WhIP

by footfungus

nederlands verhalen over mijn otp

85. Chapter 85

Godless

lostsunlight

Summary:

You are a Sister of Favonius, one evening you find Tartaglia the 11th Fatui Harbinger bleeding out at the bottom of a cliff. You seize your chance and make a deal with him.

You hum "I'm curious, The Knights told us about the Harbingers. They told us that they were cruel, inhuman monsters who take every chance they could to inflict harm on this world."

You tilt your head, meeting his gaze head on

"They told us that you were dangerous and to run and report it if we ever saw one. But you, you seem so human"
He looks down at you, voice growing harder "Why didn't you report me?"

"We all want something, I want my freedom. I think you could help me with that"

Notes:

TW - Graphic Depictions of Gore
This fic uses Y/N so I would recommend downloading Interactivefics as an extension. If you're using Safari you should be able to find a word replacer. And if your reading off a smart fridge,, why.

Chapter 1: Calla Lilies

Notes:

TW - Graphic Depictions of Gore
This fic uses Y/N so I would recommend downloading Interactivefics as an extension. If you're using Safari you should be able to find a word replacer. And if your reading off a smart fridge,, why.

Tumblr - link
Playlist - link

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

Chapter Text

Starfell lake is beautiful at sunset, the rays of sun gleaming off the surface of the water. Starsnatch cliff towering above you. Gentle winds from the Anemo Archon blew through your hair. You would have to head to the Statue of the Seven soon, The Church wouldn't be too happy if you broke curfew.

It was a rarity to be sent out by The Church alone but they had deemed Starfell Lake safe enough for you to go out unaccompanied by another Sister, The Knights had cleared out the hilichurl camps out that morning. You might as well enjoy the serenity while it lasted.

Picking a few more Calla Lilies to make a medicinal paste from, a technique from Liyue. You looked up at the beam of pure blue light emanating from the Statue of The Seven. This was the closest you could get to Barbatos, he had been absent from Mondstadt for millennia leaving the people of Mondstadt to do as they pleased. You had begun to even doubt his existence.

Freedom is what he had wanted for his people, but with freedom comes the opportunity for power. A few families had seized control long ago establishing dynasties to be set in stone. Each with control of their own industry. Corruption had been contaminating The Order, The Knights, The Church for generations. The nobility became more and more cruel, their power all but guaranteed.

The Church and Knights of Favonius had been held by the Gunnhildrs for centuries now. Forming what was now the ruling body of Mondstadt. Tales say they were once kind and merciful, but now the two sisters who lead them were cruel, sadistic even. They had freedom to rule, they had given the illusion of freedom to their citizens but those who lay within the confines of The Order were kept on a tight leash, merely their pawns in a much larger game of power.

And yet you had no choice but to obey, what prospects does an orphan who only knows the walls of the cathedral have? You owe everything to them anyways, they housed and fed you. They trained you in the art of healing, They had even allowed you to keep your Vision.

The Sisters you had there however showed no love. They ate their young, crushing the younger under their heel. The Church strictly followed the law set out by the Gunnhildrs. A Sister was to devote herself fully to her craft, show no love for anyone but Barbatos. The Sisters were vessels, only to serve the people and their god.

You sighed, This was the way it was. The nobility had kept The Order frozen in state under their utter control. The last Sister to escape was cruelly hunted down by The Knights, you could still remember her limp body being carried into The Church, eyes devoid of light and her Vision grey. You were just eight then, it was the first death you had seen, the first one to sting. None of The Sisters cried during her funeral, buried in the place that held her hostage, a bitter end. You had prayed at her grave, the only time you had truly begged the absent god for anything. You prayed for her soul to rest in peace.

A loud thud and groan broke you from your thoughts. On instinct you ran towards the sound through the trees you spotted a young man, a deep gash in his chest oozing blood.

Kicking into gear you rush towards him.

"Are you ok? I'm Y/N a healer from the Church of Favonius" The man glanced up at her, scowling

"I can handle myself Sister, it's just a scratch anyways" he gritted through his teeth

You note his Snezhnayan accent "You're remarkably calm for someone who just fell off a cliff you know, did you knock your head on the way down?"

"Hah! I wouldn't be much of a Harbinger if that could bring me down"

You flinched in surprise "A Harbinger?" This could be your chance, gears turning in your head

He gave you a wry smile "Tartaglia, Codename Chile. 11th of the Fatui Harbingers" Your eyes widened at that, before once again moving down to the gash along his chest.

"You're losing a lot of blood there, are you sure you don't want help?"

"Rather insistent aren't you?"

"I'll take that as a yes?"

He leans back against the cliff "Go ahead, might as well"

You pull out a small bowl, flicking your wrist to fill it with warm water, some gauze, a small bottle of fire-water and a few fresh calla lilies. This was so familiar you could almost do it with your eyes closed

"I'm going to have to cut off your shirt to fully assess the damage, do you have a knife?"

"You don't have one on you?"

You let out a small laugh "It's forbidden for a Sister to carry a weapon, let alone use one"
He looks you down before replying

"On the strap on my thigh"

You nod and move down, pulling out a sharp dagger. Admiring how the silver metal glints in the moonlight. You begin to slice away at his shirt, noting a large bruise beginning to form along his shoulder. Beginning your work, you soak some of the gauze and start to clean away some of the blood to gauge how deep the wound was.

Trying to distract him from the pain you speak "I've heard of your mastery of battles, how did someone like you end up with a cut like this?"

He hesitates for a moment "A fight, They got an unfortunate opening with their polearm. They didn't live to tell the tale however" a small grin stretching across his lips

You wince slightly at that. He looks down at the bowl of water you keep refilling

"You have a Hydro Vision as well"

You hummed in response "I am a healer after all" Not taking your eyes off cleaning the wound

"They say you can make any weapon using your Vision"

"They?"

"The Knights" you clarified

He cocks his head "Yes, that is true. I think it's truly a testament to my skill. I value the fluidity and speed it gives me it battle" His voice had a slight lilt to it

"May I speak candidly Harbinger?"

His eyebrows shoot up at your boldness "I've always liked candour" a small smile gracing his lips.

"I see no thrill in battle and blood thirst" You didn't look up at him, focused on your task

He was not expecting that "Bold aren't you. You don't crave the thrill of battle? The elation of victory, the satisfaction of defecting your enemy?"

"I'll put it this way, Your job is to harm and mine is to heal. I've seen the horrors battle can inflict, I wouldn't want to cause that to anyone"

"I suppose you're right, there is an inherent conflict between our roles. But we both have similarities in that we work for what we believe in"

You look up at him, slight surprise painting your features "Fundamentally we may be opposed, but you do bring up a fair point Harbinger. We both fight for what we believe in, hold loyalty to our values" You pause for a second not expecting this type of conversation

"I guess you fight for the glory of the Tsaritsa like any other Fatui?"

"You ask a lot of questions Y/N" You blinked at him, wanting an answer

He sighed tilting his head back "Why wouldn't I? She will bring a glorious future to Teyvat, I am loyal to only her. I am hers to use" He says the words with such conviction you almost agree with him

"Why fight for a loveless Archon, did you have a choice?"

"Why serve an absent archon?"

"Answer my question first and I might answer yours"

He chuckles a little "I chose this path to fight to protect what I have and If I had the choice I would go down that path again without hesitation" He looked directly at you "I will do whatever the Tsaritsa wishes, what she wants is what I want"

"I serve because I have no choice, I walk down this path with my hands tied behind my back" Satisfied with cleaning the wound you soak some gauze in fire-water

"This is going to sting a bit" You wipe it over the large gash. You pick up the calla lilies and crush them with your hands, using your Vision to add a little water to make a paste. You smear it across his wound, grabbing the last of the gauze you get to work. Tightly wrapping the wound to stop the bleeding and packing away your things

He looks down to inspect your handiwork "Thank You"

"Don't thank me just yet. It's pretty deep, You'll need stitches. I'm guessing you won't come back to the cathedral with me to see the other healers" You hesitate for a second.

"I can sneak you into the cathedral, there's an old room in the roof, I don't think The Deaconess knows about it"

He's silent for a while, clearly considering the offer

"Why should I trust you, this could all just be an elaborate trap"

"Either you bleed out here, or you blindly trust someone who just helped you. I'm not stupid, I know if I report you I'll be dead within moments. I'm not willing to gamble my life like that"

"Ok, I'll go with you" A slight hint of resignation edged his words

"Good, can you stand?"

He grunts a bit as he moves to stand, you place his arm around your shoulder to support him. He hunches over your smaller frame as the two of you go to the waypoint.

The two of you appear in Mondstadt, a gleam of silver running its way down your bodies. Perhaps Barbatos was truly watching over you as the city was dead, not a single soul milling about. You make your way up the endless stairs, climbing higher, taking care to avoid any Knights on duty.

You see the giant statue of Barbatos, hands held up and wings flared. In the centre of a large circle, two large stone colonnades flanking the plaza. The ancient cathedral stood behind the statue, standing proudly. Two towers in the front rose above, topped with green tiles spires housing the city bells. An intricate rounded stained window in the centre, the red banners of The Order gently flapping in the breeze. You make your way to the side under the buttresses.

"Can you climb?" You ask. He nods in response

"OK. I'm going to go through that side door, wait for me outside of that window" You point up a stained glass window high above the two of you, on the roof a bell tower sitting on top of a small rounded structure.

Without much of a word he begins to climb, face slightly grimacing in pain.

You make your way through the wooden side door, nowhere near as intricate as the front door which depicts the famous battles of the city's history in gold.

Entering you find a Sister, waiting up for you, the deep lines of her face frowning in disapproval. Her black habit was pressed neatly, not a strand of grey hair out of place

"Ah, Sister Olga. I deeply apologise for returning so late" You gesture to the small splatters of blood on your dress "I had an unfortunate encounter with a stray hilichurl on the way back"

Sister Olga looks at you with a cold regard "I hope for you sake this doesn't happen again. You will report to The Deaconess tomorrow morning after morning prayer. She will decide your punishment"

Your breath hitches, you knew this was coming. You could only hope that the punishment wouldn't be too hard. The memory of Sister Marianne's punishment forebodes otherwise.

"Of course Sister, have a blessed night". She nods your dismissal and you make your way into the cathedral. The high ceilings dwarfing you, the clack of your shoes against the marble reverberating. Making your way up the hidden stairs to the sisters quarters you shimmied your way up to the very top of the church. Prowling along the wooden beams of the roof with practised ease to the old abandoned room hanging in the roof of the ceiling, the old bell being housed on the roof above.

It was a small circular room, dust coated the surface of the wooden storage chests laying around. You had found the room as a small child, you had spent half a summer exploring every nook and cranny of the cathedral before your training had begun. Since then you had used the room as your own, climbing up when you needed a moment's reprieve. Keeping it a secret for only yourself.

You open the window to find the Harbinger in the room, moving away you let him in. "Not very polite to keep your guest waiting"

"Apologies, Harbinger" you grumble

You sigh looking at him "Why are you letting a Sister of Favonius help you like this? Aren't we the enemy?"

"There's more to a person than their affiliation, but I think the true question is why a Sister is helping a Fatuus"

"I'll give you one guess, Harbinger"

"Well, my guess is that you're not that loyal to The Church but I suppose you're indebted to The Church. There is also the possibility you could be a spy" His eyes glint with something you can't quite place.

"Like I said earlier, I can assure you I'm not a spy, if you suspected I was a spy my body would already be at the bottom of Cider lake." you cross your arms "And I'm not indebted I'm trapped, I owe no debt to the ones who keep me here against my will"

"That doesn't mean you shouldn't fear me" There was a sharp edge to his voice. You looked up at his towering form, even wounded he was terrifying . But you had to go through with this, push the fear bubbling up your throat down, this could be your only chance.

"You seem to want to know a lot about me"

Ignoring the pointed question you gesture to the ground "Sit down"

He raises a brow at your demand but does as you ask. You look at the mass of scars covering his body. You kneel down between his legs and take off one your your gloves

"Bite into this, this is going to hurt" He takes your glove, looking at it with a curious regard. You unwrap the initial dressings and clean the area again with water and then fire-water.

Looking up at him you whisper "Ready?"

He gives a nod of confirmation "Do your worst"

You begin to sew him up. He groans as the needle pieces his flesh.

"I suppose this will be a nice addition to your collection of your scars" You say, trying to distract him again. Concentrating on stitching neatly. He winces at the pain, though your glove he mumbles

"That's one way to put it Fuck. are you nearly done?"

"Just a few minutes, surely you've been in more pain right?"

He nods "You're right, I have been through much worse" You tie the last suture and he takes the glove out of his mouth, handing it back to you. You place it to the side.

"Some of these scars" You look up at him, not moving from in between his legs "How did you manage them"

He laughs a little "I'm a glutton for punishment when it comes to training and I don't give up easily. Most of them are from sparring and battle" He looks at you, tilting his head ever so slightly

"Not many people ask about my scars"

"They're too afraid to ask I suppose, Some of these look quite old" You trace along one on his shoulder, it's hooked and flat against his skin, barely there "How long have you been fighting"

"Fourteen, when I was conscripted into the Fatui. I'm twenty now"

You look up in shock "You're that young?"

"You don't look much older than me"

"I'm nineteen" You pause thinking what to say next

"5 years to climb through the ranks like that" You mutter, almost amazed

He looks down at you "They don't call me formidable for no reason, girlie"

You take a steadying breath "What do you hope to achieve with all this fighting anyway?"

"Two reasons, One I want to be the best. Two I want to leave my mark in the stone of this world, I won't be forgotten like everyone else"

He regards you "Why do you stay"

You look away from him "I wanted to help at first even if that meant I had to remain a pawn to The Order, but eventually I began to crave freedom. I can't just leave or I'll return to the city with my head on a pike. I don't want to be on a leash anymore but there's not much choice"

He narrows his eyes, suspicion painted across his features "You seem want to know a lot about me" asking the question again, trying to root out your motives

You hum "I'm curious, The Knights told us about the Harbingers. They told us that they were cruel, inhuman monsters who take every chance they could to inflict harm on this world."

You tilt your head, meeting his gaze head on

"They told us that you were dangerous and to run and report it if we ever saw one. But you, you seem so human "

He looks down at you, voice growing harder "Why didn't you report me?"

"We all want something, I want my freedom. I think you could help me with that" You look at him coldly

"What makes me think I would help you" His voice having an almost harsh tone to it

"I took a gamble. I don't have many options and unlike you, Harbinger I don't have power"

He leans in closer to you, clearly intrigued "And how would I help you gain your freedom?"

A grin spreads across your face "We fake my death, if The Knights think the Fatui killed me then they can't do anything. You have diplomatic immunity and they don't want to start a war they can't win. We have to give them enough reason to suspect that it was the Fatui without direct proof so they won't investigate my death too closely"

He glares at you "Oh so you plan to place a diplomatic incident on my shoulders then?"

"No, like I said The Knights can't do anything, accusing the Fatui of killing a Sister would be a bad move on their part. They don't care enough about me to take that sort of risk"

You continue "If we make it look like I got too close to something the Fatui were doing it would give you a justifiable reason to kill me, we just have to make it look like it might be the Fatui, give them a few fragments but not enough to solidly accuse the Fatui. I need to get away cleanly, if they look for me too soon I'm as good as dead"

"That is… quite the plan, what do you plan to do after"

"Run away, maybe to Fontaine but there's always a healer needed I could plausibly go anywhere"

"Why Fontaine?"

"I speak Fontanese"

He stares at you, his gaze piercing through you "How can I trust you?

You answer honestly "You can't"

You lean slightly closer to him, trying to goad him into it trying to hitting the one weak point you know of "I know you like a challenge Harbinger"

"Hm, I've never faked a murder before" The implication he left hanging heavy in the air

"You know what they say, an eye for an eye" He leaned back "What can you offer me in return?"

"I-I can't offer you much" You hang your head. You had expected this, of course he would want something in return.

"How's this, I help you run away from The Church and you work for me on my next assignment"

"In what capacity?

"This next assignment, I can't risk letting the other Harbingers know what I'm up to. If I'm injured it could reveal what I'm doing. I can't have a loose subordinate running loose. This needs to be airtight" He sighs "I want you to work in the capacity of my personal healer, clearly you have the skills"

Your eyes beam with surprise. You sat back considering the offer.

"How long will your next assignment take?"

He shrugged "At least 5 months"

"And after that I'll have my freedom"

He only nodded in response.

"Can you guarantee that" You narrowed your eyes, you would be a fool to trust a Harbinger's word.

"You'll just have to trust me" echoing your sentiment from earlier

You make eye contact with him a rush of impulsiveness flooding your body "I accept"

"Good"

You frown slightly, "What are you doing in Mondstadt anyways?"

"I can't say exactly, but I'll tell you I'm trying to find someone"

A silence hangs in the air. You stand up and open the window as he shrugs on his jacket taking a moment to look at the new wound stark across his chest

"Find me here in a week from now at midnight. We can talk about this deal and I can check up on that wound"

You look away "And sorry about your shirt"

He elegantly climbs out the window, the breeze running through his red hair.

"Meeting you has been… interesting Y/N" Without another word he disappears into the night. You close the window, a smile tugging at your lips, freedom might finally be yours

Notes:

Hi! Thank you for even reading. Its my first time writing something other than lab reports and essays.

This AU is 100% inspired by Holy Roman Empire/Italian 1400s Catholicism. Its also inspired by AC2, in fact the small room at the top of the cathedral is inspired by "Il Duomo's Secret" quest.

As for updates - I have exams coming up so I cant exactly say I'll have a consistent schedule. Ill try to update once a month if possible,

Tumblr - link

Chapter 2: Blood in the Water

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

The dawn brought dread this morning. You barely slept on the small, hard bed you had claimed as yours all those years ago. Peering across the room Marianne was still asleep, navy hair spilling over her pillow.

You had come back late last night to find her worried, you had shared a room with her for nearly 13 years now, she was the closest thing you had to a friend here, one of the only things that made you want to stay.

After hastily washing up and getting dressed you shook Marianne awake

"Marianne, We'll be late to morning prayer"

She groaned a little but got up

"You didn't come back last night, What happened?" Her normally silky voice rough

"I ran into a stray hilichurl while picking calla lilies by Starfell Lake" You turned to give her some privacy to get dressed.

"I was worried about you" You felt warm at that, a small smile involuntarily tugged at your lips

"I broke curfew, I have to see The Deaconess after morning prayer for my punishment"

You heard a sharp breath from her behind you, she tapped your shoulder to let you know you could turn around

"You know what happened to me when I got my punishment from The Deaconess" Her voice flat, emotionless

Your voice constricted "5 lashes"

You could still remember being forced to watch her back being flayed open. A Sister holding your shoulders in a punishing grip forcing you to watch through your tears. After that you had healed her the best you could, hands shaking so badly you couldn't even swipe the gauze across her wounds. 2 scars stretched across her back, a harsh reminder.

She sat down on the bed and you took a place behind her. Hands running through her long locks. An unspoken agreement between the two of you. You looked at the sun, you didn't have long, prayer began just after dawn. You decided on a simple hairstyle twisting her locks to leave half of it down, two braids wound across the side of her head meeting in the middle to join as one.

The two of you switched places, her doing the same to you, but instead of braiding your hair she twisted it.

"I don't know if I'll see you for a while" You bit out, fear burning low in your stomach

"I know, We can only pray for the best" Her voice shook a bit. Of course she believed a prayer to the absent god would help.

The two of you stood up, one you left this room it was over. She gripped your hand tightly, you squeezed back. Without thinking you threw your hands around her neck.

"I'll be OK" You looked at her, gazes even. You touched her forehead to yours

"I promise" Fear morphing into guilt. You had contemplated telling her your plan, your deal with Childe. You didn't want to hurt her but she would never leave The Church. She was now loyal to The Order, she had taken her vows candidly at the age of 18, you beside her mouthing the same vows, refusing to let the words actually pass your lips.

As a child you had wondered how The Sisters became so cruel, you had thought they were born that way. Until you had started to see fragments of them in Marianne. After her punishment she had changed. She didn't question The Church privately to you like she used to. She was almost cruel, showing no love to some of the younger Sisters under her training. It had dawned a while ago on you that it didn't happen at one, it was slow. The colour would fade out of her like the others, she will conform, become like the others in the fear that she will be punished again.

You didn't know what you were to each other, a few years ago you had stolen a bottle of church wine and kissed. You had never talked about that night with her again. You had kissed her in an act of rebellion and love subconsciously coming closer. As she had become more cruel your love for her faded, she was changing, becoming the very thing you hated.

The only glint of hope you had was her relationship with you, whatever it was. With every day you could feel her growing more and more distant. You knew the sisters disapproved of your companionship, maybe she was slowly pulling away, afraid of being punished again. You refused to think deeper after she began to change, wanting to hold onto one last thing.

You make your way downstairs for morning prayer. The Deaconess Barbara stood tall despite her short stature, blonde curls cascading down her back, blue eyes scanning the room. Despite her easy going presence there lay a sharp cunning woman lurking just underneath the surface ready to strike at any time. Beside her stood a tall woman, Sister Rosaria. Unlike Barbara she was outwardly cold, you had never seen her pray nor smile. Aside from Barbara she was the only Sister to wield a weapon. Sometimes you would sneak out to the roof to watch her practice with her polearm. Her strong precise strikes fascinating you.

You joined the other Sisters to kneel at the pews while Marianne moved her way to the large harp. This is how it went every morning. The Deaconess would lead The Sisters in prayer to Barbatos, part spoken and part sung in song. Barbara smiled brightly and began her sermon, her honeyed voice telling the tale of an old noble, how he saved Mondstadt from foreign invaders with the help of Barbatos with his cunning trickery. You only half listened, having heard this tale many times before.

After the sermon had ended Barbara began prayer, singing praises, voice echoing through the cathedrals high ceilings. Marianne's music accompanied her. You had always admired Marianne's ability to play the harp effortlessly. Fingers moving along the strings with practised control, a fine balance between flowing hands and harsh plucks. It was one of the only things that made you enjoy morning prayer, usually you could focus on the sound of the harp and drown out Deaconess Barbara's voice.

Today however, you could only focus on Barbara's sweet voice, each line you murmured after her filled you with fear for what was going to come. Morning prayer seemed to last longer than it usually did.

The Sisters got up and moved to do their respective duties. Normally you would go to the infirmary with the other healers but this time you headed to the Sanctuary, down the stairs to your doom. The Knight that stood guard out her door only tilted his head, letting you know she was in.

You lightly knocked on The Deaconesses door. A soft 'Come in" came from behind the door.

You entered the lavish office, white walls decorated with paintings by the old masters. In the centre a large ornate desk with neatly stacked items. You were drawn to her Catalyst which lay upon a copy 'Barbatos's Law', the law all sisters followed.

You curtsied deeply "Deaconess Barbara".

She gestured for you to sit down, you did promptly. Your chest was so tight that you could barely breathe. She looked at you, you met her calm stare, bile rising in your throat.

"Sister Y/N, I understand you broke curfew last night" Her voice, although soft, had a sinister quality to it, barely there just ghosting the edge of her words.

"Yes Deaconess" You said barely able to get the words out

"You broke a rule, that comes with a punishment" Her stare was piercing, looking into every secret your soul held, laying out the obvious before her.

"Yes Deaconess" You started to feel dizzy

"For your punishment" She leaned forward ever so slightly "You shall spend 7 days in penance with only bread and water, your privilege of travelling outside of the cathedral will be stripped until I deem otherwise"

"Y-Yes Deaconess" you now looked at the floor, trying to breathe

"You will serve your penance in the Sunlight Room reflecting on what you have done, you shall speak to nobody, write to nobody, see nobody" A small smile gracing her lips as she began to move a heavy book in front of her.

"Yes, Deaconess"

The Sunlight Room, It lay in the top room of the South Tower. It was no surprise that you were being sent there. 7 days, you were meeting with Childe in 6 days panic carves deep into your chest. Merde .

"You may begin your penance now, Sister Y/N" She was looking down at what was presumably The Church's ledger. She gave you a wave of dismissal

You stood up and curtsied to The Deaconess, taking your leave. 7 days of penance was not the worst, you could put up with that. You were lucky it wasn't a lashing, but this did throw a wrench into your plans. If he showed up and you weren't there waiting for him, your chance at freedom rapidly slipping between your fingers"

The guard that stood outside Barbara's door escorted you up the narrow winding stairs to the Sunlight Room. You noted he did not shove you inside like you had expected.

