered out, before cursing yourself mentally. He laughed softly, which you just rolled your eyes at, before looking back to the space beside you.

It really was beautiful outside. You wished that walking through the area wasn't as dangerous as it was. If it were safer, you'd find yourself out there at every moment you could, appreciating this aspect of Liyue that was off-limits to you.

You kept your eyes on the sights for a while longer, before eventually turning back to face forward. Though, your eyes met Childe's gaze on you. Yet, you could hardly be sure if it actually happened or not, since as soon as your eyes met he turned back around in an instant. You couldn't have even processed what had happened, simply left to stare at his back in confusion.

This was one of the moments you missed how straight forward he was when he was younger. Instead, you were just left confused and lost from nearly every action he did. Was there any meaning behind them? Did he have some sort of hidden agenda?

Whatever it was, you hated how fast your heart beated as you wondered about the possibilities.

After riding in silence for so long, you noticed voices in the distance. Looking up, you were both right outside the city. Though, as soon as you entered you saw the crowd of eyes that landed on the two of you. Covering your face, you felt the embarrassment settle in for the millionth time that day. After a moment the cart stopped moving, and you looked up as Childe walked away from the front.

"Now what are you doing?" you asked, and he flashed you his signature grin.

"It'll be difficult to go up all of the stairs with the cart, and I'm sure you don't want all the eyes on you from me carrying you around like that. We can walk from here and carry everything," he explained, and you nodded slowly. Hobbling around would be better than the stares you'd get. You gave him a slight nod, placing your hand in his and letting him guide you off of the cart.

You both went to grab several of the packages, holding them in your arms. Luckily, there weren't that many, and they weren't overbearingly large, so they were easy to carry. Of course, Childe gave you the smaller of them, and as much as you wanted to protest it, there were too many people around. Heaving a sigh, you carried the two small boxes in your arms. Childe soon looped an arm around your waist, holding the other two boxes with his free arm.

You didn't particularly like the eyes that took notice of you two now, but it was better than people seeing the eleventh of the Fatui Harbingers carting you around like a princess. Instead, he had you huddled next to him, making you completely dependent on him.

Which wasn't exactly ideal, but… things could have been worse.

The two of you slowly walked back to the Xinyue Kiosk together, and you ignored all of the stares you received. Thankfully, he didn't try to pick you up when you struggled to get up the stairs, like he had for the cart. You were still waiting to give him hell, but you might have all out murdered him if he tried that.

Soon, the two of you arrived outside the restaurant. Luckily, it wasn't dark yet. Though, as the two of you stood outside the door, Yueshu was nowhere in sight. You supposed she had taken your job, traveling in and out of the building to keep up.

Though, when the door opened and she saw you both, she nearly dropped the box of food she had brought out. Hurrying to give the confused customer their order and take the payment, she quickly sent them on their way as she rushed over to the two of you, shoving the mora away to take care of it later.

"Kid, we were getting worried about you! Hurry and bring those supplies inside, we're on thin ice trying to scavenge with what we have left," she ushered, but then noticed who was holding you. Her mouth went slack, before her eyebrows dipped in frustration. "And I thought I told you to stay away from her," she snapped, hands on her hips.

"Yueshu, it's fine—" you tried to explain, but she wouldn't have it.

"I'm only going to say this once, and one time only. You better let go of her, before I shout bloody murder for the Millelith," she practically barked, reaching out for you. As she came closer tho, Childe quickly stepped back, jerking you with him.

"I would be a bit more careful if I were you. Have you not noticed that she's injured?"

She gave him a confused look, but when she looked down to see your foot held limply in the air and your wrapped up hand, her eyes went wide. She gave you a worried look, stepping closer before shooting Childe a glare.

"I can handle it from here. Let go and sit those boxes on the ground," she said venomously, and he did as she asked with a small chuckle.

"I'll leave you two then, I'm sure there's a lot you've got to do," he said with a grin, stepping back. "See you later, Sunshine."

Before you could even speak up, Yueshu barked out for you.

"No, you won't," she retorted, making him laugh a bit. Those two clearly would not be friends any time soon. She scoffed as he walked off, turning her focus to you once he was gone. "Come on, let's get inside and sit you down."

She hurried you through the doors, hiding you from the patrons who were enjoying their meal. Once you got into the kitchen, you sat your packages on the table, and she guided you to your chair. The chefs were soon to flock to the boxes, pulling out various goods. Telling you to wait a moment, Yueshu rushed outside and brought the boxes Childe had left, placing them alongside the others. Once again, chefs flocked to them, happily pulling out ingredients. Afterwards, Yueshu went to grab some ice for your ankle and a now empty box to prop it up on.

"I see you had an interesting trip."

You looked up, seeing Heli with his notebook. You smiled sheepishly, finding it difficult to meet him in the eyes.

"You could… say that."

Yueshu picked up your hand, slowly prying off the makeshift bandages to replace them with some proper ones. Thankfully they hadn't been on long enough to get stuck to the wound, or this would have been a much more painful process.

"I swear, if he had anything to do with this—" she muttered, and you shook your head at her, quickly denying it.

"No, he's actually the reason it's not worse than this," you paused, closing your eyes as she peeled the strips back. "There was worse than just normal hilichurls there. They'd gotten into the package of jam, but I brought back what wasn't broken." You opened your eyes, your hand now bare.

Heli sighed, writing something down in his notebook.

"I'll send out a letter to the supplier first thing tomorrow and let them know." He stopped, giving you a look. "Please, take some time to rest. Even if that means staying home."

You frowned, but he was right. Even if you wanted to work, you wouldn't be much help when you couldn't even walk on your own.

"And don't try to argue out of this one," Yueshu added, pulling different materials out of a small first aid kit. You looked away with a pout.

"I wasn't planning on it!" you retorted, and heard a small laugh from her as you felt her apply treatment to your hand. Soon, she had it fully wrapped up nice and pretty.

"Done," she said with a proud smile, lightly patting your hand.

"Are you a doctor now, too?" you joked, and her smile widened.

"I'm a woman of many talents, kid."

You heaved out a laugh, smiling softly. It was nice to be back. As much as you loved the beauty of being out in the open, the comfort inside this room meant so much more to you.

Soon, it was time to head home for the day. Yueshu closed up shop, and with her help the two of you headed to your room at the guesthouse. You were hobbling down the street once more, but at least this time you didn't have as many eyes looking at your every move.

It had nothing to do with you—it had everything to do with who you were leaning on.

After a slightly longer walk than usual, Yueshu had guided you all the way back to the comfort of your room. She helped you down onto the bed, and you let out a heavy sigh.

"Before I forget," Yueshu started, pulling a small envelope out of her pocket, "here's your paycheck. Don't spend it all on room service," she joked, setting it down on your desk. "And if I see you at work tomorrow," she continued, "I'm dragging you right back to bed. You better not show up." She gave you a gentle smile. "Get some proper rest. I know you need it."

You gave her a weak smile, thankful for how kind she had been.

"I'll take your advice this time Yueshu, trust me. I won't have any late nights for a long time."

She smiled, her hand on the doorknob.

"You better heed that statement. I prefer having you not nearly an inch from collapsing, whatever the reason may be," she said, making you laugh a bit. "Get well soon, kid."

You smiled, nodding your head.

"Thank you, Yueshu."

You both exchanged your goodnights, and Yueshu soon left the room to head to her own home. You were left staring at your ceiling, running the day's events by one more. So much had happened, and all you wanted was to finally get some sleep.

Yet, as you rolled over in bed, your eyes drifted to the desk, noticing the envelope you had filled out the night before waiting menacingly for you.

Unknowingly, you had just lied to Yueshu for the second night in a row.

Notes:

Yeah so this chapter maaay have been a bit longer than the rest so far, only a teeny bit (this is a lie it's a whole 2k longer than normal). I went ham and had a good time LMAO.

Anyways, just like the last chapter, feel free to let me know if there's any mistakes that are killing you, I'll fix them right away. I'm happy to hear you guys are liking my story, and each and every comment makes me so happy 3 thank you all!

Hit me up on Twitter if you wanna talk, and thanks for reading!

Chapter 9: Special Delivery

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

You were exhausted, but you didn't exactly have many options. This envelope needed to be mailed today. You quickly stood up, scrambling over to your desk on one foot and sitting down in the chair. On the top was the paycheck—you were glad that Yueshu hadn't noticed the envelope when she sat it down—and you quickly ripped it open to take out the contents. Moving as fast as you could, you took out the exact amount you needed for your housing bills, a small portion to survive off of, and shoved the rest of the Mora into the envelope to send to the Northland Bank.

Now, you just needed to figure out how to get out. You could hobble around your room, but out in the open was another story. You'd have to get to the dockyard, all the way across the harbor. If only you could just go to the bank down the road; unfortunately, things were a bit more complicated. It was in your plans to get there after work; as it seems, things don't always work out as expected.

You looked around your room, hoping to see if there was anything you could use as a crutch or a cane, yet there was nothing. Your room was unbearably bare, and this was one of the moments you hated you didn't have anything but the essentials. Your plant wasn't going to help you travel across the harbor.

It seemed if you wanted to get this letter on the ship to head out in the morning, you'd just have to fight and walk yourself.

Hesitantly, you put your injured foot on the ground. It hurt, but you didn't have any more options. You didn't even have anything wrapping it up yet—you weren't even sure if it was just a twisted ankle or broken. The doctor would be open tomorrow and you could go then. Until then, you'd have to make do as is.

You put a little more weight on it, and instantly winced in pain. Yet, you had to fight. This couldn't wait until morning. Matters of life or death can't just wait. The ships would be leaving at dawn—no one would be awake to help you before then. You put the envelope in your pocket, and hobbled to the door. You managed your way down to the front, where Xiuhua was waiting at the front desk. You managed to reach the front door, but then she finally realized that it was you. She called out your name in surprise, peering over the desk.

"It's awfully late! Shouldn't you be resting? And your foot! Weren't you hurt?"

You gave her a soft smile, appreciating her concern.

"I just need a bit of fresh air—can't sleep," you lied. "I'm just going to go for a short walk, and I'll be back." She frowned, but nodded along with your statement.

"Alright, if you say so…" she said downtrodden. You gave her one final smile, before heading out the door.

Out in the open, you limped and hobbled your way down the street. Whenever you had a wall to support you you took complete advantage of it, leaning your weight against it as you tried to move along the path. There was no denying you were struggling; even after traveling only a few steps you had to pause and take a break to catch your breath.

You tried to do as Childe had told you when he cleaned your wound. Taking in a deep breath of air and letting it out, you tried to focus and remain calm. The pain ached, but you had to push forward. Shakily taking another step, you practically clawed against the wall to keep steady.

Once you were nearly halfway up the stairs, you felt as if you may collapse. You were exhausted, weak, and in excruciating pain. Breathing calmly was no longer an option—your breath had gone ragged and rapid, only making it worse on you as you tried to move up the steps. Yet, you weren't sure if you could take another step forward; even if you couldn't, you weren't sure you could turn back either. At this point you felt prepared to collapse on the ground and just stay there for the night.

"Sunshine?"

You looked up at the sudden voice, not even surprised to see Childe standing at the top of the stairs.

"What are you doing out here this late?" he asked, walking down towards you as you leaned against the wall.

"I could ask you the same," you mumbled quietly, still trying to catch your breath.

"Just a late night walk," he said with his usual smile, but you noticed the small pouch he had slipped into his pocket. He'd just gone on a debt collection. Helping you had probably messed up his schedule for the day, and yet, here he was rushing to your aid once more.

Part of you hoped he was just bored and wanted to do something before the city went to sleep. Maybe he was just hoping the debtor would put up some sort of a fight, and was itching for someone to go against.

You were not that person.

"Oh," you said simply, trying to push yourself off the wall.

"Oh?" he replied, taking your arm and helping you to steady yourself. "And why are you out?" he paused and eyed you, "And don't tell me it's a late night walk too, we both know you can hardly walk in the first place now."

You frowned, keeping your eyes off of him. You didn't need his pity, and he'd already helped you more than you needed in one day. In fact, it was almost too much of him for one day.

"Just going to mail a letter," you explained. It wasn't necessarily a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth.

"And you're doing this in the middle of the night, why?" he asked, and you narrowed your eyes.

"I… was hoping to drop it off after work so that it could be sent off with the boat tomorrow. Obviously things got in the way though, so I'm on my way now."

He raised an eyebrow at you.

"Can't you just wait a few days for the next boat that can bring it?" he asked, and you huffed.

"It's for family," you lied, "I need it out as soon as possible. You should understand."

"Then give it to me," he said, extending a hand. "I'll bring it, and you can go home."

You froze, knowing that he could by no means do that. If he saw what was on the letter, he would know the truth. This would change things, more than they already were.

"No!" you blurted out, a bit too loudly. "I mean—" you stuttered, trying to calm down, "That won't be necessary. I don't want to trouble you anymore tonight."

He laughed, an easy air to the situation that was troubling you so much.

"Sunshine, I can easily walk it down to the docks. Much easier than you can, at least," he said with a grin. He was right, and he knew it. It was impractical for you to walk all that way with your injury when he was offering. But, he didn't know the consequences that taking up his offer would bring.

"No, it's not happening," you stated, putting a hand in your pocket to protectively guard the envelope. "It would be… embarrassing if you saw what was inside this letter. I can't trust that you won't try to look at it."

He rolled his eyes, scoffing.

"You really think I'm that interested in a letter for your parents?" he asked, and you crossed your arms.

"You showed up at my workplace, hung outside the window of my room that I did not give you the room number for, and mysteriously found me in the middle of a field," you pointed out. "So, yes. I do think you are," you said with a hard look.

There was a moment of silence between you, the glares you both shared suddenly becoming a trial for who would give up first.

"I promise I won't open it."

"Being persistent doesn't make me trust you any more than before!"

You pinched the bridge of your nose, huffing out a breath of air.

"At least let me walk you there before you pass out," he said, and you slowly looked up at him. He seemed genuine, but it was hard to tell whether or not it was for your safety or the chance of new unknown information. Either way, his hand was outstretched for you, and you hesitantly placed yours into it.

"You're not getting a look at this letter," you reprimanded, earning a laugh from him. "And I'm going to walk partially on my own this time—it's too embarrassing being seen having to rely on you so much."

"Sunshine, who's out here to see?" he asked, suppressing a bark of laughter.

Your frown deepened.

"I don't need to answer that to know that I'm still right," you said seriously, and for a moment you wondered if he might drop you with how hard he was trying to keep in his laughter.

"Whatever you say."

The two of you headed on your way, and though your ankle was still throbbing, luckily things were a bit easier for you like this. You held onto his arm, able to put your weight on him and not your aching foot. There wasn't any hopping around this time; you still used that leg to walk, but now you could take much lighter steps.

This was surely less embarrassing. It was clearly him helping you to limp along, and less some confusing embrace.

It was quiet at night, still a few people passing by, but not nearly the same amount as during the day. Some shops were still open, but many were starting to pack up for the day to head home. Seeing them leave reminded you of how much you missed your bed; soon, sleep would come, just after this.

"So, is there some reason this letter needs to get out immediately?"

You frowned, looking up at him.

"I thought I told you you weren't getting a look at it," you stated.

He laughed, rolling his eyes.

"I know, but if it's just a letter to check in on your family, I'm sure they wouldn't be that worried if it was a few days late. That's if they even know it's coming."

Oh, they definitely knew it was coming.

"I would like to get it out as soon as possible. They shouldn't have to wait on me."

"Even if you're miles away?" he asked.

"Even if I'm miles away," you affirmed. "It doesn't change the fact that I'm on a deadline."

"A deadline?" he inquired, curious.

You mentally smacked yourself in the face.

"The one I gave myself. The boat leaves tomorrow morning, and I have until then to get it there." You paused, keeping your gaze strictly forward. "It's a very important deadline."

He nodded, but you could feel his eyes still following your every move.

"Well, aren't you responsible," he teased, and you grit your teeth. This was not the time to go off on him, not when he's being nice to you again. You'd get him later when he was being more annoying.

"I put a lot of thought into my actions, thank you."

He laughed, and you shot him a look.

"It must have taken a lot of thought for you to take on a mitachurl holding jars of jam as a weapon," he joked, and you bit your tongue to keep from adding more embarrassment to the dark flush on your cheeks.

"What's that supposed to mean?" you snapped.

"Nothing, nothing," he continued to tease, and you grumbled beside him.

"It's not my fault that beast showed up! I was expecting normal hilichurls! I wasn't told about a mitachurl!" you argued, raising your voice a bit.

"Calm down, Sunshine, you'll wake up the whole town," he said with his signature grin, and you balled your fists.

"Don't test me, Childe."

"Oh, I won't," he nearly taunted, "you've already reminded me not to before."

You frowned, turning forward with a hmph. You both continued in silence, as you were simply too angry to respond to him. Sometimes he simply infuriated you—now, it didn't even have to do with him being part of the Fatui.

Yet, after several minutes of silence, Childe couldn't help but break it once more.

"So, regardless of the mitachurl, what made you decide to go out and fight a band of hilichurls during work hours?"

You glowered and kept forward, focusing on the stone path below your feet.

"I wasn't exactly prepared to fight them. I was going to simply sneak around them. It would have worked out that way if it weren't for that mitachurl showing up to murder me," you complained, letting go of him for a moment to wave your arm for effect. Though, as you got unsteady, you quickly latched back onto him with wide eyes.

"And we can see how that turned out," he said, earning another glare from you.

"Things don't always go according to plan," you paused, heaving a sigh and looking forward. "Anyways, they were supplies that someone needed to get, and we didn't exactly have much time to spare, so I took the job up. I figured even if they saw me it wouldn't be too hard to run away."

"With a cart behind you?" he asked, laughing at you.

"…Maybe I didn't think that far," you replied with a pout.

"You couldn't have at least brought a weapon to protect yourself with?" he asked, and you shot him an annoyed glance.

"Do I look like I have my own weapon or even know how to use one?"

He paused, glancing down at you.

"You never learned?"

This time you were able to laugh at him.

"That was your thing, Childe. May I remind you my parents sent me off to get an education, and that did not once include any fancy swords, bows, or—Archons forbid—a claymore."

He let out a laugh, pausing for a moment.

"I guess it wouldn't, would it?"

You gave him an almost incredulous look before rolling your eyes. How much had he trained to use different weapons? He treated it as if it was surprising not to know at least one, but that had never been something offered to you. He was supposed to be the hero. You never even knew where it was that he finally learned how to use a sword—you could only assume he finally decided to set his dreams in motion and figured it out himself.

Yet, here you saw where that had taken him.

After a few more minutes of silence, you finally came upon the docks. The ship was in sight, ready for you to rush over with your letter. Childe helped you ease down the flights of stairs before it, but you were rushing him to hurry towards it. The area was mostly empty, but you saw one ship with someone still stood aboard it. They were sweeping the deck, and clearly had a tired look in their eyes even from a distance away.

Restless, you impatiently pulled against Childe as you hobbled towards them. When you finally stopped in front of the ship, you let go of Childe to stand by the edge of the dock yourself. Though, the man on the ship still didn't seem to pay attention to you at all.

"Um, hello?" you said shyly, trying to get his attention. "Sir?"

He kept on sweeping, eyes locked on the ground.

"Excuse me?" Nothing. "You, the one sweeping, hello?"

Finally, he looked up, a cross look in his eyes.

"Sweetheart, whatever it is, go home. It's after hours. Come back in the morning."

You frowned as he spoke to you with annoyance lacing every syllable.

"This is the mail ship, right? I know it's late, but I have an urgent letter I need sent," you explained, pulling the envelope from your pocket and holding it in both hands.

"Like I said," he spat, "It's after hours. Come back tomorrow."

You pressed your lips together, trying to keep your confidence up—as well as your politeness.

"I understand, but it's simply not going to be feasible for me to come in the morning. I could hardly walk here myself tonight, so if you could please just take this last letter," you requested, holding it out toward him.

He stepped over, and a broad smile quickly overtook your lips. Reaching out his hands, you prepared to let go of the envelope, only for him to violently push your hands away.

"For the last time, I'm not accepting any more letters. Why don't you take your pretty face home before I actually get angry."

As he spoke, you expected to fall backwards, stumbling and unable to catch yourself with your hurt ankle. Yet, you bumped backwards into Childe, who steadied you with his hands on your shoulders. You were stiff from the stranger's threats, but it was relieving to have Childe there with you.

"Please," you nearly begged, "This is very important. It's imperative that this be sent out tomorrow morning."

He scoffed, roughly throwing his broom to the side.

"Alright, I've nearly had enough—" he snarled, his voice venomous.

As soon as he looked over to you again, Childe cleared his throat.

"What—" he snapped, angry eyes shooting toward him. Though, his face quickly went pale, his expression as if he had seen a ghost or had a run-in with death. You couldn't see what he was seeing, but there was a sudden terror in his eyes.

He was silent, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

"I suppose…" he finally breathed out, "It wouldn't hurt to take one more…"

Your smile returned to your lips, though it wasn't nearly as large as before. He wasn't doing this out of the goodness of his heart; he likely got scared when he noticed Childe was the one behind you.

Still, you were thankful that your companion was able to stir the stranger to action, stepping forward to take the letter. You quickly handed it off to him, and he took it with trembling hands. Though, this didn't stop him from pausing to look at whom it was addressed to.

"Huh…" he let out, looking up between Childe and I. "That's odd."

You frowned, a nervous twitch inching its way up your spine.

"What's so odd about a letter to family?" you asked, crossing your arms.

He looked back at you with an even more confused look, looking between the two of you even faster this time. You narrowed your eyes at him, and at noticing this he suddenly went still.