He looked at you, sympathy edged his words

"I'm sorry, Sister" With that he closed the small wooden door, you heard the familiar click of a lock, you were trapped, you heard his heavy footsteps leaving you truly alone.

You took in your surroundings, scanning the small room. Cobblestone walls and floor, a worn rug haphazardly thrown on the stone. There was a small desk, a shelf full of religious texts and histories of several of the noble families of Mondstadt decorated the shelf. There was a small hard bed tucked away in the corner, only a thin blanket to keep the cold out.

You turned to the large window facing the back of The Church, it was arched and made of the same stained glass every other window was. A painting of splotched colours shone through the window, carrying a whisper of the sun.

You approached the window, shocked to find that it swung open. You looked down over the roof. Understanding all of a sudden why it was unlocked. The drop was deadly, the cobble too smooth to climb down, eroded by the winds. You spotted the bell tower, You leaned out the window. Maybe, just maybe you could catch the Harbinger's attention from up here.

You could only cling onto the small shards of hope you had left. It was the only thing that might keep you sane during your penance.

The days passed slowly, you had caved from boredom quickly picking up a large tomb on the history of the Lawrence Clan. The once tyrannical clan was overthrown by the Gunnhildrs with the assistance of The Lionfang Knight long ago. They had rebuilt their power with their wealth, forming an alliance with the Gunnhildrs, they would supply their wealth and their own daughter to the knights in exchange for their status to be restored.

The thick tome was dull, giving nothing but praise and sympathy for the tyrants that caused the deaths of innocent people for their own spectacle. You snapped the book closed, placing it back on the shelf. Even the books couldn't quell your boredom. At first you tried to sleep through it, but at one point or another your body wouldn't allow it.

Turing around to see the sunset you added another tally to the underside of the wooden desk. 6 days, It was nearly time, only a few more hours to go.

You leaned against the wall, thinking of the deal you had so quickly accepted. You didn't feel the regret you had convinced yourself would taint your thoughts. A deal with one of Teyvat's most dangerous men. When you had met him you almost didn't believe he was a pure instrument of war. You didn't fear him, you should but the spark that lit the burning fire never came.

You resigned to continue reading, checking the moon every few minutes, just before its peak you lit a candle, staring for a second at the flickering flame, controlled it was life sustaining but untamed it could destroy cities, unstoppable. You peered out the window, nearly midnight. You could only hold your breath until The Harbinger came. You kept your eyes trained on the bell tower, in the darkness you saw the sliver of a shadow. You leaned as far out as you could, one hand tightly gripping the windowsill the other holding the candle high.

At the base of the tower you saw the shadow flicker again, a few seconds later the tall redheads hands were clinging to the wooden windowsill. You moved back allowing him to haul himself into your room.

"Impressive" You laughed a little, keeping your voice low, face too close to his for your comfort. You pressed a finger to your lips, jerking your head towards the door.

You pull his collar down so you can whisper in his ear "We're here to discuss the deal, but not here"

He gives you a nod murmuring "Do you trust me?"

"No" you breathed out

"I told you to trust me" He replied, so quiet you could barely hear him.

He moves to the window, instead of climbing down he climbs up . He looks down at you and you take a deep breath, you climbed out the window grasping onto his waiting hand, he pulls you up

Reaching the green tiled spire, you took a second to admire the city below. Houses lit up with a soft golden glow, windmills slowly turning in the breeze. You could almost imagine a life for yourself untainted by The Church in the city below. You could hear the cheers from Angels Share all the way up here. Cider lake surrounded the city, calm blue waters stretching endlessly. The thick walls surrounding the city kept the people safe inside.

"Are you ready?"

You nodded, the wings of his glider attached to his back flaring out, catching onto his plan you cautioned "Avoid the battlements, there are knights stationed. Head North-East to Brightcrown Canyon, we should be safe there.

You turned so your back was facing him, he wrapped one arm around your waist, the other around your chest. Your hands clung on to him for dear life.

"I'm ready"

Without warning he jumped from the spire, wings catching the updraft effortlessly gliding past the walls and above Cider Like. You were no stranger to gliding with someone else, you didn't exactly have a licence. One of the knights would fly you to Starfell lake before you got your Vision and could access the waypoints.

You felt the cool wind in your face as he tilted North, heading for the hills above the canyon. Thrill ran through you, this was your first taste of freedom, your first true defiance of The Church.

He landed softly on the grass near an abandoned encampment. He stalked towards it hydro blades manifesting without half a thought. He searched through the encampment and motioned you over.

"It's clear"

You sat down on the ground next to him.

"Why the tower this time?" he asked

"I'm paying my penance, I didn't have much choice" your eyes shifted to his chest "How's that wound coming along?"

"Fine, no infections or anything, you did well"

You lean a hand on your chin

"I'm glad to hear. Anyways, We're here to discuss a deal, contract if you will"

"A deal that you already accepted"

You nod, "We need to lay the dandelion seeds, we need to make The Knights believe you might have killed me"

"And you plan to do that how exactly?" He looks at you sceptically

"That's what we're here to figure out"

He considers your words and looks at you abruptly "Who are you loyal to?"

You look up at him sharply "I am loyal to nobody" you reply on instinct, pushing the flicker of Marianne's face far back in your mind "Why do you ask?" You knew every question he asked had a reason behind it.

"I ask because when you work for me I will want your loyalty to me"

"Who are you loyal to Harbinger?"

"You know the answer to that Y/N"

You hum " You are hers to use " repeating his words from earlier.

"I am willing to go to the ends of her, I will cross every line" He pauses looking directly at you "My question is, how far are you willing to go Y/N? Are you not loyal to your fight for freedom?"

You think for a moment "I've already crossed many lines, I've already betrayed The Church and Knights, sought forbidden knowledge, plotted with the Fatui. The only line I will not cross is murder"

"That's as far as you'll fight? Tell me can you fight at all?"

"I thought I told you, it's forbidden for a sister to even hold a weapon let alone wield one. As for the metaphorical fight" Your eyes flit away, "It's hard to fight against an organisation who has you crushed under their heel from the day you were left at their doorstep"

He looks you up and down manifesting a sword, the metal coming together in golden flakes. He tosses it towards you

"If you plan to work for me you have to learn to fight" You startle, once again not expecting the abrupt shift in tone again.

"Why now?" You question

He shrugs "Why not now?" Did battle truly invade his every thought so much that he would teach you how to fight?

"This is sacrilege" you mumble under your breath. Picking up the sword letting your fingers skim along the leather handle, down to the cool steel to the point. You stood up gauging its weight. Childe's hands move to yours adjusting your grip.

You saw a smile ghosting his lips "Now swing it" You conjure the memories of Sister Rosaria fighting, you quietly watching her from the rooftop. Stepping forward you swung the sword in a broad stroke, not aiming for anything in particular.

He hear him walk towards you, possessing dual blades made out of hydro

"If you think I'll fight you Harbinger then you're mistaken"

He laughs loudly "I'll go easy" He launches at you and you bring the sword up to block him just in the nick of time. His attacks are relentless, you move back in defence trying to get a hit in swinging the sword blindly. He quickly bests you, his speed and agility no match for your inexperience.

He takes the first opening he sees and jabs his blade at your chest. You're panting and he's standing there with a grin on his face.

"That's what you call going easy?" You stare at him

"I am , I'm not even using my vision. Again."

After beating you in seconds again, he dissipates his blades. He strolls towards you. "You're too stiff, you need to be more fluid to dodge my attacks" He adjusts your grip in your sword again "Your grip is too tight, you need to let your sword lead you"

You hum at his advice

He looks at you his eyes were now gleaming "Let's see if you're listening to me"

He moves into attack again. You step back and turn, letting yourself dance around him. This time you last a few seconds longer.

He pulls back, "So you are listening"

You pant "I still can't understand why you enjoy this, what do you feel when you fight?"

He smirks "Lust" he breathes

You pause "Lust… I thought it would be wrath" you replied without thinking

His eyes narrowed "You'd better watch that pretty mouth of yours Y/N" you cocked your head and twired the sword

"Or what, you'll kill me?" you teased, walking on thin ice

"Even after all that you still don't fear me?"

You begin to circle him, feeling bolder by the second. You had wanted to do this since you had met him, you needed to know what you were truly getting into

"Show me why your feared Tartaglia, show me why they call you a weapon of war"

He grinned, "Are you sure?"

"There's a Ruin Guard not far from here, down in the canyon by the ruins"

"A Ruin Guard, don't you think that's a bit beneath me?" he scoffs

You shrugged, starting to walk towards the canyon, Stormterrors lair glowing in the distance. The column of wind encasing the ancient capital. The Knights had officially declared that nobody was to go near it a few months ago, after sightings of Stormterror had been reported by a few outriders. The dragon had attacked a few small villages on the outskirts of Mondstadt but now he was becoming bolder with every passing day.

The two of you reach the edge and glide down. Childe left you on top of an old arch high above from the conflict.

He jumped down to the deactivated Ruin Guard, its copper body sitting limp on the ground, small white branches dotted with blue leaves grew from its back. The sisters told you that they were remanets from a nation named Khaenri'ah. A nation built by the hands of prideful humans only to be destroyed by the gods, shards remaining as the Abyss Order, slowly rotting the world.

You had always been fascinated by Khaenri'ah, the nation without gods. The Church used it as an example of what would happen to godless people, destroyed under the might of gods. They had failed to mention how many gods themselves had perished in the Cataclysm. The Knights library was truly a blessing, even if you had to sneak in the dead of night you mused.

He strolled up to it circling the Ruin Guard. The Ruin Guard began to glow and shake, waking up from its endless slumber.

Childe moved back, manifesting, much to your surprise, a bow. He shoots a sequence of arrows aimed at the Ruin Guards head, the last one he throws. It hits the Ruin Guard directly in the eye, it stops for a moment and he spits his bow in two the familiar hydro blades. He moves closer to the Ruin Guard slashing with pure precision. Streams of glowing water coming off the blades as he strikes.

The guard begins to move again and he bolts back, bow manifesting. The Ruin Guard began to spin, lumbering towards Childe creating a small vortex of dust. He runs to avoid the attack, a deep mechanical voice emits from the Ruin Guard. If you strained your ears you could almost make out the words "Help me"

The Ruin Guard places its arms on the ground, chest pointing upwards. Fiery bullets launch from its chest. Childe effortlessly avoids them , aiming his bow once again he strikes the head and dashes around to the back hitting the second glowing eye. He follows his strategy from before but instead with a polearm. Moving in to slash at the guard with his blades it lets out another mechanical cry. Stumbling back, its arms briefly glowed before clapping together, completely missing Childe.

From on top of the ruin you could see that he was made for battle, his body moving effortlessly without a thought. It was his expression that had struck fear into you for the first time. An unhinged smile, pupils blown wide. He was enjoying this, this is who he truly was. Not the easy going Childe but the deadly Tartaglia. Who was this man?

You sat down, legs dangling off the edge of the crumbling arch. This isn't even close to what he was capable of. He had said this would be easy work and now you believed him. You sucked in a breath, trying to control the fear that was quickly quelling.

He moves his glowing bow down activating an elemental burst of energy. In an instant the bow transforms into a polearm. He swings his polearm in a wide arch, a trail of water following the tip of the polearm. The Ruin Guard is knocked back, dissipating into black smoke tinged with red sparks.

He spins the polearm dissipating, he effortlessly climbs back up to meet you, not even out of breath.

"Do you fear me now"

"That's just a hint of your prowess, isn't it?"

"So you do fear me now"

"I never said that"

"I can see it in your eyes, your breath"

You sighed turning your head looking at Stormterror's lair at the end of the canyon.

"I suppose you could even take down Stormterror itself"

"Why don't we find out?" You laughed, looking up at the last remaining moon, her light bathing the canyon. "Dawn is coming soon and I need to get back to the cathedral before they notice I'm missing"

"Then let's head to the waypoint".

"No, it's a Friday, people will be around. Especially the Cavalry Captain" You paused eyes glinting

"This could be out chance" you said excitedly

Childe tilted his head, "Our chance you say?"

"Listen, I teleport into the city square looking terrified and dishevelled and run to the nearest Knights, begging for their help. You teleport in a few moments later, make sure to be seen by one of the knights. You're Fatui so they'll instantly suspect you even if you haven't done anything"

"That is… not a bad idea. They'll question you however, what will you say"

"I will refuse to speak, I've seen some of the knights after a rough mission. I know how to act well enough that I can pull it off. If you seem like your not looking for anything rather just returning from a mission that will give the knights enough reason to suspect you but not enough to accuse you" You quickly say, the plan stitching together in your head

"They wouldn't accuse a Fatui Harbinger without solid proof, less they risk an incident " He smirks

"Lets go put this plan into action"

"Saisir l'aube" you reply.

"Пойматьрассвет"

Notes:

Tumblr - link

i cant help myself so uh, have some gay nuns. as for Marianne, you'll see more of her :)
I used a translator for the russian and my french is rusty to say the least so if I got the translations wrong pls lmk
finally writing BarBRUH as like a sadistic cruel person was so hard bc like how do I make this character whos the complete opposite of what I need her to be and fit her into this Favonius is evil actually AU

Chapter 3: Those Who Sin and Those Who Pray

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

He helps you down the ruin, making your way through the canyon. You took one last moment to look across the scenery, if you were lucky this might be the last time you would ever return here. You felt a small pang of loss before it was overridden by the determination to be free that had long been rooted in you.

It was all falling into place. This is what you had fought for since the fateful day you had received your Vision. Adrenaline ran through your veins, you could almost taste the freedom.

You ran to the waypoint, now panting. Looking back you gave Childe a final nod and put your hand to the waypoint, you pictured the square. Feeling your body become formless for a moment you breathed out. The next thing you knew you were in the square.

Still slightly panting you began to run in a beeline towards the nearest set of knights. Just a few metres away from the way point. The cool night winds whipping harshly against your skin.

"Help, I need help!" you stuttered out

One of the Knights grabbed your shoulders "Sister, what are you doing out here so late?" his stern voice echoed throughout the square.

"Please , I just need to get to the cathedral" You look back at the waypoint, your breathing growing heavier with every passing second.

The Knights nodded, just as they began to lead you up the stairs the waypoint flashed again, Childe nonchalantly walked past into the depths of the night, pretending not to notice you and the Knights. You hid behind one of them. The Knights gave each other a nod, they spit up one following Childe and the other leading you back to the cathedral.

"Sister, what's your name? Can you tell me what happened?" You look up at him, eyes watering with crocodile tears.

"My name is Y/N. I-I don't know what happened. I was serving my penance and the next thing I knew someone grabbed me and pulled me out the window. I can't remember what happened next" You mumbled "All I know is that I somehow managed to break free and get to a waypoint"

The knight lead you through the plaza to the doors of the church. He rapped upon the guilded doors. A few moments later another Knight unlocked the heavy door. It was the same one that was guarding Barbara's office.

He takes the state of you in, arms tightly crossed across your body, shaking. Standing next to a mildly concerned looking Knight.

"Sir Michael, Sister Y/N came to us, she teleported into the square and ran to us for help. She said she was kidnapped while serving penance but she can't remember what happened. The Fatui Harbinger teleported in a few seconds later"

Michael gathers you in and pulls you into the cathedral.

"Thank you Sir Otto, I will go report to The Deaconess" He places a hand across your shoulder, the iron gauntlets digging too far in causing you to wince.

"This will be over quickly, with any luck The Deaconess won't punish you" His voice had the same tone as it did when he locked you in the tower. The words were at the edge of your tongue. You wanted to ask him if he wanted to fight for The Order, if like you, he believed your God had abandoned you.

He leads you through the rows of pews towards the Sanctuary, hidden behind the base of the altar. You're still shaking, putting all your effort into replicating the knights you've seen after battle. You had become familiar with the sight, side by side with the other healers doing the best you could to stop the endless rivers of blood pouring from their bodies. The fights against the Abyss had been tough, they would only become worse with time. Perhaps one day without the protection of its God, Mondstadt would fall to its knees.

He leaves you in her office sitting you down in the hard chair opposite from her desk. There was no light in the room aside from a small candle Micheal had lit. The decorum of the office still annoyed you. For a woman who was meant to live her life in pious modesty, she truly did have a taste for the extravagant.

"I'm going to go wake The Deaconess, I'll be back in a minute"

You tried to turn the fear you had for The Deaconess into the fear you were supposedly having after being kidnapped. You wondered if The Deaconess would be kind this time like Micheal had said. Your gut instinct was to doubt him, the only people you had seen The Deaconess be kind to were those at or above her station.

You heard footsteps approaching the door before it opened. The Deaconess stood in a long night robe despite having just woken up she looked surprisingly alert. She sat down opposite from you, lighting a few more candles casting more light into the room.

"Sister Y/N, can you tell me what happened?" She folded her small hands under her chin. Her soft voice still had a sharpness weaved into it. Her expression showed no sympathy.

You took a second preparing to explain yourself but before you could get the first word out the door once again burst open. The Cavalry Captain stood for a moment at the door frame, if you looked closely you could see a slight sway to his gait. He walked in and leaned on the desk next to Barbara.

"Captain Kaeya, I'm glad you could make it considering the circumstances" The Deaconess looked up at him looking mildly agitated at his drunken stupor. The Captain was well known for his habit of haunting The Angels Share most Friday nights.

'Of course, hearing a Sister come in running from a waypoint begging for help is rather alarming" He replied calmly, gesturing to you. "Continue, please"

You took a deep breath "I'm not sure what happened exactly, I was in the South Tower serving my penance and the next thing I knew I was in the Stormbearer Mountains, I heard them talking about Port Dornman. I saw the waypoint and took my chance to get out."

The captain looked at you before asking "Do you know who took you?'

"I heard no names or saw any faces, I couldn't pick up the accent either. I-I don't know why me"

You saw Barbara look at Kaeya mouthing one word " Fatui?" He shrugged

You put the pieces together, Perfect.

"Are you sure there's nothing you can remember?"

You shook your head "N-No"

Kaeya sighed pulling a hand down his face "I shall inform The Grandmaster and find that knight who was tailing Tartaglia, expect to hear word in the morning Deaconess"

He leaves the office just as abruptly as he entered. You looked back at Barbara, she was drumming her fingers on her desk deep in thought.

"Sister Y/N, You shall finish the remainder of your penance and return to your normal duties. We currently suspect it was the Fatui who attempted this, for what reason I cannot fathom"

"F-Forgive me Deaconess if this is out of line but if it was the Fatui what would happen" You worded your question carefully trying to edge out what their plan was, with any luck they would play right into your waiting hands.

She gave you a hard glare "Likely nothing Sister"

Although she wouldn't explicitly state it, you were right, dart in the bullseye. The Order was still too weak to risk a war with the Fatui. They already suspected the Fatui were up to no good, this wasn't even the farthest they've gone if the rumours about them trying to ruin Dawn Winery's harvest this year were true.

With any luck there would be a follow up with The Grandmaster and then nothing. When the time came for you to fake your death, they would hopefully suspect the Fatui again and investigate no further. Maybe they might even be glad to be rid of you, too much trouble for your worth.

You abruptly snapped out of your thoughts at Barbara clearing her throat "Thank you Deaconess I shall return to my penance" you stood and bowed to her

You exited the office, finding another knight ready to escort you back to the South Tower to serve the last day of your penance.

The morning after next you felt the sunlight on your face for the first time in far too long. Marianne had practically flown out of bed after she had woken up to see you standing on the balcony, clearly she didn't know about what had happened that night.

"Y/N, I'm glad you're alright, I missed you" She embraced you in a tight hug, one that you had to force yourself to return.

"Mari" You said trailing off "Something happened"

She frowned and tilted her head a little "What?"

"I'm not exactly sure of the details but I was kidnapped, by whom or why I cannot answer. All I know is that I made it out" The lie you wove slipping out easily

"Archons" she mumbles under her breath.

You pulled away from her and she rested her forehead against yours "I-I don't know what to say" she huffed out

"I'll be OK, I was knocked out for most of it. I don't think I really had time to fear. But now I'm home, I'm safe" The last part was the hardest to bite out. You weren't home , you weren't safe , not in Mondstadt anyways. With every passing day the city rotted, You had no more time to swallow the false promises that The Order so willing gave you.

"Come, morning prayer starts soon and The Deaconess will have your head if you're not there to pray" You said

The two of you moved out of your room, making your way down the stairs. Like always she separated off towards the large golden harp and you to kneel on the hard wooden pews that had your knees crying in agony every day. You quickly fell back into routine. Every day here was the same. After all, it was easy to move with the flow.

After you had mouthed your prayers you moved away with the flock of healers. There were about 20 of you in total and some in training.

Sister Grace, the oldest of you, lead the way to the infirmary, as the rest of the healers begin their work you walk Grace for report, much like Sister Olga, Sister Grace stood ridgid. Red hair with greying roots peaked out from her habit.

"Sister Y/N, I understand you have been in penance for a week, your normal bays have been covered by the other Sisters as we expect you to do of them" You merely nodded in response.

"Bay 24 came in last night and had a large laceration on his upper right leg says he got it in a fight with an Abyss Herald on patrol. Bay 25 came in this morning with a nasty fever and Bay 26 is another knight with a broken leg…" She continued her spiel for the next few bays.

"Finally, Sister Ida will be working under you for today" You glanced at the familiar blonde girl. She was only 15, two years into her training but as pious as the oldest nuns. You liked her company, she was talented, like you she had a knack for healing and an Electro vision that had come in handy more than once.

You thanked her, annoyed at her brief descriptions. You delved into work, leading Ida with you. Cleaning the large laceration on the knight's leg was a familiar routine. You tried to not let your thoughts wander to the Harbinger too much, you wondered when you would next see him. You had been too impulsive to tell him when to show up next the last time you were with him.

Moving to the next bay you fully immersed yourself in your work letting the hours fly by as you always did. Leading Ida in her duties as a healer. By the age of 16 she'll be ready to work on her own. Gently guiding her hands to help with the endless tasks, even letting her crush her own herbs after double checking with you.

Her eyes followed your every move as you activated your vision, controlling the stream of water with practised ease you irrigate a wound, Ida was holding the knight's hands. Even after giving him Milk of the Poppy he could still feel the pain.

Stepping out of the infirmary at the end of the day, the sun setting over the horizon the sky stained the sky with vibrant yellows, pinks and oranges. You went to find Marianne for dinner walking to the altar to find her scolding a younger sister, likely for messing up an old hymn again. The stark reminder that Marianne was no longer the person you knew hit you like a sack of bricks, time doing nothing to ease the blow.

"Marianne, let's go it's time for dinner" You said in the calmest voice you could muster, you led her away after she dismissed her student. You looked back at the dejected girl making eye contact with her. You gave her the most sympathetic look you could and mouthed the words "I'm Sorry"

"How are you holding up Y/N" Marianne asks lacing her arm in yours

"I think I'm OK, I'm just distracting myself with my duties at the moment" Wanting to change the topic quickly you asked

"Why were you scolding that student again?"

Marianne rolled her eyes "Astrid? She just can't get the last bit of 'Ventum Aquilarum' right"

You bit your tongue "Ah, Isn't that a pretty hard one"

She nods "It is but it's one of The Deaconesses favourites, so she has to play it perfectly"

You laughed a little, you've heard ' Ventum Aquilarum' so many times that you could play it on the harp if you tried hard enough.

Walking into the stone dining hall you take your assigned seats and chew on the same bread and soup you've eaten for the last 19 years. Some of the other sisters were discussing the upcoming Ludi Harpastum. A few of them were hoping to be chosen by whatever champion would win this year, likely one of the nobility like it had been for the last century or so. After Venessa's rebellion the common folk had been allowed to touch the harpastrum but those days were lost to history.

"I'm excited to see Venti play again this year" Marianne sighed, you had caught her on more than once occasion staring at the Holy Lyre der Himmel, wishing she could play it for herself.