"Forget I asked," he quickly rasped out, moving to a crate further away. Opening one of them, he fingered through the rows of envelopes, placing yours within them in a spot he deemed appropriate. He looked back to you from his spot by the crates, and he slowly returned after he closed them. "We'll be leaving at dawn to mail them, and I have this with the high priority deliveries for that area."

Your smile widened, surprised at the effort he gave.

"Thank you! I appreciate it," you responded, and though you wore a smile, he was nowhere near matching it. His eyes still held fear, despite his now neutral look.

"I'll ensure the same is applied to any other letters you need sent," he pulled out a small pad of paper, "Just write your name here and I'll add you to the list."

You nearly gasped, but held a grateful look as you wrote your name on the paper with the pen he gave you.

"I appreciate it," you stated, giving him the materials back.

"It's the least I can do."

There it was, the fear still in his eyes. He didn't need to do this for you, all he needed was to send the letter. And yet, he went to this length?

Still, you couldn't complain. With quick goodbyes, Childe helped you away from the docks and towards the guesthouse.

"It's surprising how much his tone changed when he took my letter," you admitted once you were further away. You figured it had to do with Childe, but was just seeing him enough to send him into such a frenzy? "I wonder what he was thinking about…" you mused, looking up at the sky above you.

Surprisingly, Childe didn't have a clever or teasing comment to toss back. He stayed silent, prompting your eyes to him.

"Childe?" you said in an attempt to get his attention, noticing he was lost in thought. He blinked, looking down at you. Once again he was surprised for only a moment, before a cool expression returned.

"Did you say something, Sunshine?"

You frowned, looking back forward with a sigh.

"No, nothing."

The rest of your walk was quiet, far quieter than you expected. Childe didn't have anything else to say, and you weren't going to try and ask him any questions. He hadn't even heard your comments before—you doubted he would now. So, you quietly hobbled your way along the street beside him.

Even more shops were closed on the way back, and fewer people lined the streets. Your eyes were weary, eyelids drooping every few minutes. It was a relief when you found yourself back in front of the Baiju Guesthouse. You let go of his arm, stumbling your way to the door.

"I can get it from here," you said softly, taking hold of the door handle. "Thank you for all of your help today, Childe."

He hummed in response, not seemingly focused on you. With a roll of your eyes, you pried the door open.

"Goodnight, Childe."

Just as the door began to close, you heard him from behind it.

"Sleep well, Sunshine."

You wore a half-hearted smile, shaking your head. He was a hopeless mystery, one you doubted you would ever be able to unravel, much less understand.

Xiuhua was at the front desk, but as you noticed her position, it was clear she was fast asleep. Sharing the same idea as her, you held the wall and haltingly limped your way through the building and back to your room.

Stepping inside, you gently shut the door behind you to keep from waking the other guests, but collapsed on the bed with far less gentleness. Sleep was begging to take you away, and you couldn't resist any longer.

Finally, you closed your eyes, relieved that tomorrow you would be able to sleep in.

Notes:

Holy shit? 300 kudos? and over 4000 hits? Thank you guys so much! I'm so happy you like it (: I'll do my best to keep bringing good chapters to the table!

As always, feel free to hit me up on Twitter, and thanks for reading!

Chapter 10: An Alternative Form of Work

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

It was hard to say you had much of an eventful day after waking up. It was nearly noon when you finally got out of bed, and Xiuhua was kind enough to lend you a hand to walk to the nearest doctor. You had fractured your ankle, and learned that it would take about six to ten weeks to heal.

Not the best news all morning, but it was something.

It wasn't like you'd need to amputate it.

Still, it meant you'd be home for a while before Yueshu and Heli would let you step back inside the building. Stuck inside a bland, boring room, you jokingly—later seriously—worried talking to the potted plant at your table would be your best form of social interaction. That was how the majority of the day went while you were under bedrest. Though, you'd soon receive visitors after the sun had set.

With a knock at your door, a muffled Yueshu called your name.

"Come in!" you shouted, prompting her inside. She held her hands behind her back, but wore a frown on her face.

"I can understand reminding you to lock your window, but your door? Really?" she said, baffled as she looked down at you.

You rolled your eyes, pointing toward your ankle.

"Do I look like I can stand up and answer the door?"

"I don't expect you're getting that many visitors," she paused as you gave her an annoyed glare, "No offense."

"None taken," you mumbled, heaving out a breath of air.

"Either way," she stated with a forced cough, closing the door behind her and locking it in place, "you really should keep this locked. You never know what might happen."

You raised your eyebrows at her, an unimpressed look on your face.

"Thanks, mom."

She frowned, putting a hand on her hip.

"Well, I could always just take these gifts and leave—" she stopped herself, eyes going wide. "Oops."

"Gifts…?" you asked, surprised, and she deflated a bit as her shoulders sunk.

"Surprise…!" she cheered half-heartedly, waving her hand in the air as her other remained behind her back. "Everyone was getting a little worried about you, and seeing how bad your injury was didn't help much. So, we all came together to make you a small get well soon gift."

Pulling her hand out from behind her, she held a small woven basket. Inside were simple things, but they easily brought a smile to your lips none-the-less. Names were attached to each item: Heli had given you a book—an educational non-fiction, which seemed fitting of him—and the chefs had all prepared little snacks that wouldn't go bad quickly. Picking up a small plant, you noticed the quick grin that hit Yueshu's lips.

"I picked out that one," she said, and you saw the label with her name written. "I thought your little plant might be a bit lonely, so I found them a friend." She had a warm smile, and you couldn't help but bubble up with laughter from it. It was so sweet of all of them—not to mention it took you completely by surprise. You hadn't expected a gift; in fact, you expected if you saw any of them anytime soon it would be for them to chase you back to bed.

"Thank you, Yueshu… This is amazing," you said with a wide smile, looking up at her. "Tell everyone thank you for me when you can."

She quickly nodded her head, before reaching out to take the basket from your hands and set it on the desk. She sat the new plant next to your original, smiling to herself when everything was placed to her approval. Afterwards, she let out a sigh, and took a seat at the desk.

"Now, tell me what's going on with your ankle. What did the doctor say?" she asked, the seriousness returning to her tone. You sighed, sitting up a bit and getting more comfortable to talk.

"It's fractured, so it's going to take some time to heal," you paused, "I'll be fine, though. I'm sure they'll have me on crutches soon and I'll be right back to work."

She gave you a deadpan look, not impressed.

"You're telling me you're planning on working on crutches?" she asked, and you frowned.

"Well, I need to make money somehow. Sitting here all day isn't doing anything." You stopped, gesturing with your hand. "This isn't a paid vacation."

She brought a hand to her chin, thinking for a moment. After a sigh, she ran a hand through her hair and looked toward you.

"I'll have to ask Heli about it, but…" She paused, thinking over her words. "I might be able to bring you some books that need filling out, with recent purchases and working out reservations." Your eyes widened, and she put her hands out in front of her. "It's not that difficult once you get the hang of it, but it's incredibly boring—trust me—so, I understand if you don't want to take on something like—"

"I would love to," you blurted out, cutting her off mid sentence. She stopped, eyes widening in shock, before she calmed down into an easy smile.

"I'm glad. He's probably already on top of it, but we have a bigger load than usual to handle when the week ends. I'll suggest to him that you take care of them then," she paused, putting her hands together. "If I come back with books, then it's a yes." She looked over to the clock, and let out a sigh. "Looks like I should be getting home, soon. It's late."

You nodded, watching her as she stood up from the chair, pushing it back in its place.

"Thank you for coming, Yueshu," you paused, your eyes drifting to the basket on the desk, "And thank you again for the gifts."

She smiled from the door, slowly opening it.

"You're welcome, I hope you feel better soon, kid." She walked out the door, but soon peeked her head back in only moments after closing it. "And before I leave, I'm locking this."

You shook your head with a small laugh, rolling your eyes.

"Bye, Yueshu."

Swiftly turning the lock and closing the door, she was gone. Letting out a soft breath of air, you sat alone in the room once more.

Your eyes drifted to the window, the only one in the room, and the same one that Childe had appeared in only days before. While you definitely wouldn't be going anywhere with your ankle in the condition it was, part of you wished you could sneak out the window once more to visit the open wilderness. It would have been blissful to walk out in the cool air, watching the stars above your head twinkle one by one in the sky, and to hear the wind gently pass by your ears, sweeping your hair in the direction it wanted at its whim.

Unfortunately, you couldn't walk. Even if you could, there's no way you'd make it off the ledge of the roof in one piece by yourself. For now, all you could do was lay back, and imagine what it would be like in the back of your mind.

In the morning, you woke up with your stomach growling. Xiuhua had been kind enough to treat you to some food the day before, but she had no reason to this morning. Gently moving your legs over the edge, you hobbled on one foot over to the basket. The chefs had been incredibly thoughtful, making you lots of snacks to enjoy while you recovered. Though, they were still snacks; you couldn't survive on that, since you'd need an actual meal at some point.

Plus, they wouldn't last forever—it'd be a shame to waste them all in one sitting.

With a sigh, you slowly made your way down to the front, where hopefully Xiuhua would be willing to help.

She was dealing with a customer, checking them in, as you reached the desk. A woman was happily signing a paper, and you tried to compose yourself before she looked up. You didn't exactly want her first sight after paying to stay to be the mess you likely looked like.

She finished, and gladly picked up the few bags she had, moving past you. She seemed to barely notice you, simply giving you a small nod as she walked past you with the key to her room. Once she was gone, you limped over to the desk.

"Good morning, Xiuhua."

She perked up, responding with your name in shock.

"Is everything alright? Shouldn't you be in bed? How did you get down here?"

You smiled at her worry.

"A simple 'good morning' would have been fine, Xiuhua," you joked, and she sighed with a sheepish smile.

"I'm sorry, you just surprised me," she paused, "Good morning, is there anything I can do to help you?"

"Well…" you started, avoiding her eyes. "I'll need to order food for a while, since I'm supposed to stay under bedrest for a while, but that in itself is pretty difficult when it's a hassle just to move around my room…" you explained, a bit embarrassed. She quickly wore a bright smile, nodding her head.

"I'd be delighted to help."

You paused, looking at her in shock.

"But I didn't—"

"You didn't need to," she said with a laugh, and shuffled around to find a pen and some paper. "Are there any food preferences you have? Any allergies?" You shook your head, before putting a hand out.

"You really don't need to go to all this trouble, I was just hoping you might be able to help walk me there or help find someone who could—"

She swiftly shook her head, the smile still on her lips as she jotted down on a sheet of paper.

"No such thing. I will do my best to make your stay as easy as possible—this is just part of the job." She stopped writing, putting her pen away. "I'll just add the costs to cover these to your bill, but you can pay them back at your own speed, since this is out of the ordinary for most customers."

Eventually, you nodded in agreement.

"Thank you, Xiuhua. I appreciate it."

She flashed you a bright smile once more, before moving out from behind the desk.

"Now, let's get you back to your room. I'll help you, so you don't fall."

This continued for about a week. Xiuhua would order your meals for you, bringing them to your room for you to enjoy. You were still incredibly thankful of her, making sure she knew it every time she dropped something off. Yet, she wouldn't have any of it, ensuring that your happiness was what mattered.

…You had some really good people in your life.

After the week was over, though, you returned to the doctor with Xiuhua. Finally, you were being put on crutches. Though you could walk around now, it wasn't like you'd get very far. The most interesting thing you could do would be to walk into town to get food.

Though, maybe you could stand by the docks and watch the boats for a while? It might even be safe to venture a short distance outside of the city, where there would be less risk of finding a hilichurl camp.

Still, worries plagued your mind over the last time you went out. You wouldn't be going out while you were on your own. Especially while you were injured. So, you kept your journeys limited to places inside the city. Even now, you slowly traversed down the road by yourself after going to get some dinner.

The crutches were more of a relief than you had expected them to be. You weren't struggling to get around anymore, nothing like your venture into the city where you tried to use the walls to brace yourself. Even if you had the option of Childe's help like before, you'd still probably opt for the crutches.

You'd have to make a jab at him later that a pair of sticks were so much easier to deal with than him.

After a short walk—though longer than it'd usually take—you walked back into the Baiju Guesthouse. Xiuhua was dealing with another customer, one who seemed to be leaving, but she gave you a small wave as your eyes met. With a slight smile, you waved back, before heading up to your room as quietly as possible.

"There you are, I was wondering if you jumped the fence and hobbled home."

Your eyes widened in surprise at the sudden voice, but looked up to see Yueshu standing by your door. In her arms were piles of books, papers sticking in and out of them.

"I come bearing more gifts," she continued.

With a wide grin, you quickly moved to the door, unlocking it for her.

"Come on, set them down on the table," you instructed, letting her inside. She shut the door behind her with her foot, and put the stack down like you said.

"Good job on locking the door, I'm proud of you," she teased as you locked the door back behind you.

"I didn't want to sit through another lecture of yours," you retorted, and she let out a snort of laughter.

"I'm hurt! You should appreciate the lessons taught by your elders."

You rolled your eyes, huffing out a laugh.

"As if you're that much older than me," you stated with raised brows, noticing her grin. She crossed her arms, shooting you an eye roll back.

"As if you'd have the nerve to ask by how much." She paused, taking your silence as a success. "Either way, I almost would have been fine if you forgot this once—I tried letting myself in, but obviously to no luck."

"I don't know if I should be thankful that you waited out here to make sure I got these," you paused to let out a soft laugh as you shook your head, "or worried that you tried to break into my home."

She playfully pushed your arm, grinning widely.

"Don't think too hard about it. Just be thankful you have such an amazing friend like me."

You gave her a soft smile. If only she knew how thankful you really were.

"How did you convince Heli to let me do this?" you eventually asking, picking up the first book and flipping through it. The words scrawled across the page were uniform and clear, but that didn't halt the fact that it was like a different language to you.

She was quiet for a moment, and when you looked up she was rubbing the back of her neck, looking across the room.

"Well, since you're gone, I've been taking up your job. So… I may have told Heli that the workload was too heavy for me, and I wouldn't be able to work on all of them. Which led me to suggesting that you work on them." She paused, looking back to you. "He thinks I'm here to ask you if you'd be interesting."

You let out a chuckle, setting the book down.

"Let him know I said yes." You stopped, and crossed your arms. "So, you really told him you couldn't handle the job that you'd been doing the entire time before I was hired?"

She grinned nervously, hands behind her back.

"You could say so."

The two of you were silent for a moment, before you let out a stifled laugh.

"There's no way he believed that."

"Not a chance."

After her affirmation, she sat down on your bed, pointing towards the stack.

"Well, those books aren't going to fill out themselves. Open one up and I'll show you what to do."

You opened one up, and Yueshu quickly got to explaining the details of it. It was fairly simple—once everything was explained, it was far less complicated than it looked. The papers that had been sticking out were receipts and plans for people who made reservations. All you were doing was essentially filling out information for the people who would be arriving to make reservations, writing down their name, how many people they'd have, the time, and the like. Then, you'd go through the receipts and match them to older reservations, marking them down that they had arrived and had their meal. You'd pin the receipt to the page, like evidence that it was correct.

"I can handle this," you said as she finished, confidently setting the book down on the pile.

"I'm glad," Yueshu said with a smile. "The hardest part is just how much there is of it. So many people make reservations, so we keep them all organized in one place to keep track of who to expect and who has already come through." She sighed dramatically, putting a hand on her head. "I'll still be handling the books for orders during the day, since Heli thought it would be a stupid idea to give them to you when you aren't even there," she paused, "I just can't catch a break!"

You let out a laugh at her, trying to hold it back, but her eyes lit up and she wore a playful grin at the sound.

"Oh, I'm glad someone is entertained by my suffering," she teased. "But, I'll need to get home soon. I'll need some sleep if I want to get through all of that work."

You nodded, using your crutches to walk to the door and unlock it.

"I won't hold you back. I can see how much you're dreading doing all of that," you returned, and she let out a chuckle.

"I'll be back every few days with more receipts and reservations for you to fill out. Take your time, but try to have a good amount of books for me to bring back so that Heli doesn't have a fit. I don't particularly want to deal with that."

You let out a nervous laugh, holding the door open as she stood up.

"Me neither. I'll get right to work in the morning."

She smiled, stepping into the doorway.

"Sounds like a plan, kid." She paused, turning to you before she would leave. "Sleep well, and don't do anything reckless to get you stuck home even longer."

You wore a warm smile, your grip loosening on the door.

"I won't, trust me."

She barked out a laugh, turning away from you.

"Good—" she stopped herself once more, forcefully turning toward you this time. "Oh! And don't hesitate to let me know if you know who tries to bother you while you're here. I'll make sure to teach him his lesson again."

You tried desperately not to laugh, nodding your head slowly.

"Thank you, Yueshu. Now, goodnight," you urged, and she waved a hand at you lazily.

"Fine, fine. Goodnight!"

Leaving you laughing in the doorway, she walked off. Once she was out of sight, you shut and locked the door. Your eyes drifted to the pile on your desk, and you contemplated getting an early start on the task.

Though, with a look back towards the window, you caught a glimpse of the moon high in the sky, stars glittering to signify just how late it was. With a sigh, you pushed the thought out of your head, slowly settling down into bed.

You'd get one more night of sleep, then it was time for work.

Notes:

Another one out! I meant to have this up much earlier, but it's finals season and oh BOY. I finished my British Literature one today so uploading this was my reward lol. Thank you all so much for all of your kind comments and support by reading! Talk to me on Twitter if you'd like, and thanks again!

Chapter 11: Work and Play

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Papers littered your bed. Documents covered the floor. Across the room, a stack of books sat in a pile that was ready to topple at a moment's notice.

It was an utter mess.

The next morning, you decided it was time to give your new job a go. You woke up, hobbled to the bathroom, went through your morning routine—or, as much as you needed when you were planning on staying inside for a few hours—and sat down. Now, here you were, furiously scribbling and sorting through papers upon papers.

Now you saw why Yueshu didn't want to do this.

Truly, the work was simple. You were essentially just copying down from paper to paper and organizing. The thing is, it was obvious someone like Heli had not been in charge of the documents you were working with. The receipts and plans were nowhere near the places they'd need to be marked off, and some of them were to orders that should be in an entirely different book. Hence, the mess.

Though, you hadn't lied to Yueshu. This was something you could accomplish. When you got down to it, this was definitely something you could handle.

Either way, you couldn't afford to go without pay for however long you were injured.

So, you pushed on. You were elbows deep in books and papers, and had somehow managed to go through the rest of your pen and had to find a new one. You were slowly getting the hang of it—you wouldn't say it wasn't difficult, but you knew what you were doing—and the pile of books was beginning to look a little less threatening.

After an endless session of scribbling down names of people you didn't know, the various table locations the restaurant offered, and a nearly endless loop of numbers, you finally set your pen down. Slowly, you let out a breath you'd be holding in, finally relaxing now that your work was done.

Five books sat stacked neatly on the floor beside your bed. It was only a small dent in the full amount, but a dent nonetheless. Rubbing your eyes, you pushed the other papers away, suddenly realizing the rumble in your stomach.

Maybe waking up and going straight to work hadn't been the best plan. You got a good amount done, but now you had to face just how hungry you were. Taking a moment to properly get dressed and presentable outside, you leaned against the crutches as you picked through your small bag of mora. You didn't exactly have much to spend—it was moments like this that you missed working at Xinyue Kiosk. You could get meals at a much cheaper cost, and sometimes there were leftovers that hadn't been sold. They might not be prim and proper, ready to be served, but it didn't change the fact that it was tasty—and free—food.

Now, you'd have to get what you could. You could probably stop by the restaurant—Yueshu might still give you that employee discount—but it felt wrong to walk all the way there so soon after being forced to stay home. You'd get there and realize you wanted to get back in and work, though, you knew no one would approve of it while you were in this condition.

So, you picked up the pace, and headed out. You'd be frequenting food vendors for a while, getting the cheapest you could find. That was about all the luck you'd have on finding something affordable that would still be filling.

You walked down the path, the bottom of your crutches lightly tapping against the ground as you traveled. The sound was nearly drowned out by the echoes of people surrounding you. Every area seemed to be bustling, whether it was locals heading out for a special lunch or people visiting and wandering the shops.

While you walked by yourself, there was no shortage of others doing the same. Maybe they were only alone for a moment, heading to meet someone or going home, but it was less lonely as you thought about it. In fact, the walk by yourself was peaceful. Going up and down stairs was still a struggle, but at least it wasn't painful. You could properly enjoy yourself.

Going outside the city was wonderful, but this had to fall into a close second. Something about Liyue just made it so easy to relax. You felt safer here—less like one wrong move could put a target on your back. The Tsaritsa made it difficult for you to truly feel at ease walking in your own hometown anymore.

On one hand, you were happy to be so far away. On the other… it'd be difficult to refuse one more warm, homemade meal on a cold, snowy day.

"Grilled Tiger Fish! Get it while it's hot!"

You broke out of your thoughts, hearing the shout a few feet away. It came from Chen the Sharp, one of the local vendors. Briskly heading toward him, you took out the small pouch of Mora from your pocket.

"How much is the Grilled Tiger Fish?" you asked, your hand already in the bag ready to count if you had enough to spare.

"Only three hundred eighty Mora!" he replied with a wide smile. This was probably the cheapest you'd get, and you definitely had enough with you to cover it. Pulling out the right amount, you gave him a smile in return.

"I'll take one order then, please."

He took your payment, his smile even wider now.

"Coming right up!"

You stepped over after giving the name for your order, standing out of the way of the next person. There weren't any chairs to sit and wait in, or even to eat your food at, but that didn't stop people from hoping to get a meal. They were just like you, simply hoping for some quick food. Some may have even had the same financial aspects in mind as you had.

Though, as you stood waiting for your food, you felt eyes upon you. Looking up, your eyes drifted around, trying to find where the feeling was coming from, until they landed a few steps away. The woman from the other day was standing with a small box of food, eyes on yours.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" she suddenly proclaimed, realizing she had been caught. "I just got my food, but I noticed you standing there. I thought I recognized you from a few days ago, when I checked into the Baiju Guesthouse—" she paused, putting out a hand nervously. "If I'm mistaken, I am so, so sorry!" You struggled not to laugh at her flustered form, shaking your head.

"No, no, I remember. You had just finished getting checked in when I came down to the front."

She wore a bright smile, eyes lighting up seemingly at the realization that I was someone she recognized.

"I see! I'm glad it really is you… I would have been so embarrassed if it wasn't…" she laughed a bit, "Imagine what a fool of myself I'd make!" You let out a laugh with her, still confused by her, but nevertheless entertained.

"Well, is there anything I can help you with? Since you were staring and all?" you asked playfully, and her face immediately flushed red.

"Ah—sorry about that," she paused, rubbing the back of her neck. "Really, I was wondering if you might be more experienced here than I am." You gave her a curious look, and she continued. "You see, I've been here plenty of times, but mainly on business. I'll stay the night at the Baiju Guesthouse, but as soon as I finish what I came for I'm heading back home. Usually I don't have to worry about food, since everything is handled inside a restaurant, where there's, well… tables and chairs." She paused, her expression far more sheepish now. "For once I'm not here on business, so I decided to find something out of the norm to eat… but now, I have no clue where to go to eat my food. Do I just head home? Are there chairs anywhere around here? Do I just stand here?"

You couldn't handle it, and a giggle slipped through. She stopped, a nervous smile creeping onto her lips.

"It seems like I'm already making a fool of myself, aren't I?" she added, and you shook your head with a smile.

"Not at all, you're fine," you paused, looking around. "Well, I can't say I've been here that long, but as far as I know there aren't any chairs or spaces to sit in around here. Though, I've seen people sit on the steps here and eat, or you could always lean against the bridge and eat. I assume it'd work as a makeshift table as well," you suggested, and another smile settled on your lips. "If you'd like, once I get my food I could join you so it doesn't feel so weird eating out in the open."

A bright, thankful smile appeared on her lips.

"That would be fantastic! Thank you so much!" she exclaimed, and you laughed once more at the attention her excitement wrought. Her eyes widened for a moment, noticing the looks from across the street, before joining in your laughter.

While you were busy laughing, Chen the Sharp called your name, and as you turned around you saw your order sitting on the table. Excusing yourself, you quickly retrieved your meal, thanking him before you returned to your new acquaintance.

"Is that your name?" she asked as you got back, and the sudden question took you a bit by surprise. You blinked for a moment before coming back to reality.

"Oh, the one they called? Yeah, sorry for not introducing myself properly," you said with a small laugh, and she put her hand out with a smile.

"That's completely fine. I haven't properly introduced myself either. My name is Alexi."

Your interest was caught for a moment at how… different it sounded from what you had been used to while staying here. It definitely wasn't a name from Liyue, though she did say was here on vacation. Not wanting to pry—yet—you settled on giving her a smile.

"That's a very nice name."

She laughed, wearing a grin.

"The same to yours."

After a moment, she turned and faced the bridge a short ways away.

"Well, why don't we go eat over there. It'd be nice to have somewhere to set my things that isn't on the ground," she suggested.

You nodded as she pointed to your next destination, and the two of you were soon side by side, your meals sitting on the railing of the bridge as you stood on the wooden beams.

"It really is nice here… a lot nicer when you have time to appreciate it, not rushing to meetings," she admitted, looking across the rail at the scenery. "Is that what brought you here?"

You wore a small smile, tilting your head nervously as your eyes trailed away.

"Well… not particularly. I was mainly trying to get as far away from home as possible, and ended up here. I didn't really know what to expect," you explained, and she wore a bright smile.

"Well, I'm sure that makes a vacation all the more interesting!" she said cheerfully, and you laughed softly. She happily took another bite of the Stir-Fried Filet she had ordered.

"This isn't exactly a vacation, but it did make things interesting, alright."

She wore a confused expression, pausing mid bite of her food.

"You're not here on vacation? I assumed since you were staying at the guesthouse…" she responded in confusion and you shook your head.

"No, I moved here from home. Though, I haven't been here long enough to save up enough money for anything like a house," you paused, fidgeting with the skewer that held your food, "So, I've just been staying in the guesthouse until I can afford somewhere else."

She nodded, suddenly intrigued, and you ate a bit more of your fish.

"I see! Did you just decide to move or were there other circumstances? Like maybe a special person…?" she asked, her cheeks slightly flushed. You nearly choked on your food, shaking your head once you swallowed.

"I think you read too many romance novels."

She wore a sheepish expression, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Sorry, the whole situation is so unusual to me, I couldn't help but wonder if there was something more," she explained, and you shook your head with a laugh.

"I can't say there is—nothing like that." You stopped, thinking of something a bit more interesting to add. "I do work at a restaurant though, the Xinyue Kiosk," you paused, grinning, "Can't guarantee you'll get a seat there during this vacation, though. Maybe if you have one three months from now."

She laughed, the bright smile returning to her face.

"I had no idea I was dining with such a celebrity!" she exclaimed, and an embarrassed tinge of pink dusted your cheeks. "I assume the reason you're here now and not working is that injury?" she asked, pointing down to your foot.

"Ah—yeah, it is. I'm just doing book work while I'm out, but hopefully I'll be heading back to work on the floor soon."

She smiled, a warm expression on her face.

"Well, with your injury and my confusion trying to navigate through this city, if one good thing has come out of this, I'm glad to have met you today," she said softly, in a way that you could hear the genuinity in her voice. Your eyes widened, stunned silent for a moment from the simple words.

"Well… thank you, the same to you," you responded a little awkwardly, earning another bright smile and fit of laughter from her. As you finished up your meal, you took a look around the area. It was still a bright, sunny afternoon, and you had gotten quite a bit of work done already… Maybe another break wouldn't hurt?

"Since you haven't had much time to explore, is there anywhere you'd like to visit? I may be slow on these crutches, but I wouldn't mind showing you around."

Her eyes lit up and her smile grew even wider—if that's even possible.

"That would be amazing! Thank you so much!" she exclaimed, stars practically in her eyes. She rapidly finished her own food, so quick that you had to stifle a few giggles, and you both disposed of your trash before making your way to a new destination.

"Is there anything in particular you're interested in?" you asked, tossing her a glance. She paused, bringing a hand to her chin.

"I can't really say… I don't know much about Liyue Harbor, as embarrassing as it is to admit. I've been here so many times, but I only know the places I've frequented." She stopped, a sheepish smile coming to her lips. "Though, when you made that romance novel joke… you're honestly probably right. I love books. Maybe if there's something related to that…?" she asked timidly, and you nodded with a bright smile.

"How about we head to Feiyan Slope? There's a bookstore there, Wanwen Bookhouse, and we'll be able to get back to the guesthouse easily from there," you suggested, "Plus, it's just a really nice area to walk through. The lights are gorgeous, especially once the sun starts to go down."

She nodded furiously, excitement in her eyes.

"Sounds wonderful!" she shouted, and her contagious smile flooded to your own.

So began the rest of your afternoon. You took Alexi around the area, showing her different shops and making stops at places that she seemed interested in. You didn't exactly have any money to spend, and whenever she questioned if you were buying anything, you simply ended up making an excuse. "I've already gotten things from here" or "That's okay, I'm not interested in anything here" were some of your favorites. She nodded simply, but it was almost as if she was shocked that you weren't spending money anywhere.

It's not like you had the money to spend, anyways. And you wouldn't be explaining your financial situation to someone you just met.

Still, the two of you stood in Wanwen Bookhouse, perusing what all they had to offer. Alexi was happily bouncing between the shelves, picking up book after book. The owner, Jifang, looked like her heart might burst seeing the stack of books the girl held in her arms. She was fairly short, and seemed nearly at risk of toppling over if she added too many more to her already enormous stack.

"Would you like some help carrying those…?" you asked, eyes wide as you eyed her choices up and down. She let out a soft laugh, peeking out from behind them. You could barely see her, and you wondered how she was seeing where she was even going.

"That's quite alright, thank you though! I'm used to this." She stopped, her eyes glancing to the stack. "You could say… that I really like books."

You nodded, not at all surprised by the statement after seeing the sight in front of you.

"You don't say?" you responded sarcastically, earning a hearty laugh from her, one that was enough to make her a little unstable. She started to sway, eyes filled with nervousness, and she let out a small flustered noise as she focused more on the books than herself. You quickly reached out and placed one hand on her shoulder and one on the stack of books, helping to stabilize her. Though you were still a little wobbly yourself, with one foot and your armpits supporting your crutches, together you were able to keep from toppling over. She let out a sigh of relief, the sheepish smile back on her lips.

"Ah—thank you for that…" she said quietly, and you let out a small laugh.

"It's no problem," you said as you took about half of her stack of books from her. "I think I'll carry these for you before you actually fall."

She grinned nervously, a hand rubbing the side of her head.

"Yeah… That might be a good idea," she admitted. After a moment of hesitation, she was back wandering the area, albeit a little more cautious this time.

While she was browsing, you didn't exactly have much to do other than the same. Otherwise, you'd just be standing still, holding a huge pile of books, just waiting for her to finish adding more to them. Your feet slowly started to guide you, wandering through to look at what books there were to offer.

When you stopped at a section that had romance novels, you had to laugh softly to yourself, glancing toward your new friend—who was luckily too absorbed in her search to notice. Either way, your eyes trailed over the books, and eventually you picked one up that seemed to interest you.

Looking it over, it was incredibly cliché. Surely, you could pinpoint exactly what would happen chapters before it did, or even the ending just by reading a summary. It was a simple story, but it still drew your attention. You were flipping through the pages, eyes traveling over the words as they danced in the back of your mind—a gentle, pleasing melody.

Then, a tap to the shoulder, making you jump out of your trance.

"Find something you like?" Alexi asked, peering over to look at the words of the book you held in your hands. You hastily snapped it shut, placing it back down where it came from.

"Not really, just browsing…!" you said a little too loudly, your speech too quick. A tense smile had formed on your lips, one that made Alexi's brows furrow in confusion. After a moment she eased, breaking out into one of her normal fits of laughter.

"Well, either way, I'm ready to pay if you're done looking," she explained, "Could you bring those books to Jifang for me?"

You nodded, the nervousness easing a bit as you headed to the table. Alexi followed behind you, setting her stack down after you had put down your part of her transaction. Jifang still looked like she was in disbelief; really, you couldn't blame her. Alexi must have a hefty wallet, or just willing to risk a lot for her hobby. She briskly paid for the immense amount of books, and you were quick to grab one of the heavy bags, despite her protests.

Soon you were both making your way down the street back towards the guesthouse, with the sun slowly starting to set.

"You were right," Alexi stated, as she looked around with eyes filled with wonder. "The lights really are pretty with the sun going down."

A small smile trickled up your lips, looking up with her.

"Liyue Harbor really is a beautiful place to live."

Alexi gave you a silent nod in agreement, and the two of you continued walking, just appreciating the sights around you. No matter how many times you did it, being able to walk through town and simply enjoy the sights of your new home was always just as comforting as before.

It didn't last as long as you had hoped it would though, and the two of you had soon arrived at the doors of your rooms.

"Looks like I got the room right next to yours!" Alexi said in surprise, "Now, isn't that convenient."

You laughed, holding up the bag in your hand.

"Less time I have to spend carrying your things," you said with a laugh. She rolled her eyes, and quickly stepped forward, taking the other bag from you.

"Which I will take right now. Thank you for the help, but I feel bad enough making you carry this when you're injured."

You put your hands out, shaking your head.

"It's fine, Alexi. I don't mind."

She pouted, a hand on her hip.

"I'll pay you back somehow!" she shouted, and you raised an eyebrow at her.

"Do you even have anything left after that purchase?" you asked, half joking, half genuine. She grinned, batting a hand at you.

"I have my ways."

You rolled your eyes, and she let out a bright laugh.

"Anyways," she started, reaching inside of the bag she had taken from you. "I wanted to thank you for all you did for me today. It was a lot of fun, and really made me feel a lot more welcomed into the city." When she looked back up to you, there was a small book in her hand. "You didn't show much interest in anything in all the stores we visited, but you couldn't fool me on this."

Your eyes widened, and she placed the novel into your hand. It was the one you had been looking at before she got your attention.

"I planned to thank you with this," she continued, "but then you went out and carried the bag with your gift yourself too! I was so scared you were going to peek inside and see it!"

You stood there for a moment, simply gazing down at the item in your hand. Your fingers slid down its spine, feeling its cover before gently opening it to flip through the pages, listening to their soft flutter. With how quickly she had snuck it in with the others behind your back, it must have been the exact one you had been holding, with her snatching it up as soon as your back was turned.

"Thank you, Alexi. I love it," you said genuinely, your words coming from the heart as you gave her a warm smile. She wore one that matched yours, her eyes lighting up at your reaction.

"I'm glad you do," she said, before a playful grin took place on her face. "I still have to pay you back later! I'll take you to whatever restaurant you want—" she paused, her smile faltering a little, "As long as it doesn't have a three month long wait to get inside…"

You let out a quick giggle, unlocking your door.

"Whatever you say," you responded, before pushing the door open and stepping inside. "Goodnight, Alexi."

She grinned at you one more time, before opening her door and sliding in herself.

"Night!" she shouted cheerfully, and you closed the door with a bright smile on your face.

The Archons must have seen your trying times, and blessed you with a new friend.

Notes:

Guess who finished all their AP exams and finals B)
Took 4 math AP exams and I never want to put my body through that ever again
Anyways, this chapter is finally out! Hope you guys enjoyed, I'm hoping to get chapters out quick again now that summer is on the way. I graduate this week so whoop whoop!
Thank you for reading, and feel free to hit me up on Twitter if you want to chat!

Chapter 12: Lunch with a Friend?

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Weeks had passed—your ankle was healing nicely as you kept busy with your new job. Unsurprisingly, it's easier for injuries to heal when you give them time to rest and actually get better. Though, you didn't keep cooped up all the time, not anymore; you had a friend keeping you company.

"Are you about finished with that?" Alexi asked, propped up on one of your chairs while you sat on the bed, scribbling away.

"Almost, almost, hold your horses. I just need to finish up these last reservations—Yueshu will be here later tonight, and I need to be up to quota," you explained, rushing to copy down the last few names and dates. You had been good about giving her about seven or eight completed books every time she came to visit, but you were a little behind schedule this time. She always came back with more, and it nearly sent your head spinning with how many people actually ate at this restaurant.

…That, and how long some people were willing to wait to step inside.

A few feet away, you heard the crinkling of paper, and looked up to see Alexi unwrapping one of the snacks you had gotten as a gift.

"Hey!" you shouted, grabbing a pillow from behind you and tossing it at her. It smacked her square in the face, but she didn't let go of the snack. Before you could grab another one, she had popped it in her mouth.

If it had been anyone else, you might have thrown the pillow with a bit more force—or maybe you would have gotten something with a little more weight to it—but instead of anger coursing through you, fits of laughter rolled out of you. Alexi was laughing as well, grinning with some of the remnants of your treat still in her teeth after she had swallowed it.

"That was a gift, you know! I can't believe you're eating my presents!" you shouted, trying to settle down your laughter. She groaned, a dramatic look of despair making its way onto her face.

"But I'm so hungry! I've been waiting for ages to go get some food already… I can't help it!" she replied in a vain attempt at an excuse, earning a tsk tsk from you as you shook your head and closed the book.

"Fine, fine. I'm done," you paused, playfully narrowing your eyes, "Try eating another one and see where it gets you." She grinned once more, and you swatted a hand at her. "And go fix your teeth in the mirror! I can see the evidence of your horrendous crimes all over them!"

With a few more badly hidden giggles, she rose up and practically skipped to the bathroom, quite proud of herself. You rolled your eyes, huffing out a laugh of disbelief. The two of you had become incredibly close over the short time you had known each other, and it wasn't uncommon for her to be in your room like this. She'd keep you company for a bit while you worked, then you'd go out for lunch, and you'd take her to some new place to explore. It wasn't difficult to impress her either; you could show her a pile of wood by the docks and she'd likely have the same stars in her eyes as if you'd walked into the Golden House.

While she was gone you jotted down a few more notes, but by the time you shut your book once more and placed it away, Alexi was returning. Her eyes lit up as she saw you rising to your feet.

"Are you finally ready?!" she shouted, beyond excited. You laughed, rolling your eyes for a moment.

"Yes, I'm finally ready," you responded, grabbing your crutches. Though your injury was healing well, it didn't mean you were ready to go off crutches yet. Hopefully once you were able to come off of them, you'd be able to truly work again like normal.

Once you were settled in place, stable with them under your arms, Alexi cheerfully opened your door. She held it open for you, a bright grin on her face. She went ahead as you locked the door behind you. When you were done, you slowly caught up with her. Soon, the two of you were on your way down the road, heading to a new place to eat.

Usually, you just ate at the food vendors, where you could find the cheapest meal you could get. Though, Alexi decided that she wanted to treat you every once in a while. Today, she was taking you to Third-Round Knockout, intent on getting some food from the tavern. She insisted that you both try every place to eat you could at some point, and there was no way she was letting you live on a cheap appetizer and a glass of free water.

You both made it there in time for lunch, finding a table outside to sit at. Alexi was quick to order a wide variety of foods—the table would nearly be covered in her orders. Though, you'd never tried any of it, and there was no denying you were excited.

"I can't wait until it's ready…! I thought I might die of hunger in your room!" she exclaimed, a dramatic expression lingering on her face.

"I wouldn't let that happen," you said sweetly, before grinning. "The smell would be too bad."

She ruffled her eyebrows, playfully punching you as she pursed her lips.

"You're so cruel! And after I went as far as to treat you to such a nice lunch!" she teased, and you had to close your eyes from laughing so hard. Her "angry" expression was hilarious, sending you into fits over it. Though, you knew she definitely wasn't actually angry. If she actually was, you doubted she would be this playful.

"It would be, though! Am I wrong?"

She frowned, huffing as she tossed her hair to the side and crossed her arms.

"No… but still!"

Your fits of giggles were still taking you over completely, and you quickly tried to take a few deep breaths to settle down.

"Okay, okay… In all seriousness, I am looking forward to this. Thank you for bringing me and treating me to such nice food," you said with a smile, fiddling with a pair of chopsticks on the table. She grinned, hand under her chin.

"Well, of course! It's no fun eating by yourself, and I can't think of anyone I'd rather be spending my lunch with."

Your cheeks were heating up from embarrassment at her sudden proclamation. You couldn't deny it, she was definitely becoming one of your closest friends. She seemed to truly care about you and your wellbeing, and you felt the same toward her—of course, all of this was behind the torrent of playful jabs the two of you shared.

She had gotten a lot off of your mind as well. Whether you had realized it or not, many of the inner struggles you had been facing recently after moving here and meeting… him again, had greatly decreased in size. Contemplating your thoughts on it all had moved to the back of your mind. For at least a moment, you could just enjoy yourself.

"Food's here!" Alexi said quietly to you, but the excitement was clear in her voice and her wide smile. Different bowls and plates were being brought out, all of which you could pick the parts you wanted to put on your own personal plates. She got meals that you both could share, thinking of you as she ordered. Actions like this furthered your friendship even more—you could see that she genuinely thought about you and put care into her decisions.

Once all of the dishes were settled, the two of you began to dig in. You snapped your chopsticks, picking out what you wanted and moving the food to your plate. Alexi moved quickly, eating without a second thought or an ounce of hesitation. A pleased smile formed on her lips, her mouth still full of food as she hummed in satisfaction. You did your best not to giggle as you began to eat your own meal.

Though, as you took the first bite, you understood her reaction. Either she was just fantastic at picking out dishes, or everything on the menu was this good. Whichever was true, the food was delicious.

The two of you ate in silence for a while, enjoying the company of the other's presence while you satisfied the hunger that had built up. After a while, though, Alexi sighed in content.

"Now this was a good choice. I don't know about you, but this is the best I've eaten all week."

You nodded, quickly swallowing the bite you had yourself.

"I couldn't agree more," you paused, "Though, it's not that hard. The unreasonable amount of Grilled Tiger Fish I've been living on can't compare to this."

She laughed, poking you on the forehead.

"What have I told you? You can't force yourself to eat like that, you need some variety! Not just for the body, but for the soul!"

You rolled your eyes at her uplifting statement, chuckling.

"Tell my wallet that."

She grinned, eyebrows raised.

"Guess I know who's going to be getting the leftovers," she said with a grin.

"Wha— No! That's your money!" you shouted, and she shrugged.

"And I choose how I want to spend it. And I choose to spend it on food for you." She grinned teasingly. "My treat."

You pursed your lips, but conceded.

"Fine…" you paused, "Thanks, it is really good…"

She burst into laughter, hands proudly on her hips.

"That's what I like to hear!"

Suddenly she stopped, going quiet as her eyes narrowed. You noticed, and went to turn in the direction she was looking, but she grabbed your hand before you could turn around, distracting you from the thought.

"Is everything alright?" you asked, and she burst out into laughter.

"Oh, you're so funny!" she shouted, a lot louder than seemed necessary. This only furthered your confusion.

"…Huh?"

Her laughter continued, squeezing your hand tighter as she mumbled your name between laughs.

"Stop! I can't take it much more, you're hilarious!" she continued, leaving you dumbfounded.

"Uh… Alexi? What?"

She continued laughing, though lowered her voice to speak again.

"There's some dude watching behind you, just start laughing to show we're already busy and maybe he'll go away."