"I hear he's always getting drunk on dandelion wine at whatever tavern will serve him, I hope he's not too drunk to play this year"

Marianne laughed, blue eyes gleaming "The Harpastum starts in two weeks can you believe? Maybe we'll get a day off to explore the city again"

"You might but I don't think I can leave the cathedral walls until The Deaconess deems me worthy enough, which could take years "

"The Deaconess isn't that bad you know"

"You're in her good graces Mari, you've been working with her closely as of late anyways, she needs you for prayer. Of course she's nice to you"

Marianne said nothing in response to that, merely dipping her bread in the radish soup. The two of you finished up, walking out of the dining hall. You and Marianne parted ways. She to The Sanctuary to meet with Deaconess Barbara to discuss tomorrow morning's prayer and you to the Sisters Quarters.

You ascended the stairs deep in thought, ever since Marianne had become the primary harpist under Barbara she had become more and more forgiving of her actions. She was right under The Deaconesse's wing. An uncomfortable thought occurred to you, what if she became the next Deaconess? Barbara was forbidden from having children as a Sister of the Church and Grandmaster Jean was married to Lisa of the Hexenzirkel. Sure she wasn't a Gunnhildr but she was of minor noble descent. It was tradition within the noble families of Mondstadt to give their second child to either The Church or The Knights. It wasn't unheard of for a minor noble to become a Deaconess either. Archons, the Deaconess normally married the Grandmaster in order to create a stronger alliance and keep the Gunnhildr lines clean.

Climbing higher and higher you reached the room in the roof and banished the racing thoughts from your head, you were catastrophizing again. You needed a distraction. Clambering out the small window you prowled along the cathedral rooftops, eventually perching where you could view the whole city. Taking in the fresh air.

A few moments later you hear footsteps behind you, whipping around you see the Harbinger. He sits down next to you, leaning back on his arms to view the stars. How did he know you were here?

"Miss me" he teases

"Hardly, It's only been two days" You reply. Why was it so easy to talk to him?

He laughs a little "Tell me, how did our little plan play out"

"The Order suspects you, I doubt they'll come after you though, diplomatic immunity and all"

"Now the next part of this scheme, how do you plan to do that"

"The Ludi Harpastum starts in two weeks, I'm assuming you know what it is?"

He shrugged "Vaguely"

"Its a 15 day festival, all you need to know is that it's the perfect distraction to make our getaway"

He stands up all of a sudden extending a hand to you "We can talk about this later, fancy another trip?"

You smirk "How could I say no"

Childe's thoughts kept on coming back to you, for some reason he had agreed to go along with your hair-brained plan. He had decided it was because he was bored and wanted some excitement. Being sent to Mondstadt in search of an absent Archon in preparation for Signoria's plan was already a sluggish mission, he would rather be fighting the ancient terrors locked away underneath the earth. The only light at the end of the tunnel was the Rite of Descension, he would have to leave Mondstadt at one point or another soon.

Coming to the cathedral roof was an impulsive decision, in truth he had missed you and the excitement you bring, but mostly he was bored . You were determined, impulsive and it reminded him of himself. There was something else about you that drew him to you, maybe it was your capacity for kindness, kindness that he craved. Maybe it was the way you treated him as an equal, wanting to know more about him, he rarely had a conversation with someone like the way he did with you.

The opportunity you had provided him was almost perfect, If he was going to take down the Geo Archon he would do it himself. He wouldn't have to rely on the Fatui's healers and risk work of his plan leaking to another Harbinger. He could finally prove himself to the other Harbingers, being the youngest and the weakest was infuriating him. Sure the others had years some hundreds to perfect their skills but if he wanted to complete his goal of taking down the heavens and bringing it to The Tsaritsa's feet he needed to be stronger. He needed to be the best.

When he extended his hand to you he had one idea in mind, to fight. If you were going to be working for him he might as well make sure you could fend for yourself. Bringing you with him to Liyue was already a potential weakness, especially if other people found out about you. You had the ability to fight, under your soft exterior lurked something cunning.

He gathered you in his arms once again, leaping off the roof and heading towards the deep woods of Wolvendom. The jagged cliffs and old gnarled oak trees came into view. He landed in a small clearing and glanced around.

"You'll train with a polearm this time" he said, manifesting one out of subspace, he threw it at you, half expecting you to drop it.

"Why did I expect anything else when we left" you huffed a little and you twired the polearm trying to get used to it weight compared to a sword

"Polearm?" you question raising a brow at him

"I think you'll fight better with a spear compared to a sword"

Without another second he launched his attack, this time you knew his style a little better, trying to follow his advice you keep the polearm loose in your grip and let it lead you. As expected he bests you in a matter of seconds by knocking you down to the ground before helping you up.

"Let's make this a little more fun, for everyone round the winner gets to ask a question" He suggests

"That's no fair and you know it"

He shrugged "How's this, I don't use any weapons"

You sighed there was no getting around this "Fine, Deal."

This time you attack first, sharply jabbing your polearm at his with all the force you could muster. He jumps back and sprints around you as you move to swing your polearm. He grabs the handle and pulls it out of your grip with your ease.

'Too easy, next time keep the polearm closer to your person and go for the knees" He hands the weapon back to you

"What do you know about the Anemo Archon" he asks you, you look at him curiously, he can tell you know he has an ulterior motive.

"You know how to get the ladies" you tease before continuing "Not much, he's been gone for millennia, at this point I doubt his existence"

He hums "Is there anyone that might know more?"

"Win the next round and I'll tell you"

As expected you lose horribly, this time he jumps the swing aimed at his legs and tackles you to the ground. He's above you, hands on either side of your head. He sees you looking up at him, your eyes unlike his have a shine to them, you still had your soul, you were still unbound. A pang of unexpected sadness rung through him

Trying to shift his thoughts he "See something you like, Y/N" You give him a firm shove to the chest to push him off you. It was easy to flirt, to distract himself from the horrors he inflicted, the lies he had told his younger siblings and the disdain his elder siblings held for him.

Anticipating his question you answer before he can ask "I don't know anyone that would know where Barbatos is. Considering the state of the city he might as well be dead"

"I doubt he's dead Y/N" you snort a little at that

"Alright Sister Tartaglia"

The third round he decides to let you win, you knock him back against a tree with the base of your polearm, surprise crosses your face before you smile.

"You let me win this time"

"Hardly, now your question"

"How did you become a Harbinger" A dangerous question he thinks, he leans back against the tree considering how to answer.

"I wanted to become the best, I was forced into the Fatui by my father at fourteen and found my love for battle there" he dances around the truth "I devoted myself to mastering the art of battle fighting every superior I could. Eventually one of the other Harbingers recognised my talent and the rest is history"

You give him a look, he could tell that you knew he wasn't telling the whole truth but not pressing further. You hand the polearm back to him

"We better get back Marianne will be wondering where I am"

"Marianne?"

"Another Sister, my roommate" He could hear the notes of sadness in your voice, the way your eyebrows twitch.

"Before we leave we should discuss the plan"

"Let's do it on the walk back then"

The two of you began the short trek back to the walled city. The woods thinning out the closer the two of you got. He was on his guard for any Knights that might be patrolling the area.

"Meet me on the roof on 7th day of the Ludi Harpastum at midnight, That's the halfway point by then people will be too far into it to investigate properly, the Knights will have their hands full and that's the one night The Deaconess lets all but a few of The Sisters join the festivities, they'll return late" He didn't miss the tone in your voice, the finality of it.

"What makes you think I'll be finished with my mission in 3 weeks?"

"If I'm correct about who you're looking for, and considering you probably wouldn't be so careless as to let it slip unless you wanted me to know, then I would say its a fruitless mission"

"I've searched every corner of this damned country and not a single trace of that Archon"

"Why do you want to find him anyways?"

He smirks deciding how much to tell you "After you break free I'll tell you"

"Always a card up your sleeve Harbinger"

"Can't let you know everything can I now?"

The city came into view, two knights guarding the city's gates. You glanced at Childe wondering if he had a plan, naturally he did.

"Ready?" He sees you laugh catching on to what he was suggesting, the two of you walk around the edge of Cider lake. Activating your vision you stepped into the water as if it was earth, skimming across the surface with practised ease.

During the summers you and some of the other sisters were permitted to swim in the lake, the summer you had been recognised by The Archons you had spent almost every day down by the lake learning how to manipulate water to your will under the guidance of the other Hydro-blessed sisters.

Reaching the ancient stone wall of the city you climbed, hands finding crooks in the worn cobblestone, soon the two of you reached the top. Overseeing the graveyard at the back of the church, he grabbed you and glided down, landing softly on the ground.

"Until we meet again Harbinger" you said, turning around and disappearing into the shadows of the church, entering through the small side door you had used before. He ran a hand through his hair, sighing up to the stars hanging above him. What was he doing?

Notes:

Tumblr - link

Having tonsillitis, exam study AND leg day (i did this bitch 2 like ago and my quads are still screaming in pain) has been... fun oh well at least i got this done early.
Little interim chapter until we get to the real fun stuff, im only like 12k words in and im wanting to write smut alr, gotta be patient.
As for updates, i have exam hell soon so maybe like 3 weeks? more like a month if im being realistic i'll be too busy replaying AC2 and regretting everything about my life :)

Chapter 4: Oculus Dei Tam Bonus Quam Mei

Notes:

hi guys not to be that ao3 author i took drugs from a russian stanger (AND HE LIED ABOUT THE PURITY THE FUCKER) sorry for any mistakes I quite literally ODed and got serotonin syndrome bc meds and now i feel like death (yay)

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

Chapter Text

Ludi Harpastum was well on its way, even on the 4th day you could feel the city thrumming with energy, you could hear the shouts well into the night even high up in the cathedral. As expected the infirmary filled up quicker than usual. Mostly just drunkards who needed some charchol to make them vomit and then some water. One green clad bard in particular seemed to come back every night.

The work made your bones ache, you had even been excused from morning prayer to help with the endless stream of people. You adjusted your leather gloves and kept on working, allowing your thoughts to disappear. You could help but wish you were down in the city with some of the other sisters. You hadn't celebrated Ludi for years, you loved the wild energy of the celebration, especially getting caught up in the chaotic dances that had a tendency to start rather spontaneously.

The wild tales some of the sisters told of what happened on the streets made jealousy curl up in your chest like a cat in front of a hearth. One story in particular recounted by Marianne was one of the blacksmith's apprentices letting a boar loose leaving the lower portion of the city on a wild chase, resulting in several caskets of wine being destroyed and a few unhappy knights. The story had the sisters you ate dinner with that night in stitches. You had poked at your meat, refusing to make eye contact with Marianne.

Barbara had decided that the most talented healers were to stay back all Ludi. Naturally, despite her training as a healer she made no such rules for herself. It wasn't like you were permitted to leave the cathedral anyways, not until your sins had been properly atoned for, whatever that meant.

It had been two weeks since you had last seen Childe and you were itching to get out, even if it was alone. You crave to feel the grass and flowers against your back, to run along the cliffs again, admire the sheer beauty of the endless sea dotted with shrouded islands full of endless mystery.

During Ludi you had climbed to the rooftop most nights to try and find him with no success, he was effectively a ghost. You had seen more and more Fatui Agents crawling around however, accumulating at the recently acquired Goth Hotel. One agent in particular had taken to loitering around the doors of the cathedral. You had even caught a glimpse of what you thought was the so-called 'Darknight Hero' prowling the stairs below. Something was coming and you did not want to be here for it.

You were once again on the roof after a long day in the infirmary, looking up at the stars you could see the outline of Celestia shadowed against the sky. A living reminder of God's eyes upon you. Looking up you could see your constellation Lucens Caduceus draped among the stars. Born under Hydro, blessed by the fates above to be a healer it seemed.

You stood on the peak of the roof, above the large circular stained glass window that gazed upon the city. Cool summer wind was blowing through your hair. Underneath you the festival-goers milled around, you could hear the cheers of the people as they basked in the orange lights of the lamps strung above.

After sundown the crowd tended to become rowdier, you could see one person unsuccessfully attempting to climb the large statue of Barbatos, within an instant some of the knights had apprehended them ungracefully dragging them away, the crowd laughing along.

You had seen Grandmaster Jean milling around the streets, rumours among some of the Knights say she killed the last Grandmaster Varka for the title, wanting the Knights back in the Gunnhildrs hands. You had never met The Dandelion Knight, only hearing bits and pieces about her from others around you. That was enough to know to avoid getting on her bad side or meeting her at all. How could such a seemingly kind woman commit such a ruthless act? Was that the extent she was willing to go for power, for control?

As expected the Harbinger was nowhere to be seen, his height and red hair would be a beacon in the crowd below. You wondered if he was getting any closer to finding Barbatos, if he could find him before the 7th day, before you made your escape.

Standing up you stalked across the green-tiled roof careful to not lose your balance and slipped back into the room under the bell tower, glad to be sheltered from the increasing windiness and noise of the city. Leaning against the wall you activated your Vision, the blue orb softly glowing against your back from the chain it hung upon.

A small bubble of water appeared before you and you concentrated on forming the blade you had seen Childe use, moonlight glinting through the water. For the last two weeks you had been trying and unsuccessfully trying to form Hydro weapons. If The Church forbade you from owning a sword made of steel then a weapon that you could instantly dissipate without a trace would be useful.

You still didn't understand why Childe felt the lust he felt for battle. The weapon was more of a utility to you, a way to fend for yourself if worse came to worst. You tried to form the water into a spear, bending and flexing your fingers, weaving the weapon. You had control over the form of the water it was keeping in that form that was hard for you. Any spear you made wouldn't hold and dripped into a puddle on the floor along with your hopes.

The polearm formed in your hands, you liked the range the weapon gave you. You held it tightly desperately trying to keep it together but to no avail the water slipped between your fingers. Weeks of trying and no progress. You slid down the wall bringing your legs to your chest and resting your head against your knees and sighed deeply.

Only 3 more days. You thought to yourself, you could do this, you just needed to hold on for a little longer.

This plan of Y/N's was insane Childe had thought to himself, and yet he had allowed himself to get swept up into it. In the week that passed he had come to a few realisations. He had missed the candour that you gave him. To be treated as just a man, not as a feared Harbinger. He knew he could be creating a liability, another weak point, his family already gave him a glaring vulnerability to anyone that knew about them. As much as he wished to mention them they had to remain a tight-lipped secret. He had faith that Pucinella would grant them his protection.

He had thought about climbing the cathedrals walls again, he craved more conversation with you. He didn't realise how badly he needed a connection with someone who would treat him as an equal. He had pushed all of that away in favour of mastering his skill, the connections he made as a Harbinger were superficial, nothing more than opportunities, exchanges.

This, while at its core was a deal, you were going to be working together closely for a while. This could very easily spiral into something else if Childe wasn't careful. That was going to be hard considering how badly he craved connection. Connection was too dangerous for someone with a life like his, he had to be detached no matter how hard it hurt him.

In the month Childe had spent looking for the Anemo Archon three of those weeks had been useless. But this last week? He had finally finally made some progress. Ludi made peoples tongues looser, secrets were easier to buy off those who wouldn't even remember the previous night. All it took was a blacked out knight, a knife and some light threatening for the poor man to spill his secrets. That he has seen a local bard calling down a dragon from the storm above.

He was desperate to head to Liyue and begin his assignment there. Killing a god was certainly more fun than fruitlessly trying to find one that could very well have been dead for centuries. He couldn't even finish the hunt, that was Signoria's job this time. He couldn't understand why he had been sent to find Barbatos.

Reaching the glowing tavern in the back corners of Mondstadt he climbed up to a window on the second floor and effortlessly slipped into the Angels Share. He may be known for his talent on the battlefield but he liked to think he could be a good spy when needed. For a weekday it was still rowdy, something that reminded him of home. Tsaritsa knew how much he missed home; it had been almost a year, letters from Tonia being his only string to sanity. He had taken to sitting on a small dock on the edge of Dragonspine just to remind him of the cold, summer was still an unfamiliar season to him despite his travels.

There was a bard clad in green and white standing on a table near the centre of the room on the lower floor, playing his lyre while singing a Mondstadt folk song to the roaring crowd below. Blue and black braids swinging as he spun around on the table carelessly. He didn't look old enough to even drink, let alone be a god with thousands in years behind him. This was who they were trying to steal a gnosis from? No wonder Mondstadt was crumbling, its god was nothing more than a drunken fool Childe snarked to himself.

A suppressed smirk made its way across his face, all he needed to do was confirm his godhood, The Fatui needed the correct target after all. One of the other Harbingers might have had their underlings tail him but Childe was bored, desperate to alleviate it. His only other source was locked away in the cathedral's infirmary for 3 more days. Ludi had given him something to do, he had considered joining the festivities but being drunk on the job was a bad idea right now, he would have to save it for Liyue.

Swiftly making his exit to the roofs above he waited. A cat stalking its prey. His eyes shifted to the cathedral towering high above him, partially obscured by the towering statue of Barbatos, a statue worshipping the glory of a tarnished god. He had wondered if he would see your figure standing on the rooftop but the green tiles remained barren. He moved his gaze back to the tavern letting the hours pass by, occasionally throwing a hydro knife at a beam of wood.

Around 3 am the bard stumbled out significantly drunker than he was a few hours ago. Childe followed his path from the rooftops, he was walking towards the main gate of the city. No mortal would leave the city at this hour, it was too dangerous with all the abyssal creatures lurking just outside, ready to strike at any unsuspecting mortal. The Abyss of course was no threat to him, he had long known how to navigate the depths with ease.

Slinking out of the gate he followed the drunken god across the stone bridge to the deep woods just outside the city. Venti hummed a tune as he staggered along the well worn footpath until he reached a large clearing. There he saw him wait in the centre, head tilted staring into the sky he began to sing a strange tune. What was the fool doing?

Childe's question was quickly answered when the fabled Stormterror descended next to the god. It was huge, wings shadowing over the trees. Venti approached the abyssal beast without hesitation, a faint green glow emanating from his form, glowing brighter as he got closer. He couldn't make out the conversation, only a few words; it was spoken in what sounded almost like Mondtadan. Regardless of the conversation this would be enough to confirm Venti's godhood to anyone. Conversing with Stormterror and making it out alive.

Childe turned and made his way through the forest back to the walled city, content that he had finally found the target. Mondstadt's god hadn't abandoned his nation, rather he was hiding in plain sight like a coward. As he approached Mondstadt he heard heavy footsteps rapidly approaching. Whipping his head round he spotted a figure clad in black rapidly approaching him. Childe dodged the attack with practised ease, conjuring a polearm and striking. The man jumped back, Childe took the few seconds he had to assess his opponent. Claymore. Pyro. strength concentrated in his upper body.

This was almost too perfect. The claymore made the eagle-masked attacker slow but strong, and he just so happened to be best at striking rapidly, all he needed to do was dodge to avoid his heavy attacks. Moving back he rushed behind the stranger, aiming to take him out by sweeping his legs. He dodged the attack and swung his claymore at Childe once again.

Childe jumped back from the blow and then lurched back in, the polearm's deadly tip pointed towards his assailant. A burst of pyro came his way, he immediately overwhelmed it with water, causing it to vaporise into nothing more than steam. Childe swung aiming for the back, his polearm was slashed through with a heavy swing of the claymore.

Creating dual blades without much of a second thought me moved in on the offensive, getting closer to this opponent might work better. He ran into him, slashing his blade along the man's chest before spinning around and attacking again. The man was too slow to dodge his attacks this time.

He continued this dance for a few more minutes, relishing the feeling of a good fight. It had been too long since he had a decent spar against a skilled opponent. He felt the adrenaline rush through his body, this is what he was made for . He moved back and threw an arrow, clipping the man's shoulder and tearing through his thick black coat, blood welling up to fill the cut.

The strangers grip on his claymore tightened, bursting into flame and going in for another strike. The blade arched high above his head, slamming it down with force. Childe moved to the side and activated his delusion. Feeling the pure power of electro burst through his arteries. He was alive with pure elemental energy, power thrumming through his core.

His blades now sparking with electro he jumped, barely teleporting as pure electricity shocked his body. He struck true, landing the centre of his opponent's chest and overloaded the man, knocking him flat on his back.

He straddled gasping the man, placing a blade at his throat. He ripped the mask off, throwing it carelessly to the side, revealing the head of Mondstadt's wine industry. Diluc Ragnvindr. He was slightly surprised that he was still conscious, normally an overload caused someone's heart to stop completely, the rush of electricity clawing into the organ and overwhelming it.

Childe couldn't kill him, that would cause too much of a diplomatic mess, but he could still have some fun he decided. He kept the blade pressed to the man's throat, eyes still alight with fire glaring back at Childe's cold façade.

"Ragnvindr, care to tell me why you attacked a Fatui Harbinger?" He bit out

"I saw you follow that bard, The Fatui are nothing but a stain on my land" He spit back

"Oh so you try to strike the head of the snake then? Don't care about the consequences that might cause Ragnvindr" He glared down at the helpless man

"I'm sure Il Dottore would love to see you again, perhaps I might ask him to pay a visit so he could finally finish the job" He saw Diluc's pupils constrict and his breath quicken "A dead Harbinger might just cause him to come back. I hear he misses Mondstadt" He taunted, trying to get a rise out of him.

Diluc pressed his lips together, refusing to say anything else. Childe moved his blade away from his neck, still straddling him "We may be on opposite sides but you fight well comrade. How about we strike a deal?"

"You take me for a fool? Absolutely not" Diluc snapped back

Ignoring Dilic's response he continued dragging a gloved finger across the sharp edge of his blade "How's this, I don't kill you and you stop trying to kill me. Tell me, did you think through this plan of yours? I understand you can leave The Knights to clean up your messes but did you really think my death would go unnoticed? That we wouldn't come to Mondstadt like vultures?" A look of realisation came across Diluc's face, this might be his only option. Childe leans in "That your crop wouldn't be burnt and your land salted, your cellars raided, your tavern destroyed. We could so easily take away everything you own"

Diluc gritted his teeth, trying to find a loophole, an exploit.

"There's nothing you can do, Ragnvindr" He slid a finger along the edge of his blade, eyes glancing down at him a glint of amusement flashed across his usually blank eyes.

"I accept this deal," Diluc relented, releasing there was no way out of this

A grin spread across Childe's face as he spun his blade around, dissipating it into droplets that scattered across Diluc's face. He stood up leaving the other man sprawled on the dirt and walked away.

He turned his head around to look at him one last time "I'll give you a tip Ragnvindr, think before you strike next time"

With that he strolled back to the city, sun beginning to peak over the horizon, its rays casting an ethereal golden light across the landscape. Content to enjoy the remaining days of Ludi before he had to leave.

Day 6 of Ludi. The last day under The Churches control. It was an effort to keep your excitement from being visible despite your exhaustion. You could hear the echo of the hymns below you echoing off the cathedral's stone walls. You're standing in your bedroom in the late afternoon Marianne absent for prayer. She should be gone for a few hours considering she's made a habit of going to Barbara's office after evening prayer. You had finally gathered the confidence to escape to the city below for the night, you pulled the shawl around you and made your way to the window, and leaned out. You were only one floor up, you could climb down easily right?

Taking a breath you swing your leg out the window, tip of your boot finding purchase on a jagged piece of cobblestone. You tested its weight, once you were certain it could take your weight you swung your other leg out, turning so your body now faced the window. You were sure your knuckles were white underneath your gloves for how tightly you were holding the window sill. You took a deep breath in, this was no different from climbing the ceilings.

Slowly you made your way down, jumping the last metre or so and landing softly on the cobblestone below. You pulled your hood and made your way around the side of the church, desperate to get away before evening prayer ended. You skirted the edge of the cathedral wanting to avoid any knights, if they caught you it would be finished before it even started.

This was dangerous, stupid you scolded yourself internally but it was worth it, you wanted to enjoy your last few hours here. You descended the stairs and made your way into the crowd below, content to become another face.

You grinned to yourself you had made it out. Wandering around you came to a food stall, pulling out a few mora you had nicked from the donation bowl you exchanged it for a glass of dandelion wine. Relishing the sweet taste and the slight burn of the alcohol you made your way further down the city. The people and chaos increased as you went down the stairs.

You had missed Ludi. You missed the dances and sneaking away with a random person to the alleys just to spite The Church.

A bright flash of ginger hair out of the corner of your eye caught your attention. You turned around, fingers at the edge of your hood ready to pull it down. Your eyes met his, and he smiled, approaching you.

"Fancy seeing you here Y/N" he teased, head tilting down to look at you

"Likewise Harbinger" you pulled down your hood to reveal your face, still walking down the stairs to the heart of the festival, you could almost hear the music over the crowd.