You frowned, confused by it all, but at least now you understood her sudden outburst. Still, you were curious by whom she meant. Even though she clearly didn't want you to, you turned your gaze to see who she had been so focused on moments ago.

Of course, a certain redhead was the first person to enter your vision.

"…Childe?" you mumbled, and Alexi's grip tightened on your hand. Still, trying to show her that it was alright, you called out to him. "Childe, what are you doing over there?"

He was standing in the middle of the street, his flashy clothes like a distraction amongst the casual wear of the passersby. His eyes weren't focused on yours, though he still heeded your call and walked over. Once he had arrived at the table, you could see the familiar smile on his lips. The fake one.

"I was just passing through, heading back to Northland Bank. It was a bit of a surprise seeing you out here, I couldn't help but stop to see if it really was you." He stopped, and you could see where his eyes were landing now. He was focused on Alexi, his gaze unmoving from her—and then her hand on yours. "And who is this?"

"This is my new friend—" you started, but she cut you off.

"Alexi. It's a pleasure to meet you," she answered for herself. Though, there was something off. There was tension from both of them.

You could understand Alexi. If there was any chance she knew who Childe was, or simply noticed the mask on his head, then it would be reason enough for her to suddenly be unsettled. Plus, this was the person she was just warning you about. Yet, here you were, calling him over.

Why Childe was so tense was another story. You couldn't understand what was going through his mind on a good day, and you definitely couldn't now. Maybe he'd had a rough time with whatever he'd been up to before spotting you? Maybe he was tired from whatever his job was to do, or just annoyed at one of the people he had to deal with for it. Or, maybe he simply was hungry and the amount of food on the table was getting to him?

This started to become your conclusion as you watched him happily pick something up off of your plate with his hands.

"Hey!" you shouted, suddenly shaking the thoughts out of your head. "That's mine, you know."

He raised an eyebrow, his eyes finally meeting yours.

"Do you mind? It's not like this is new, Sunshine."

You frowned. Sure, he was right, the two of you had taken food from the other's plates when you were younger. Whatever he didn't want you gladly would enjoy, and the opposite was the same for you. Still, that was when you were children, and this was now—and in front of Alexi as well.

"W—Well, your hands are dirty! That's just gross, Childe!" you said in excuse, but he just laughed, picking up another piece.

"I assure you, my hands are clean."

You grumbled, facing away from him. Your eyes drifted to Alexi, who looked surprised by the whole ordeal. You wore a sheepish look, forcing an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry about him, Alexi. He's… a complicated story," you explained. "We're old friends."

This alone was probably more than you should have revealed, but this was someone you trusted, not some stranger. Sorry, Childe, but some things are even more difficult left unaddressed.

She nodded, still casting a sharp look to him.

"That's good to know, I was a little worried for a moment there." She paused, turning back to you with an easy smile. "How long have you two known each other? Did you meet when you were young?" she asked, though that was a hard question to answer.

"Well, I—" Before you could actually respond, Childe put a hand on your shoulder, effectively shutting you up.

"Who cares about the little details, really?" He paused, and when you looked toward his eyes you saw him matching her sharp look from earlier. "I'm Childe, No. 11 of the Eleven Harbingers of the Fatui." There was a harshness to his voice, and even though he was just explaining who he was, it felt like he was inviting her to a challenge.

This obviously did not go unnoticed.

"Impressive, really, but an odd thing to bring up in a friendly chat," Alexi stated, crossing her arms. "Now, if you don't mind, we were enjoying a meal—"

"Sunshine, are you sure you should be out like this?" Childe interrupted her, focusing his attention on you. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see the pinched look on Alexi's face. "You're still healing, you should be resting in bed."

You frowned, dumbfounded by him.

"Childe, I've been in bed for weeks. I need to get out of that room at some point," you responded, confusion etched into your voice.

"You need to let it heal properly. If you don't, it could be uncomfortable the rest of your life," he paused, grinning at you, "Your wrist still pops, doesn't it? I wonder why?" he said sarcastically, and you rolled your eyes.

"What are you, my father?" you teased, crossing your arms. He still wore that grin, but now continued reaching out for another piece of food while your arms were withdrawn. As soon as you noticed what he was doing, you quickly pulled your arms back out and swatted at him.

"And stop stealing my food!" you shouted, "Or at least, if you're going to, use a pair of chopsticks. Don't put your hands in my food!"

He laughed, still managing to swallow the piece he had taken despite your flurry of blows. When you grabbed a pair of chopsticks to hand to him, he simply put his hands behind his back. You groaned, shoving them towards him either way, your hand landing on his chest.

"Just take them!" you shouted, though the edge of anger you once had was quickly fading as your shouts transfigured into giggles.

Alexi soon spoke up, reminding you of the situation at hand.

"I don't want to interrupt, but are you two…?"

You turned to her, confused, but didn't move from your position.

"What do you mean?" you asked, but Childe didn't have an ounce of hesitation.

"And what if we are?"

The three of you sat there, stillness consuming the table. You didn't dare move, but that didn't stop you from looking between the two of them. Their eyes were locked, communicating on a different level from you—in some way that you simply could not understand.

"What if we're what?" you finally asked, breaking the silence. Childe turned back to you, a smirk on his lips.

"Sunshine, hands."

You stared at him for a moment, before realizing what he meant. Your hand still remained on his chest, and you quickly pulled it away, letting the chopsticks you held clatter to the ground.

"You'll have to excuse her," Childe began, "she can get a bit handsy."

You knit your brows together in confusion, trying to figure out what any of this meant.

Then, it hit you.

"Were you asking…" you paused, looking over to Alexi, "…if we're together?"

She gave you a look that said "obviously," and you felt your face heat up tenfold. Suddenly your actions and Childe's words had a whole new meaning, one you hadn't intended on.

"We are not!" you shouted, covering your flaming cheeks with your hands. "Absolutely not!" you added, shouting into your palms.

Then, you felt arms wrap around yours.

"Awwww, why not?" came Childe in a teasing voice, and you nearly snapped. Pushing him off of you, your face was nearly the same shade as his red scarf.

"Stop it already!" you mewled, earning a heavy fit of laughter from him. You gave an apologetic look to Alexi, who only looked more confused.

"It's getting late in the afternoon, and I have some business to take care of. Why don't we go ahead and pack this up to head back?" she asked, and you couldn't be more thankful for her save.

"That sounds like a good idea," you stated—though, it wouldn't have mattered. She was already waving down a waiter to ask for some boxes.

"If your friend is so busy," Childe started, "why don't I walk you back, Sunshine? I can help carry those boxes as well."

You frowned, not particularly wanting to walk all the way back with him, especially after the embarrassing ordeal you'd just gone through because of him.

"You don't need to, I'll just—"

"Actually," Alexi interrupted, and you felt your face fall. "It would be helpful if you could. I'm afraid I'm already late, but this food would need to be dropped off with my friend here before I could go to my meeting," she explained. "If you don't mind," she added, though it seemed more directed to you than to Childe.

"Not at all," he stated, that same cool smile resting on his lips. You couldn't really protest much with the shape you were in.

Alexi helped put the leftover food into boxes, which Childe insisted he carry since you were still on crutches. He definitely wasn't struggling, it wasn't much in the first place, but you would have rather helped him in some way.

Still, Alexi soon waved a quiet—albeit, apologetic—goodbye, leaving the two of you alone.

Notes:

I'm really sorry for how long it took this chapter to come out, I've been going through a lot lately. I hope you enjoyed this though! I'm hoping to get back to writing and updating this again, because I definitely enjoy this and want to continue. My mental health has been rough lately, but I don't want to leave this unfinished. I graduated recently so hopefully I will have more time to work on this during the summer!

Thank you so much for all of the support while I've been gone, seeing how big the numbers have gotten is wild! I'm really glad so many people are enjoying it; I never expected this many people to even look in the first place. As always, here's my Twitter if you want to talk, and thank you for reading! 3

Chapter 13: Knowing vs. Remembering

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

You were silent, other than the sound of your crutches hitting the ground as you walked away from Third-Round Knockout. You were walking uncomfortably fast for the situation you were in, just trying not to trip over the beams holding you up.

"What's the hurry for, Sunshine?" Childe asked, chuckling a little as he easily kept up behind you. What was hard work for you was like a brisk walk for him.

"I'm busy. Work stuff when I get back," you retorted curtly, keeping your eyes locked ahead of you.

You wouldn't look at him, even if he was grinning like an idiot as he watched you pout.

"Not even going to take a break because of an injury?" he asked, his slight laughter boring into your ears.

With a sigh, you rolled your eyes.

"Do you really think I can afford that?"

He scoffed from behind you.

"With a job at Xinyue Kiosk, I would assume you'd be pretty well off."

You frowned, kicking a rock as you pushed forward.

"Well, bills are expensive. I'm lucky I got a job decent enough to pay them…" you muttered, looking down at the ground.

This was not the time to be solemn. You were angry and confused, and the source of it all was right next to you. Why didn't you just put him in his place, call him out, or just do something? Instead, you kept walking forward, helplessly kicking the pebbles—at least they wouldn't kick back.

"Let's get your mind off of that, then," Childe said suddenly, wrapping his arm around your shoulder and sloppily pulling you toward him. You stumbled, but with a grunt managed to shove yourself away from him.

"Would you stop?!" you shouted, confusion swimming through your brain. "What's gotten into you…?" you breathed out, huffing a sigh.

"Something wrong?"

You snapped your head toward him, giving him a glare.

"Childe, it's not that I don't like seeing you, but I was having a nice time with my friend. As soon as you arrived things got tense, and now we've had to cut our time together short." You paused, rubbing your temples. "I have so many questions about what just happened, but no clue where to start."

He laughed, seemingly not at all fazed by your anger. In fact, you wondered if he was enjoying this.

"Don't think too hard about it, you'll hurt yourself," he teased, and you shot him another nasty glare. "It's just fun and games, Sunshine."

You rolled your eyes, huffing out a puff of air.

"I find that hard to believe. You've never acted like that before. What are you really after?" You paused, muttering under your breath. "Fun and games…"

While you trailed your eyes upon the ground, you nearly missed the look in the eyes of the man next to you. It wasn't often that anyone got under his skin, but something was different this time. You were unable to ignore the radiation of it next to you, and turned to see it for only a split second. He seemed angry, before that oh so familiar grin appeared on his lips.

It was unsettling as he closed his eyes and smiled at you.

"Not to be rude, Sunshine, but it's been years since you really spent time with me. What do you know about me now?"

When he opened his eyes, your shocked pupils were boring into his. Yet, he didn't have an ounce of surprise in his. Instead, that cold look seemed to be eating up how rattled you were with only a glance.

You opened your mouth to speak, but quickly bit back any words that came to mind. None of them were right. Suddenly all of the anger you felt disappeared—it had been overwhelmed by the instance of his own. The next time you tried to say something, your stomach dropped, as if it forced itself to eat the syllables and vowels. You had to catch yourself before you ended up a stuttering mess.

Instead of trying a third time, you pressed your lips together to glue your mouth shut, and continued walking forward.

Though, that didn't stop the words boiling in your stomach, fuming in your lungs, and burning in your heart. You wanted to say something, but just snapping at him wouldn't do any good. Sure, you could push his buttons, but you didn't want to be needlessly cruel.

What would be the point of making him mad, anyway?

You could feel his eyes on you, as if calculating what you were thinking—what you might say. It probably wasn't hard for him at all; the gears in your head were trying to turn so hard that they were squealing, grinding, and screaming for release.

After a while of trying to force thoughts through, to find the right words and form the right sentence, you narrowly parted your lips. Softly, you let out a breath.

"You're right."

Your voice was quiet, as if it was too tired from trying to force its way through to him, fighting against your closing throat and teeth barring the way.

"Hm?" he mused.

He definitely heard you.

Sighing, you took in a deep breath to try and revive your vocal chords, despite having been flamed and put out again and again.

"I said, you're right," you paused, keeping your eyes drawn to your feet. "I don't know much about you now."

The space between you was silent, as you waited for him to say something back, anything. Your body had been dying to speak, and yet he seemed to be content taking as much time as he could to.

"I'm glad you finally came to and realized," he twitted, his tone shifting entirely. The once freezing cold look in his eyes had been interchanged with a smug grin, and you let your annoyance flourish once more—half to his delight as he laughed when you groaned and picked up your pace once more.

"I don't even know why I bother with you…"

"…You're awful, you know that?" you huffed, brushing the snow off of your clothes. You had swung the back door right open, planning on heading off to find your friend, only to find him sooner than you had planned. That, and a "surprise."

"You don't really mean that…!"

Glancing up, you saw the redheaded culprit looking down from above you. He had climbed to the top of the woodpile behind your house—it was always piled high, given you didn't want to run out of fuel for a fire on an especially cold night—waiting for you to come out. With his jacket rolled into the shape of a basin, he had filled it with snow and waited to ambush you. Now, he was laughing from the top of his perch, as you shook the snow out of your hair.

You gave him a look that said you definitely did mean it.

"You should see the look on your face!" he shouted in between fits of laughter, holding his stomach as he kicked his legs. In the commotion he dropped his jacket, the leftover snow hurling toward you—though, this time you knew to dodge.

"Would you get down from there?" you shouted, a pout forming on your lips, "if my dad sees you up there we're both going to get in trouble!"

He kept laughing for a moment, but soon calmed himself down enough to make his way down the logs.

Of course, that doesn't mean he was silent in it. His laughter was still echoing around you, just fainter now.

It took a moment for his feet to hit the ground, finishing the plummet. The pile was much higher than you; you could try to jump and touch the top, but you'd never make it. If he had fallen, he would have had to visit a doctor. If he knocked any logs down and couldn't reach the top to help you put them back up, you'd be in worse shape.

Luckily, as his feet hit the ground, only himself made an indention in the snow—not even a piece of bark fell down.

"Don't you ever get tired of playing these dumb pranks on me?" you whined, the rest of the snow finally all knocked off of you. The only hint that it was there was the slightly damp feeling on your clothes, and the way your hair was getting significantly colder now with the freezing air.

"And miss seeing that face? No way."

Your cheeks tinted in embarrassment, and you quickly huffed as you turned back around.

"W-Well… It's freezing out here. I was coming to find you anyway. Let's head inside before your prank turns us into popsicles."

The two of you were soon back indoors, your damp jackets shedded and hanging near the fire to dry. You were both doing your best to do the same; the fire was warm and gentle, licking the wood as it burned—wood you had gotten from outside.

While you waited, the two of you tossed a small ball back and forth to lazily occupy yourselves (even though your mother probably would have been furious to see it).

"I've been wondering…" Ajax started, after you had both been sitting in silence, only listening to the fire, "just how much of the woods have we really explored?"

You frowned for a moment in thought, before sighing.

"There's no way to know, really. The forest is huge, and the snow is constantly covering up our foot trails. You'll never know if you're somewhere new or going in circles."

He laughed, shaking his head.

"Don't act like that's the only way to tell if you've been somewhere before! I thought you were supposed to be mature now!" he teased, and you scoffed. You'd just recently had your 10th birthday, finally catching up closer to him. He couldn't baby you anymore now that he wasn't the only one with double-digits.

"I am mature. Adventuring just isn't my prime focus at the moment. You know we're not supposed to go out there on our own anymore after the whole window incident," you pointed out, tossing the ball his way.

He grinned, catching it easily.

"Doesn't seem like it stopped you from going out just now."

Toss.

"I had permission, you know!"

Catch.

"Sure you did."

Toss.

"I did! You're the one my parents don't want coming here for a surprise visit now!"

Catch.

"So you can come to my house whenever you want, but I can't come to yours?"

Toss.

"Pretty much."

Catch.

"No fair!"

The two of you kept like this, bantering back and forth to the rhythm of your game. You were always the most comfortable talking to him like this, when it was just the two of you. Sure, you had other friends aside from just him, and both his parents and yours were nice and got along. Yet, when you were alone it was like you could really be yourself. Even if you both were bickering back and forth like this, it was the furthest it could be from a real argument.

"But, you know…" Ajax continued, pausing your game and looking down at the small object in his hands. "Technically you were coming to my house, not bringing me here. How are you going to explain that to your parents?"

You frowned, looking away from him, as if the room would give you a better answer.

"I didn't think that far—"

"Look at you, breaking more rules!" he teased.

"Oh, shut up!"

Your mom did eventually find out, and needless to say she was not very pleased. She didn't buy any of your lies, but luckily you still got away with it—even if you thought she actually believed you. She had watched the two of you grow up together; eventually, she'd come to understand how close you really were.

In fact, she probably knew more about your relationship than either of you did yourselves.

By a sheer stroke of luck—and a little bit of mother's intuition—Ajax was allowed to stay.

The two of you spent the afternoon together, playing outside and enjoying each other's company. It was cold, but you didn't mind; your coats were mostly dry by that point. Though, your space was confined to the yard. Your mother was adamant that because he wasn't supposed to be here in the first place, there was no exploring the woods like you'd usually do. Even so, you were happy enough to be able to spend time with him.

Though, it seemed you both were having too much fun to pay attention to the time. By the time you were tired, it was already beginning to get dark out. No one was very particular about traveling around Snezhnaya at night—it only got colder once the sun went down. Even if you had a cart to carry you where you needed to go, the wind would be freezing and the risk of breaking down worrying.

So, Ajax stayed the night. Luckily, he had told his parents where he was going, not sneaking out for once.

After dinner the two of you sat on the floor in your room. You had drifted near the window, looking up at the stars. Ajax was laying down on the ground, lazily flipping through some of your books. He didn't seem too interested, but you were busy looking up to the sky.

"See that constellation? That one's Lepus. It looks like a bunny-rabbit, doesn't it?"

Ajax followed your finger that pointed to the stars, looking up. Though, he frowned as he squinted his eyes, looking a tad frustrated.

"I don't see it."

You sighed and let out a soft chuckle, lowering your hand.

"Hmm… let me try to find another one…" you went silent, and Ajax returned to flipping the pages absent-mindedly. "Oh!"

Your sudden exclamation made him jump, nearly ripping the page of the book he was just flipping.

"What?!"

"There's Noctua! See the owl?"

He sighed, putting a hand on his head.

"I don't understand how you're getting these pictures out of a bunch of dots," he paused, scooting closer so he could see better out of the window as well. "Where'd you even learn about them anyway?"

You laughed, catching him by surprise.

"Dummy, look at the book you're holding."

He glanced down, and closed it to reveal the cover. It was a book on stars, revealing different constellations. You'd read it plenty of times, trying to find them yourself so many times that you could do it without the book's help now.

"Oh—" he said, slightly surprised, and flipped the book back open. After a few more page turns, he landed on one that caught his interest. "Hey, can you find this one?"

He held the book out to you, and giving it a glance, you nodded with a smile.

"I should be able to. Luckily, it's in the sky this time of year. Right about…" you looked up, eyes searching for a sign of it. "There!"

You stood up, heading closer to the window to get a better view. Ajax followed you, and you stood side by side in the window frame as he searched for what you could see.

"If you look up there…" you explained, "You'll see a point that extends to a triangle, then has a little curve on the end."

He nodded, and his stare locked into place, telling you that he had found it.

"What's it called?"

You smiled, eyes drawn to him more than the stars.

"That's Monoceros Caeli. It's supposed to look like a narwhal," you stated, and he nodded excitedly.

"I see it! I see that one!"

The two of you giggled, shoulders knocking into each other as you stood by the window. It might have only been one constellation, but you were happy he was able to see it. Clearly, he was as well.

Eventually the two of you were back in your original spots, him with your books and you staring outside. Yet, with a sigh, he shut the third one he'd flipped through closed.

"Don't you have anything that isn't educational?"

You chuckled, glancing back at him.

"That's what we have your dad for."

He frowned, going back to your bookshelf.

"You know my parents already have plans for me," you explained, your gaze going back outside. "Someday I'll go to a really big school, far away from here. I'll be learning top-level material, studying with some of the smartest people in the world." You paused, sighing. "Maybe I'll go down the Alchemist route, and study the elements. Or maybe I'll become a historian, and document Snezhnaya's past and present."

"I think you'd be good at that," Ajax said, surprising you.

You whipped your head around, excitement in your eyes.

"Really?!"

"Yeah, you've already got the practice and everything," he replied, and your delight ran dry once you saw what was in his hands.

Propped up on the floor, Ajax held a small book, one that was old and worn at the edges. The text in it was messy, nothing like the smooth font of your other books. The cover was nothing interesting; all it was was a simply-bound book.

A simple book that held all of your personal thoughts—your diary.

" Ajax! " you exclaimed, throwing yourself from your seat towards him, grabbing for the book.

You were grappling for it, throwing your arms around like a wild animal trying to get your diary back. Yet, as hard as you tried, his fingers nimbly kept it out of reach. Even as you dangled off of him, he still managed to hold it in a way he could read.

"Let's see… 'Today was pretty boring for the most part. I slept in and mom wasn't too happy about it, but other than that I just did some assigned readings. This one was on basic alchemy, but it's still pretty confusing.'" He had to pause as you tried to claw a hand over his eyes and block his sight. "Hey, stop that!" he shouted in between fits of laughter, "This is interesting!"

You didn't stop wrestling with him, but he didn't stop reading either.

"'I finished a little bit after lunch, but after that the day started getting a lot better! This afternoon Ajax'—" he paused in his reading, shouting in excitement, "Hey! I'm in here!"

You groaned, getting more embarrassed by the minute.

"Just give it back!" you shouted, but he simply continued reading aloud.

"'I was really happy to see him, it made my day a lot better. It was pretty boring before he got there. Something about the way he'… Oh?"

With one final snap, you took his surprise to your advantage and snatched the book out of his hand and scrambled away from him. A bright pink blush thoroughly raged at your cheeks, and you were panting after trying so hard to get it back.

"You jerk! " you shouted, and he simply stared at you for a moment, before easing into laughter. You frowned, tightening the diary to your chest. "You know, you're sleeping on the floor for that."

He grinned, laughter still dying down.

"Fine, fine, I don't mind," he said simply.

"Do I need to make it worse?!"

"I do mind! I do mind!"

Eventually, the two of you were both heading to sleep for the night. Ajax laid on the floor on a mat your dad had brought up, along with some extra blankets and pillows. You slept in your bed, but admittedly did feel a bit guilty about it in the end.

The boy could be stupid, but he was your best friend. And when he talked to you, looked at you, or even laughed at you, it made you feel a way none of your friends could ever replicate.

Like your diary had admitted, there just was something about the way he smiled at you.

"…You're awful, you know that?" you huffed, pausing to glance back at him. After your storm away, you expected more of a reaction from him. Laughter, a grin, a mocking tone, anything.

Though, Childe stood still as well, his eyes locked on yours as a small smile graced his lips.

"I know."

Notes:

You guys are so, so sweet. All of the loving messages left last chapter have really made me so happy. You're all amazing 3
For those worried, I am okay! Not perfect, but things are improving. Knowing I have support here has been a massive boost though (:
Thank you for reading, I hope this chunk of Childe moments makes up for the lack lately ^^"
And here's my Twitter if you're interested!

Chapter 14: A Difference of Opinion

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Childe walked you the rest of the way home, though, you couldn't say you weren't confused. His response came as a surprise to you. When he spoke, it was quiet, as if making sure only you could hear him.

What did it mean though? What was the point? Was he trying to throw you for a loop once more, sent on a wild goose chase? Or was he serious, and trying to say something heartfelt?

No, that wasn't like him at all.

Why couldn't he stop being cryptic and confusing for one moment?!

Still, you held your arms as you walked through the halls of the Baiju Guesthouse, pondering what he could mean this time.

"I told you you'd hurt yourself if you thought about it too hard," Childe said plainly as you stopped at your door, him noticing your scrunched up expression.

He sighed, leaning against the wall and flicking your forehead.

"What was that for?" you mumbled, pouting.

He rolled his eyes.

"Stop thinking about it."

You raised an eyebrow, and obviously went back to thinking about it.

Flick.

"Hey!"

"I told you to stop," Childe said with a shrug and a bored expression.

You groaned, rolling your eyes. This earned you another thwack of his finger against his forehead.

"Would you stop?!" you shouted, before realizing how loud you were and covering your mouth.

Childe raised an eyebrow at you this time, huffing out a breath of a laugh through his nose.

"Stop being so feisty and just take my advice."

You pouted, but his expression had an odd tinge of seriousness. He wasn't completely bored—he was focused.

"What's the big issue with me thinking?"

He frowned.

"You'll get stupid ideas."

Surprisingly straight about it all. This was new.

"I don't understand what you're getting at, Childe," you said with a sigh, putting a hand on your head and closing your eyes.

Then, you felt fingers wrap around your wrist and pull it down.

"Fine, if you want to talk about it so bad, let's at least go inside," he stated, and moved your hand to your waist, near the pocket that held your keys.

"Alright, alright," you mumbled, fiddling for them. After a bit of fishing, you pulled them out, silently unlocking the door and gently pushing it open. Childe followed in behind you, closing it when he was ready.

It was like he was looking for someone in the hall, and you didn't miss the sharp look in his eyes.

Still, once he was comfortable with it, he turned back to you with a grin. Properly entering the room, he walked toward you into the space.

"Homey," he joked, and you scoffed.

"It's just a place to sleep at night." You paused, glancing down at your foot. "Well, that was the plan for it at least."

He nodded, poking at one of your two small plants after setting the boxes of food down on your desk.

"A picture or something wouldn't hurt."

You sighed, a hand on your hip.

"I was hoping that once I could afford it, I could buy my own place. Until then, I've got to balance my money and spend Mora only on what needs spending on."

He glanced down at your table, brushing his fingers over the stationary.

"A lot of envelopes, though."

"A lot of letters for home," you lied with a shrug. "You should know that that's important to me."

He glanced back at you, but nodded. That is, before he poked open a book on the desk. The one Alexi had gotten for you.

"And this?"

You stepped closer with a pout, closing it back.

"I need some entertainment, you know."

He laughed, drumming his fingers on the cover.

"Interesting topic."

It was a simple two words, but you could feel the flush crawling up your neck.

"Eventually you get bored of just educational books. You should know," you repeated, hoping he'd drop it. Luckily, with another grin and shake of his head, he did.

You sighed, crossing your arms.

"Well, did you come here to inspect my room or to talk?"

He sighed, putting up a hand.

"Just one moment more."

You rolled your eyes, but he kept looking around the room. You could have sworn it was like he was being paranoid, trying to find something you couldn't see. Though, his pacing around the room finally came to a halt, and he plopped down on your bed. Sitting at the edge of the mattress, you watched as he bounced for a moment after dropping down before sitting still once more.

"Done?"

"Done," he affirmed.

"Great," you said with another sigh, sitting down in the chair by your desk. "Now, can you tell me what's going on?"

He was silent for a moment, staring at you.

"You're not going to like what I have to say."

There was something about the suggestion that made your gut turn, as if screaming to say no and ignore it all. To just stop thinking, and push it all to the back of your mind. Yet, after debating yourself, you couldn't concede. You wanted to know.

You frowned, looking at him with raised brows.

"Hasn't stopped you before."

He gave you an annoyed look, his whole tone changing.

"I'm serious this time." He paused, his eyes locking with yours. "Sunshine, you don't know what you're getting yourself into. I'm trying to keep you out of it."

You gave him a confused look, propping your head on your hand against the table.

"You lost me there, Childe."

He sighed, running a hand over his face. You hadn't seen this from him before. So many of his actions around you now were new. They were his own emotions, and they were raw.

"I'm going to tell you this once. You need to stay away from that little friend of yours."

You froze, even more confusion welling up inside you.

"Alexi?"

"Whatever she told you her name is. Might not even actually be it."

This time you frowned, crossing your arms.

"This isn't funny, Childe."

He pulled his hand down, looking at you with a piercing expression.

"Do I look like I'm being funny?"

"You look like you're being an asshole."

You spoke before you could stop yourself, the words flying out of your mouth without thinking. He just stared at you, before an uncomfortable burst of laughter came from him.

"Me? You think I'm being an asshole?" he goaded, and you went still.

"Well, after how you treated Alexi today, you sure sound like one."

His eyes narrowed at you, and he stood up from his seat at the bed.

"I'm trying to help you, Sunshine. You don't know who she is—"

"And neither do you!" you shouted, cutting him off. "Childe, I'm not going to bicker about this with you, but I just got a friend whose friendship with me has nothing to do with you. No desire to murder you for simply being around me, and until now not even any interactions with you. I don't have to worry about troublesome conversations revealing your past, or worrying that she's going to be mad that I spend time around you." You paused, standing up. "I don't want to let her go, she's a good friend. One who spent time with me for me, and not any other reason. I don't see why you're making this such an issue."

He crossed his arms, staring down at you before raising his voice.

"If you'd stop being so difficult—"

There was a knock at the door. You both went silent and stock-still, surprised by the sudden noise.

"You there?" a voice called out.

Alexi's voice.

Childe gave you a look, but you turned toward the door.

"I am! Be one moment."

He scoffed, and you sighed.

"We'll continue this later," you stated, and he looked out the window. He wasn't moving, and you gently shoved him. "Which means it's time for you to go."

He wasn't budging, feet firmly in place.

"And why should I?"

You sighed, still pushing against him. Your hands were on his back, and once you were too tired, you leaned your forehead against him in defeat.

"Because I said so. Let's do this later."

He still wouldn't move, and you took in a deep breath.

"Ajax, please."

You could feel his body stiffen against you, as if your words shocked even his muscles.

"I thought I told you—"

"And what did I just tell you," you said, interrupting him.

A moment later, he sighed, and you felt him go back to normal.

"Fine," he said simply, and you pushed him toward the door once more—this time, he actually went towards it.

You opened it for him, and you were quickly met with Alexi's shocked expression as she saw Childe exiting from behind you.

"Am I… interrupting something?"

"Not at all," you said with a smile, giving him a final shove when he slowed in the doorway. "He was just leaving." You looked up to him, giving a fake smile after all of that. "Bye, Childe."

He took up the same act, plastering his own fake smile, a challenge against yours.

"Bye, Sunshine."

Not a second later, he was back in motion, fully out of the door and walking down the hall. His eyes might not have met Alexi's as he left, but you could feel the strained tension emitting from him toward her, as if a silent threat.

You wondered if she felt the same.

In fact, he left you wondering a lot as your new friend stood just outside your room. What did he have against her? Did he know her? Did she happen to be involved with the Fatui?

You couldn't think of many reasons he'd go to this effort to "protect you" unless it had to do with the same dastardly organization he was a part of.

"Um… are we just going to stand here or can I come in?"

You snapped back to attention, fighting free of your daze with wide eyes.

"S-Sorry! Come in, come in," you insisted, stepping out of Alexi's way to let her inside.

She hesitantly followed, tracing the same steps Childe had taken just moments earlier. Though, she seemed much more at ease, not looking for traps or whatever he could possibly be worried about. She was comfortable, trusting in your personal space.

"Sorry for practically ditching you back there, but I had a really important meeting I needed to make it to. It seems you got home pretty easily though!" she remarked, relieved as she saw the boxes neatly piled on your table from lunch.

"Easy enough," you huffed with a sigh, plopping down onto your bed and laying back. "You seem back relatively quick, though, or it just took me a long time to get here."

She laughed at your statement, sitting down on the bed next to you.

"Well, it was a really short meeting. The most important thing was getting there, discussing what we needed, and getting on our way. Neither of us were that prone to chatting." She paused, glancing down at you. "Besides, I had a feeling you'd need my help here."

You breathed out a soft laugh, staring up at the ceiling as you listened to her.

"Well, thanks for that, I probably did need it—in all honesty."

She placed her hand on yours, which was limp as you lazily laid back on your mattress.

"Are you okay?"

You pressed your lips together, worried about where this conversation would go.

"I'm… I'm fine."

She mimicked the same action as you, looking down at you in disbelief.

"Something tells me that's not true."

You sighed, rolling over to face the other way.

"It's nothing, really, I'd rather not talk about it." You paused, yet she didn't stand up, leave, or even sigh to show she had given up. She was still next to you, waiting for when you'd be ready.

You hadn't expected to be ready, in all honesty. You hadn't talked to anyone about when you were younger in ages. The only person to know anything about your younger self was Childe. And it's clear you two weren't chatting about fond childhood memories any time soon. Yet, something about the way she stayed. She had a hand on your back, rhythmically running her fingers in circles that soothed all of your worries. You felt safe, as if you could trust her with your life story.

Of course, you wouldn't go to the length to tell her that, but you felt as if you could tell her any aspect of it, and she would protect that secret with her life. Childe had only moments ago practically degraded her with his laments, yet here that same girl was, comforting you as you laid on your bed.

Who could you trust?

Surely, you should trust the one who stayed.

"Um… Alexi?"

She hummed a response, another action on the list of many that was easing your nerves.

"It might not be… completely true."

She continued running her fingers in circles, while your eyes locked on the wall across from you.

"Take your time. If you need to talk, I'm here to listen. If you just need to lie down and have someone there, I'm here for that too."

You practically felt your heart squeeze, leaping in your chest at her simple words. You didn't know when things got so somber. Hell, you didn't know why she was suddenly comforting you. You were just tired and a bit upset with an old friend.

Yet, maybe you misjudged the weight of your feelings at the moment.

"Did you have a lot of friends when you were younger?" you ended up asking, surprised to feel your lips prying open.

She paused, thinking to herself.

"I had some, but wasn't a part of any huge friend groups. I just had those I was close with and that was enough for me."

You nodded, fidgeting with your hands.

"I was the same. I had a few I was close with, and that's all that mattered at the time." You paused. "It's odd now, though, essentially restarting that process. I love all of my new friends, but it's… weird when the two groups seem to shift and meld together. Tends to create problems."

She hummed in response, and the two of you were back in silence for a moment. The room wasn't contributing any sound to the atmosphere around you, other than the stray breeze outside that was loud enough to be witnessed from your room.

"It can be difficult to let go of the past, I think," she eventually stated, catching your attention. "Though, it's important to live in the present. You don't want to focus so much on the past that you forget what's going on around you."

"I'm not focusing on the—"

"I think you should focus more on who he is now, and less on who he used to be."

You stopped, your throat going silent as you easily realized she knew exactly who you were talking about.

"The friend you're worried about…" she started, "is Childe, right?"

You remained silent, but your sigh was enough to answer her.

"I figured as much. I don't know about your past with him, but it's clear something has happened between you two." She took in a breath, as if preparing herself for her next sentence. "I won't tell you what to do, but it might be best for your safety to take a closer look at who he's become, and if you're willing to still be a part of that."

No, no this was too familiar. You'd had too much of this in one night.

You instantly shot up, eyes boring into hers.

"That's not an option!"

"Hm?"

She stared at you, and you stared back, before realizing your spontaneous choice of action. You froze, and she almost seemed amused, smiling and putting a hand on your shoulder.

"Well then, guess we'll need to dig a little deeper," she paused, grinning a bit, "Are you sure there's nothing more than just this friendship between you two?"

You groaned, but definitely couldn't hide the heavy flush that blotted your cheeks as you jerked yourself away.

"There's nothing between us! I'm positive about that!"

"I'm not," she said with a giggle.

You huffed, and her laughter rose.

"Please, I'm kidding, I'm kidding." She stopped a moment, and you fidgeted with your hands once more. "Still, there's a lot to unwrap between you two. Your relationship seems… strained, even though you're so close. Even I can tell he thinks a lot of you."

You stopped, your gaze returning to her.

"He… what?"

She shook her head, giggling to herself.

"I'm just saying there's something there. You've drifted apart, but it's clear he doesn't want you going away completely."

You mentally slapped yourself for thinking she meant anything else by her previous statement.

"So that… he wants to repair our friendship?" you asked, and she gleefully nodded.

"Exactly!" She reached out for your hands, taking them both in her own. "I'd be happy to help you two—if you still want that friendship, of course. I hate seeing you so downtrodden, especially after what was supposed to be a fun trip out to enjoy yourself."

At this, you couldn't help but stare.

"You want… You're telling me… You really…" you stammered, before shaking your head and starting over. "So, you're saying you want to help me repair my friendship with an old friend and now Fatui Harbinger, just because you don't like seeing me a little sad after lunch?"

She stared back at you with a gentle smile.

"Uh, yeah? Pretty much?"

You blinked, before breaking out into soft laughter.

"You're crazier than I realized, Alexi, but… I appreciate it. I was honestly worried I was going to have another friend who couldn't stand the sight of him."

She grinned, her laughter easily filling the room; it soon became infectious, as you joined in with her.

"Hey, maybe this will get me some leniency with the Fatui. I could use some extra cash and those loans are a bit sketchy, in my opinion."

Your smile drifted a bit, but you caught yourself before she could possibly notice, forcing a grin wider than ever.

"Yeah," you agreed with a small, yet fake, laugh, "who knows what could come out of this."

She nodded, eyes full of excitement.

"Well, there's not much time to lose," she stated, getting more comfortable on your bed. "Hand me something to write with and a paper, and then tell me all about this friendship. I've got to know as much as possible in order to mend this."

And despite all better judgement—and every measure Childe had taken—that night someone learned more than he would have deemed they should have. Though, you trusted Alexi. She was going to help make this right.

You were going to fix this.

Notes:

Oh boy it's been a hot minute huh

So sorry it's taken me so long—college (and life) is a lot. As much as I wanted to work on this with the little free time I had, I just couldn't bring myself to touch it. I really needed a break, and I think I'm finally getting out of that funk. Plus, with finals almost over and winter break coming up soon, I hope to find the time to update this more. Unless something major happens, there shouldn't be a four month wait for next chapter. Thank you so much for reading, waiting for this update, and all the kudos you've given. I promise we're getting into the good stuff soon.

I've been linking my personal Twitter on these notes for a while now, but I'm planning on making a new twitter where I can actually update you guys on the progress of my works and little sneak peeks if you'd be interested. So, this may be coming soon. And if you happen to also play Tears of Themis or like Bungo Stray Dogs, I've posted two short works for that while I was on break from Anything And Everything Childe Related.

Thank you so much if you got to the end of this whole spiel, you're a real one 3 Hope you enjoyed!

(T^T) 3

Chapter 15: A Work in Progress

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

After hours of recounting stories and scribbling down different aspects of your childhood, you were finally nearly done. You definitely weren't as tight-lipped about it as you might have been with anyone else. Alexi was writing a mile a minute, making sure not to miss a single word.

Though, you did try to keep some of it vague. The majority of it was about your friendship, not either of you in particular. If Alexi had any questions about you, you'd still answer, but the same couldn't be said of Childe. You knew better than that.

And yet, here you were. It clearly wasn't enough. You should have known better, but you didn't.

So, you recounted your childhood: stories about the two of you, and how your families were close. For example, you recalled how you would explore the woods, and the time he'd saved you when you were young from that boar. You didn't bother with describing his family—you knew he'd really be angry if he found out you did that—so you kept that detail vague. There was no need to mention anything about his siblings to help your friendship, anyways.

Still, Alexi insisted she needed to know as much as possible. That way, she could really see the relationship the two of you had. She would sort through what could be brought up, what could be left behind, and maybe even figure out the best way to catch up on the time that you had missed out on with him.

Of course, Liyue is incredibly different from Snezhnaya. For one of the basics, there isn't any snow in Liyue. It's not like you could have a snowball fight and reminisce on old times. Still, maybe these stories would lead to something—anything—that might help.

"I know we're far from Snezhnaya, but are there any traditions that Liyue shares? Something that you could invite him to?" Alexi asked, laying on the bed with her stack of papers as you paced around the room.

"Hmm… Not really. I'd say food, but that's different as well," you stated. "I mean, even the utensils are different."

It was already dark out, and the two of you had been working nonstop. Though, with everything recounted, you'd hit a wall.

"Could you write for your family to send you something? Something that maybe the two of you had when you were younger?"

You paused, not quite certain how to respond to her words. This was a topic you didn't like to ruminate on, and it caught you a bit off guard. Alexi didn't realize the can of worms she'd just opened. Saying you were writing to family is one thing, but…

…It would be difficult writing to parents you couldn't find. All that was left of them was an aching debt.

"That… won't really be possible."

She frowned a bit, seeming confused.

"But you have so many envelopes…? Aren't you sending letters back—"

"—To Snezhnaya," you finished for her. "Not necessarily to my parents."

She frowned, obviously still confused. You sighed, looking at the stack of stationary dimly lit by the moonlight outside and the lamp in your room.

"I'm not in contact with my parents at the moment. What I am in contact with is the Northland Bank."

She frowned, stopping from her writing to look up at you.

"A debt?"

"Precisely."

You turned away from her, looking out the window.

"Childe… He doesn't exactly know about this. He knows my parents did have a debt, but not the current situation. I've been telling him they're letters for my parents, since they're important to me, and keeping in contact is a big priority of mine. Which… isn't exactly a lie. That is a big priority." You paused, sighing. "He just doesn't know how off-kilter I am."

"I see…" Alexi breathed out. She made a quick note, before setting her pen down. "If you don't mind… What happened? Why are you paying your parents' debt?"

You stopped pacing, going silent for a moment. Your eyes dropped to the floor, your shoulders drooping.

"They couldn't make the loan payments, simple as that. It's… a bit difficult to explain what happened, and frankly I don't like thinking about it, but eventually they just disappeared. I came back from the schooling they sent me on—that was the reason they took out a loan in the first place—and they were gone," you explained, staring at the floorboards.

"That's awful…" Alexi admitted, and you gave a halfhearted laugh.

"I suppose the worst thing is that I don't know the truth. I don't know if they were killed, taken, or ran away. All I can do is keep paying in their name and hoping that it can keep them safe," you continued, before pausing for a moment. "That, and that I don't get caught."

Alexi nodded, and started writing more down in her notes.

"Is that why you're sending them to Snezhnaya? To keep the cover up?"

You nodded, crossing your arms.

"If I just paid everything to the bank here, suspicion would rise quickly. If I just walked in there and kept paying it off, it'd make light of the situation immediately, and I don't know what risk that could be putting them in. The same goes for if I mailed them. Why would my parents mail them all the way out here, when they live in Snezhnaya? Why not just send it to the Northland Bank there?" You stopped, dropping your arms to your sides. "If I can just pretend it's from them, this is the only way I can be sure I'm doing something that might be keeping them safe."

Alexi nodded, eyes glued to her paper and pen.

"That makes things… difficult."

You nodded.

"It does."

You were silent for another moment, before taking a deep breath.

"I don't want to befriend Childe for the money. I know he has plenty, but I don't want him getting me out of my own problems. I refuse to beg the people who did this to my family in the first place, even if he didn't give them the loan," you explained. "I want this so that we can fix what we had before. If anything, it's the last part of my childhood I have left." You stopped, wringing your fingers. "Still… I can't ignore the security I'd feel knowing I had someone so high up in the Fatui on my side."

Alexi smiled, finishing writing her sentence and looking back up at you.

"I don't blame you. I'm surprised you're willing to risk this, given it could get you caught." She grinned at you. "You have a lot of guts, my friend."

You laughed sheepishly, shaking your head.

"Don't say that, it makes me sound selfish, like I have underlying intentions." You took another deep breath. "That, or makes those intentions more prevalent."

"I disagree."

You looked toward your friend, a bit surprised. She was smiling at you, warmth flooding from her.