"Enjoying the festivities?" He walked with you, not bothering to question how you got out in the first place

"Might as well before I leave forever, despite my hatred of this place it is where I was raised" you shrugged weaving effortlessly around people

"Have you found him?" You questioned, Childe gave you a short nod

"Yes, he wasn't too hard to track down once enough alcohol was involved" he laughed a little

Your eyebrows shot up a little So he was real after all

"Then I take if you're enjoying Ludi as well" You looked him up and down, his usual red scarf and jacket were missing a slight flush was gracing his cheeks

"Is it hot here?" you eyed him, laughter tracing the edge of your voice

"Compared to Snezhnaya, yes, but the crowd and warm winds haven't been helping. I suppose Liyue will be worse"

"Liyue?"

"Were headed to Liyue after we leave here"

"Nice to know where I'm following you to" you smirked.

He gave you a look, the same look he gave you when he was going to do something impulsive "Come"

Without waiting for your response he grabbed your hand and dragged you into the centre of the crowd, towards the dance.

"You know Mondstadt folk dance?" you raise an eyebrow at him

"How could I not, my question is do you know how to dance"

"Of course, this was my favourite part of Ludi" You grinned, light dancing in your eyes.

This time you dragged him into the dance, grabbing his hand. You let him swing you in an arc, the two of you followed the steps, you hooked arms with another young woman and danced with her momentarily, moving onto her partner. The hem on your skirt lifting with the movement as he and Childe swapped partners returning you to him. He gave a stomp along with the music along with the others.

You couldn't help but notice how he moved, similar to how he moved in a fight, fluid and strong and sure. The band began to increase the pace of the song, you fed off the uncontrolled energy of the crowd letting it spur you and Childe on, dancing faster and faster.

You laughed along with him, this was the first time you had felt free in so long, your hair whipped around you as he grabbed you by the waist and lifted you up. You planted your hands on his shoulders to keep your balance. He turned and placed you back on the ground in unison with everyone else. He grabbed your hand again and raised it above your head to twirl you and then braced his hands on your waist to tip you back turning your face up to feel the warm winds across your cheeks.

He was practically glowing, a large smile plastered across his freckled face red earring catching the last few remnants of sunlight. You clapped your hands along with the song laughing, feeling the strong dandelion wine begin to hit you. You looked up at him and tilted your head, your limbs felt looser as the wine coursed through your body.

You glazed to the horizon, and took a sharp breath in. Now that the sun had nearly set, The Sisters would be done with their prayer, preparing to leave for the festival once again. You couldn't risk being seen, not when you were this close.

You pulled him in the small amount of wine giving you more confidence than you normally would have, whispering in his ear and you continued to dance "I have to leave, I'll see you on the roof"

Before he could respond you had left, disappearing into the crowd. You ran back to the cathedral, clambering up the cobblestone wall you launched yourself into the room. Panting you looked up only to see a surprised Marianne looking back at you. Her icy glare freezing you in place instantly sobering you up.

"Where have you been Y/N" she sighed

"I-I went out to the festival, Just for a few hours to dance"

"Why? You know you have to stay in the cathedral, The Deaconess deemed that you must stay back" She said, exasperated

"Mari please, it was only for a few hours, I've been worked to the bone. I just wanted to dance again" you begged her

"Y/N… You know I have to tell The Deaconess"

"Then tell her tomorrow, enjoy the festival tonight. Let me rest at least" You couldn't let her say a word, that would shatter everything. Why did you leave, why did you think that your action wouldn't come without consequence

"I'm worried about you, what if you never came back? What if the Fatui took you again" Her gaze shifted to reveal something more sincere, an expression that had become increasingly rare these last few weeks.

"Mari I'm fine , Please, go enjoy your night. I'll be here tomorrow"

"What if you weren't fine? We can't lose another healer" Her words slammed into you

"Another healer? Is that who I am to you now?" You spat, her words piercing you harder than you thought they would.

"Y/N that's not what I meant, I still care about you" She reached her hand out to you, which was meant to be a familiar gesture. Without thinking you stepped back to avoid her touch wanting to shove any feeling you had for her far underground.

"What happened to you Mari? What happened to being kind, how can you love The Deaconess after what she did to you"

"Things change Y/N. I still love you but I must follow my duty"

The words you had for her were caught in your throat, you wanted to tell her you loved her too but that would be a lie. You wanted to scream at her and ask her how she could see such kindness in such a cruel figure. You wanted to kiss her like you had so long ago, give into her embrace and try to return to what you were once.

"Marianne…" Her name rotted on your tongue. "Just leave, enjoy the festival. We can talk tomorrow" Against everything in you screaming not to, you meet her steely gaze. The sympathy that had been there just moments ago was gone along with her old self.

Marianne pressed her lips in a thin line "Fine, but you know I'll have to report you to The Deaconess tomorrow"

You nodded and sighed "I know, enjoy your night"

Marianne left the room, shutting the door gently behind her. You of course would be long gone by tomorrow morning. You sat down on the bed you've slept in since you were small. Trying not to cry, she wasn't worth your tears anymore.

That was your last conversation with Marianne, someone who had changed into someone you barely knew, someone you could barely look at without seeing the ghost of Barbara.

You had considered telling her your plan at the start, begging her to run away with you, but now it was too risky. She would report you immediately, your grave would be dug by the end of the day.

It was going to sting leaving her forever, if you ever saw her again perhaps one day when you were old and withered you would have to apologise for abandoning her. You doubted she would forgive you, in her eyes you were betraying everything you knew. You were turning your back on those who raised, fed and trained you all to join The Fatui, the enemy in her eyes. This was not just stabbing her in the back but slitting her throat as well.

There was no going back however, this is what you wanted, what you had fought for, bound yourself to a Harbinger for. You sighed, ever since the day you had gotten your vision by healing Marianne's wounds alone after her lashings. The five festering lines across her back set the hatred you had for The Order in stone.

You could still remember the day so clearly, the bright blue orb manifesting in front of you, your hands shaking so badly you could barely pick it up. The eye of a god encased in a silver casing, small wings protruding from the sides. Marianne had looked at you in awe, bandages wrapped tightly around the whole of her torso. That was five years ago, yet the memory still carried the same weight as it had for years.

Steeling your resolve you grabbed a pack from under your bed and began to pack. Shoving a few items, only the essentials into the bag and leaving anything sentimental determined to leave any trace of your life at the cathedral far behind you. You climbed to the roof to wait for Childe.

You took in the view of the city for the last time, you would miss the place a little but the stars you had spent hours staring at would still be there wherever you were going. You were sure he would tell you his next assignment once you were out of Mondstadt and safely in Liyue.

Notes:

Tumblr - link

Oculus Dei Tam Bonus Quam Mei roughly translates to 'a gods eye is as good as mine' TY TO THE TUMBLR ANON WHO FIXED MY LATIN!

SO this was initially gonna contain the actual running away but I was halfway thru writing that bit when i checked the word count and decided that I would have to spit it in two so it wasnt just a fat chunk of text (plus i have to go back and annotate it so i can avoid plot holes)

Also that russian stranger put the 2nd pill in my mouth and then kissed me to swallow it WHY is my life a wattpad fanction

Chapter 5: Echo in the Wind

Notes:

TW: Not sh per se but Y/N does cut herself. Mild smut at the end of the chapter ;))

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

Chapter Text

You saw his slim figure clamber onto the roof as the moon was just about to reach her peak, he looked completely different compared to a few hours ago. Like this he was menacing, he could kill without a second thought. You were standing opposite him, body shadowed by the bell tower. One leg stood in front of the other to keep your feet on the ridge of the roof, arms crossed and hair blowing behind you.

Once he had reached you, you slunk back into the room and looked at him, unsure of what to say

"Ready?" he said, he was giving you one last chance to say no and stay.

"As I'll ever be" You looked at him as he grinned

"Here's the plan, we go to my room and fake my death, we'll have to be fast because I don't know what time Marianne will be back. From there you break us out"

"I've finished all my business in Mondstadt so I am free to leave. However, I haven't activated any waypoints in Liyue Harbour so we'll have to take the waypoint just outside of the city to the border. There we make out way on foot"

You nodded along with his plan

"And what do we do once we've reached Liyue Harbour, start your next mission?"

Childe looks away for a moment. You think he won't tell you, you wouldn't be surprised. In his eyes you could still betray him, but if you did you would be dead before your body had hit the ground. "I have been sent to kill Rex Lapis"

"T-to kill a god?" You couldn't help but step back a little

Childe nods as if it was nothing of note "He has something the Tsaritsa needs, something every Archon has" You don't miss how he doesn't elaborate. You look at him, he stood tall before you. He was a Fatui Harbinger but he was still mortal, did he really think he could single handedly kill a god.

"I- Did you kill Barbatos too?" your mouth suddenly felt dry

"No, That is not my task this time" he looked slightly annoyed as he said it

"So the Fatui will k-kill Barbatos" You sucked in a breath eyes blown wide with shock

"Only if he's not… compliant"

"We're running out of time" You mumbled, turning so you didn't have to look at him

"We can discuss this later" trying to get over the shock of what he just told you. There was no escaping this now, you had bound yourself to him for the time being. You had time later to question him and figure out exactly what you had gotten yourself into.

You climbed onto the rafters and slunk across them, from there you dropped onto the ground of the balcony surrounding the main body of the church. The heel of your boot made a small sound as you landed on the well worn stone. You looked over the railing seeing the empty aisle. It was odd, you were so used to seeing the place alive with others milling around below.

You turned to face Childe. Still crouched on the rafters and pressed a finger against your lips. You snuck down the stairs, hearing the sound of his boots as he dropped down.

Reaching the door you opened and peered inside, satisfied that it was empty you stepped in and let Childe follow you. You closed the door and pressed your back against it letting out the breath you were holding. Your heart was beating so fast it was practically humming in your chest.

This was it, the last part of your plan falling into place, anticipation filled every part of your body and the dread of what you would have to do next. You looked at Childe, voice edged with something he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Do you have a knife?" You breathed

"Why"

"Just give me the knife"

He pulled out the same dagger you had cut his shirt off with from the leather strap around his thigh and handed it to you. Bracing your thigh on the bed you hiked your skirt up a little to reveal the flesh. Grabbing some of the sheet you cut a strip off, folding it up and shoving it into your mouth to muffle the inevitable scream. You didn't miss the questioning look that Childe gave you.

You took a deep breath in and slashed the knife across your thigh, biting into the cloth, tears pricking at the corner of your eyes. The hot pain seared across your thigh, stinging long after the knife left your skin.

You heard Childe suck in a breath behind you, he moved to stand next to you. He placed his hand on your bleeding thigh, you bit further into the cloth. He pressed his hand onto the stone next to your bed to create a handprint. Whatever you were expecting him to do it wasn't that.

You took the cloth out of your mouth, unfolding it. You focused on breathing feeling slightly dizzy, while blood wasn't an unfamiliar sight seeing yours was something else. It was bright red, hot, shining in the dim candle light. You looked at your injured thigh for a minute, letting the blood flow onto the sheets, enough to look suspicious. Taking the strip of cloth out of your mouth you press it to your thigh, hissing. You hold it in place with both hands applying pressure to stem the bleeding.

"Why did you do that?" you asked him, eyes focused on your thigh, chest heaving.

"A handprint would make it easier to believe you've been murdered"

"Because the copious amount of blood on my sheets wouldn't do that" you retorted

"Might as well give them every reason to believe you were killed instead of running away" he shrugged.

"Childe, can you put some pressure on the wound? I need to wrap it" His hands replaced yours keeping firm on your thigh. You used the bloody knife to cut another strip off of the ruined sheets. He lifted the bloody fabric to reveal the cut. Nausea hits you like a wave.

Gathering every bit of energy you could you activated your vision, clearing the blood off your thigh. You wish you had the ability to stitch your skin together with your vision; it would make the process a lot faster. Perhaps you might learn to in Liyue. You wrapped the second piece of linen tightly around your thigh.

"I hope this doesn't scar" you mumble under your breath, still feeling slightly dizzy. You swallow and remove your bent leg from the bed, testing your ability to stand. It hurt a bit but not enough to hinder your ability to move.

"That was… not what I was expecting" Childe exhaled

"I'm sure you've seen worse, done worse" You cleaned the knife off on the ruined sheets and handed it back to Childe, he slipped it back into the sheath on his thigh.

"True, but you haven't. Plus normally I'm the one causing other people to bleed" He said, his voice lacking the usual lilt of amusement to it.

The conversation was cut short as the two of you whipped around, hearing the faint clack of footsteps in the distance, ascending the spiralling staircase to the dormitory. You share a look with him. He bolted to the window and jumped out landing in a crouch. His still bloody hand left a small smear behind. He held his arms out ready to catch you. You had no time to climb down. Readying yourself you leaped out of the window for the final time landing solidly in Childe's arms.

He promptly placed you down and began to run around the northern edge of the cathedral. He reached a section of the wall that wouldn't be visible from the dormitory windows and climbed, you not far behind him. His height meant he reached the top of the wall before you. He extends his hands and hauls you up, taking you over the edge.

Sparing a glance back at the cathedral for the last time, as you gazed upon it, you could hear a faint scream, one that sounded exactly like Marianne's. Against every force in your body telling you to fucking move your body stood frozen in place. The scream reverberating in your soul, sinking into your psyche like a stone in water. You couldn't breathe, the ringing in your ears reached fever pitch. One word on your mind.

"Marianne" you whispered out, voice breaking ever so slightly

"Let's go " Childe urged, you found it in yourself to turn you back on the cathedral for the very last time. Childe bundled you up in his arms and jumped off the wall, glider slowing your descent. As soon as you landed on the grass you were running, desperately trying to keep up with him.

Knowing the bridge wasn't an option, there were two knights always stationed outside the main city gate you veered towards the lake. Not waiting for Childe to catch on. Body running on pure adrenaline you felt almost unstoppable.

You jumped off the cliff Mondstadt stood upon, landing on the water below. Hands weaving a path along the clear water to the other side, towards the Starfell Valley waypoint. You sprinted along the surface of the lake not bothering to be careful as you had been last time, water splashing up behind you wetting the black fabric of your habit.

You practically flew across the water, Childe not far behind skating along the surface contrary to your sprinting. You made it to shore still running to the waypoint, finally stopping to catch your breath once you had reached the glowing artefact.

"We'll head to Windwail point, from there we take the road to Liyue Harbour" He said, throwing a small pack in your direction.

"Change first, you'll look too suspicious with that habit"

'Thought of everything didn't you"

Not bothering to question where exactly he got the clothes you signalled for him to turn around. He complies as you quickly slip off the soaked habit, hurriedly changing into the dry clothes he bought you.

They were still in the Mondstadt style but more armoured. The corset was made of a strong material that could hopefully resist a few blows. Lacing up the back you adjusted your thigh-highs, boots and gloves. Your fingers skimmed over the blood stained piece of cloth that covered the cut on your thigh, it hurt less than you thought it would. Smoothing your hair out you let it flow free until you could find something to style it with, for the first time your hair wasn't obscured by the headdress the church mandated you wear.

"OK, I'm ready, Let's get out of here" You gathered up the wet clothes in your arms bundling them into the bag Childe had given you.

"We can burn these later" You noticed Childe looking at you oddly

"It's strange to not see you in your habit"

"It's strange to not be wearing one" not wanting to stick around any longer fearing a stray knight on patrol may stumble across the two of you.

You placed your hand to the waypoint. Your body felt weightless for a split second, you felt your feet on the ground a few moments later, silver gleam running across your skin. In the distance you could see Dawn Winery. Its vineyards extend far into the distance, old manor rising in the centre. It was clad in thick layers of ivy, barrels of wine stacked against its sandstone walls. You had wished this wasn't the first time you were seeing this place.

The historic residence of the Ragvindrs. You had always admired its current Master for turning his back on the knights. When you had heard the news that the newly-of-age master had abandoned his position as Captain after being the youngest person to have ever been made Captain it had given you some hope. Nowadays the young master was entirely removed from Mondstandt's internal politics, dashing your hopes that something might change.

Childe appeared next to you in a bright flash of light. His lapis gaze darted to the Dawn Winery, he seemed wary of the place.

"Come, the sooner we make it to the border the safer we are. We'll spend the night at the Wangshu Inn and continue in the morning"

You and Childe follow the sandbank between the towering cliffs flanking the lake. As you reached the Stone Gate the landscape turned from green to yellow. Despite Liyue sharing Mondstadt's southern border you knew shockingly little about the nation.

As you crossed the border you could feel some of the weight you had on your shoulders lift. You had made it out alive. Part of you wanted to relish in your newfound freedom immediately, the better part of you knew to save that for Liyue Harbour. You were still too close to Mondstadt for comfort, for all you know the knights could be hot on your trail.

You opened your mouth wanting to ask the question that's been on the forefront of your mind since you had escaped. You closed your mouth deciding that now wasn't the best time.

Childe however had other plans "Spit it out"

"What?"

"You were about to say something" You hadn't noticed he was looking at you

"Why kill a god" You said, looking anywhere but at Childe

"Because The Tsartisa wills it and what she wants I will deliver" he supplies, the same tone in his voice he always had when talking about the Cryo Archon, admiration you had pinned it to.

"What will you be doing specifically in Liyue?" You push further, hoping for solid answers to your endless questions. If you were going to have to wait for your freedom for a little longer you would at least like to know what's going on

"The plan is that I'm officially here as a representative of the Liyue branch of Northland bank, people haven't been paying their debts on time so I'm here to… encourage them. Unofficially I'm here to hunt Rex Lapis"

"And where do I come into this?"

"Considering my station as a Fatui Harbinger I'll likely have assassins on my tail. Not to mention Rex Lapis, aside from being the God of Contracts he is the God of War. I'll be very surprised if I make it out unscathed from such a glorious battle"

You made your way along a rickety wooden bridge in front of a large waterfall, you stood in place to admire it for a moment. Waterfalls were uncommon in Mondstadt.

"Do the other Harbingers know about this plan"

"...No, they don't know the specifics. I am very rarely aware of their whereabouts anyways. It's been a while since I've been called back home"

"And you have underlings? Do they know?"

"No. The Harbingers are the only ones aware of the Tsaritsa's true plan. Regardless if they know exactly what I'm after rumours of me attempting to kill a god would draw too much unwanted attention from the other Harbingers. I prefer to keep them in the dark, much like in the eyes of the Liyue Qixing I'm only here for diplomatic reasons to my underlings"

"I wouldn't take you as a diplomat, Tartaglia" you snark

"While it is considerably less fun causing chaos from behind the scenes it is a necessary part of my role"

"Causing chaos?"

"Don't tell me you don't enjoy it too" he questioned tilting his head down to look at you

"I might" you replied, cocking your head a lilt to your voice

You continue down the dirt path. Even the plants were unfamiliar aside from the occasional sprig of mint or sweetflower, you wondered what properties Liyuen plants might contain.

"Have you found Rex Lapis?" You ask

"Not yet, but I know where to start"

You cock your head waiting "If I'm going to help you you need to tell me more"

"Are you aware of contracts and Liyue?" he asks

"Somewhat" you sigh, guessing at where he was going with this

"An agreement made in Liyue is a contract. One that cannot be broken by either party or there will be punishment from the gods"

"And you wish to make a contract between us now?"

You stop under a rather large Sandbearer tree, its orange leaves falling down around the both of you, gnarled trunk twisting towards the heavens.

"If you wish to know more, then yes"

"I haven't earned your trust yet?"

"You have in some sense, but this is highly sensitive and you already know of my plans to kill a god. I would rather have a contract to make this airtight"

"As you wish" He turns to look at you, he grasps your forearms and you do the same. You look up at his lifeless eyes. He begins to speak

"You, Y/N will work as my personal healer until my mission in Liyue is complete. You are to let nobody know about our contract or agreements, you are not to betray me, you are not to tell a soul about what I plan to do and you are to be loyal to me during our time together"

There was a faint gold glow beginning to surround your arms, weaving its way upwards. Taking advantage of the moment you slip a few of your own terms in might as well make this fair.

"I, Y/N, agree to work as your healer. In exchange you, Tartaglia the 11th of the Fatui Harbingers are not to harm me, you are not to turn me back to Mondstadt or The Order and you are to protect me until you have completed your objectives in Liyue"

"I find these terms acceptable"

"As do I" you said with finality

"Then it is settled, our contact is now sealed" The gold glow wraps itself around your intertwined forearms, sinking into your skin. You could feel a faint tingling as he grips you slightly harder.

You unclasped your hands from his arm and peeled back your glove, surprised to find nothing here.

"Will you tell me the plan now?"

"So eager aren't you"

You don't give him a response. Wanting answers, a clear path forward

"If you wish to see the adepti in Liyue there is a sort of pass you need, it's called a Sigil of Permission. The Fatui have been working on replicating them. We need enough to summon an ancient being by the name of Osial. Currently he is trapped under the Sea of Clouds but with enough adeptal energy we should be able to summon him and draw out Rex Lapis to protect his nation. There I kill him and take what I need"

"And what exactly do you need?" You chest was getting tight, this is what you were getting yourself into

Childe hesitates "I'm afraid I cannot tell you. I am sworn to never break the Tsaritsa's bidding, and that means I must not divulge her true plans to those she doesn't want hearing them"

"And yet your willing to potentially kill an entire city for her"

"No, I'm willing to risk a city. I kill Rex Lapis after he's saved the city, Osial will be weak after being chained under the ocean for so long anyways"

"The underlings replicating the sigils, do they know what they're helping with?"

"No, they do not know what they are replicating or what its for"

This was hard to swallow but it's what you tied yourself to. Getting involved with a Harbinger was already dangerous, you didn't know what you expected especially with whatever their plans were in Mondstadt. So long as the city and its citizens survived, so long as summoning Osial was to only draw Rex Lapis out you could live with that.

You were walking along some lacquered wooden railing clinging to the side of a mountain. As you round the corner you see a giant tree rising in the distance buildings in an unfamiliar style attached to its trunk.

"Wangshu Inn" Childe supplies

"It's beautiful" You breathe, was the rest of Liyue like this? You continue to walk down the path.

"I will need further training, There are rumours of a doctor seeking an apprentice in Liyue Harbour"

"Ah, Baizhu, He is well known across Liyue for his ability, that and his snake"

"If I am to help heal you then I would like to apply for his apprenticeship"

Childe is silent for a moment as he considers your request "Provided nobody is able to find out about your affiliation to me then I'll allow it. It's important to keep our relationship hidden, not only for my sake but yours. If someone was to find out then that would put a considerable target on your back"

You nod along "I would like to stay alive for the time being, plus you just made a contract with me explicitly stating that I cannot tell anyone lest I face a soon-to-be-dead god's wrath"

"What do you wish to learn? From what I've seen your a fairly competent healer"

"I, much like you, wish to be the best at my art. I hear that some can stitch skin together with nothing but the aid of their Vision, some can bring someone back from the brink of death. You're a Harbinger. I can make a stab in the dark based on your scars that you can and will encounter much worse."

"So you wish to achieve mastery?"

"Yes, I do. You of all people would relate to that"

"Even if that mastery comes with notoriety?"

"I am more than willing to lie about who I am if that means I can get what I want"

"I can understand that"

"You've done the same?"

"In some capacity"

That should be no surprise. You decide to not pry any further for the time being. His story was his to tell and it was unlikely he would tell it to you.

You approach a large Statue of the Seven depicting Morax. He was seated on a throne with large columns rising with inscriptions on them to form the backing. The hooded figure looking contemplative as he gazed upon a cube in his grasp, the edges glowing faintly with blue energy. Some of the statue was cracking, forming deep rivets in the stone.

You placed your fingers upon the base of the statue, and looked up. You wondered what he was thinking and feeling. Did he know that your companion was about to take his life? That you made a contract under him? You wondered if Morax was laughing at the inherent irony.

Childe looked upon your figure touching the statue. He didn't feel the pang of guilt he thought he would feel looking upon the statue. It was such a risk telling you what he was planning to do. He had even made a contract with you under the gaze of the god he was going to kill in cold blood to obtain his gnosis.

You had earnt a small amount of his trust, just enough for him to let you in. He still had to play his hand close to his chest. You had taken his plan well, he had half expected you to run back to Mondstadt even after you had bound yourself to him for the time being.