"The way you've been speaking of him… All of these stories are filled with nothing but affection. One after the other, I can tell you two were close. Even when he'd make things difficult, like when he dropped all that snow on you, there weren't any underlying intentions there," she said as she propped her head up on her hand. "I don't think as much has changed for yourself from back then as you might think. You wouldn't be going to this length of effort just for a backup plan." Her smile widened, and her next words caused a deep flush to crawl up your neck.

"He means a lot to you, doesn't he?"

You hoped that the darkness of the room would be enough to hide the pink that was infiltrating your cheeks. Of course you cared for him. Yet, the way she said it… It was different when she said it like that. Especially after speaking of affections and being close—

You put a hand on your head, trying to rid yourself of the thought.

"He's one of my closest friends, yes."

A soft chuckle came from Alexi's direction, as she went back to writing.

"Mhm…"

You sighed, suddenly getting the feeling that the heat in your cheeks was blindingly bright, despite the darkness of the room.

"Though… this does give me an idea," Alexi stated, and you perked up.

"What is it?"

"Well, you have been telling him the letters are for your family. Does he ever write to his?" she asked, and you quickly nodded.

"There's not a doubt in my mind that he doesn't. He's very close with his family."

She clasped her hands together in excitement.

"Perfect!" she exclaimed with a grin. "Next time you catch him, ask about his family! See how they've been, and see what's happened while you've been gone. Talking about something he loves is a perfect way to reconcile quickly. Plus, it's not drowning in the past: you'll be talking about present events with the Childe of the present."

Your eyes were wide, and an excited smile came to your lips.

"That… definitely sounds like it could work! Plus, it's been so long since I've heard from Tonia, and I wonder how Teucer—Ah!" You suddenly stopped, realizing you'd said something you shouldn't have.

Alexi smiled, though never stopped writing.

"It's alright, there's no need to worry about secrets. We'll figure out how to fix this, whatever it takes."

You stood there feeling uplifted once more.

"Thank you, Alexi. For all of this."

She grinned, looking up from her pen and paper.

"It's a pleasure. This is the least I could do for a friend."

Light poured in through the windows the next morning, and you woke with a smile on your face. The last night had been wonderfully productive. Alexi left soon after coming up with the idea, but from the moment it came into existence you were practically euphoric. The more you thought about it as you tried to sleep, the more excited you became.

This was really happening.

Soon, everything would be okay. You would be closer with Childe than before, and get to know who he was now.

Something about the thought made your cheeks warm and pink once again.

Still, you were ecstatic. Before, you never would have planned on going this far to reconvene with him and reconcile your friendship. In fact, just seeing him sent you into a rage. Yet now… things were different.

You were excited for the day you could see him walking down the street and wave him down with a smile.

Yet, worry lingered in the back of your mind. Even if this worked, he was still Fatui. Would you be able to publicly show your friendship? If you did, would it make your life more difficult? And what if he found out about the debt? How would he react to what you were doing?

There were so many unanswered questions, yet nothing you could do about them; you'd simply have to wait and see. You'd never know what would happen until it did. What mattered was the present—everything else could wait.

So, eager to enact your plan, you swung your legs out of bed and quickly attempted to get ready. You were still on crutches, so it was still difficult, but after the amount of pacing you did the night before, you realized just how quickly it was healing. Soon, you probably wouldn't need them at all.

Once you deemed yourself presentable, you stood at the desk looking down at the stationary. Today was the day you'd be sending in a payment. You'd head out with the envelope, stop by the Xinyue Kiosk to give some more books to Yueshu, pick up your salary, divide the money into the envelope, and mail it off. All the while hoping you'd bump into Childe—though, hopefully after the money had been packed into the envelope.

Grabbing what you'd need—which included a bag full of books for Yueshu—you hurried out the door, heading toward the restaurant.

Walking was getting easier. As you made your way down the street, you realized you were hardly using your crutches at all.

Maybe things would be back to normal soon, after all.

A smile curved onto your lips, and you put a bit of pep in your step, everything looking brighter.

Not long after, the restaurant was right in your view. You quickly headed toward the doors, relieved that people weren't weaving in and out of them. You'd made it there before they opened to the public, hoping to catch Yueshu before things got too busy.

Walking inside, you were happy to see her gliding from table to table, making sure everything was placed perfectly.

"Long time no see," you called to her, catching her attention quickly. Her eyes lit up and she quickly rushed to where you stood.

"I know I told you not to come back until you were fully healed, but… I suppose one visit wouldn't hurt," she paused, getting serious, "This is just a visit, right?"

You laughed a bit, nodding.

"It is, it is," you breathed out, and she relaxed. "Unfortunately."

With a sigh, she lightly thwacked you on the head, and you swatted her hand away with a giggle.

"I suppose you have a delivery?" she finally asked, gesturing to the bag that you had carried.

"Yep," you stated casually, handing it to her. "It's got all of the books I have completed, and I needed to go out so I figured I'd save you a trip."

She smiled, taking the bag and looking through it.

"Someone's gotten smart while they were away. All that reading and writing help?" she joked, and you rolled your eyes with a scoff.

"Very funny," you remarked, and she grinned as she cut her eyes back to you.

"Well, I'll take this to the back and bring you your pay," she explained, walking toward the door to the kitchen, "We're pretty caught up right now, so just keep working on the books I have for you, and I'll bring new ones later." She stopped at the door, looking back with it propped half-open. "Sounds good?"

You gave her a quick nod, and she flashed a grin before disappearing into the back.

While you waited, you took a chance to look around the area. It was still the same as before—nothing had changed—yet it felt like it had been forever. Weeks felt like years as the days piled on.

Still, it was nice to be back in the building at least. You weren't being rushed to bed: you could just stand there and enjoy the atmosphere of it.

You missed the rush of it—the busyness that came with this job—but you were one step closer to being able to return to it.

"Alright," Yueshu called out, walking back into the room. "This is for you." She walked over to you, giving you the Mora you'd earned.

"Thank you very much," you quickly added as you took it from her.

"Of course," she smiled, "Get better soon, kid. We miss you here."

You smiled back, having yourself situated as you headed to the door.

"I'll be back before you know it," you stated.

She grinned, waving as you walked outside.

"I'll be counting on that!"

You laughed to yourself, shutting the door without a response.

With a sigh, you soon stepped to the side to divvy the money to the different places you'd need it. With the same routine as before, you took out what you'd need for housing bills, a little to survive off of, and placed the rest in an envelope you'd brought along. With it sealed tight, you were ready to mail it off.

Now, all you could hope to do was find a certain bob of red hair.

You made your way to the docks, walking alone with nothing but your envelope for most of the trip. Sure, you had hoped to bump into Childe on the way there, though the quietness to yourself in the bustle of the streets was nice. People thinned out the closer you got to the docks, and nearly all of the ships had people working on deck in the afternoon sun. You had a moment of thanks for your found profession, one that let you work inside where it was cool, and not in direct contact with the blistering sun.

Still, whether Childe was there or not, you had something to deliver. You could always talk to him sometime later, after the mail was gone—

"Seems someone didn't take my advice to rest in bed."

When you turned around, sure enough, there was the man you were looking for. How you had missed him, you had no idea. Or, maybe the better question was how did someone like him blend in so well?

"Childe? What are you doing here?" you asked, hoping to sound oblivious.

He scoffed, as if it was a dumb question.

"Mailing a letter, of course," he paused, walking up beside you, "This is the mail ship, after all."

You rolled your eyes, nudging him.

"Sorry for trying to be polite," you teased. "Should have known better with someone like you."

He grinned, gladly accepting the challenge.

"I like you better when you're not so 'polite'."

You frowned, forcing your gaze the other way. Sure, you had opened up the teasing, but you weren't exactly prepared to fire back again. This sent Childe laughing, his proud grin even wider.

"Looks like I've won. As my prize, how about you let me deliver that letter for you?"

You quickly went serious, not accepting defeat so fast. At least, not under those conditions.

"No way. That's hardly fitting for a prize. I'll have to pass on that one."

He grinned, hands in his pockets as he raised an eyebrow.

"You're going to pass on my prize? I don't think it works like that, Sunshine."

"Oh well," you said with a simple shrug, despite his cocky grin. One that only got wider as he leaned closer.

"Don't want me to see, huh? What is it, a billet-doux?" he asked, eyes trailing to the envelope still in your palms. You quickly moved it out of sight, hiding it from his prying eyes; too bad your blush wasn't as easy to hide.

"I really shouldn't give you the benefit of even knowing," you stated with a sigh, "but, for your information, it's not. It's a letter for my family."

"Oh, really?" he said, his attention piqued. "Then what's the harm in letting me drop it off to be delivered?"

You sighed, crossing your arms.

"We've done this before, Childe. I'm not going through this again," you asserted, and he let out a chuckle.

"Fine, fine you win."

"Hm?" you started, brows raised. "Well, that was easy." You paused, glancing over to his pockets. "Then how about as my prize, you tell me what you're delivering?"

He scoffed, pulling an envelope from his pocket.

"Do you really need to ask? A letter for my family."

"I should have known," you replied, a small smile settling on your lips. "How have they been, by the way? I haven't seen any of them in ages, forget even having spoken to them recently."

A gentle smile appeared on his lips, something different for a change. He was happy to talk about his family, though his voice went quiet as he spoke. The docks weren't by any means crowded, but there could be someone anywhere.

"They've been well. Tonia was quite excited in her last letter when I mentioned you were here." He paused, glancing down at your ankle. "Though, she asked me to pass on the message that you should listen to me and rest."

You hardly even heard him at the end. Your mind was reeling, only focusing on one thing.

"You mentioned me in your letters?"

He laughed at your soft surprise, ruffling your hair to snap you out of it. Only when a frown appeared on your lips did he continue, as you smoothed your hair back down.

"Of course I did. Your appearances have been quite an important event, lately."

You frowned deeper, a heavy blush crossing your cheeks.

"Stop trying to tease me, Childe."

"Oh, I'm simply telling you the truth, Sunshine."

You flushed deeper, huffing a sigh and walking toward the mail boat you had visited with him before.

"Anyways…" you breathed out, successfully ending the conversation as you stopped at the dock's edge.

"Excuse me, sir."

It was the same man as before, and this time he didn't ignore your call. Either because it was during the day when he was working, or he realized it was you again, he hurried over surprisingly quickly.

"How can I help you?"

Even his quick response was a surprise compared to the last time you met. Still, you didn't have time, or a reason, to question it.

"I have a letter to be mailed," you explained simply, handing it out to him.

"I'll handle it right away," he stated as he took it from your hand, rushing to put it in its respective crate. When he returned, Childe was already beside you with his letter out to grab.

"A letter for Snezhnaya, same as hers."

The man was a little more hesitant this time, but still grabbed the letter from Childe's hands.

"Yes, sir."

After Childe was content seeing the man putting the letter in the same crate as yours, he happily turned around, nudging you along with him. Before you followed, you turned back to the man in the boat, giving your thanks before you left.

Though, he perked up and turned back to you with a smile.

"No, thank you."

It was such a simple sentence, one that had no clear reason to be thought about for a second longer. Still, something seemed… off about it. You didn't exactly understand why, yet… you still found yourself lingering on those three words more than you should.

"I have some business I need to get to, so I'll have to leave you here, if that's alright," Childe stated, his voice snapping you out of your thoughts.

"Oh—alright. That's fine," you responded, a tad too quickly.

He gave you a curious look, but nodded his head with a smile.

"I'll see you later, Sunshine."

"Bye, Childe."

So, you returned home to your room at the inn. Still, you couldn't stop thinking about the day's events. You were getting friendly with Childe. Sure, he'd been awfully friendly already, but… things seemed to be moving in a bright direction.

With a free afternoon, you decided to finally start reading the book Alexi had bought you; every once in a while you had to take a break, though, fanning your face as the romantic scenes got a bit heavy—and you nearly had to shut the book entirely when some of the dialogue reminded you of your childhood friend. Still, you pushed on, absorbed in fiction until it was too dark to keep your eyes open any longer.

Notes:

Back with another chapter—I hope you enjoyed! Currently working out some stuff for what I have planned for future chapters, but I'm hoping we can get to the good stuff soon.

Also, can you guess which word I've been trying to work into my writing for like months now? LMAO

Anyways, thank you so much for reading, and for being so patient! All my finals went well (yaaay) and my winter classes start up soon, but I haven't forgotten this. I also started up a new Twitter that is specifically AO3 related, so I can actually post updates for my writing (it's very empty since it's so new, ignore that for now ^^"), so check that out if you're interested!

Thanks again for reading 3

Chapter 16: Moving Up in the World

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Two weeks had gone by since you returned home that day. They were rather uneventful, in fact, you didn't see Childe at all during them. You only saw Alexi occasionally, where you could account more memories with her and work on your plans. Despite your arguments, even she agreed that it might be a good idea to listen to Childe and rest.

And rest you did. You were off the crutches in no time, and soon had a boot you could walk around in. Excitedly hurrying back to the restaurant, you were ready to work the morning you got it put on.

Of course, you just got a door slammed in your face. You wouldn't be back until it was fully healed.

Luck—and healthy habits—were on your side, as you didn't have to wear it for long. After about a week and a half your ankle was good as new, and you were rushing to get it off. Though, half of you wondered if the doctor was so willing to get it off mainly because of how frantic you were about it.

Still, it was off, and that's what mattered. You could walk around like before—and your ankle didn't pop like your wrist.

With your body functioning as it had before, you found yourself back in the place you were so used to. The books had been cast aside, and the aroma of the kitchen filled your thoughts—no longer were they stuffed with receipts and reservations.

Being back made you realize something: you never wanted to be stuck on books ever again. Thank Archons that Heli usually handled that, given this small exception of Yueshu passing some of her extra work onto you. Hopefully, that wouldn't be a recurring event.

As you were enjoying your time being back in the atmosphere, you felt a tap on your shoulder. As if sensing your thoughts, Heli was behind you when you turned around to check.

"I hope you're ready to get back to work like before," he said simply, and you couldn't help but raise your eyebrows at him.

"I've been looking forward to this ever since I first got sent home; I think I'm ready."

This earned a small smile from him, and your eyes drifted to the familiar notepad he had in his hand, ready to start the day. Nothing had changed; to your relief, the place was just the same as before, down to the people who worked there.

Though, saying "nothing" could be taking it a bit too far.

"Good to know," Heli replied, flipping over a page. "As I'm sure you're aware, we've been very busy lately. Your help with the books was much appreciated, and alleviated a lot of stress around here."

You nodded, afraid of where this was going.

"I'm glad I could help, even if I was gone," you said politely, and Heli nodded in response as he jotted more down.

A mantra of "Please don't make me do the books, please don't make me do the books, please don't make me do the books" repeated in your head nonstop as you listened to him.

"You're free to refuse, but I would appreciate it if I could request your help a bit more," he explained, "We're still just as busy as before, and I believe this would accompany your time better than just waiting in the kitchen for when you're needed."

You sighed, nodding your head before he even finished. You knew where this was going.

"I understand, I'll go ahead and get some books for today—"

"Actually," Heli cut you off, "I'm not asking you to work on those any more."

You paused, a bit shocked.

"You're… not?"

"No, I'm not," he said with a sigh, closing his notepad. "I'm offering you the position of waitress."

You froze, not exactly expecting that.

"If you're not interested, you're free to refuse. Though, if you accept, I will personally put you through the proper training for it. You'll still bring meals to Yueshu outside like before, but consider it just one of the tables you wait."

When Heli finished, you paused for a moment to compose yourself.

"Well, I would love to, but—"

"But you're worried you're not cut out for it," Heli finished for you, and you nodded after a moment of surprise. "Don't worry, I'll show you how everything works, and with time you will do perfectly fine. Neither Yueshu nor myself started out where we are now."

This was a fancy restaurant, not a hole in the wall diner. It was a little nerve wracking to imagine yourself taking up a position like that. But, with that encouragement, how could you say no?

"Thanks, Heli. I'd love to work with you, then," you said with a smile, and he returned it as he flipped open his book.

"Good to know. We'll get started about ten minutes before the restaurant opens."

You nodded, and prepared to walk into the kitchen to get yourself ready. Though, Heli caught you by surprise when he called your name.

"Yes?" you asked, turning back around.

"Be more careful this time, please. We don't need any more… incidents," he stated, and though he seemed serious as he said it, you could tell what really mattered. Heli cared, and didn't want to see you get hurt again. He'd never admit it—it just wasn't his personality—but you knew.

"Thanks, Heli," you said with a small smile. "I'll be ready in a few."

He nodded, and you walked off toward the kitchen.

After taking a moment to get ready and washing your hands, you were soon back out with Heli in the dining area. Before guests arrived, he showed you how the tables should be set, and had you set up your own.

Of course, it didn't go nearly as well as his.

"This glass is a wine glass, and it goes here, while your water glass goes here…" he'd explain, all the while as you fumbled with different plates.

He had comments like these for nearly everything, but you understood, given that was his job. He was paid to be picky. Still, you were pleased that you hadn't fumbled it completely, and were actually doing alright. With Heli's help, maybe you'd have a chance at being half as capable as he was at handling the restaurant.

When it opened, you followed Heli with every table. He explained to the customers why you were there, and they were luckily very understanding and didn't mind. For most of the morning you just watched, asked questions when you could, and listened to his tips.

Though, by the afternoon he already had you getting more hands on with the work.

"Keep your hands steady, or it'll spill," he explained as you poured tea from a very expensive teapot. "It's a hassle to clean up, but the biggest concern is possibly scalding a customer."

It was difficult to keep still, given the cost of the item you held and the risks of messing up, yet you did your best. Luckily, there were no major spills, and nothing that would inconvenience the customers.

By the end of the day, you were absolutely exhausted. Once the last table had left and the restaurant officially closed, you found yourself plopping down on one of the empty chairs and heaving out a sigh.

"Long day, huh, rookie?"

You looked up, seeing Yueshu walking in through the large front doors. She had to go another day by herself, since your training took up so much of your time.

"So, I've graduated from kid to rookie?" you asked, and she barked out a laugh.

"Nope, you'll always be 'kid' to me," she paused dramatically, "But, for now I figured I'd switch things up for your little promotion."

"How considerate," you said sarcastically, laughing along with her.

Though, you paused and looked at her seriously for a moment.

"I hope today wasn't too hard on you. I was hoping to get back to helping you with orders, but with Heli and his—"

Yueshu shook her head, cutting you off.

"No need, no need. I was well aware of this long before you even came back. Heli had been considering the idea for a while and wanted my own opinion on it." She crossed her arms with a smile. "I knew exactly how this first day back would go." She paused again, grinning sheepishly. "Well… maybe not exactly. You did a lot better than I thought you would."

You raised an eyebrow, choosing to laugh at her statement.

"What, did you expect me to nearly burn the place down or something?"

"Well…"

"Yueshu!"

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding!"

Yueshu laughed with her hands out in front of her, as if in surrender. You rolled your eyes, but a light laughter still remained with you.

"In all seriousness, you really are doing well. I'm proud, and I know things will only go up for you from here," she praised, and a bright smile crawled onto your lips.

"Thank you, Yueshu, that means a lot."

She grinned, hands on her hips.

"I'm sure it does, rookie. But, what's more important is you get home and rest. You've got another long day tomorrow, and I don't want you tiredly moping in in the morning."

You nodded, slowly pushing yourself up.

"I suppose that's true…"

Yueshu scoffed.

"I know it's true. Now let's get you to bed," she said as she opened the door for you. "C'mon, I'll walk you home."

The next few days passed by the same as before. You would work—more on your own, this time—and Yueshu would walk you home. It was a nice rhythm to get into, which made it all the more unsettling when you were caught out of it. This is what happened in the middle of your week: you were a lot better at waitressing for such a fancy restaurant now, and Heli needed your help for a big customer. It would be afterhours, but they were paying big Mora, and would be worth it.

So, while Yueshu went home early, it was the "perfect" time for you to get a taste of high-class service in a high-class restaurant—like, higher-class than what you already thought was high-class.

At least, that's what Heli made it sound like. You couldn't consider it anything special anymore when you walked out from the back and found Childe sitting as a member of the table.

"Sunshine! Glad to see you're still here this late," he called out, flourishing a glass Heli had already filled for him.

You stopped, something in your gut telling you to turn around and walk back into the kitchen, but with a sigh continued forward. Childe was sitting with another man, one with long dark hair and golden, yellow eyes. He wasn't paying much attention, just sipping on some tea Heli had already poured.

…It seemed like it was going to be an odd night.

"Are you ready to order?"

It was hard to believe two people could eat so much. You had to stop and ask them to repeat themselves and fill in multiple items you had missed as they ordered, and it took Heli and you several trips just to bring it all out to them. You had no idea how they would eat so much Golden Crab, with extra helpings of Fullmoon Egg and Crystal Shrimp, but it wasn't your place to worry anymore—you just wanted to be paid.

But, they wouldn't stop there. You had to go out and check on them, and each time Childe would make it so much more than necessary.

"Sunshine, have you met Zhongli?" he'd ask, and you stood there with the pot of tea, trying to refill the cups.

"No, I don't believe I had," you said in your most polite—tired—voice.

"Well, here he is. Zhongli is a friend of mine."

You gave him a polite nod.

"It's nice to meet you," you stated, but before you could give your name he was speaking up.

"It's nice to meet you as well, Sunshine."

Suddenly you felt a burst of heat shoot up your neck, engulfing your face in a bright red.

"Oh, um—my name isn't Sunshine—It's—" you stuttered, and eventually managed to introduce yourself. Zhongli looked slightly confused at the fact that your name wasn't actually Sunshine, but Childe was having the time of his life.

You shot him a glare as he laughed it up, holding his stomach as you grit your teeth.

After a while of enjoying your annoyance, he was able to calm himself down, just as you finished with the tea and turned away to leave.