But was it truly such a risk? As far as he knew he was the only Harbinger in Liyue meaning he essentially had free reign over The Fatui's plans in Liyue. This was his chance and he had to grasp it. Despite the hundreds of battles he's won, the countless beasts he's slayed, he still needed to prove himself to the other Harbingers. One day they would notice him for what he truly was, preferably before he conquered the world for the Tsaritsa.

You were silent for the remainder of the journey to Wangshu Inn. It was nearing dawn by the time you stopped, you looked exhausted.

"We'll rest here during the day and continue to Liyue Harbour tonight"

You merely nodded in response to his words. He wondered where the bite you usually had went.

"Here" he handed you a small pouch of Mora "Get a room for yourself and rest. In the evening I'll meet up with you outside the inn"

You didn't say anything as you took the bag of mora and walked into the Inn. Childe waited for a bit before walking into the Inn himself and booking a room for himself. The receptionist looked at him strangely but obliged without saying much of anything.

He wandered up to his room, stripping and heading straight to the bath. Rejoicing in the warm water, a small luxury in Snezhnaya. He meticulously washed himself, getting rid of the dirt that had accumulated on his skin. It was strange for him to be so lost in thought, normally he just did. Diplomacy was unfamiliar to him; he would rather strike hard and true rather than slowly planning out every detail. Might as well get the job done quickly.

Perhaps it was you, unlike him you planned, you thought. He had seen you spar, you took to long thinking through the movements, too lost in thought to be in the present moment. You still held connection to those who hurt you, unable to let go. He wondered who Marianne was and why her scream made you freeze as if you had been hit by a cryo arrow.

He bit his lip, he should tell you what The Fatui are planning in Mondstat, you may have hated the place but you did deserve to know. You had looked so shocked when you had thought he had killed Barbatos despite the hatred you seemingly had for the absentee Archon. He decided he would tell you when you asked, you never seemed to run out of questions anyways.

He got out of the rapidly cooling water and dried himself off. As soon as his head hit the pillow he was out.

You could barely sleep despite your exhaustion. It had been less than twenty four hours since you had escaped Mondstadt, everything was moving at a mile a minute. The news that Childe was planning to summon an ancient god to lure out Rex Lapis. The way he said it so casually, even with a hint of excitement made you uneasy. Deciding to process it later when you were less tired.

It was nice to have a room to yourself for once you felt more relaxed now that there were no eyes on you for once. You undressed, hands skimming over the cut on your thigh. It was healing faster than you had expected, especially considering it was only a few hours old. You drew a bath and stepped into the large tub, letting the hot water relax your muscles. Flicking a bit of water up you moved it around with ease before concentrating on forming it into a knife.

The blade took form, you modelled it off the one Childe had given you. The handle was easy, the blade was harder. This time it kept its form, you grabbed it and ran your finger along the edge curiously, it was still dull, it couldn't even cut a blade of grass. With a huff of finality you let the water lose its form and splash back into the bathwater.

Letting the steam surround you, you tried to empty your mind of the racing thoughts that normally consumed you. You bite your lip, deciding you need a distraction you let your hand absentmindedly travel down your navel. You could finally do this in privacy without having to worry about waking someone up or being walked in on.

You let your finger circle your clit, feeling sparks already. You other hand works deftly at your nipple, letting yourself fully relax you lean your head against the edge of the bath. Your thoughts lead to nothing in particular, just letting yourself get lost in the growing feeling. Your breathing became heavier, your head was getting lighter, it was becoming harder and harder to form a coherent thought.

You increased the pace of your finger over your clit, dipping two into your cunt and letting them curl in that one spot that always made you see stars, pleasure creeping into your navel. Your legs curled up a little. You don't bother to hide your moans as you normally would, hand slapped over your mouth to muffle yourself in shame.

You continue to pleasure yourself, whining as you bring yourself closer and closer to the edge. You pinch your nipple letting the slight pain sing through your body. You wondered what it would be like for another person to do this to you. Against your will, the idea of the Harbingers hands replacing yours, circling your clit, filling you up, kissing your neck came to mind. You hated that it spurred you on, blush gracing your cheeks.

Fuck, why were your thoughts wandering to him. You moaned breathily trying to shove the lewd thoughts of him away. You were so close, just skimming the edge. You pressed the palm of your hand against your bud and ground against it, pumping and curing your fingers in and out of you at the pace you knew would bring you satisfaction. Fingers continued to play with your nipple. You keened, back arching, high pitched gasp came from you as you felt your orgasm wash over you. Your muscles clenched as you screwed your eyes shut letting the feeling of overwhelming bliss wash over you. You laid there for a moment, water settling around you, staring blankly at the ceiling.

You climbed out of the bath, not wanting to stay until the water went cold and dried yourself off. You rifled through your bag looking for your night dress and comb. Giving your hair a run through so it would look presentable the next day you changed and climbed into the large bed. It was considerably more comfy compared to the hard wooden beds and thin mattresses that the church had provided. Sleep claimed you quickly as the sun rose over the horizon.

Notes:

Tumblr - link

Hi Hi Hi, Life has been moving at a mile a minute so its been slightly insane trying to write this but hey! I got it done. Probably not much smut for a little while, I want to build up the relationship a little more before that stuff.

EDIT: Might not be able to push out the update in the next 2 weeks like i planned, more likely mid-end July. My mental heath has been... not great so Im going camping for a week with my friends so I wont have any internet. See yall soon I hope

Chapter 6: Sentire Lucem

Notes:

sorry this took forever to write, I lost the ability to feel any emotion after my bsf told me they were in love w me :))))))))))

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

Chapter Text

Waking up in the evening was a strange experience, you were used to watching the sunrise from the window of the cathedral, Marianne sleeping blissfully across from you. Your back was grateful for the soft mattress as you stretched, feeling your once tense muscles relax.

You stepped out of the bed to admire the view, you could almost see the whole of Liyue from the top of the inn. The fading sunlight danced on your skin, creating an orange glow. The mountains rise high in the west and the eastern coast of the Sea of Clouds. It was warmer here compared to Mondstadt, there was no cool breeze here. While it was nice to finally be free there was still a considerable trek to Liyue Harbour. You suspected you might have to camp out another day before you made it. You could barely see the Harbour in the distance.

Your hands skimmed the clean piece of fabric wrapping the cut on your thigh. You unwound it, and brushed your fingers over the scab, it was still slightly sore to the touch but it was in a much better state than you thought it would be in considering you had only cut it a day ago. It looked like it would only take a few days to fully heal.

You whipped around hearing a knock at your door, having no time to change, you opened the door a crack and peeked out. Childe was standing outside fully dressed in his grey suit crimson scarf wrapped jauntily around his shoulders. He gave you a once over, you felt your cheeks heat as you were wearing nothing but a thin nightdress, not doing much to hide anything.

"Can I help you?" You questioned, opening the door fully. You raised an eyebrow and crossing your arms over your chest

Childes eyes skimmed over your form before stopping at the scab on your thigh. He quirked his eyebrow

"Y/N, we better be going, I just received word that my underlings have secured us a place to stay in Liyue" he snapped his eyes back to yours

"Us?" You replied, slightly surprised

"It's best we live together until you can establish yourself, You have no mora anyways so until you can earn some…"

"Fine, fine. Just until I can get myself started" you waved him off. You weren't too keen on the idea of living with him but you couldn't deny he was right.

"Great! Get changed and I'll meet you just south of the inn"

You close the door in his face and lean against it wrapping your hands around your waist. Taking a deep breath in you closed your eyes and leaned your head against the intricate wooden door. You could hear his footsteps get quieter.

You got dressed as quickly as you could, grabbed your bag and looked back at the inn room and through the window to the Mondstadt border. You sighed, trying not to let the paranoia claw at you too much. You left the inn via the large wooden elevator. On the descent you could spot Childe not far from the bridge that lay south of the inn on the road to Liyue Harbour.

You rush down the stairs and over the bridge just as the sun sets below the horizon.

"Great you're here, I think it'll be another night and a half of hiking before we make it to Liyue Harbour" Childe said, looking ahead "We'll have to pass through The Guili Plains and then the valley just south of that. I'm sure we can find some ruins to camp out in"

"Let's get going the sooner we get to Liyue Harbour the sooner I can start living" You huffed, wanting to get further away from the border, you couldn't shake the feeling that The Knights knew that you were alive and were hunting you down at this very moment.

The two of you walked south in silence, you were still swallowing the fact that Childe was willing to put the entire Harbour at risk to fulfil the Tsaritsa's wishes. There had to be a better way to do this, but that wasn't your job. You were meant to work as Childe's healer and nothing more. You had seen him in battle and you could interpolate what he would be like when he was actually angry, despite him being kind and carefree in every interaction you had had with him so far you didn't want to push his boundaries and make his snap at you. Still it wouldn't be such a bad idea to find out where said boundaries lie.

Sucking in a breath you decided to finally say something to break the silence that had fallen over the both of you "What are the other Harbingers like?"

You see Childe pause at your question, clearly not expecting it. He keeps walking a moment later "I don't exactly know any of them in a personal capacity, but I know them enough to know that I don't like most of them"

"Most?"

"There are two that I don't mind, the 5th and the 10th"

"And you're the 11th, is the ranking based on strength?"

"Yes as no, not all strength is physical. Take the 9th Harbinger, Pantalone. I could easily beat him in battle but he made Snezhnaya the economic powerhouse it is now single-handedly in a matter of years"

"So you're ranked the weakest?" you question, hoping the question wouldn't piss him off too much

"Tch- I was made a Harbinger a year ago, joined the Fatui 6 years ago." Childe throws his head back "The comrades that I was stationed with at 14 are all either dead or still simple ground soldiers. I am still training, still getting stronger. The only reason I'm ranked so low is because I'm yet to prove myself" Childe retaliates

"So you're using this mission as a way to prove yourself to the other Harbingers? To solidify your strength in their eyes"

Childe raises an eyebrow "Clever girl" he continues "But the rankings are based more on usefulness to the Tsaritsa"

"I see" you trail off, of all the Harbingers he's the least useful, and yet he's being sent to kill the oldest god in Teyvat. Something isn't adding up.

"What are you thinking?"

"I'm wondering what Snezhnaya is like" lying to cover up your true line of thought

Childe takes a second to respond, a look of longing flashes across his face "Cold, so cold that you would be lucky to survive the winter. Even in summer it snows, I find the white the perfect backdrop for bloodshed"

His comments shouldn't surprise you anymore, you knew what he was when you bound yourself to him, there was no escaping it lest you be hunted and killed by him.

"Or bed sheets" you joked, trying to ease the growing tension in your body. Childe laughed a little.

"I suppose it's similar. Those with Pyro Visions are considered blessed, warmth is vital back home. During the clear weather you can walk right across a frozen lake and fish"

"Fish?"

He nodded "I used to do it as a child"

You tried to imagine him on the ice with a rod but you found it hard to imagine him doing anything but fighting.

In the distance you spotted a collection of old stone ruins, eroded by age. Some structures were still standing, it reminded you of the Thousand Winds Temple, the ruined colosseum long abandoned.

"We'll make camp out there in the morning?" you asked

Childe nodded "be careful though, reports say that there have been all sorts of enemies camped out in the ruins as well"

You laughed "I'll be fine, I have the Tsaritsa's weapon of war by my side"

"Knowing how to fight properly wouldn't hurt either" he tilted his head to look down at you

"I figured since you've taken an interest in teaching me" you shrug your shoulders, looking ahead

"I've seen you with a sword and a polearm but I think a ranged weapon like a catalyst would suit you better"

"Oh?" you look at him with curiosity

"You take too long to decide your next move in battle, being able to keep your distance would benefit you more, allows for more planning. That and I assume as a healer you've already been trained in elemental mastery" He seems lost in thought, his brow furrowed

"You wouldn't be wrong with that" you say

"Then a catalyst would be perfect for you then, I'll start training you when we make camp"

"You know how to use a catalyst?" you couldn't picture him using a catalyst, he seemed to prefer physical attacks

"I've mastered all types of weaponry, except the bow. I'm the weakest at it, which is precisely why I use it in battle"

"So you're intentionally putting yourself at a disadvantage?"

"If it makes me stronger…" he trails off

"How far would you go?"

"As far as I need too, I would take anything if it makes me stronger, better Y/N"

"Hm" You responded, letting the silence befall you again.

After what seemed like hours of walking you look up at the moon to gauge the time. It's just past 3am by the looks of it. As the two of you approach the ruins you spot a small fire in the distance, smoke curling into the night sky. Childe seems to have noticed it as well. Together you slowly approached the camp, a small band of hilichurls and a large mitachurl paraded around a campfire.

You ducked behind a fallen pillar ready to run at the first sign of trouble. Childe, however, had other plans, you saw his form flash past you straight into the heart of the camp. From what you could see it looked like a flurry of hydro and pyro. Within a few minutes the last monster had fallen, dissipating into nothing but a puff of black smoke tinged with red sparks floating towards the sky.

"We'll camp here but first…" Childe walks towards you, his voice seemed lighter than before. He summoned a device that looked like a crescent moon, a small pearl floating in the centre. He passed the object to you. You held your palm out flat, it floated in front of you.

"Hopefully people won't find out your with me but learning how to fight well won't hurt"

"A catalyst?" you looked up at him, he nodded and guested for you to use it. Closing your eyes you let the energy of the weapon connect to your elemental energy. You summoned a droplet of water, weaving it around, letting its form flow. You launched it, landing on a nearby rock and splashing into nothing.

"It enhances your attack by tapping into your elemental energy, normally the water you can draw from the atmosphere won't do much damage but with a catalyst you can weaponize it. You seem to be a natural at it."

You nod along at his words "What else can it enhance?"

"With enough training and precision you can temporarily turn yourself into a pure form of elemental energy for an attack, if you've ever seen an electro user fight then you would see them teleport, that's them harnessing the energy within their body and turning into pure elemental energy for a few seconds."

"I can't say I've ever seen an electro user fight but I think I understand what you mean" You summon another droplet and analysed it, it was easier to draw water from your surroundings with the catalyst, it seemed like the atmosphere was buzzing with potential

"You'll have to work on your aim and stamina, while you can attack from a distance you'll still have to learn to dodge" Childe walks in a slow circle and stops behind you.

"Stand straight and side on, bend your knees a little, always be ready to run" his hands move to your waist to correct your stance "You must strike hard and strong, use sharp and precise movements. I've seen other catalyst users be more languid with their fighting style, that makes it easier for them to get hit, their balance is off and they lose their footing. With that being said you can't be stiff"

"You said to let your weapon lead you earlier"

"So you are listening, strike again Y/N" He crossed his arms, still standing behind you. You unleashed another strike, this time with more force behind it.

"Good, now release a rapid set of strikes" You do as he asks, it's harder to make the water droplets form as fast as you would like. This would take practice and hard work, you couldnt expect to be any good at this on your first try, still the weapon felt much more natural compared to a sword or a polearm.

Childe takes you through the basics, teaching you how to perform a charged attack, how to dodge and move. He called it dancing, he told you that battle is akin to a bloody waltz. He taught you to take influence from other elements fighting styles, particularly geo. He demonstrated creating a ring of droplets ready to strike. It took you a while to get the hang of that one in particular, in the end you could only form 3 droplets at the same time.

By the end of the session you stood panting and drenched in sweat, you went to hand the catalyst back to him. He stops you before you could give it to him.

"Take it until you can get your own, even if you have me here it can't hurt you have a weapon on you just in case"

"Thank you Tartaglia" You nod your head at him, dissipating the weapon into subspace with a wave of your hand.

"There's a ruin nearby with a pool, go clean up and I'll set up camp" He points in the direction of the pool.

"I'll be back in a minute"

You make your way up to the circular pool and quickly strip. You grit your teeth and step into the cold water, submerging yourself. Turning back you could just see the flickering light of the campfire from down the crumbling stone stairs. Quickly you scrub the dirt and sweat off of your skin and hair, clambering out of the pool you feel the cold air brush across your skin. You dress as fast as you could and dash back to the campfire grateful for the warmth seeping into your bones, drying you off.

You switch places with Childe as he goes to clean up. You hear a splash and then a subsequent "FUCK!" ring through the night. You laugh, he clearly hadn't been expecting the shock of the cold water. A few minutes later he trudged back, his expression clearly soured.

"You didn't tell me it would be cold" he grumbled sitting down next to you by the fire and rummaging around his bag for a minute, he grabbed two apples and handed one to you.

"I thought you would figure that out for yourself" you joked, biting into the apple, tasting the crisp sweetness.

"Normally the pools in Liyue are heated by natural hot springs" he said, taking a bite of his own apple

"Just not that one by the looks of it" You remarked, letting a smirk tug at the edge of your lips.

You look up at the sky, dawn would come soon. The stars that hung above you were still the same as they were in Mondstadt, if not a little shifted from where you would normally see them.

"What's your constellation?" you asked him out of sheer curiosity

"Monoceros Caeli, the Celestial Narwhal" He points a finger to the sky, guiding your eyes to a triangle, two stars making a curved tail and one the horn "Narwhals are common in the icy waters of Snezhnaya, I saw them a lot as a boy" He turns to look at you "Why do you ask"

"Many years ago I once met an astrologer by the name of Mona, a successor to the Hexenzirkel. She practised an art called hydromancy, she told me that one aspect of the art was diving a future using the stars, more specifically ones constellation. She told me that a constellation is deeply tied to one's being, not only predicting their fate but their personality"

A sad smile flashed across your face. "She left Mondstadt as soon as she came, The Church branded her as a heretic. She divined my fate as well as Marianne's before she left"

Childe leaned towards you slightly, firelight dancing across his face highlighting his freckles

You point to sky as he did a few moments ago, "Lucens Caduceus , Mona told me at has two translations, 'Shining Caduceus' and 'Fleeting Light'"

"And what did she say your fate was?" he breathed, his interest clearly piqued. You tilt your head making eye contact

"That's for me and only me to know, fate is an intimate thing after all, but I will tell you that she told me my fate hinged on choice, that it spit in two like the fork of a river" you sigh "I hope she's doing well, I would love to meet her again"

Childe looked deep in thought "I wonder what she would predict in my future, I wonder if the events in my past that changed me into who I am today were fated from the moment I was born"

"Fate is inevitable, we can only stall it, it will happen eventually no matter how hard you try to prevent it"

"And what if I wanted to grasp it, and if it isn't what I want then I would do everything in my power to change it"

"Then I would call you a fool"

You abruptly stand and yawn, Childe stands with you.

"I've set up a tent, we'll have to share for the night. It's not much but we should be able to get some sleep, it's another half day to Liyue Harbour"

You glance at the small canvas tent a large Fatui insignia was branded across the side "Alright"

You could do this. It was only a night, you were used to sleeping with someone else near you anyways. You take your boots off and kneel in the tent, dusting off the soles and then placing them inside. You change into your nightdress as fast as you could, sleeping in armoured clothing would be uncomfortable. You move further into the tent and Childe clambers in after you. There was only one bedroll and blanket, just big enough to fit two people.

"Sorry, I only had enough room for one bedroll, we'll have to share" You purse your lips and exhale through your nose. Meanwhile Childe strips off his jacket and harness. His maroon shirt showing a sliver of his abdomen.

He gestured for you to lie down, after some hesitation you do, trying to get as comfortable as you could. Childe lies down facing you, he looked odd without all of his decorum, even the red mask he wore was nowhere to be seen. He looked more vulnerable somehow.

You hoped the darkness hid the blush dusting your cheeks, thoughts of last night rushing through your mind. You closed your eyes hoping sleep would claim you soon.

Childe looked down at your sleeping form, he had seen your expression as you laid down, there was blush on your cheeks if he squinted hard enough. You had made plenty of progress in training today, despite the session being fairly brief for him. He had decided to use modified Fatui training, he hoped to see you fight like him, have a new sparring partner.

He couldn't deny you were attractive. If you had met under different circumstances he would have you fucked you through the night and left without a trace in the morning, but for some reason you were different, he wanted you to stick around. You didn't treat him like he had expected, you treated him with surprising candour, candour that most would be too afraid you use around him.

He traced a finger up your upper arm, you were softly breathing in your sleep, chest gently rising and falling. He withdrew his hand, it was best not to mix work and pleasure, complicating your relationship would be a bad move on both of your parts.

Against his will the idea of you below him, begging for his cock as he teased you unexpectedly flashed across his mind. Childe screwed his eyes shut and took a few deep breaths, trying to erase the lewd thoughts of you. He turned his back to you and tried to sleep.

By the time he woke up there were still a few hours of daylight left, he sat up and stretched, looking down to see you still asleep. He shook you awake, he saw your eyebrows furrow as you slung an arm across your eyes.

"Come, It's still half a day's hike to Liyue Harbour" He saw you sigh and sit up.

"Just give me a second" you mumbled

He smiled a little and got up, shoving his boots on and shrugging on his jacket and scarf. You followed suit a few moments after. It didn't take much time to pack down the tent and get back on the road.

Soon he could see the colourful roofs of Liyue Harbour, the city seemed entirely unfamiliar to him. Soon he could see the city gate, Millelith stationed around, holding their spears and swords firmly.

"Wait here a while, we can't walk into the city together" He said to you. He handed you a note. "Here's the address and a map, its near Northland Bank in Yujing Terrace"

"How long should I wait?" You look up at him brows furrowed

"Around thirty minutes, just don't let the Millelith know your with me and you'll be fine"

He sees you nod along with the plan "Ok, I'll see you soon then"

Without another word Childe turns and walks into the city, raising a hand in goodbye.

After around half an hour you strolled into the city gates. As you crested the large wooden bridge you were immediately taken aback by the beauty of the city. People were milling around the Harbour, shopping for wares at various merchant's stalls. Lanterns suspended throughout the city cast a soft glow onto the pale stone of the streets below. A smile graced your face. You had finally made it, you had escaped.

You couldn't resist stopping at a few stalls, some of the language the people spoke was unfamiliar to you, a mix of Liyuan and common tongue. You stopped at one stall selling pottery, intricate patterns graced the porcelain, some looked like they depicted wingless dragons, long bodies curling around the vases. Another was selling hairpins and hair sticks, one was made of gold, it looked like a lily, a large amber stone set in the middle with Liyuen script you couldn't read.

The port caught your eye, you walked over to the wooden railing, there were two large towers easily dwarfing you that came together to form an arch, effectively creating a gate from ships to enter and exit. The waters below were clear, a few bits of debris floating along the surface. Ships from what looked like all corners of the world docked here, a few from Sumeru, Liyue and Snezhnaya. Sailors littered the port, trading their foreign wares with the locals.

You left, deciding to exit the harbour before anyone from Mondstadt could spot you. Despite there being no ships from there you couldn't shake the feeling you were being watched. You approached a merchant you had heard speaking common tongue earlier to ask for directions to Yujing Terrace. She pointed to a large set of stairs and told you to just head up there.

Ascending the huge set of stairs you find yourself in some kind of city square, surrounded by buildings connected with bridges, red pillars spotted around you. To you it looked like a confusing mess pathways. You pulled out the map Childe gave you, the place was circled, orientating the map to where you think you were headed you found your way up a few flights of stairs to a small door. Holding your breath you knocked twice on the door, hoping you got the right place.

A few moments a head full of red hair popped out of the door, he grabbed your wrist and he dragged you into the apartment. It wasn't small by any means, it looked like it was decorated in the traditional Liyue style. There was a living room with a few couches and chairs and a kitchen with an intricately carved wooden table in the middle. Perfectly suited for a Harbinger.

"Glad to see you made it here alive Y/N" he teased

"Please, like it was hard" you cocked your head and walked further into the place.

"I'll show you to your room" He said, you follow him. He opens the door to a bedroom, equipped with a large bed, wardrobe and desk. It was considerably nicer than anything you had ever seen.

"I hope this'll do"

"It's perfect, thank you" you breathed, trying to take in the detail of the room, turning in a slow circle, you stopped facing him

"I'll try for the apprenticeship under Dr. Baizhu tomorrow if I don't get I'll take it that there's plenty openings for herbalists or healers here"

"A smart idea, I'll leave you to get settled. We can talk in the morning, as for now I have some business to deal with" Without another word he leaves you alone.

You sit down on the bed, not bothering to unpack just yet. Trying to sort out your plan in your head. Everything had happened so quickly, the last two and a half days felt like a blur. Your first step was to find some sort of stability, get a job, get some mora.