"No, don't go! That's quite a look you've got on your face right now—I want to see it again."

You set the teapot back where it belonged, and made a point to shake your head facing away from him.

"I'm sorry, sir, I'm heading to get your check."

"Check? But we're not done!"

You balled your fists, taking in a deep breath as you walked back to the kitchen.

Most of the other chefs were gone—there were only several left for this late night dinner. In fact, some of those were packing up and ready to go. As you went to put away the notepad and pen Heli gave you, ready to take off your apron and start calling it a day, said man walked through the doors.

"We've got one last order," he announced, handing the paper to the last chef still standing. With a defeated look on their face, they started cooking once more.

"They're not done?" you asked, tying your apron back in place. Clearly, they hadn't mentioned the check to Heli.

He had a tired expression, but wore a small smile.

"This seems to be the last of it. They promised not to take up any more of the chefs' time."

You frowned. That had to be from Zhongli—there was no way Childe would be so considerate.

"What about our time?" you said half-sarcastically, rubbing your temples.

Heli let out a breath, patting you on the shoulder.

"Well, at least it's almost over." He paused, giving you an almost apologetic look. "We're actually opening up a bit earlier than usual tomorrow—another big guest like this. I'll be waiting everything then, so would you mind taking over? All you have to do is get them to pay and lock up, it shouldn't be that hard."

You gave him a small smile, not really wanting to, but understanding his position. Plus, you didn't want Heli to lose any more sleep than he already had.

"Sure, I can handle that."

"Great," he said, relieved. "Then I'll be on my way. Here's the check," he added and handed you a small leather-bound pad that held the check inside. You gave him a slight nod, and he walked off to get ready to go home.

"Have a nice night," you added, and he smiled at you with a nod.

"You too." He grabbed what he needed and was about to exit the back door when he turned to you once more. "You'll be fine," he stated, and you smiled with a sigh.

"Thanks, Heli."

And with that, he was gone.

Soon, the other chefs had left as well—including the last one who was making the final dish. As soon as he finished it, he cleaned up, picked up his things, and was out the door with a tired wave.

Which left you.

Taking a deep breath, you grabbed the last dish—some sort of dessert—and the check, and made your way back to their table.

"Here's your last dish," you said with a polite smile, setting it down. "Would you like the check now, or when you're finished?"

Childe grinned.

"Sunshine, why don't you take a seat? You've been working hard." He patted a seat next to him, which took you a bit by surprise. Glancing at it, you noticed several untouched plates of food, waiting in front of it.

"Thank you, but I'm working, Childe, and you're a guest. I couldn't."

You went to walk off, but he stopped you by grabbing the check.

"Well, if I take this now, technically you're done serving this table. And we're the only table here." He tapped on the seat. "So, you're not working."

You pressed your lips together, glancing at the man next to him, but with a sigh, did as he said. It was difficult not to look at the plates in front of you, and you prayed your stomach wouldn't start growling.

"Hungry?"

Childe caught you off guard, and you blinked a couple times before forcing out a response.

"N—No, not at all."

Childe turned his head completely to you, giving you a surprisingly gentle smile.

…Which lasted for only a second before he practically commanded:

"Eat."

"Fine, fine!" you grumbled, letting down your defense and picking up some chopsticks. The food was delicious—as usual—even if it had gone a bit room temperature. It's not like you minded, since it's not every day you get to eat Golden Crab.

Childe grinned at you as he rested his chin on his hand, watching you eat.

"Do you have to look at me like that?"

He laughed, turning back to Zhongli.

"I told you she'd be happy to eat it."

The man looked up, placing down his cup of tea.

"That would be understandable. She's been working longer than usual, and likely hasn't had a chance to eat dinner. She's probably starving."

You practically gawked at his words.

"I'm—I'm not starving. I'm just… eating this to shut Childe up."

Zhongli gave you a look, and you went back to your food.

"Anyways," Childe started. "I'm glad you're back on your feet. It seems listening to me was the right move."

You pouted at him, and ignored him as you took another bite of food.

"Rest is key when it comes to healing," Zhongli added. "If you do not give the body the time it needs to understand what's wrong, it will continue making mistakes and healing in the wrong way."

Alright. Now Childe is teasing you and some dude is agreeing with him in cryptic riddles? This was too much.

"Thank you for the food, but I think I should clean these—"

You tried to make an excuse, but Childe just wrapped an arm around your shoulder, keeping you in place. Of course, the hot burst of red came back to your cheeks.

"Hold on, Sunshine. Zhongli and I had our own matters for coming here, but those are finished, and I wanted to give you a bit of reward for actually getting better." He pushed the dessert he'd bought toward you, and you just looked at him. "Come on, don't be shy."

You kept pouting, but eventually let down your resolve and gave in. Picking up the spoon on the plate, you took a bite of the dessert…

…and it was delicious.

You took a moment to savor the taste, surprised at how good it was. You didn't exactly have a chance to buy desserts here—they were expensive, and you'd never actually sat down and eaten a full meal here. So, there was no reason for you to have tried it, especially given your financial situation.

Childe sighed, taking the spoon from you.

"You eat too slow," he said, taking a bite of it for himself.

You swallowed, quickly grabbing at your spoon.

"Hey! Give that back!" you shouted, not worrying about presentation anymore—it's not like anyone but you three were in the building, anyways—and glared at him, "If you were going to take it anyways, why would you offer it?!"

Childe just kept laughing, dodging your flailing attacks and getting another bite. The more you chased after him, the more it felt like old times, and soon your anger was turning into laughter, as you were practically ready to jump on top of him if it meant winning this spat.

Zhongli's laughter broke you out of it, though, and you both froze to look at him.

"You two are awfully close, aren't you?"

You took a minute to look at the position you froze in. Your face was only inches from Childe's, his arm leaving the spoon just out of your reach as you placed a hand on his chest to reach your other arm further. You were sure that's not what Zhongli meant, but… your bodies were very close.

"You could say that," Childe stated, grinning down at you as your eyes met his.

Unlike when Alexi called you out, this time was different. You were embarrassed—beyond, embarrassed—but all the thinking you'd done of him recently, remembering all the childhood stories and how much you missed what you had, it made this moment feel… lighter. It wasn't like someone had just seen you naked, and you needed to hide as soon as possible.

It was nicer.

You laughed.

Childe's eyes widened as your laughter floated through the air. Surely he didn't expect that: he thought that you'd freak out, get all flustered, and pout. And yeah, you were flustered. Internally, you were losing it. But, it was nice to relive those old times. In his moment of shock, you took advantage and lunged forward a bit, taking the spoon from him. With the spoon in hand, you went back to eating your dessert.

You heard Childe let out a breath of surprise next to you, and you grinned to yourself a bit for finally being able to really shock him enough to lose his composure.

"Yeah… definitely close," he stated, giving you a light shove while you giggled and finished the food.

Notes:

New chapter! Thank you so much for reading 3

It's spring break for me, which means hopefully I will have the motivation to update the hell out of this. Check out my Twitter for updates if you're interested!

Hope you enjoyed 3

Chapter 17: Zero to 100

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Zhongli had long since left, and you brought in the last few dishes to clean up. They were all plates you had eaten from, so you prepared some boxes to bring them home; at least now you wouldn't have to worry about paying for a couple meals.

Despite having paid his bill, Childe still lingered in the dining area. Eventually you finished up, and knowing you needed to lock the doors, headed back to him.

"I'm closing up, Childe. It's about time to leave."

He smiled, hands in his pockets.

"It's late, let me walk you home."

You sighed, but nodded. No use fighting it.

He walked over, taking the boxes from you before you could argue, and headed to the door. With a final look to the empty dining area, you followed in his path, and locked the door right before stepping out into the cool night air.

You walked side by side, silent for a while. Childe seemed content, and so were you, but you hadn't seen him in a while—until today. This was a chance to actually talk, just you and him.

"So… Did you like the food?" you asked, and he tossed you a sidelong glance.

"What's gotten into you, Sunshine?"

"Huh?"

You stopped, surprised. Did he see through your plan? Did things seem weird? Awkward?

"Usually you're always so defensive, and the second I try to tease you you're ready to snap back. And yet, today you were ready to fight like we were kids again as soon as you got the opening to." He stepped closer, eyes boring into yours. "I don't understand."

You wore a sheepish smile, suddenly flushed from the way he called you out. You were by the stairs that led down to the inn—almost at the spot that Childe found you hobbling up the steps, just trying to mail your money to the Northland Bank. Reminiscing, you trailed your fingers against the stone wall.

"I've been… doing a lot of thinking. And I kind of, you know, miss how easygoing it used to be," you paused, unable to look up at him, "I don't exactly see you often now, but I would like to make the most of the time I do, and maybe not just try to bash you in every other second like—"

Suddenly, Childe had you up against the wall, pinned behind him.

"Wha—?"

"Thinking? Miss me? Make the most of it?" he paused, a scoff of air coming out, "Sunshine, do you even know how you sound right now?" You felt your cheeks warm, your eyes darting everywhere but him. That was, until he grabbed you by the chin.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you."

Your eyes went wide. Sure, you could tell he was still playful—it'd be obvious if he was really angry now—but he said it with such a commanding, serious tone. You couldn't help but be shocked.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Childe."

He laughed, poking at your red cheeks.

"It's really sounding like a confession coming on, Sunshine."

"That's not what this is!" you burst, practically choking on the air around you.

"Is it not?" he asked, putting his forearm against the wall above your head, leaning closer. "Definitely fooled me, then. The way you were laughing, blushing, touching my chest—" He was teasing you, and the upperhand he had was nearly suffocating. You closed your eyes; he tapped on your cheek to remind you to open them.

"I would have guessed you were some lovesick girl head over heels for me," he added, a serious look in his eyes.

You bit your lip, glancing to the street just ahead of you.

"Childe, what if someone sees—"

"Let them see. Look at me."

You gasped gently, bringing your focus back to him as he held your chin with his forefinger and thumb.

"See, this is the difference, and what bothers me. I know you. You're not some lovesick girl. You looked at me with eyes ready to murder me when we first reunited, and now you can barely look at me." He paused, leaning even closer. "So, tell me, what is it you're trying to pull?"

You were silent. You weren't trying to pull anything. Hell, you hardly knew how you felt in the first place. All you know was that your perspective on being around him had changed—even the way he teased you was worth a chance to be with him. The more you thought about it the more they way you'd acted did seem like a lovesick girl. You let yourself loose and tried to be yourself, but it'd just dug you into your own grave.

"Nothing. I'm not trying anything," you said, barely getting it out of your throat.

He sighed, looking you up and down.

"Normally you would just push me off, call me an idiot and get all confused, and then shout at me like no one could even hear." He scoffed. "Or, you'd at least look pissed at me. Now you have an expression I can't pick apart."

You almost wanted to laugh. You had the unreadable expression?

"Welcome to a day in my shoes, Childe."

He laughed a bit, leaning closer.

"Now things are getting a little normal. What happened to that snarky attitude? Are you finally ready to call me out?" He paused, flicking you on the forehead. "We don't have all night, Sunshine."

You were both silent, staring each other in the eyes in your little competition for who would speak next.

Childe, waiting for you, and you, waiting for him to get impatient.

You gave it what felt like forever, before sighing. He perked up.

"I have nothing to say, Childe."

"Oh, come on!" he shouted. "It's like I'm talking to a wall! An emotional, but incredibly hard-headed, wall."

You remained silent, playing your new role of a wall to a tee. This only made him groan.

"You know, I'm going to get this out of you somehow. We can take this the easy way, or the hard way. Choose the easy way, and we can get this over with and move on with our lives. Choose the hard way—I probably end up making you mad again."

You thought for a minute. Yes, Childe could be a pain, and you had no idea what to expect of the hard way, but… Did you really want to leave this spot so soon? The way he was pressed close to you was nothing like before; his exhales hit you smack in the face—as surely yours did him at this distance—and the tips of his hair lightly tickled your forehead. From this position, you had the opportunity to look deep into his eyes, counting the flecks of color in his blue irises. You could see the way his eyebrows furrowed in frustration, creating a soft wrinkle in the bridge of his nose. You could look for any sign of imperfection, gazing across his clear skin that looked so soft you practically wanted to reach out and—

"Not gonna talk, huh?"

You let out a breath of air you'd been holding in as his voice knocked you out of your stupor. Childe had been watching you just as intensely as you had him—the only difference was your face was quickly building with heat, as his remained calm and collected.

He pulled his head away from yours, and you thought you had a moment to try to calm down. Childe wasn't finished, though. He looked at you with a fierce gaze, and suddenly you were sure neither of you could tell what the other was thinking.

"We'll see about that," he quickly remarked, and before you could get a word in, his face was pressed by your neck.

You froze—what was he doing? What was he thinking? It all happened so fast you couldn't be sure he actually positioned himself there or he just disappeared from sight and you were making things up. Half of you hoped this was the case.

You knew it was true, though. You knew this when you could feel his breath on your jaw, and you were sure he was grinning even when you couldn't see.

"So, are you going to tell me now?"

There was nothing you needed to think of this—no hidden meaning or sign—nothing, nothing, nothing. This was just him teasing you! Nothing out of the ordinary! Not at all!

Holding all of the will you could, you balled your fists, turning your head away from him—which didn't help, only opening yourself up to him more, despite your intentions. And he took full advantage of it, pressing you further into the position.

"No use fighting it—this is what you get for choosing the hard way."

He snaked himself lower, and his lips pressed against your neck as he spoke.

"Tell me."

Before you could stop yourself from doing anything—the last thing you wanted was to give in—a noise slipped from your throat.

The two of you froze.

You, in utter embarrassment.

Childe, in more shock than you'd ever seen him.

He eventually pulled his head away from you, and just stared at you. What felt like minutes passed, his eyes searching your face, looking for something that you just couldn't explain.

"So it is like that, huh?"

What did he mean? What was he saying? It's like what? Your brain was wracking itself for answers, his words bouncing back and forth and hitting every corner as you just stared at him. You were too embarrassed to think straight, and he'd gone over your head. Your mouth was pressed into a tight line, as you frantically looked for the words to say, but once again, he left you speechless.

After trying to say something, anything, you finally took a deep breath and prepared to explain yourself. Even if you didn't have an explanation prepared.

"Childe, please, let me just—"

Before you could, his hands reached up and held your face.

Your eyes blew wide, confused by the sudden turn of events. He was just staring back at you, his eyes shaking as his hands gripped your cheeks. It wasn't painful, but it was difficult to look at him with the way his eyes focused on you. Was he angry? Did you do something wrong? Was he upset with you?

You didn't want to consider that. You were starting to try and get to know him—the real him. Would all of that effort go to waste?

Still, there was something oddly comforting in the way he cupped your face. His hands held so much strength, and yet he was so gentle. His fingers absorbed the heat that was radiating off of your cheeks, becoming stronger by the minute. You couldn't ignore how close he was—how you could hear each breath that parted from his lips—as if it were the only sound in the world at the moment.

You found your eyes drifting to his lips, and how close they were. It'd only be a matter of shifting position, and—

No. No, no no. This was wrong. How could you stand around thinking things like that?! You hardly even understood your own feelings on being friends again, but here you were, wondering what the best way to kiss him would be. It didn't help when you noticed his eyes drifting to your own lips. Or maybe it was just the rush of blood to your head making you hallucinate—but maybe what you'd noticed was real.

In the heat of the moment, you worried this was more like a one night stand, where the two of you wanted something or got the wrong idea, and would go on with your normal lives once you parted. Would he kiss you? Did you want him to kiss you? With the way he was looking at you, there was a nagging feeling tugging at your chest, making you wonder: could you actually… love him? Were you really some lovesick girl?

Preposterous! No way! You were trying to reconcile your friendship! That's all there was here. You were just happy to be close, since it was like old times. There's nothing wrong with kids tussling about, since it's just good fun. In the end, you must have missed that and this was supplemental.

You just wanted to remember his touch. That's all.

Though, there was still one issue. Friends don't make out in the middle of a dark public stairway at night where anyone can see. They shouldn't kiss—it might not have happened, but the way he stared at your lips made you worry his thoughts aligned with yours. Kissing is not a sign of being friends, that's like being lovers. And you weren't lovers. There's no way.

None of your feelings made sense anymore.

Eventually, you couldn't stand the thoughts any longer. You didn't want to face reality. You wanted to just close your eyes and pretend this wasn't happening.

So, you did.

"Sunshine."

You kept your eyes shut, not bearing to look at him, despite feeling his shift in position. His breath hit your face this time, and you could tell he was closer, but you didn't dare open your eyes.

"Sunshine."

He was sterner this time, but you kept still. How would he be looking at you? Would his face wear a look of regret? Would he be ready to send you home, to pretend this never happened, and then never speak to you again?

"Look at me."

Okay, this time he sounded angry. Slowly, you opened your eyes, and the face that you saw was beyond what you could have expected.

He looked afraid.

"You're so, so stupid. I can't believe you'd be so stupid," he said, staring into your your dumbfounded eyes. "You should have just gone on hating me. I shouldn't have tried to get closer to you. I missed what we had, sure, but now—"

"Childe," you deadpanned, stopping him in shock. "Why does it sound like you're breaking up with me when we're not even dating?"

He smiled pitifully, dropping his forehead to yours.

"You know why I don't talk about my family. If people know who I care about, that puts them in danger, and now you—"

"You care about me?"

He scoffed, as if that was the dumbest thing you could have said.

"Do you think I would be in this position if I didn't?" he said nonchalantly, and your face turned another shade of red.

"W—Well, um—" you stammered, and he laughed softly.

"I care about you, Sunshine. I've thought about you a lot," he paused, "I think about you a lot. And I'm not letting you go now that I have you."

It was hard to comprehend how honest he was being. He wasn't this vulnerable of a person, especially not with a bomb like this dropping on you. But, as his hands brushed your waist, you couldn't find it in you to not believe him. Maybe… maybe this wasn't a one time thing. But there was still an awful, twisting feeling in your gut telling you that this was wrong. That you shouldn't have stayed like this. That you should have just pushed him away and forgotten everything.

"Let's… let's go inside. There's still a lot of people out this late, and if they saw—"

His face remained as close as it was, in fact seeming more determined than before, until there was a sudden shout.

"Hey! Get a room, won't you?!"

With a sigh, Childe stepped back, keeping his back towards the voice and turning you away from it. Your heart was racing at the fact that someone, even if it was a stranger, had just seen the two of you that… close. Though, Childe was more focused on making sure they didn't know it was the two of you they had seen.

Still, he held you close as you walked back.

You understood what he was saying about danger and people he cared about, but all of this show of affection in public, even at night, was awfully counter-intuitive.

Still, he took you to the inn and up to your room. You didn't know what would happen next, if he'd leave you there or insist on coming in, but you were taking things as they came. And right now, your mind was a little out of it—still hazy from the confrontation that occured only moments ago, and the swirling thoughts that came with it.

You pulled your key out, opening up the door with a click, but Childe yanked you back as soon as the door opened.

"What are you—" you breathed out, shocked.

Your eyes searched inside your room from Childe's grasp as an unexpected voice floated out.

"You had an awfully late night, huh?"

Sitting on one of your chairs was Alexi, looking at you with curiosity, but soon wore a small smirk as her eyes landed on the man behind you.

"Oh. I wasn't expecting company. Nice to see you, Childe."

"This isn't your room," Childe snapped, and you placed a hand on his, trying to tell him that everything was alright.

"Childe, she's my friend," you soothed, "Calm down."

He didn't seem pleased, but he wore that signature grin on his lips.

"I'm fine, Sunshine. Just stating the facts."

You sighed, pulling away from him and stepping closer to the door.

"Alexi, is something wrong? Were you waiting for me? Did something happen?"

She smiled a bit, standing up.

"Calm down, everything's fine. I was just waiting for my friend to come home, that's all," she explained. "It got late and you hadn't come back, so I got worried, you know," she added, walking to the door. "Please, come in, both of you."

You laughed a bit at the irony of her beckoning you into your own space, but did as she said. Childe stayed glued behind you, and you mentally prepared yourself for the teasing you had definitely earned from Alexi. Your actions tonight would warrant that, at least.

"Well, I'm home now. Everything is alright," you said, smiling at her. "It's late, so I'll probably just head to sleep, but was there something you needed?" you asked, sitting down on your bed. Childe immediately sat next to you, and you bit your lip, hoping she wouldn't notice the embarrassed tint of your cheeks.

Instead, she laughed, pulling up the chair she had been in.

"Oh, well, I was going to ask about how the plan was going, and if I could help any more. But, things look like they've gone well enough to me," she explained with a smirk.

You instinctively touched your lips, thinking about what could have been, and Alexi rose a brow.

"What's this plan?" Childe asked, eyes narrowed.

You went tense, but Alexi was slack as she happily—almost excitedly—explained it. Though, the look in her eyes was as strong as the first time she'd met Childe with you.

"Well, my friend here was clearly struggling to mend the bond between you two, so I was just helping out. I figured that's what a good friend ought to do. You know, be a wingwoman, hear her out and help her through her thoughts. Give her advice on what to do and all." She paused, narrowing her eyes on Childe. "It really helped me get an idea of the kind of person you are, so that's a bonus."

You stopped, hand dropping.

"Huh?" you quietly let out. Alexi didn't have any reason to want to get to know Childe—it wasn't like she pushed you to talk about him when you told your stories. He was never the focus, but more the aspect of your current relationship.

"What did she tell you?" Childe asked sharply, and it felt like he was glaring daggers into Alexi. She gladly reciprocated, a smile still on her lips.

"Oh, nothing useful, really. Just mushy little stories about the two of you."

You stopped, looking at her carefree expression. She'd been trying to help you! She laughed at your "mushy little stories" and remarked on how cute they all sounded. What did she mean about them not being useful? They were the basis of this whole plan! They showed you cared about him! Wasn't she just trying to get what she could use to help you?