You weren't quite sure what living with Childe would entail, nor the specifics of being his healer. You could take a stab in the dark and guess he would injure himself at random times and need your immediate attention. You could also gather that he wanted to train you further with the catalyst he had lent you.

You had bound yourself to a Harbinger, one that planned to put a city at risk. You had made this bed and now you had to lie in it. You could only do your best to stay hidden and out of danger until he finished his assignment and the two of you parted ways. Perhaps the favour of the Fatui would come in handy one day, you could work this to your benefit.

Your thoughts on the Harbinger were mixed, on one hand you had gotten to know him over the last few weeks, he seemed kind and caring if not direct and impulsive. You were grateful towards him, after all he was the one who got you out of The Church. On the other hand could his plans be forgiven? To kill a god was huge. You resolved to see where the cards fell, you were stuck with him for the meanwhile anyway. If anything it would keep your like interesting.

Deciding to shove your worries away you unpack and go to bed for the night, resolved to head to Bubu Pharmacy the next morning and begin your life as a free person.

Notes:

Tumblr - link

There's some foreshadowing in here about Y/N and Childes fates - points to anyone who can guess what it'll be ;))

Chapter 7: Daybreak

Notes:

cw - murder and violence

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

Chapter Text

Childe left the apartment as soon as he left your room. He had a whole barrage of things to complete now that he had finally arrived in Liyue. Signoria had told him two things in exchange for helping her track down Barbatos. One. To seek a man who went by 'Zhongli'. Two. A Sigil of Permission was being held by Yangshang Teahouse. Despite Childe's overall intolerance for La Signoria's entire being, she was useful when she needed to be, but only when there was something in it for her.

He had to check in at Northland bank first but it seemed that the owners of Yangshang were yet to pay their debt to the Fatui, a perfect opportunity to take the Sigil and begin replicating it in order to summon Osial and force Rex Lapis's hand.

He had organised to meet the consultant tomorrow at Liuli Pavilion for lunch. But now it was time to make people pay their debts, the sooner he can get the Sigil the sooner he can prove himself. He makes his way up the winding balcony and red-lacquered stairs of Liyue Harbour to Northland Bank.

As he approached the guard, if he recalled correctly her name was Nadya, she had been under his division for a while now. She stood to attention and saluted.

"Welcome Lord Tartaglia, Nothing to report'' she said sharply in Snezhnayan, Childe had to admit hearing and speaking in his mother tongue was a small comfort, one he missed.

"Thank you Nadya" He responded in Snezhnayan

He brushes past her and strides into the bank. The bank teller looks up sharpy, clearly not expecting anyone past the bank closing. Much like Nadya she immediately stands to attention, despite the standard grey Fatui mask covering her eyes she was quite clearly shocked.

"Lord Harbinger, Please forgive me I was not expecting your arrival. I am Ekaterina, the receptionist at Northland Bank. Please allow me to show me to your office" She said softly, hand on her chest, not a strand of hair out of place.

"No need to worry Ekaterina. Please" Ekaterina stands and heads up the staircase concealed by the desks at the front and leads him to the second level. She stops at a door above the entrance to the bank, giving him a full view of the interior.

"Your office Lord Harbinger"

"Thank you, dismissed" Without another word Ekaterina dismisses herself and leaves Childe to work. Childe was impressed that he couldn't hear her footsteps as she left, she would be useful later.

Childe walks into the office, it looked like his apartment, decorated in the standard Liyuean style. He beelines towards the desk, already covered in stacks of paperwork to look for what he needed. After a few minutes he finds the file on Yangshang Teahouse and their debts to Northland as well as their assets, just as Signoria told him the Sigil was in their possession, as for how they got it in the first place was anyone's guess.

Immediately making his way back downstairs he tracked down the Pyro Agent responsible for debt collections that night.

"You, Javert is it?" he signalled to the Agent "Come with me, were headed to Yangshang Teahouse for a debt collection"

The agent appeared hesitant "Sir, need you see to such a routine matter?" His voice was augmented by the mask he wore, a handy invention of Capitano.

"Relax, I have… other matters to attend to"

"If you command Lord Harbinger" He gave a short bow and waited for his next order

Without another word the two made their way to the infamous teahouse. Sneaking in the backdoor Childe heard the tail end of a conversation between the owner and a woman

"…We can make it far away with this" The owner said, pushing up his glasses and crossing his arms, he seemed too sure of himself for Childes liking, it would be satisfying taking him down a peg. He seated himself down in a chair in the shadows, agent standing behind him.

"But Master" the woman hesitated, the jewels of her expensive-looking hairpin swung with the movement of her head, her voice lowered to a whisper "What about the debt?"

Childe decided it was his time to interject he tapped a finger against his knee "Oh yes, I'll be here to collect that" he said, his voice having a hint of amusement weaved in with the sinister tone

"What? Who's there!" the owner yelled, looking around furiously before spotting him sitting in the shadows.

The woman broke out into a panic "Guards! Protect the Master!" She ran behind a table, hands white-knuckling the edge. Two burly guards closed in behind the so-called master, wielding nothing but wooden bats. At first sight Childe could see that he would beat them with no effort, they were slow and uncoordinated. For a place so elusive they couldn't even hire competent guards

"No matter what you owe, you cannot run from your debt. Is that not the Law of the God of Contracts in Liyue?" Childe rested a hand on his head and finally made eye contact with the owner. An indigent expression was painted across his face. He raised a shaking finger accusingly at Childe.

"F-Fatui! How dare you barge into a private residence!" He whipped his head "Guards! Show them how we treat unwanted guests at Yangshang Teahouse!"

Childe stood instinctively drawing his hydro blades holding them back handed.

"Hah, not much for adversaries" he said, his cool demeanour contrasting the heated situation. Childe instantly jumped in.

He slid behind the guards and hit one on the back of the neck, the sickening crunch of bone rang through the room. The guard fell to the floor with a loud thump, with his body unable to move his eyes darted to Childe. He moved onto the next, the guard swung his bat and Childe ducked under the blow. He aimed his blade so it laid flat and stabbed it into the man's rib cage directly into his beating heart. Childe lodged his other blade in the first guard's back, he took in one last shaking breath as the light in his eyes died.

Childe stalked up to the owner, new dual blades forming to replace the old ones.

"Now, time to pay your debts comrade"

"I-I have no money as of now but give me a few more weeks the debt and interest will be paid in full! Please!"

"It's been months of us knocking at your door, you say the same thing every time don't you?" He drew closer to the owner, blade pressed against his throat "Begging is rather unbecoming for a man of your status isn't it?"

"If you don't have the mora then give us material goods and then your debt would be considered cleared"

"I would rather die than give up my life's work to the likes of the Fatui!" he shouted, back pressed against the wall. Even with his life under threat he still believed himself to be invincible.

"Very well" without a second thought he banged the man's head forcefully against the wall knocking him unconscious. The woman still behind the table screamed. The Pyro Agent who had been standing in the corner moved to quickly cover her mouth. Childe turned towards her.

"I'm feeling merciful today, I'll let you go. Tell a soul about what happened here and you'll meet the same fate as your owner" He decided to not tell her that he didn't actually kill him yet. The woman nodded vigorously and Childe nodded to the agent. He unhanded her and stood back against the wall. The woman collapsed to the floor panting, clutching her chest.

"Now, tell me where your goods are and we'll leave you be" The woman pointed to a painting that hung on the wall.

"B-Behind there, the key is on the owners neck" Childe crouched down and found a worn piece of string tied around his neck, a key tied to the end of it. With a harsh tug it snapped off. He carefully took the painting off the wall and opened the hidden compartment. Even his security wasn't well thought out. He mused to himself.

Taking stock of what was in there he grabbed an ornate box and flicked it open. Inside was exactly what he was looking for. The golden sigil floated upright in his palm. The Pyro Agent stepped forward a little.

"I never would have thought that an ordinary person had a Sigil of Permission in their possession. Its been years since anyone has seen one of these" he said in awe

"Your job is debt collection, and yet you failed to check what treasures he might possess that you might collect?" Childe snarked back

"Apologies, a dereliction of my duties"

"Enough, lets go"

"Yes sir"

Childe and the agent stopped out the same way they came in. On the way back to the bank he gave one final order to the agent .

"Javert" The agent stood to attention "Return to the bank with another agent, clean up the mess there and possess any treasures you find, ensure that the woman doesn't say a word. I'll handle the owner" With a way of his hand he dismissed him.

He immediately made his way back to Northland bank. On the way back he overheard two people talking, a snippet of their conversation caught his attention.

"...strange blond traveller, couldn't be older than seventeen and a small fairy. Apparently he's causing quite the stir in Mondstadt. Something about single handedly fending off the city from a dragon"

"I heard he doesn't even have a Vison but he was still able to harness Anemo"

Childe decided to put a pin that for later, he had only just left Mondstadt. For someone to obtain such notoriety in a short amount of time, and for it to reach Liyue so quickly. It would be useful to know more.

Opening the heavy doors he saw Ekaterina still sitting at the desk he was surprised to see her hanging back so late.

"Ekaterina, what are you still doing here?" he asked jovially

"I had a feeling you would need me to be around Lord Harbinger"

"Rather insightful aren't you comrade? As a matter of fact I do have something I need you to do. Come with me to my office"

Childe and Ekaterina quickly go up the stairs and enter his office, after rifling through a few papers he finds the ones he's looking for. The ones detailing the fraud of Yangshang Teahouse's owner. Pulling out another copy of the paper he hands them to Ekaterina.

"Give one to the printing press, ensure they have it printed by morning. Give the other one to the Millelith. It's vital that nobody knows it was the Fatui who leaked this information so please be discrete"

"Yes Sir"

"Perfect, Dismissed"

Without another word Ekaterina left the office. Childe pulled out the Sigil of Permission, the golden talisman emitting a soft golden glow. Now that he had finally gotten his hands on a real one the Fatui research division under him should make exponentially more progress. Enough to hopefully summon Osial before the Rite, his mission had a time limit after all.

Placing it back in its box went to find an underling to transport it safely to the facility, it would be far too suspicious for him to leave the city, as the old saying goes In Liyue even the walls have ears. After a few minutes of looking he found an inconspicuous ground soldier to get the package to the factory as fast as possible.

With his work done for the night he walked the short distance across the raised walkways to his apartment. He opened the door and walked inside, instinctively checking to see if anyone was there. He caught sight of a figure curled up on the couch, book open. Within an instant he drew the dagger that lay strapped to his thigh. He stalked further into the apartment.

"I thought we agreed not to kill me?" The voice rang out, you snapped your book shut and gave him a lazy smirk.

"Can't be too cautious" he retorted, re-sheathing his dagger. "I thought you would be asleep by now"

You sighed and rested a hand on your chin "I couldn't sleep, I don't know where you went off to and considering your supposed track record I couldn't risk it" Childe sits down next to you, long legs perching on the table in front of the couch.

"Aw, so you care about me? It's not like anyone I killed tonight had a chance against me anyways" He said nonchalantly. He didn't miss your eyebrows furrow for a second.

"Just doing my job Harbinger" you tucked a strand of hair behind you ear "You still haven't told me where you went"

"Just some debt collection, nothing for you to worry about" He leaned back against the couch, and you leaned in over him a little, placing a hand on the couch behind him to support yourself. You looked suspiciously at him.

"I thought you said that was just a cover for what you were actually doing"

He titled his head up to meet your gaze "Ask the staff at Northland if you wish, If I was scheming I would be out far later wouldn't I?"

"You're a terrible liar you know that" you flicked his earring, he recoiled at that and gave you a sharp glare.

"People would say otherwise Y/N, but maybe my мамаmight be able to still tell " He laughed, recalling his mothers smile, how her hugs seemed to fix everything.

"Мама?" You question, accent slightly butchering the foreign word.

" Мама" he annunciates it better this time " Mutter, Mother" he repeated in Mondstadtan and Common Tongue.

He sees something flicker in your eyes, what looks like sadness. It was gone when you looked at him again.

"You're not going to tell me what you were actually doing were you?" You huff. Childe picks up a strand of your hair and plays with it, twisting it between his fingers admiring the way the yellow lamplight glows off of it.

"Like I said debt collection, they had something I needed"

"The Sigil of Permission?" you breathe

"Perhaps" he smirks, dropping the strand of hair "You would make a good spy you know"

"And I already told you I'm not. Maybe in another life, If I was born a man and given to The Knights, or maybe if I was born in Snezhnaya and been conscripted to the Fatui"

"You would be a useful tool to the Tsaritsa"

"What makes you think I would serve her?"

"Because you have ambition Y/N, don't let them rot at your feet"

"I think I just proved that I'm more than willing to do whatever I can to reach my goal Tartaglia" You draw closer to him, almost nose to nose. Your breath ghosted his face

"You said it yourself, you have further to go" his hand grasped your waist, the silk fabric of your nightdress bunching.

"I also recall saying I wanted my freedom, I don't want to serve any god, no matter how glorious you say they might be"

Childe had to bite his tongue to keep himself from saying what he truly wanted to say. That he would bring the heavens down for the Tsaritsa. That her plan was to let man rule over Teyvat for themselves.

He leans into whisper in your ear "Don't let another Fatuus hear you say that, you might get yourself killed" A hand moves up your thigh to skim the rapidly healing wound

"And I thought you agreed to protect me, don't want to break a contract under Morax's watchful eye do you?" your voice was barely above a whisper, hand grasping onto his shoulder. He draws a gloved finger across your jawline.

"Goodnight Y/N"

With that he stands and heads to his room without a second thought, leaving you to fall back onto the couch.

Liyue was much harder to navigate than Mondstadt, you thought to yourself as you strolled across the intersecting walkways flanked by well kept ponds. Green lily pads floated upon the clear water's surface, so clear you could easily see the koi slowly swimming below.

Looking up the honestly ridiculous amount of stairs to see Bubu Pharmacy at the top. You began your ascent. The cold morning air got worse as you got higher. Finally cresting the top you made your way to the counter at the front of the pharmacy. You took a moment to take in the sheer luxury of the place, endless draws edged with gold and heavy green curtains pulled back. The strong smell of incense permeated the place.

Looking around for someone you wondered if the pharmacy was closed. That was when you heard a quiet monotone voice from behind the counter.

"How can I help you today" You whipped around and peered over the counter. There stood a small girl barely peeking over the edge. A large talisman was attached to the hat perched atop of her lilac hair. She looked up at you, there was no emotion in those large magenta eyes.

"I'm here about the apprenticeship to study under Dr. Baizhu"

"…One moment please. Qiqi will get Dr. Baizhu" The girl ambled off into one of the back rooms of the pharmacy. A moment later she returned with a tall man, a white snake wrapped around his neck.

"Thank you Qiqi" He said to the girl, she merely nodded and returned to the counter and pulled out a battered notebook. Baizhu turns to you, you could have sworn you saw the snake giving you a once-over.

"And you would be here for the apprenticeship?" He questioned, long green hair swaying with the moment of his head.

"Yes, I'm Y/N of Mondstadt, I was trained as a healer using my Hydro Vision. I'm very well versed in anything in the realm of physical trauma"

"Interesting" You started a bit as a feminine voice came from the snake. "What? Are you truly surprised I can talk? Teyvat has stranger things wandering around"

"M-my apologies, I was not expecting it" You let out a small laugh trying to ease the nervousness.

"Now, Changsheng" Baizhu scolded her in a light tone. "I'm interested to hear why you would be applying for this apprenticeship in Liyue"

"I believe I have a lot to learn from Liyuean healing techniques, especially herbalism and spiritualism. Monstadt focuses more on the physical aspects of the patient and tends to disregard the spiritual and emotional aspects of healing"

"How long have you been a healer?" Changsheng hisses

"Five years, I started my training when I was fourteen"

"And you were trained by The Church?"

"Not quite, I was born in Springvale, a small village in the woods. I was trained by some of The Sisters but I was never formally a part of The Church" You hoped they wouldn't question the lie, wouldn't press further into your past.

"A healer with a Hydro Vision could be very advantageous for us, they can heal physical wounds a lot faster than our current treatments" Changsheng said to Baizhu, cocking her head.

"A good point Changsheng" He looks to you "Come, show me your skills and then I'll decide on this apprenticeship"

He leads you up the set of stairs around the back to a cosy infirmary, sunlight pouring in through the open windows, vases full of various plants were spotted around the room.

"First, how would you heal a cut?"

"I would first ask if the patient needed any milk of the poppy. I would clean the wound with water and then fire water. Appy my Hydro Vision to partially heal the wound by easing the inflammation and speeding up the process a bit. I would apply an appropriate herbal salve and then wrap the wound" You said, listing off the steps on your fingers.

He gives you a short nod and pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Very well"

He walks up to a woman lying in bed. Instantly you notice a few small cuts on her arm, as if she had been caught in a particularly nasty thorn bush. Medical supplies already laid out on a small cart next to the bed.

"Miss Su Lin" Baizhu approached the patient, an elderly woman with grey hair, a few black strands remaining.

"I have a Healer from Mondstadt here, would you be alright if she attended to the cut on your arm"

Su Lin, looked at you standing a little behind Baizhu. You give her a smile. "Alright, so long as you stay with her"

You sat on the small stool next to her bed.

"Miss Su Lin, would it be alright if I looked at the cuts on your arm?" Su Lin raised her arm and placed it in your grasp, you gave them a look. You fell easily into the routine.

"How did you these may I ask?"

"Tried to feed the stray cat outside my house. She laughed, didn't appreciate me petting it." You laughed a little at that

"Not at all by the looks of it, would you like any pain relief?" you ask

"I'll be alright" she replied

With that you get to work cleaning the wound, satisfied you removed your gloves and dipped your hands in the steaming bowl of water and herbs on the cart to clean your hands.

"I don't have enough power or skill to fully heal the wound using my Vision alone, but I can partially heal it" You explain to her. She gives you a nod, the go ahead.

You pressed your fingers on Su Lin's skin and drew power from your vision. A faint glow comes from your hands, you see the redness going down and the wound gets smaller before your eyes. You removed your hands the moment you felt dizzy and took a deep breath in. Taking a second you don your leather gloves again and finish taking care of the wound.

Su Lin gives Baizhu a look and thanks you. You stand and clasp your hands in front of you.

"Please give us a moment" Baizhu guestres towards the door, you politely step out and close the door behind you. Muffled voices came from behind the dark wood. You pressed your ear to the door

"She has potential, but she needs more training with tapping into her elemental mastery" a voice that sounded like Changsheng said

"I concur, out of everyone that has trialed here she had done the best '' Su Lin said, you frowned. Was Su Lin a test patient? How did she get the cuts on her arms then?

"Although it seems she's not very well versed on Liyean customs and manners, perhaps it would benefit to teach her those" Su Lin continued

There was silence for a moment

"I believe the Mondstadt training was a good foundation but she really could learn from Liyuean technique" another pause "And it saves me from having to teach the basics" Baizhu hummed

"Then it's agreed" Changsheng hissed

"Very well"

You stood back from the door the moment you heard him approach.

"Y/N, I would be delighted to take you on as my apprentice here at Bubu Pharmacy"

You stepped back a little in shock, you hadn't expected to actually get the apprenticeship. You bought a hand to your chest "T-Thank you Dr. Baizhu" you breathed out

"Return here tomorrow morning, we will discuss your contract and pay then. Until then have a lovely day"

"You too Dr. Baizhu" you look at the snake draped around his neck, tongue flicking out "And you Changsheng" You give her a nod. With that you leave Bubu Pharmacy and make your way down the stairs. There were significantly more people gathered around the store compared to when you got there, this time Qiqi was standing on a small step ladder so she was able to see over the counter.

You felt elated, luck was in your favour it seemed, now you just had to work with the Harbinger until he finished his mission. On your way down the stairs you heard people muttering about something called 'The Rite of Descension' wondering what predictions Rex Lapis would bring this year. You made a mental note to question Childe about that later. You had a lot to learn about Liyue it seemed.

The copy of 'Teyvat Travel Guide II' laid abandoned on the bookshelf after your conversation with Childe last night. You still couldn't grasp how he joked about murdering a man so easily. Being around him was certainly interesting to say the least. The way he so casually touched you, the way he let you tease him. You didn't know what you felt about him.

You tilted your face up to the sun, feeling its warmth in the height of summer. You decided to enjoy the rest of your day and deal with Childe and his scheming later. For now you had a new city to learn.

You wandered around the streets, enjoying the pure liveliness of the atmosphere. Even with the Milleleth stationed around you felt at ease, your every move wasn't being watched. A sense of paranoia still clung to you, every few minutes you would instinctively look around as subtly as you could.

Out of the corner of your eye you could have sworn you saw a flash of silver, you turned towards the alleyway and saw nothing. You dismissed it as nothing and continued on your way, content to blend in with the crowd of Liyue Harbour.

Notes:

Tumblr - link

First of all a big thank you to everyone who's left comments on my Ao3 and Tumblr, comments and asks motivate me to write sm :)

Some of Childe and Javerts dialogue is from Childe's Character Tales video. Trying to figure out the behind the scenes with Signoria and Zhongli and how they used Tortilla as a pawn has been a bit of a headache but I have to set it up here soooo (a moment of silence for the comments in my google doc)

Also, trying to figure out how to do ANTT wound care with genshin lore and Visions was a challenge so uh have a very bastardised version of it. rip me trying to potray accurate medical stuff in a fantasy setting with magic.

Chapter 8: Golden Threads Woven by Sharpened Hands

Notes:

Hey lads, bit of a shorter chapter bc life got hectic. My mate fell down the stairs at a club and broke her ankle so I had to piggy back her to the hospital 1.5kms away in 5 inch heels and about 9 shots in all while managing a group of 3 very drunk fellow gays. Had to get them to hold hands with each other and the girl i was carrying so they didn't get lost or hit by a car lmao. Anyways now i'm running on 3hrs of sleep and very sore feet.

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

Chapter Text

You arrived at Bubu Pharmacy as soon as dawn broke, you had left the house without seeing Childe, you hadn't seen him since he left you on the couch. You supposed he was busy with his grand plans to gain glory.

You had spent the night kneeled over the rather large bathtub inlaid into the floor, trying one again to form swords with your Vision anyways. Now with the aid of the borrowed catalyst it seemed easier to form the sharp edge of the blade.

Dr Baizhu stood at the front of the pharmacy alongside Qiqi, he was listing off a few things and writing them in the notebook you had seen Qiqi holding yesterday. You approached the pair, cool dawn breeze gently blowing your hair.

Baizhu hands the notebook to Qiqi and she ambles off without saying much of anything. Changsheng lazily slithers up his arm and then returns to her familiar perch around his shoulders.

Baizhu addresses you "Yulia, I'm glad you could make it, come inside and we'll discuss your contract of employment"

You nod "Of course Doctor"

You follow him behind the counter into a small office, herbs and papers meticulously placed and ordered. He sits behind the desk and pulls out a small stack of papers and slides them towards you. Changsheng slides off his arm to curl around a small lantern on the desk emitting heat.

"This covers your pay, hours and scope of practice. It also details what you will be doing while you study under me"

You flick through the pages, you hadn't exactly encountered anything like this but you trusted Baizhu enough to not scam you. After meticulously reading every line you signed the contract. You were required to work at least 4 days a week, but your hours seemed flexible. You swallowed your anxieties about Childe doing something stupid, he would tell you before right? Likely not seeing how spontaneous he can be, he would just have to seek you out at Bubu pharmacy and you would have to feign not knowing him.

You slid the contract back to him, black ink still glistening on the paper. You felt a spark up your forearm, you inhaled sharply, a reminder of Morax perhaps.

Baizhu gave a nod "Now, about Qiqi, you may have noticed she's not quite like a normal human child"

"I was wondering about that"

"She died quite a while ago, the adepti of Liyue blessed her so she may continue to live in the form of a zombie. Unfortunately due to her being a zombie she has very poor memory and she is unable to commence a task on her own"

You nod along, Baizhu continues "Any order you give her she will do and she will not stop until the task is completed, unless you give her a hug with enough conviction"

You smile a little bit, she was still somewhat human under all those frosty layers

"It'll take a while for her to warm up to you, I would bring her some coconut milk when she asks for a 'cocogoat'. Poor thing forgets what its called"

You nod, not having much to add.

"One more thing, if a woman by the name of Hu Tao comes around asking for Qiqi, say you do not know where she is. She's the Director at Wangsheng Funeral Parlour"

"Right, I take it she wants Qiqi because she's technically dead?"

'Correct"

Your eyes flick back to Changsheng, asleep around the lantern, soft orange glow dancing off her shining scales. "Is Changsheng alright? She seems less… chatty than she was yesterday"

Baizhu glances at Changsheng "She'll be ok, as a cold blooded creature, the cold mornings in Liyue take a lot of energy from her. She'll be ok once she's warmed up"

You nod "I see"

With that Baizhu prompt stands and exits the office "With that sorted, lets begin your training. First you must learn to harness your elemental energy more effectively"

The day seeps into a mix of training and treating, Baizhu starts out by teaching you the fundamentals of Liyuan principles. That treatment involved both the body and soul, he teaches you to harness your elemental energy by using his Dendro Vision as an example.

Oddly enough every time Baizhu attended to a patient you were sent out of the room, you had heard of his miracle work, perhaps it was his secret to keep. You could help but notice that Baizhu looked a little more weak every time he treated someone. The bags under his eyes grew darker, he seemed more and more tired.

Soon enough you slip into an easy rhythm like you had back at the cathedral's infirmary.

Childe was escorted to a private room at the back of Luili Pavilion by a clearly nervous waitress. He stepped into the room, he barely registered the waitress saying she would be back to take orders in a bit. His attention was focused on the brown haired man sitting at the head of the table sipping tea.

Putting on his most outgoing personality he greeted the man "I take it you're Zhongli? I'm glad we finally have the opportunity to meet"

He sits himself down to face Zhongli "And you must be the Harbinger that has Liyue wrapped around his finger"

"Hah! You flatter me sir, I'm merely an envoy of her majesty here to oversee the Northland Bank for a while"

"I must say, I'm rather curious as to why you wished to meet me today" he placed the steaming teacup down and made eye contact with Childe "It's not everyday a Harbinger would take interest in a normal person"

"You're well known around The Harbour for your extensive knowledge of Liyue's history. I'm curious to learn about it"

Childe omitted the rumours that he was an adeptus of some sorts. He wasn't sure how much weight the rumours held or if they held any weight at all, he would have to judge that for himself.

Zhongli took another sip of his tea "And what is it you wish to know Childe?"

"The adepti, I've heard legends of them but nobody here ever mentions them. If it were any other city gods walking among them would be the talk of the town" He looked directly Zhongli, wanting nothing but answers

Zhongli launches into a long-winded explanation "The adepti are bound to protect Liyue by a contract made with Morax, in an age gone by they fought to the death protecting Liyue during the Archon War and The Cataclysm" He pauses for a moment to take a sip of his tea and then continues "The ones who are left with a few exceptions have no interest in humans and their affairs. The adepti have all but left Liyue Harbour to be ruled by the Qixing"

"Where might you find the adepti now?" Childe traced a finger along the edge of his glass

"Juyen Karst. It would be a fool's errand to seek them out however. You would need a Sigil of Permission which have all but disappeared over the ages"

Childe knew about the Sigils of course, but now the second piece of the puzzle had fallen into place, he knew where to find the adepti. Now all he needed was to find someone to carry out the dirty work. Going to see them himself would be too risky.

Childe continues to let Zhongli ramble on about the adepti and their history in the archon war. Telling a grand tale about something called 'The Guili Assembly' and a goddess of dust. After a short wait the food came out, instead of the fork and knife Childe was expecting he was presented with two wooden sticks.

Zhongli picked them up with ease, Childe tried to replicate what he was doing briefly but after failing to pick up his food a few times he resolved to just stabbing the food with the chopstick. While Liyuean food was great he still missed the food of his home nation.

Zhongli didn't say anything but he could feel his eyes on him. At the end of the meal the waitress bought the check. Childe looked to Zhongli expecting him to pay his half.

"Ah, I'm afraid I do not have any Mora on my person" he confessed

Childe grit his teeth for a second before relenting, he had enough funds from Northland anyways "Don't worry, I can cover it. What's a little debt between friends anyways?" he joked.

"The storyteller at Heyu Teahouse is beginning soon, if you wish to learn more about Liyue's history then you may accompany me"

"I would be delighted to"

After paying for the admittedly expensive meal Chide and Zhongli set out. They quickly found seats just before The Teamaster began his tale, a popular epic of one of Morax's battles during the Archon War. Liu Su cleared his throat and the crowd went silent.

Master Liu Su was an excellent storyteller, weaving the threads together expertly. Zhongli on the other hand interrupted Liu Su more than once to correct him regarding some details of the story. Childe had expected the crowd to be annoyed at him but rather they seemed indifferent, like they were used to it.

Perhaps there was weight to the rumours that Zhongli was an adeptus, he spoke as if he was there, in such a matter-of-fact tone as well. There was more to this man, no chance he was just a historian. Childe would just have to figure it out.

Liu Su wrapped up his tale and the crowd broke out into a polite applause, soon the air was filled with conversations.

"It was lovely meeting you Zhongli, I find myself fascinated with Liyue's history"

"If you wish to discuss it further and learn more, might I suggest we have another meal soon"

"That sounds delightful"

"Then it's agreed"

You returned to see Childe in a good mood. You were surprised to see him at home at all seeing as he had been all but a ghost for the last two days. You were still reeling from the conversation you had had.

Childe looked up when he heard you step inside. He was standing over the stove with a piece of fish in hand. It looked strange to see a Harbinger in all his glory standing over a stove cooking. You approached him, standing next to him as he placed the piece of fish on the iron skillet.

"You can cook?" You question, taking in the scene

"Of course, my Мамаwould have killed me and my brothers if we didn't learn, something about finding a good wife"

"Your mother, what's she like?" Childe looks at you for a second before returning his attention to the pan, oil spitting as the fish crackles in the pan.

"Kind, she's the best mother I could have asked for. She cares for all of my siblings younger and older. She could even wrangle my папа, father, out of a bad mood"

"How many siblings do you have?" You move to grab a thick wooden cutting board and a knife. You begin to cut the vegetables.

"Six, three older and three younger, I'm right in the middle. The youngest two, Teucer and Anthon, don't know that I work for the Fatui, they don't know about my station as a Harbinger either. The others have agreed to keep quiet about it until they're older"

"You want to keep them in the dark?"

"I want to preserve their innocence for as long as I can"

"That's… Rather admirable"

"Do you have any siblings, blood related that is"

You shake your head "No, and if I do I wouldn't know, all orphans are given to The Church or The Knights, considering the abyssal activity in Mondstadt has been particularly high there's a lot of children with dead parents"

You wave your knife around for effect before continuing "The closest thing I had was Marianne"

"Marianne... You mentioned her before, another sister I'm guessing?"

"It's complicated" you sigh " Once I considered her as a second half of myself, a reflection if you will. But people change, she wanted to follow the path of what she thought was our duty and I didn't"

You don't mention Mona's prophecy for her, that she would be struck down in her prime, fighting for what she believed in. Marianne had dismissed the prophecy at the time, deeming it nothing but nonsense.

Childe takes the slices of fish and places them on a plate, he grabs the now chopped vegetables and throws them in the pan and adds a little more oil.

"One day I will cry for her" You said, moving to set two plates next to him and the cutlery on the table, you stripped yourself of your gloves.

Deciding to change the subject, the fresh sting of Marianne still hurt too much. "I haven't seen you for the past few days, where have you been?" you ask

"Fatui business" He responds vaguely

"Which means?"

"Just lunch with a contact"

"I find that rather hard to believe Harbinger "

"How so?" He takes the pan off the fire and serves the vegetables, placing the plates on the table, you both take your respective seats.

"I'm just surprised you haven't killed anything yet" you stab the fish with your fork and take a bite. Merde, It was delicious.

"You sound so sure of yourself" he snarked

"Oh so you have killed someone in the three short days we've been here" you glance up at him through your lashes

"You shouldn't be so surprised. If it helps it was in self defence"

You shrug "You're right I shouldn't. Suppose its part of your job"

"I'm assuming you got the apprenticeship?" He pokes at the vegetables

"I was wondering when you would ask"

"So you did get it?"

You nod "Yes, with that being said I'll be at Bubu Pharmacy so if you need me you'll have to go there. I'll give you my schedule"

"Sounds good. I tend to find myself fighting at night anyways" He stands up and clears the plates "With that being said were headed to Mount Tianheng, there's a few hilichurl camps out there"

"We?" You cross your arms

"Yep. We" he shrugs on his jacket and shoves on his boots and strides out the door. You resigned and followed him.

You tail behind him from a distance without him asking you to, knowing the agreement about being associated with each other. After a short while you exit the city and catch up with him once you were sure there was nobody around.

"Have you still got that catalyst I gave you?"

You pull the weapon out, its form revealing itself with a golden sheen, letting it float beside you.

"Good. You see that hilichurl? Shoot it" He points in the direction of the creature, it was hunched over digging in the dirt

You hesitate for a minute, trying to justify it. If you did not strike first it would hurt you. Taking a deep breath you formed a hydro dagger instead of a water droplet. It wasn't the best but it would do for now.

"Don't hesitate in battle, that gives your opponent more time to land a hit on you" Childe comments

Letting it float, you aim it at the stray hilichurl and throw it with all the force you have, leaving a glimmering trail of hydro. It grazes the hilichurl's blackened arm. It jumps to attention, letting out a screech, turning its body towards you. Without thinking you form a second dagger and throw it at the rapidly approaching hilichurl, bracing your knees getting ready to dodge.

This time it struck true embedding itself in the hilichurl's stomach, it staggered a little.

Childe walked up behind you placing his hands on your shoulders, he leans in and whispers "Now finish it off"

Gathering all your energy you throw one last hydro dagger, it lands in its throat. The hilichurl gurgles and dissipates into nothing but black smoke curling towards the night sky. You swallowed, hands shaking.

"You did well, I like the daggers, very creative" he said jauntily, he keeps on walking not waiting for you. You jog to catch up with him.

"Why did you bring me here?" you question him sharply

"What I can't enjoy spending time with you?"

"And you do that by killing things?"

"Tch- Their hilichurls, If anything its letting off some steam"

"Why would you think I would enjoy that?" you huff "I only agreed to learn to fight so I would be able to defend myself in case someone found out about us or the knights were tailing me"

"You would have to kill them anyways, might as well learn to make that final hit without hesitation"

You bit your lip, he was right of course. Letting a loose end hand was a horribly dangerous idea. Still, the thought of killing anything made you feel sick, you would just have to hope you never got into that situation.

"Come, there's a camp not far ahead"

"If you want me to fight a whole camp then you would be mistaken"

"You'll be fine, you have me as backup"

"...Right"

You walk a little further up the path, rounding a large rock to see the rudimentary camp. There were a few hilichirls milling around and one particularly menacing looking mitachurl. Childe draws his dual blades and you draw your catalyst.

Childe rushes into the camp, you stay back more than happy to keep your distance. Childe becomes nothing more than a flurry of movement. Blades converging to make a polearm, splitting to make a bow. The lower part of his red scarf moving like fire.

You summon a dagger and throw it at a hilichurl on the edge of the camp, it hits its back. It charges at you, swinging its bat a trail of flame lighting up the darkness. You sidestep its charge and hit it with a charged attack. It falls back and dies.

The second time didn't make it easier, you just wanted to go back to Liyue Harbour. In the time it took you to take down one hilichurl Childe had cleared the camp. His eyes lit up with what you could assume was battle-lust.

There was a small spatter of blood along his cheek. You approach him, wiping the blood off his face, flicking your hand to get rid of it.

"I don't understand you, how can you find joy in this?"

"I don't understand how you can't, its exhilarating"

"Let's go back to Liyue Harbour, I can't stand the stench of abyssal creatures"

Childe averts his gaze, you notice his eyebrows furrow momentarily and his jaw clench

"That's probably for the best, I forgot how hard the first few kills were"

Why did he react that way to you saying you hated the smell of the abyss? There was something more here. A problem for later you decided. You were just happy you were finally heading back to the safety of the Harbour.

Notes:

Tumblr - link

sorry this was a bit of a filler chapter, trying to set up for the first big chapter (tm).

also i have uni starting soon and bc of my degree i have a full semester condensed into a half semester so uh updates will be a bit slower :(

Chapter 9: Tapestry of Fate

Notes:

HEY GUYS sorry for not posting in forever, I took E on the beach at night and im like 80% sure I saw god.

Anyways have some smut :))

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

Chapter Text

I can't stand the stench of abyssal creatures

Your words clung to him, what would you say if you knew? Childe let out a deep sigh, arm slung over his face. You would have to know eventually, he needed his Foul Legacy to even stand a chance of beating Morax.

Tsaritsa, the main reason he had offered you that deal to work for him was so none of his underlings would see him after his use of abyssal power. The thought of anyone seeing in that state made him want to retch. Maintaining his position as Harbinger came with the price of publicly appearing invincible.

He tossed and turned for a while, determined to not let his worry best him. After a bit, sleep finally claimed him.

He awoke to find himself feeling like he was falling upwards again, he turned his body just in time for his feet to hit the ground. The smell was the first thing that clued him into where he was.

The Abyss had its beauty, trees stretching its arms upwards towards the light realms, crowned by hanging circles glinting in the light.

It was almost enough to call it home, but the Abyss lacked the wind, the dirt, the seas of Teyvat. It was missing humanity, it was twisted into a stunning mockery of ancient civilisations. Ruins restored the stone as fresh as it was the day it was laid.

He walked through the arena, turning around as he tilted his head upwards to the sky, domain stretching into fog all around him, trees blooming in white in the distance.

He reached the centre of the carved arena. To his left he caught a figure approaching, he tried to run but his body was frozen in fear.

"Stay. Do not be afraid boy"

That voice. He turned to see her, the one he had spent the last six years searching for. He whipped around to see Skirk, sword brandished.

He now towered over her. She remained the same, if not slightly more menacing. She placed the tip of her sword against his cheek and turned his head, inspecting it.

"What's an innocent creature like you doing in a place like this?" She murmured to herself.

"Do you want to learn to fight boy?"

Ajax opened his mouth to answer but before he could get the words out he felt his body lurch downwards, he was falling again. This time he didn't have the time to turn around, his body hit the ground. Hard.

He opened his eyes to see himself at the base of a cliff, a warm breeze blowing past him. He looked at his hand to find it covered in blood, pain searing through his chest. How rare for him to be covered in his own blood nowadays.

He grit his teeth and leaned his head back on the cliff. He closed his eyes for a moment, in the darkness he saw a pair of bright eyes looking back at him, blindly he reached out. His hand reached warm skin.

His eyes flew open to see you, his hand resting on your cheek, blood nowhere to be seen. Soft lamplight illuminated you as your hand wrapped around his wrist. Silk sheets pooled at your waist as your arms moved. Against his own body's will he leaned in capturing your lips in a sweet kiss.

Your hands trailed down his bare chest, exploring every part of him.

You broke this kiss, resting your forehead against his, breath intermingling with each others

"I know what you are"

Your hands grabbed his shoulders, nails digging into his skin, blood welling up in crescent moon shapes. You gave him a hard push downwards.

The cold hit him first, then the lack of oxygen. He was floating in an endless sea of stars, below him he felt the water's current move. Monoceros Caeli revealed its terrible, beautiful form from the depths.

He reached out on instinct, touching the beast, he just brushed the tips of his fingers across its ice cold skin. The primordial creature turned and reared its horn, before Ajax could act he felt himself being pierced by its tusk.

Childe shot up, throat burned raw from a scream, panting and covered in sweat. He tried to draw air into his lungs, leaning over and bracing himself on the mattress.

The door cracked open to reveal you with a rather panicked look on your face

"I heard you scream, are you ok?"

Childe looked up at you and a veritable tsunami of nausea and dizziness hit him, he could still feel your hands lingering on his skin.

"I'm fine. Just a nightmare" Childe turned his head to look away from you

You walked up to the bed and seated yourself on the edge next to him

"You need to talk?"

Against his better judgement to distance himself for you he began to speak

"I was falling and then I hit The Primordial Sea. I saw Monoceros Caeli again. It stabbed me with its tusk and then I woke up"

"Again?" Your eyes skirted down his bare abdomen, landing on a scar at the centre of his navel, it looked old.

"I've seen it in dreams before" Childe lied, telling you about what happened when he was fourteen would surely send you running. He needed to keep you close, but put emotional distance between the two of you. A tough thing to maintain.

You looked out the window, day was just about to break "That must have been terrifying"

"Tch- I don't get scared anymore"

"And yet you woke up screaming. You have every right to be scared, dreams carry grains of truth which make them feel so real"

"And what grains of truth would being stabbed by a celestial narwhal carry?"

You shrug and move a piece of rusty hair out of his eyes "You tell me"

Childe batted your hand away, sitting up from his elbows to be at eye level with you. You twisted your body to meet his gaze.

"It's too early to think about such things" Childe looked at you, you didn't look like you had just woken up like him.

"What are you doing up so early anyways?"

"I couldn't sleep. Paranoia I think" You wrapped an arm around your body, the other one supporting your weight

"About the Knights?" Childe hunched forward

"Something like that" You looked down and sighed "I need to get to the Pharmacy, will you be ok?"

"I'll be just fine Y/N, dont worry about me"

Life continued for a few weeks. You and Childe dancing around each other. Him stepping back at the slightest indication of intimacy. The days blurred together, getting home from training at the Pharmacy to see an empty house, hearing footsteps enter the house late at night and leave at indiscriminate times.

You had once caught Childe at the storytellers with a strange man. You had asked him about it but he had brushed it off 'business associate' is what he said.

The only time you spend together was the seemingly endless training sessions, drilling you endlessly on technique, speed and strength. You had half a mind to guess he was only doing it for his benefit, he certainly enjoyed obliterating hilichurl camps more than you. One night you had taken a perch on a rock just to watch him.

Admittedly you had gotten better at using a catalyst, you could make a hydro knife out of thin air without a second thought now. Knowing how to fight, albeit not that well, gave you some sense of reassurance.

Rumours of a strange traveller saving Mondstadt from Stormterror began to fill the streets of Liyue Harbour. They say he was aided by the God of Wind. You almost couldn't believe it, a threat like that quelled so quickly. You could only hope the aftermath kept The Order distracted enough from you and your disappearance.

Before you knew it the Rite of Descension was upon you. Baizhu had even allowed you and Qiqi to take the day off to see it. The two of you made your way to Yujing Terrace early, hand clasped around Qiqi's. You had gotten used to her cold skin and her general ambivalent demeanour.

The two of you walked to one of the large metal censers, earthy scent wafting towards the sky in thin tendrils of smoke. Baizhu had told you about the tradition of praying to make a wish before the Rite.

You let Qiqi amble up first to make her wish, a few moments later you approached the censer. Collapsing your hands together in the Mondstadt tradition you wished to no god in particular that you would remain free.

Turning back you look down at Qiqi, dwarfed by the crowd, you hoist her up on your shoulders so she can see better. He places her small hands on top of your head and leans forward.

"Are you excited Qiqi?" You ask, weaving your way through the crowd to get a better view of Rex Lapis.

"Yes" she replied airily, as if she was indifferent to see a god before her eyes. Perhaps she was used to it, Morax looked after his city after all. From what you had gathered the Rite was a yearly occurrence.

You look around, mainly for Childe. You had asked him after another bloody night on Mount Tianheng if he had ever planned to kill Rex Lapis at the Rite. He replied that there were too many people around, that he had wanted to reduce casualties somehow.

The crowd fell silent as the Tianquan stepped into the centre of the Terrace, flanked by two assistants. The white-haired woman stepped in front of the altar overloaded with offerings, in the centre a jade censer. She was the epitome of wealth and elegance. You held your breath with anticipation.

She stood tall and rigid, hands caged in gold clasped in front of her.

"The hour is upon us" Lady Ningguang announced, the energy in the crowd shifted to one of excitement.

She summoned a few glowing pieces of Cor Lapis which began to rapidly circle around her rising along with her arms. After a few moments she directed the crystals at the censer, each one flying to take its place.

All of a sudden a golden beam shot from the censer towards the sky, you watched in awe. The sky darkened and the clouds formed a vortex around the beam turning the sky stormy, there were distant sounds of thunder.

You could hear Qiqi mumble "That doesn't look good"

The crowd began to murmur but before the speculation could really begin a large dragon came tumbling from the sky. It hit the ground with a sickening crunch, dust blowing up around it. The crows gasped in shock.

Rex Lapis, dead, fallen before his own people.

Lady Ningguang approached the lifeless corpse, ancient eyes looking empty. She brushed her hands over his eyelids, closing them. Despite the thousands of people around you there was a cold, dead silence hanging over the people of Liyue.

You stood there not believing your eyes, all of a sudden you felt lightheaded. Rex Lapis, but Childe-

Your thoughts were cut off by Lady Ningguang abruptly standing up.

"Rex Lapis has been killed! Seal the exits!" She commanded

The Milellith came rushing in blocking any way out the pavilion. Out of the corner of your eye you saw a blonde boy trying to sneak out. Removing Qiqi form your shoulders you placed her on your back.

"Hold on now" You whisper

Slowly you follow who you thought was the traveller, who was trying to avoid the guards questioning anyone who was at The Rite. You had a feeling Childe was going to try and involve someone like him in his schemes.

You witnessed him jump off a ledge, you walked up to the balustrade and leaned over, Qiqi still clinging onto your back.

He snuck behind a rock, a small fairy-like creature appearing in a burst of constellations, desperately looking around. Unfortunately he stepped on a broken bit of jade, alerting the nearby guards. They circled around him, polearms pointed at him. He summoned his sword ready to fight.

Out of absolutely nowhere Childe bursts out jumping over him holding his bow. Quickly switching to his dual blades he takes out the guards effortlessly in a flurry of water.

Having seen enough you decided to leave. You had to bite your tongue and question Childe later.

Placing Qiqi down as gently as you could, you grabbed her hand again and walked towards the gate. After being briefly questioned, you and Qiqi headed back to the Pharmacy.

Baizhu came running out, a departure from his usual demeanour.

"Y/N, Qiqi! I heard what happened, are you alright?"

"We're OK, we got out just fine. Nobody was hurt as far as I know"

"So it's true, Rex Lapis is dead"

You could only give a sombre nod.

You flung the door open to see Childe leaning back on the couch

"What did you do" you stormed up to him seething "You said you wouldn't kill him like that"

You fisted the front of his shirt, pulling him towards you

"Hey! Calm down would you?" He asked coolly

"Not until you explain what the fuck just happened"

He grabs you by the waist and flips you around so your back is against the couch, arms pinned to your side

"Hey! Get off me!" You try to pry his hands off you but his grip was too strong

Childe releases you but doesn't back down "Sorry, force of habit"

"Hmph" you cross your arms and glare up at him

" I didn't kill Rex Lapis, I swear on the Tsaritsa. That wasn't the plan anyways" His voice rose ever so slightly. He sits down next to you, you twist your body to face him

"So then why did he fall from the sky?"

"I'm not sure, all I know is that I have to change my plan" he leans back and tilts his head up

"So the plan to drown Liyue is off?"

"For now, yes, which works out for me. I didn't want to drown Liyue but if it means the Tsaritsa gets what she wants. Orders are orders"

"Right, Duty" you turn away from him "What's the move from here?"

"Find out where the Qixing is keeping his Exuvia and get what I need, I don't have long though just until the funeral"

You bite your lip. This means the contract could be over sooner than later, that he wouldn't need to fight a god.

"And where does the traveller come into this?"

"Aether? How do you know I've talked to him?" he shoots up and snaps his head towards you

"I saw you jump out at Yujing Terrace and knock out the Millelith after the Rite"

Childe furrows his brow "I just sent him to tell the adepti of Rex Lapis's passing"

"I can't just be that" You straighten up so you were eye to eye with him

"You catch on too quickly" he laughs

"That's not the answer I want" You move up from the couch and kick off your boots to start pacing

"But it's the one you're getting"

"I don't see your objection to telling me, If anything it'll help me to know what your up to" You stand in front of him, looking down at him sitting

"I'm just using him to stir the pot a little that's all, a failsafe if anything"

"Did I expect anything less?"