Your eyes landed on her, confusion swimming behind them.

"…Alexi?"

She sighed, her attention going to you with a soft look.

"You know, I was really hoping it wouldn't end up this way. When I met you, I doubted there was even a chance that that mailboat worker was right. That he'd just gotten some gut feeling without any backing. That maybe he was just an idiot," she paused, "On one hand, he was, but… there were some truths to his words I guess."

You shook your head, standing up.

"Worker? Mailboat? Truth? What are you talking about?"

Childe gripped your hand, urging you to sit down. You did.

"You know, the one who mails all your checks. He saw you and Mr. Fatui the other day and thought he struck gold. Told the rest of us about it and I was sent to check in on you—scope things out."

You didn't understand a word she was saying. She was your friend. What would she need to scope out? The day you met her, wasn't she just a random passerby? What happened to her trip?

…Were you the reason for her trip?

"Well, he was wrong on one end," she continued, "You weren't together or anything, like he thought, but there was a history there. Bit by bit, I started to realize how close you two were. I guess we really did strike gold. I helped a new friend with a little crush, and in return figured out the bigger goal's weakness."

You squeezed your eyes shut, shaking your head. This wasn't real, this wasn't real, this wasn't real. It had to be some stupid nightmare. You would wake up soon. Because there was no way she'd been faking everything from the beginning. There was no way…

…Right?

As soon as she finished, Childe stood up, his blade of water forming at his fingertips. Your eyes went wide, too scared for the chance of this not being a dream. And as time went on, it was feeling uncomfortably real.

He gripped the weapon tightly, and you sucked in a breath as his muscles tensed. You weren't watching in awe this time. Before, it'd been amazing how he fought against hilichurls—how he held the weapon with such confidence and power. This time, his wrath was directed toward your friend.

Or at least, who you thought was your friend.

"Childe, stop," you said softly, tugging on his jacket. He shot you a glare filled with malice, one that terrified you to the core.

"Now, isn't that a loving look. I almost feel bad I got you into this situation," she stated, leaning to get a better glance at his expression.

"She's not leaving this room, Sunshine." Childe's voice was laced with venom, and you subconsciously backed up in fear.

"Childe, please," you begged, seeing the way he gripped the blade. This was going to get bad if it didn't stop.

"Aww, you still care," Alexi drawled, and you shook your head, ignoring her.

"I don't want you to hurt her."

"Well, I do," Childe snarled, and you had to choke back a sound of defeat. The sob that stuck in your throat and threatened to spill must have been clear enough for him to notice, because he suddenly hesitated for just a moment.

"Wow, she's a bigger weakness than I thought," Alexi pointed out, and his grip tightened once more. He was silent, but you put a hand on his, hoping it'd be enough to get your feelings through to him.

After a few seconds, he looked up, glaring at Alexi like never before.

"You have five seconds to leave, or you're not making it out of this room alive."

Alexi grinned, and peered around him to give you a look.

"Don't worry, we'll talk later. When I can explain."

"Five, four, three—" Childe spat, and Alexi rushed out of the room, the door shutting as he hit "one."

The two of you were silent, both looking at where she had once been. You didn't even know where to begin. Your head was spinning with all of the new information that had just happened, and you were… terrified. You wanted this to be a weird dream even more, one where Childe loved you and Alexi was an enemy.

This couldn't be reality, right? Even if Childe didn't feel that way about you, that was fine. You could always build up your friendship and maybe it would happen, but at least Alexi wouldn't be… whatever this was.

Then, Childe used your name. Your actual name.

He wasn't looking at you, but you could feel the anger radiating from him.

"What did you tell her?"

You stayed silent, until Childe slammed his hand against the wall.

"I said, what did you tell her?" he spat, turning towards you. You fell back in fear, crawling away from him on the sheets, but he grabbed your wrists and pinned you down. You could barely speak, a gasp escaping you as you were slammed flat against the mattress.

"I—I didn't—"

"Obviously you told her something!"

You let out a cry at his shout, and he grit his teeth as he stared down at you from above. His eyes didn't reflect the same soft look he had given you before; there was no affection in these eyes.

"I… It's just like she said. I just told her stories. Silly, stupid stories from when we were little." You had to stop, tears starting to spill from your eyes as he looked down at you with pure, unadulterated rage. "I'm sorry, Ajax, I'm so, so sorry. I just wanted… I just wanted to fix things. I thought maybe…"

"Maybe what?" he mocked, "That she'd be able to make all your dreams come true? This isn't a fairytale! This is life and death!"

You choked out more tears, and felt him squeezing your wrists harder.

"I know that!" you screamed, closing your eyes. "I promise you, I was as vague as possible. I know you don't like anyone talking about your past, especially the people in it. So, I just kept it to us. Only things that involved me. I wasn't worried about telling her about myself, so I just said enough to where she could help me—"

"She used you!" he shouted in your face, and you opened your eyes as more tears poured out. "Archons, Sunshine, you say I don't 'like' talking about my past? No, it's not just that I don't 'like' to. I can't! If I do, people will die!" he screamed, grabbing your cheeks when you tried to roll your head away. You'd never seen him this angry with you before, as his eyes shook with thoughts he couldn't find the words to explain. Only moments ago, you thought you'd seen some shocking, new side of him. This was completely different.

"Childe, please…" you let out weakly, "This hurts."

He scoffed.

"This hurts? This hurts?" He stood up, but grabbed your hand and yanked you to your feet. "Let me show you what hurts."

Your eyes were wide with shock as he dragged you out the door and down the hall.

"Where are we—"

"Shut up."

So, you did.

Notes:

Thanks for reading!
This was one of my favorite (and honestly most difficult, so far) chapters to write, so I hope you like it as much as I did writing it 3
Check out my Twitter if you'd like sneak peeks or updates on when updates are coming up!

Chapter 18: Lessons, Taught; Answers, Revealed

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

After the argument, you were both silent as Childe took you—dragged you—to the same location where you'd gotten hurt so long ago; nothing had changed, except new hillichurls had replaced the ones Childe took down. You looked around—you were standing in the middle of a field, and a little ways in front of you was the hilichurl's camp. It must have been set up recently, since no one had come by to get rid of it.

"You want to know what hurt feels like?" Childe asked, and you faced him in surprise. He tossed you his bow. "Go ahead and be my guest."

You just stared for a moment, before looking down at the bow in your trembling hands.

"But I don't—"

"I don't care that you don't know how to use it. You obviously didn't know how to shut your mouth before—and yet, you still talked."

You froze still at his harsh words. Only earlier tonight Childe had looked at you with this same ferocity, though with different intentions—it didn't make you feel nearly as scared as it did now.

Still, you had nowhere else to go. You couldn't just leave—Childe would just drag you back. Your only option was forward into the camp. So, with hesitant steps, you started walking slowly towards it. Carefully placing each step, you hoped to sneak up on them while they were sleeping, but it just wasn't enough. One standing on some type of platform turned and saw you, and got ready to signal to the others.

Spurred on by nothing but fear, you raised the bow and pointed your weapon right at it. Focusing with all of your strength, you let the arrow go on its path to hit your target.

It flew a good three feet, before falling on the ground in front of you.

The hilichurl shouted out to the others, waking them all up from their slumber. Soon, a mitachurl was racing toward you, with several hilichurls following as the one on the stand started firing arrows. Your eyes blew wide, your hands shaking as you gripped the bow, and you aimed again without an ounce of confidence.

As the mitachurl started to reach you, brandishing a large shield, you gave up on that plan of action, throwing the weapon to the side and choosing to flee. You raced toward Childe, but he just looked at you with a menacing look of disappointment. Tears threatening to spill, you fled in the opposite direction, hoping to get lost in the trees and hide from the oncoming enemy.

You kept running, until you heard the loud shout of the mitachurl right behind you.

Turning around, you could barely focus on what was incoming, as the weight of the shield slammed into you. The impact sent you flying, and you crashed against the ground. Nothing felt broken this time, but you guaranteed you were scraped up beyond belief. It hurt like hell, but you had to be thankful that it wielded a shield and not an axe.

Though, this hit broke any resolve you had lingering within you. All you knew was that everything hurt. It was made blatantly clear that you didn't stand a chance against an enemy, even if you had a weapon.

You wondered if this was your punishment for ever getting involved with Childe in the first place.

Then, the mitachurl that was running toward you for a second dose of punishment fell to its knees—so did the hilichurls. The one on the platform wasn't even there anymore. You hadn't paid attention to their screams. You hadn't paid attention to why they were disappearing. You couldn't have seen it through your tears anyway.

Then, you felt a hand on your head. After running through your hair, the fingers wiped away your tears, and you saw a blurry Childe leaning over you.

"Do you know how easy it was for me to kill them?"

You barked out a laugh, trying to sit up.

"You don't need to rub it in," you spat.

"That's not what I'm trying to do," he said seriously.

You looked at him, staying quiet as you wiped your own tears.

"I've killed a lot of hilichurls, and each one of them felt like fighting a bug. I have never been scared facing a hilichurl, because I know that I'm stronger than it. That I'm a better fighter. They don't stand a chance against me."

"What's your point, Childe?" you snapped, hurting and annoyed.

"Imagine how easy it is for me to kill a person."

This made you go silent.

"You know who I am. You know I'm in the Fatui. I'm high up, in fact. I've done a lot of harm. And I like fighting. I also know I'm stronger than my enemies." He paused. "For that same reason, I have plenty of enemies who want me gone. By any means possible."

You looked up at him, things starting to click into place.

"By telling her about us, if she's one of those enemies, you become a target—because you're important to me. In fact, just telling her that we knew each other as more than just acquaintances put you in danger."

He stopped, taking you in his arms as if he hadn't just thrown you to the wolves.

You just let him hold you, unsure whether to let your tears threatening to spill fall once more, or to shout the first obscenity you could think of at him. You realized what you did was wrong. More wrong than you had imagined. It wasn't just a threat to him; it was a threat to him that put you in the line of fire. But to show it like this? Showing you that you were in the line of fire by putting you in another line of fire? You were sore all over, and sick of the back and forth. His way of showing you how he felt was harsh, but you had to admit, you heard him loud and clear. He was probably so hard on you because he wanted you to see just how serious this was. He might not wear it on his face, but maybe he was going through his own inner turmoil. And with the anger boiling in your stomach, you were ready to let him have it either way.

He must be terrified. He must be angry. But you were clearly terrified as well. You were gritting your teeth in anger from him. You both were wrecks, seemingly waiting for who might lash out next. But that didn't mean this was okay. And it wasn't good for either of you to continue like this. If you had to be the bigger person, now was the time, before things got worse.

"I'm sorry, I didn't… I didn't think—"

Childe laughed, the first soft moment he'd had since seeing Alexi.

"I can tell you didn't think, Sunshine," he breathed out, and poked you on the forehead. "You need to start using that head of yours more often."

He was making being civil difficult. Still you persisted, deciding to pout, looking away from him.

"It's a bit easier to do that when I'm not covered in scrapes and bruises," you said with a huff, rubbing at your aching arms.

He let out a soft sigh, standing up and helping you to your feet.

"Then let's get out of here. You heard what Zhongli said, you have to let the body rest and all that."

There was a moment of hesitation. Did you really want to go with him after this? Was it right to look past this with something like 'oh, he wasn't going to let me get hurt in the end,' or 'he's hurting too, I should respect that and understand he's not looking at this from the best frame of mind' as an excuse? Still, after a moment of staring, you took his hand. If something like this were enough to destroy the bond you'd created since the day you met, he would have been gone from your life a long time ago. Even after this, something in you didn't want to give up just yet.

He hadn't tried to hold you again since that night. Hell, he hadn't even gotten close to you. Maybe it was just a one time thing; he definitely wasn't acting like he could kiss you. If he could see right through you, it wouldn't be much of a surprise—at least, compared to how he was looking at you now.

Now, as you sat in an awfully expensive looking room, that was clearly not yours.

"We have some things we need to address," Childe stated, sitting at one end of a table, with you at the other.

"I'd rather not," you replied, looking down at the decorations that covered it instead.

"We don't have much of a choice now, do we?"

You sighed.

It was true, though. The hole you'd dug yourself into was more than just that of a possible crush exposed. Then, you were just body deep—you couldn't get out easily, standing fully immersed in the ground, but escape wasn't impossible. It'd take some skillful handiwork and clever ideas, but you'd pull yourself out from that hole eventually.

This hole wasn't the same. This one was a chasm, with your voice echoing out in threes each time you called for help. No one came, and there was no light to see a way out. All you saw was deep, empty darkness. You tried wandering in exploration, hoping to find a path or an escape route—this was futile. With each wrong step you took, there was a sickening crack, as you felt a sinkhole below your feet preparing to finally open and swallow you whole, further down, down, down into the darkness.

"Sunshine."

Childe snapped you out of it. You rubbed your eyes, taking in a deep breath.

"Fine," you stated, pausing to let out your breath and take in a fresh one, "…Fine."

You dropped your hands from your eyes, wearily looking at him. Despite the luxurious quality of the room Childe had spared you for the night—he didn't want you staying home alone, and you only had one bed, with nothing better for him to sleep on—needless to say, you didn't get much rest. Your mind was preoccupied with reliving every single moment that had happened that day, and every mistake you had made in the past few months. This unfortunately included the first words uttered to him here in Liyue; "What's your issue?" you'd snapped—not including two out of four letters of his real name. Maybe it'd have been better to just accept he had an issue, not care to pry what it was, and move on with your business. You might have still felt rage and anger towards him, but that had to be better than this.

And now, you were both awake early in the morning, before light had even come up on Liyue. It seemed neither of you could sleep.

"Where do we start?" you eventually asked, mentally preparing yourself.

"I suggest what all you've lied to me about," he responded, not a hint of emotion behind his eyes. Unlike him, your eyes widened with shock.

"What all I've…?" you mumbled, before getting a grip. "What do you mean what all I've lied to you about?!"

Childe frowned, putting his hands underneath his chin, fingers laced.

"Well, first of all, Alexi said something about your 'checks.' I'd like to know what was really in those letters for family."

You pouted, crossing your arms.

"Can I not send money back with them to support my family?"

Childe's eyes narrowed, focused in on you.

"We both know it's not that simple."

You sighed, looking away from his sharp gaze. After a moment, you took another breath, feeling like your lungs were being pumped like a balloon with all of this stress, and looked back over to him.

"I've been paying my parent's debt."

He stared at you blankly, eventually letting out a huff.

"I figured."

You stopped, managing to repeat your earlier encounter: you, with wide eyes, and him, unfazed.

"What do you mean—"

"I am well aware that someone has been paying it off. But, I didn't know if it was them, or someone else. I figured the latter, seeing what happened to them." He paused, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. "When they wanted to send you off to study, they were aware they wouldn't be able to pay for it from the moment the idea popped into their head. They had no chance of shoveling out that kind of money. So, they took out a loan." He put his hand out on the table. His Fatui mask had been sitting there, atop the wood, instead of on his head; he grabbed it and brought it up to his face, holding it there as if putting it on.

"I usually wouldn't care about who takes out a loan, but this was family," he explained. "I consider your family just as much part of mine, given how often I stayed there with you as a kid. So, I wanted to help them. When I told you I tried to fix everything, I wasn't lying. I made sure that I was in charge of the loan, and would visit them for the consultations and to pick up payments. I wore my mask, disguising who I was, and made sure everything was fine. Even when their payments were a little low, I filled in the gaps."

You stood up, hands on the table in disbelief.

"Are you the reason they—?!"

He gave you a sharp look, effectively cutting you off. You sat back down.

"Let me finish," he stated. "I kept up with them the best I could, but eventually I was sent here. There were other obligations I had to handle. I still wrote to them, but others had to take up my job—it would be suspicious for me to try and keep up with them from so far away. My connections kept me in the loop, but they updated me that payments were continuously becoming less and less."

He paused, pulling out a single Mora and setting it on the table.

"It started out small," he explained, tapping on the table next to it, "but soon racked up from hundreds of Mora missing, to thousands, to eventually a lack of payment at all." He took the gold piece away, putting it in his pocket. "With me all the way out here, I couldn't fill in the gaps anymore, and any money I sent them would be suspect. When I heard about how much they'd amounted in debt, I realized what the debt collectors' next move would be. So, I rushed there." He sighed. "But, I was too late."

You felt something snap in you, like a pipeline burst dangerously close to your eyes. Squeezing your eyes shut, you pleaded with yourself that no more tears would fall out. But, surely, he knew the truth. He had to have seen what happened. And if he was too late… they were probably dead. Your worst nightmare come alive probably has been running rampant long before you even realized what was happening.

"They were missing," he continued, and you froze, if only for a moment. "I couldn't find them anywhere. Them, and anything of value in the house, disappeared. Even your books—the one about constellations, too—were gone. All I found was a note on the table for you, telling you to head into the woods, that they would find you."

You stopped, opening your eyes in shock, locking onto him. They left you a note, so does that mean…? Did they…?

He looked back at you, a serious, yet curious, expression on his face.

"I knew you all had to be long gone, so I gave up. If I tried to find you, it'd attract the attention of more Fatui, and if they found you before I did, you'd all get hurt. Though, if I didn't start searching, you'd probably be killed by whatever was in those woods." He crossed his arms, looking to the side, away from you. "I didn't want to think about it. I tore the note to shreds, burning it in the fire that was still lit, even while they were gone. I doubt the ashes are still there; they've likely been swept away long ago by whoever is living in that house now." He paused, standing up and walking away from the table a bit. With his back to you, you choked out a few desperate words.

"So… They're not dead?"

He sighed, waiting a moment, but continued, ignoring your question.

"You know, I'd hoped to forget about you, but then I saw you that day. Part of my interest was job related: you'd gone missing long ago, and yet here you were—maybe your parents weren't that far off." He glanced at you over his shoulder. "I quickly realized that wasn't the case. But, that doesn't mean I stopped keeping track of their debt." He stopped, pulling out the single Mora once more as he turned to you. "The odd thing is, payments started picking up again, and quickly. At a rate that they would soon be—surprisingly—out of danger. But, it was coming from them, the people who ran into the woods in fear, while you were here, holding a nice job at an expensive restaurant. It didn't take long for the pieces to fall into place," he explained, tossing the coin over to you, and you fumbly caught it. "I just needed to hear you say it."

You frowned, inspecting the golden coin intently, just so you didn't have to look at him.

"Well, I don't know what else you want me to tell you. That's the only lie I've told." You paused, gripping the coin. "You didn't answer my question, though."

He slowly walked over to you, placing a hand on your shoulder.

"It's because I don't know. I never went out searching for them, and I did what I could to ensure no one else in the Fatui tried to find them either."

You stared up at him, trying to find the words to say, but soon pressed your lips together, tears prickling from the corner of your eyes, shook your head, and dropped yourself down onto the table, your arms piled on as your shoulders shook. This was the first time in a while that you had realistically considered what happened to them. Even if the Fatui never found them, you weren't exactly an outdoorsy survivalist family. You had camped outside, but had never actually attempted to live out there. Who knows what's happened to them? Did they get attacked by animals? Did they run out of food? Did their shelter collapse or burn down? Did the freezing cold take their lives?

You let out a choke, broken sobs following as your wet eyes stained your sleeves and dripped onto the table, finally allowing yourself to cry.

You suddenly felt yourself being pulled up to your feet, and your damp cheeks pressed into Childe's warm chest. As much as you wanted to pull away, with how your body still ached from being attacked by the hilichurls, to how he'd treated you, to now this revelation, but you were simply too weak—both emotionally and physically.

Childe slowly rubbed circles in your back, running a hand through your hair with his other hand. You hated how much it comforted you. He could berate you with the anger of a thousand warriors, but his warmth was enough to make you feel at home again.

Yet, thinking of home had you crying even more. The family living there now, did they know what had happened? Did they know the pain your parents had been put through? Would they ever know how much love you had for them, and how much they cared about you? Did they understand who had put your family through the mud, stealing your lives from beneath your feet?

"Breathe," Childe reminded you, and you took in a shaky breath. Letting it out wasn't any easier, as it felt like it got trapped in your windpipe, not wanting to leave; once it did go, it'd be gone forever, becoming just as hard to find as it would be to find your parents.

After a while of standing there, letting Childe comfort you as he pleased, you had calmed down a bit. Though, your mind was still reeling. It felt like you'd been through an emotional hurricane in just two days. First, you were happy to be playful and friendly with the man. Then, you were confused and emotional as he held you. After that, you were heartbroken as he screamed at you and you lost what you thought was a friend. And finally, you felt shattered, aching from the mitachurls' strength and understanding the truth.

You wanted a nap more than ever, and to sleep all the way into next month.

"What now?" you finally asked, pulling away from him and wiping your eyes. "I didn't want to tell you the truth, but here it is. Nothing I can do now," you stated, dejected. "What kind of punishment for impersonation or whatever do I get? How will the Fatui erase me, too?"

Childe tensed up. He quickly placed his hands on your shoulders, looking you directly in the eyes with a serious look.

"You're not getting any punishment, and you're not getting erased." His hands squeezed, eyes boring into yours. "I told you that I care about you. And that means I'm going to protect you, and get you out of this."

You felt your eyes beginning to water more and more, and you fell down into the seat you'd been in before, covering your face with your hands.

"I hate that there's something to get out of in the first place, I hate that everything is so complicated, I hate that it is this difficult to just live a normal life." You dragged your hands down your cheeks, pulling the skin taut until your hands dropped away. "Everything hurts, Ajax," you said, the words weakly rolling off your tongue. All you could muster to do now was to just stare at the empty chair ahead of you.

He sighed, leaning against the table next to you.

"I know, Sunshine."