"You knew what you were getting yourself into when you met me" He stands up and you step back

"You don't tell me anything! I never know where you are or what you're doing!" You say, exasperated

"Why does it matter!" he snipes back, he walks forward and you walk backwards. Your back hits the wall

"Because I care about you, you're human under all those layers" He looks away and you grab his face with both of your hands and turn him back towards you

"Y/N… I don't need your kindness. Getting involved with me is bad idea, keeping your distance is a wise choice" He grabs your wrists and pulls your hands off his face

"I'm already waist deep, might as well let the riptide take me under" You push yourself up on your tip-toes to get closer to him. You lean in closer, breath ghosting the shell of his ear

"What are you afraid of?"

"What if I lose you? I have to put distance between myself and everyone, my duty as a Harbinger comes before anything else. Gods! My family is already at risk and they have the eyes of another Harbinger looking after them, but you? You would be begging to be killed"

There was something in his dead eyes, something skirting the edges of terror. Has this happened before, did someone get killed because of him?

"Then why let me stay, why make a contract. Why bind yourself to me?" He lets go of your wrists and grabs your shoulders

"Because you treat me like a human, not as a Harbinger or a weapon to be wielded but just as myself. Regardless of what I do, you don't care if there's blood on my hands"

"I don't care because you got me out of Mondstadt, you gave me your protection and if that means I get involved with Fatui schemes then so be it"

"You are a fool" he chastises

"Maybe, but so are you" you bite back

Tension yearned between the two of you, one of your hands returns to his cheek. He leans in breath ghosting your lips.

"Then let me do something foolish" He murmurs. You were bound together until he killed Rex Lapis, after that he could let you go, run far away from you to keep you safe.

You don't know who closes the miniscule gap between your lips, he kisses you passionately. You return the fervour, burying your hands in his hair. You moan a little, parting your mouth giving Childe a chance to slip his tongue into your mouth.

His hands travel down your shoulders to your chest then to your hips, he gives them a squeeze and pulls back. Burying his face in your neck he kisses a spot just below your earlobe.

"Jump" His hands move to your ass, and you jump just enough so you're able to wrap your legs around his hips. He presses you into the wall, hands squeezing your ass. You yank him back in to kiss you.

While you're kissing him your hands travel to his collar and you busy yourself by undoing the steel clasps on his shirt, pushing it off his shoulders. At the same time he bunches your skirt around your hips and presses into you.

You try to hold back a moan as his clothed bulge rubs against your clit but he pulls back and grips your jaw.

"Don't hold back, I want to hear you"

You nod and he bucks against you again. This time you mewl, closing your eyes and tilting your head backwards. Childe traces a finger up your carotid, followed by his tongue. You give his hair a firm tug, pulling him back towards you.

Your hands trace a pattern of scars down his navel, your fingers trace the top of his belt. You pull back to get some air, feeling slightly lightheaded.

"Do you want this?" Childe murmurs

You give him a firm nod "Yes, Archons yes"

With that he moves you from the wall to his bedroom and drops you firmly on his bed, he stands above you between your spread legs.

"Strip for me girlie"

"So desperate" you reply but you indulge him anyway. Removing your clothes slowly, revealing every inch of tantalising skin to him. You stop when you're just down to your underthings.

"Like what you see?" You say, looking up at him through your lashes

"Very much" He leans in to kiss you "But I think you would look better under me"

"I think I would look better on top"

"We'll see about that" He unbuckles and slips off his pants as you shuffle a little up the bed to make room for him.

After a few moments he's on top of you, hands caressing every inch of you. Kissing down your navel. He pulls down your underwear to reveal your glistening cunt. Hands holding your thighs keeping them apart.

" Гавно" You hear him swear under his breath. Without warning he licks a stripe up your pussy. You cry in surprise and pleasure.

"You taste amazing darling"

He starts to eat you out, pressing hot kisses on your clit. The hand that was resting on your thigh makes its way to your entrance. He circles it for a few seconds, teasing you. You buck your hips trying to get any friction but he presses down keeping you pinned.

Slowly he presses one finger in and curls it, you let out a high pitched whine. He adds a second finger and fuck you, moving them in and out, curling them in a way that had your orgasm approaching fast.

Childe felt his cock stirring to attention, in just a few moments he was painfully hard, he had half a mind to turn you around and fuck you senseless into the mattress until you couldn't speak. He was too far gone to make a rational decision, to stop this and walk away.

Sparks of pleasure made your mind feel hazy, everything he was doing, his face buried between your legs, you wanted to burn this image into your mind forever. You were a mess, whining and moaning above him, you were so close.

"Childe! I-I"

"Good girl, so pretty for me"

He picks up the pace, hitting every spot, eating you out like a man starved for days. With one final curl of his fingers and lick to your clit you come apart. You let out a broken scream, hands tangled in his hair.

You're panting and leaning back resting on your forearms, eyes glazed over with lust. He rises, lips glistening. He kisses you and you taste yourself on him. You let out a little whimper at the taste.

"You did so well"

He brushes a stand of hair away from your face. You look away blushing. He grabs your hips and presses his bare chest to yours, cock teasing your entrance "C'mon lets take a shower and grab something to eat"

You snap your gaze back to him "What about you"

You found it hard to believe he would be so selfless, that he wouldn't take full advantage of the situation and fuck you.

He buries his head in your shoulder "Don't worry about me"

You move back to look at him. Your hand travels down to feel his length, already hard against your thigh.

"Please" you beg, hand slowly moving up and down

"Have you ever done something like this?" he sighs, he was already too far in to let this go, to push you away.

"No, but I want to please you too"

He relents, flipping you over, you slide down off the bed to sit on your knees between his legs. You grab his cock and let out a breath. It was so big, you felt a blush dust your cheeks.

Looking up at him he places a gentle hand on the back of your head. You lean in and lick his slit, already beading with precum. You give it a few more licks, getting used to the salty taste.

You move down a little and lick a stipe up his cock from the base to the tip, you hear him moan above you. You bite your lip and pump the shaft for a few seconds. Finally you place your mouth around him and suck.

"Ah Fuck Y/N, keep going"

You take him deeper down your throat, trying you best not to gag. You get halfway down before having to come back up for air, moving your hand up and down his spit-covered cock.

You place your mouth over him again, bobbing up and down taking him deeper each time. You moan around his cock, sending vibrations that push him closer to the edge.

After a few more minutes he gives your hair a tug, pulling you up. You give him a few more pumps with your hand and he cums all over your chest. He pulls you up and gives you another kiss

"Lets get cleaned up"

Notes:

Tumblr - link

sorry ik im not very good at writing smut, im so much more comfortable writing fun angsty emotional scenes. I spent so long debating if this whole chapter has OOC Childe but honestly,, I don't really think we've seen his super vulnerable side yet so idk? I like to think hes not as carefree as he comes off when if comes to stressing about the people he loves.

Edit: hi sorry update will be later than expected I'm unmedicated and having a time xxxxxxx

Chapter 10: Aestus Recedes

Notes:

HEY GUYS I'm so so so sorry this took forever to publish but life has been just insane. I can't tell yall everything that happened but the basics are - I stopped doing drugs bc I had a panic attack so bad I got sent to the ER, was unmedicated (back on my anti-kms meds now tho whoop), uni has been insane (they made everything due Monday which is mostly why I've not been able to write) AND some dickhead got mad at me for closing the store door right after he walked out (mf came in at 9:59 and we close at 10) so he wrote a review and now my shifts are suspended until HR reviews the incident :)))))))))))))))))

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

Chapter Text

You woke up in your own bed, memories of last night came flooding in. You felt a twinge of something you couldn't quite pinpoint. Somewhere between regret and satisfaction. You stretched, light pouring in from the windows.

You tried to breathe, he had been keeping himself so far away from you despite the contract and then the dam breaks. What even were you? Friends seemed like a stretch and yet in the short time you had known him you had come to care for him.

Come to care that he puts his life in danger, come to care that he's just a boy under all his titles.

Seeing Childe was inevitable, the conversation you had to have was inevitable. Swallowing your pride, you got up. You walked out of your room to see Childe in the kitchen already dressed.

You approached him cautiously, not sure what to say exactly. Fortunately for you, Childe seemed fine, if not a little tired.

"Y/N, glad to see you're alive"

"About last night…" you trail off, leaning your hip against the counter and crossing your arms

"Hm? What about it?"

"I just…" you took in a deep breath "I'm sorry for yelling at you" you internally kick yourself for avoiding the real question

"Tch- It's fine, you had your reasons. I would be furious if I were in that situation"

"Still, things got heated"

"In more than one way, do you want one egg or two?" Childe remarked as he flipped the egg in the pan, giving you a glance out the side of his eye. You narrow your eyes at him

"Funny, and one egg please"

"Either way, I have bigger news, I have a way to get what I need" Childe plates the final piece of toast and you carry the plates over to the table

"Hm? A new plan already" You glanced up at him

"I went to the bank last night. The Liyue Qixing has the Exuvia of Rex Lapis, I can just take what I need from his corpse without a fight, which is a shame but getting the job done is more important right now. The only issue is I need to find it"

"Why would the Qixing hide the Exuvia? Wouldn't they want to display his body as a part of the funeral? At least that is what would happen in Mondstadt"

"I'm trying to figure it out but it's airtight, I can't get any intel"

"How do you plan to find whatever you're looking for"

"I have connections"

"Hm, always so vague. Wouldn't have anything to do with your recent business partner would it?"

"And if it did?"

You shrugged "He seems… intriguing, he has a strange energy around him. Either way, what's going to happen to the whole summoning Osial plan and the sigil factory?"

"Consider it a backup. We have enough sigils to summon Osail anyway. I just hope it doesn't have to come to that"

You both sat down at the table and as you took a bite of your breakfast, you couldn't help but feel a mixture of relief and apprehension. The tension from the previous night still hung in the air, but at least you were talking.

You nodded, realising the gravity of the situation. "And if they catch you?"

Childe shrugged, though there was a hint of concern in his eyes. "I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. For now, I need to tread carefully."

As you finished your meal, you couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to Childe's plan than he was letting on. An awkward silence filled the air.

"Childe, promise me something," you said, locking eyes with him.

He raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. "What is it?"

"Promise me that you won't do something stupid."

Childe sighed deeply "You know I can't promise you that"

"Then try to keep yourself alive"

"I can't promise that either"

With that he was out the door, leaving you to clean up.

Something felt so wrong about leaving you so abruptly but you had made Childe feel something he hadn't felt in a long time. Guilt.

Despite having slaughtered hundreds if not thousands of men the look of their dead, glassy eyes he felt nothing but elation. The look in your eyes, full of light and shining with life, he didn't want to drag an innocent person into his schemes. Perhaps it's because he was so young, so new to being a Harbinger, the other Harbingers seemingly had no problem having innocent people as collateral damage if it meant they got what they wanted.

Archons, he had done everything in his power to separate his family from his job, now he had you. With any luck you could go free after he had stolen the gnosis for the Tsaritsa and the contract had been fulfilled.

He didn't even need you as a healer anymore seeing as it was unlikely he would even have to use his Foul Legacy form. The contract now seemed almost pointless, and yet he wanted to keep you around. Something about having someone treat him just as a human, not an exalted Harbinger, not as a boy who fell into the abyss.

And he had told you all of that last night. It was unlike him to avoid anything but this he couldn't bring himself to. He couldn't even look at you without wanting to kiss you.

And yet he couldn't work up the nerve to talk about last night. Despite you giving him everything he needed he couldn't help regret it. He didn't want to make letting you go harder than it had to be.

He was so lost in thought that he had arrived at the front doors of Liuli Pavillion. No time to think about it, he sighed internally. He had a meeting with Zhongli and the Traveller.

Childe mentally prepared himself and his wallet, trying to get information out of Zhongli was akin to picking eel bones out. Recounting the conversation he had had with the traveller last night about the Adepti and Morax's passing.

"Hey! Mr Moneybags!" a high-pitched voice exclaimed from behind him

"Traveller, Paimon! I'm glad you could make it!" Childe snapped his head around to see two figures approaching him

"Of course we wouldn't! There food" Paimon squeaked

Childe quickly cut Paimon off before she could ramble about all the food options at Liuli Pavilion

"As promised I delivered. I found someone who can help us answer why exactly the Liyue Qixing would want to hide Morax's Exuvia"

"Where is he?" Aether questioned, looking around

"I've taken the liberty of setting up a business meeting as is the Liyue custom. He's just inside" Childe nodded his head towards the door

The three enter the restaurant and are quickly taken to a private room near the back

"Traveller, Paimon, this is Mr. Zhongli, Consultant to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlour and trusted associate to the Fatui. Mr Zhongli this is Paimon and Aether"

"Associate of the Fatui?" Aether narrowed his eyes and Paimon shrunk back ever so slightly

"Aha, no need to worry traveller, Wangsheng's line of business can be… rather sensitive at times. They know where discretion is needed"

Of course, the traveller would be suspicious of Fatui business after what happened with Barbatos and Signoria, Childe scolded himself internally

Zhongli stood and extended a hand to Aether and Paimon

"It's an honour to meet you, I've heard tell of you from Mondstadt"

Paimon shook her head "H-hang on! Sensitive business, discretion what is this about!"

"I believe you misunderstand, Wangsheng organises funeral rites and burials. We ensure the deceased pass on peacefully" Zhongli said, adjusting his glove

"Did you really think that I would stoop so slow as to hire an assassin? The Fatui calls many people friends and the parlour does not dabble in that kind of business. Regardless I bought you to see Mr Zhongli because"

"Because I can take you to the Exuvia" Zhongli cut him off

Aether's eyebrows shot up "Sorry?"

"Don't act so surprised, Morax's body may have been sealed away by The Qixing but let's hear what Mr Zhongli has to say first" Childe sat down along with everyone else

"Rex Lapis may have been the Prime of Adepti but he was still an adeptus nonetheless. Many adepti have departed over the millenia. Times are changing, you must have felt it while you were at Jueyun Karst"

Zhongli takes a second to sip his tea before continuing "The age of mankind is slowly dawning upon us. In years past that was Liyue tradition to hold a funeral for every adepti that has passed, but now the Qixing have made no attempt to honour this tradition"

"But the killer hasn't even been caught yet," Paimon said, still floating beside Aether

"Irrespective of that Rex Lapis is still dead. The job falls to Wangsheng to attend to his final send-off in accordance with tradition"

"Childe says too much" Aether mumbled throwing a pointed glance in his direction

"Oh?" Childe mocks offence "In our line of work that means would want to silence me. Draw your sword and we shall-"

Childe lets out a laugh "Just kidding, let's continue shall we? The Tianquan had forbidden anyone from accessing the Exuvia, which means you'll have to get to it if you want to talk to all of The Seven"

"Precisely, only by participating in the rite will you be able to see Rex Lapis again" Zhongli added

Aether pursed his lips "It seems like there's no other way"

"Of were agreed then let us talk of the details while we walk"

"Alright, my job as a bridge-builder is done, I'll stay back and try and figure out how to use these things called 'chopsticks'"

Zhongli and Aether both promptly exit and Childe lets out a sigh of relief and runs his hand through his hair. That was easier than he had thought. Now he just needed to wait for the funeral.

The Pharmacy was quiet today, after this morning that was the opposite of what you needed, you busied yourself in the back preparing medicines while Qiqi was out front and Baizhu was attending to patients.

You heard the characteristic creak of the floorboard that Baizhu refused to fix because it told him that customers were there and the muddled noise of conversation. Quickly you stripped your gloves in case Qiqi needed you to make anything for the customer.

Carrying the freshly made remedies to the front to sort you nearly dropped them when you saw The Traveller, that strange fairy and Childe's business associate talking to Qiqi.

".. bring your prescription," she said while the group of three were leaning over the counter to even see her.

"Surely no prescription would be needed to purchase Everlasting Incense" Zhongli asked, seemingly confused

You bite the inside of your cheek, why would they be buying something so expensive?

"Qiqi can get you medicine but only if you show Qiqi your prescription. Those are Qiqi's orders, from Qiqi"

You finally worked up the nerve to turn around, The traveller gave you an exasperated look, clearly confused by Qiqi"

You shrugged "Sorry, those are Qiqi's orders. She's a zombie so unless she's given new orders…" You leaned back on the counter keen to see how this would play out.

"A zombie?" Paimon questioned

You nodded your head "Brought back to life by the adepti, not quite living but not quite dead"

You could have sworn you saw the man let out a frustrated breath "My dear Qiqi, I'm afraid we didn't bring a prescription. But we do hope that you can still help us obtain some Everlasting Incense"

"OK then Mr Zhongli"

"Paimon wonders how we can manage to do that"

"Qiqi helps you out, you help Qiqi out. Only fair"

Paimon let out some kind of high-pitched squeak which you could only assume was a noise of frustration "Since when do customers need to do favours for customer service staff" she grumbled

You almost had to stifle a laugh behind your hand

"Nevermind, just think of it as a peer-to-peer transaction" Zhongli calmly stated

"Go to Mount Tianheng. Find the Guizhing Ballista. And hunt a Cocogoat. Please and thank you"

You saw Zhongli furrow his brow and mouth the words Guizhong Ballista, he mouthed the words like they were intimately familiar to him

"What exactly is a Cocogoat" The Traveller spoke for the first time

"The Cocogoat is a legendary animal. An adeptibeast"

The traveller gives you another look "Nobody's seen one in a long time, I don't even know what it looks like" you supplied. Of course, Qiqi just wanted coconut milk but it was more fun this way. Plus, you couldn't bear to tell Qiqi that coconut milk didn't actually come from a Cocogoat.

"Very well then… We'll start by investigating Guizhong Ballista. You two go ahead, I'll meet up with the both of you momentarily"

Paimon and The Traveller gave each other a glance but left anyway and Qiqi ambled towards the back eminently satisfied that she would be getting her coconut milk, leaving just you and Zhongli.

"You're with Childe aren't you"

That sentence took you completely off guard, you had been so cautious. You felt like you had been punched in the stomach.

All you could muster was a small "Sorry?"

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone but I implore you to keep a closer eye on him. Something is stirring in the waters and it won't be long until it rears its ugly head."

With that he turned and left the pharmacy, leaving you in the aftermath for the second time that day.

The day had passed without any other incident and yet Zhonglis's words repeated in your head. What could he mean, your best guess was that Childe was about to do something stupid but that doesn't rule out much.

Could it have to do with his plans to seal something from the Exuvia? You wracked your brain for anything stupid Childe might do but it all came up empty. You resigned to having to ask him tonight. If he was home that is.

It was nearing dusk when Zhongli, Paimon and The Traveller returned looking slightly worse for wear. Qiqi was sitting absentmindedly on a stool swinging her legs while you cleaned the pharmacy for the night.

Zhongli have a short nod towards you "Forgive us Qiqi but we are unable to fulfil our end of the contract"

"No Cocogoat… Ah, don't worry about it. But Qiqi feels very disappointed"

Paimon lowered in the air a bit "Aw, now Paimon feels a bit guilty"

"I'm sorry. I have a... poor memory. I cannot remember the name of the milk. That's why I wrote it down. Where did I put it…"

Qiqi pats herself down and pulls out her tattered notebook

"Ah. Here. This is the name. 'Coconut milk'."

The three looked on in shock The Traveller turned to you "Why did you tell us she wanted coconut milk"

"Entertainment I guess" You walked a little closer and leaned your forearms on the counter. Lowering your voice "That and Qiqi doesn't actually know where coconut milk comes from"

The Traveller glared at you and opened his mouth to speak but Zhongli cut him off, looking slightly embarrassed

"Ah, I… owe you both an apology. I agreed to what I thought would be an equitable agreement when I perhaps should have undertaken further due diligence"

Paimon shook her head "Never mind Zhongli, you didn't know"

Qiqi looked at everyone "Did Qiqi say a bad thing"

You looked at the traveller and shook your head warning him not to

"Qiqi, coconut milk doesn't come from a Cocogoat. I don't think a cocogoat even exists"

Qiqi was silent for a minute "No… Impossible"

You crossed your arms and glared at the traveller

"Well seems like someone learnt a life lesson today" Baizhu said as he descended the stairs coming out into the main area

Zhongli raised his eyebrow "Might I ask who-"

"Ah, how rude of me. I'm Baizhu, boss of Bubu Pharmacy. It seems you've already had the pleasure of meeting Y/N and Qiqi"

Changsheng raised her head and gave a disapproving glare "What a sorry state of affairs"

The traveller and Paimon jumped and you had to bite your lip to stop yourself from laughing

"The snake is talking! The snake is talking!"

Changsheng recoiled back, no matter how many times this happened she still seemed to take offence "Hmph! You should bask in the splendidness of such a fine specimen such as myself"

"Don't mind Chnagsheng, she's a good girl, really. Might I ask why you're here today?"

"Were after Everlasting Incense, would you happen to sell it?" Zhongi asked

"Of course we do, that'll be three million mora for the best quality" Baizhu replied nodding his head

"B-but where would we get three million mora from!" Paimon wailed

"Might just have to rob the Golden House" The Traveller joked

"Where are we going to get that much money?" Paimon asked, flying around in small circles panicking "Zhongli is about three million short"

The traveller sighed "I think we might have to go talk to our Harbinger friend"

You shot your head up, thankfully nobody noticed. You tried to breathe, all you had to do was act like you didn't know Childe.

A little while later Childe appeared at the front of the pharmacy along with everyone else. Laughing so hard he had to bend down to catch his breath.

Paimon had told him about everything on the way there, how Qiqi and Y/N tricked them into a wild goose chase after a creature that didn't even exist. He burst out laughing as soon as Paimon had told him.

"I cannot believe you fell for the Cocogoat!" he said through breaths. He straightened up, wiping a tear out of the corner of his eye. He looked briefly at you before turning to everyone else.

"Dr Baizhu is it? I've heard tell of your work across Teyvat. I'm truly honoured. If you would like to collaborate with the Fatui in the future just know that we would be very willing"

"Strange, I thought the Fatui wouldn't be interested in working with our type of business," Out of the corner of his eye he saw you quietly exit while everyone was distracted

Childe shrugged "We work with a large range of businesses. Now it was Everlasting Incense you needed right" He looked and Zhongli and he nodded

Childe handed over the Mora. "Now that that's done you'll have to excuse me"

He immediately stepped outside, glad that everyone inside was still chatting. He looked around for you but saw no trace. Ekaterina emerged from the shadows

"You've been eavesdropping I hope, what have I missed"

"Master Childe" Ekaterina gave a small bow "They spoke of the Qixing going to the Golden House"

Childe took a second to think "And what else would they be doing there but hiding the Exuvia? Thank you, Ekaterina, dismissed"

Ekaterina bowed again and took her leave. He walked up the path for a few metres intent on finding you before he felt a hand on the back of his jacket pulling him into the nearby bushes. Immediately he turned around and pinned the body against the tree only to see you looking up at him panting.

"Care to explain what that was?" You asked

"Fatui Businesses" He let go of you and you rubbed your shoulder

"Which is?"

"None your your concern"

"It is! Zhongli said you were about to do something"

"Zhong- How does he know?"

"I don't know! He came in and that's all he told me"

Childe steps back and sighs. He would need to interrogate Zhongli later; there was no possible way for him to know about you and him.

"Look, something might happen soon. If there's a storm, get as far away from the city as you can"

"Storm- what's going on" You snapped your gaze to him and slowly walked towards him

"Y/N I wish I could tell you but I can't"

"Why! Why do I have to be kept in the dark, am I just meant to wait for you to stumble home bleeding to death? What about what you said last night"

"I told you! Because you'll get hurt, you're not Fatui, if they find out you know another Harbinger might just come and kill you"

You stood back and started walking "Let's go to Mount Tianheng"

"Wanting to kill something?" Childe asked quickly catching up

"...Maybe"

"I like you when you're angry" He commented

"Good thing you agitate me then" you sniped back

"You like it though, you like causing chaos. Don't think I didn't hear how you sent Zhongli and Aether to look for a cocogoat"

You gave a small smirk "You must be rubbing off on me then"

"I find that hard to believe"

The wind blew harder than normal as you approached a hilichurl camp. You stood by a large rock, a bitter taste filled Childe's mouth, the echo of the abyss filled his mind, he glanced down at you staring out at the camp.

"Hey Childe"

"Yeah?"

"Tell me before you're about to whatever you're about to do"

"OK"

And with that, the two of you dashed forward towards the camp.