fiya

“The sky’s looking pretty dark. Are you sure it isn’t supposed to rain, girlie?”

Lumine turned to see the Harbinger behind her, stopping to look up at the sky. Childe wasn’t wrong. The once clear skies of Liyue were swirling with dark grey clouds, ominous and forewarning. “Paimon told me not to worry about the weather before I went out for commissions. Sure, it was just her gut feeling, but I believe her judgement, you know?”

“Right. Speaking of which, where is your little friend? Does she really not trust me that much still to where she won’t even come along?” Lumine could tell by Childe’s ever-present smirk that he wasn’t really hurt by the idea of her fairy companion not trusting him.

In return, she threw a smirk back at him. “Well, you were the one that almost killed me back at the Golden House.” Childe’s smirk fell, instead averting his gaze over to a sprig of mint growing along the trail. He looks... upset, Lumine thought. “But no, Paimon’s off taste-testing some of Xiangling’s new dishes back in Liyue Harbor. You know how she gets when she hears about food.”

Lumine took out her adventure handbook and flipped to her commissions section. Most of the pages were blank, the others filled front and back with past commissions scribbled down and checked off. “It looks like... we’re helping Hui’an repair the stairs at Wangshu Inn.”

“So no fighting? That’s boring.”

“I’ll have to agree with you on that one.” Lumine closed her handbook and placed it in her bag, then began to lead the way towards Wangshu Inn. No one said a word, the awkward silence being filled in by the sound of footsteps and the swift noise of Childe twirling a hydro dagger between his fingers. Lumine found herself watching him in the corner of her eye. It looked sharp, deadly and dangerous - just like him. It made her think of Childe, even more than she already did. Was Paimon right? Was he really able to be trusted after everything?

And just why was he helping her out of the blue? Didn’t he have Fatui work to deal with? Why did he always find a way to be in her presence? Why did she actually like having him around?

Just as Lumine was going to ask Childe about why he was helping her, a crash of thunder sounded in the distance. A storm’s coming.

“I told you girlie, it’s gonna rain. You should listen to a Hydro user when it comes to storms.”

“Hey! I don’t have to listen to anyone I don’t want to, thank you very-“ Before Lumine could finish her sentence, it began to downpour. She froze still, the cold, hard pattering of rain against her skin surprising her so suddenly.

Childe quickly began unpinning the brooch that held his scarf in place and draped the red fabric over her head and shoulders. “I know it’s not much, I just don’t want you to get sick.” The gesture made Lumine’s face heat up. “Let’s get moving, Wangshu Inn isn’t far from here.”

The two began to run down the muddy trail until the reached the staircase leading to Wangshu Inn. The usual flow of guests had retreated inside as the rain continued to beat down onto the earth. By the time Childe and Lumine reached the lobby’s entryway they were soaked, their hair clinging to their faces.

Lumine spotted Hui’an in the distance and began making her way towards him as quick as possible. Childe looked at her at a loss for words. Is she seriously going to do a commission in this weather?, he wondered to himself. He began to feel amusement towards her determination.

“Hui’an! I’m here to help with the broken staircase. What can I get started on?”

Hui’an turned towards the disheveled young woman. “I’m sorry, traveler, but with the way this storm is coming down I decided to postpone repairs for another day. The rain doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon, and probably won’t until tomorrow morning. I suggest you spend a night here in one of the rooms to ensure you’re safe and healthy.”

“But I have a few more commissions-”

“I think you’ve done enough for Liyue to where one night off wouldn’t hurt your reputation. You can talk to Verr over at the reception desk to see if rooms are available.”

Lumine sighed in defeat, nodded her head and walked over to Childe. He perked up when he saw her, a smile forming quickly on his lips.

“Not able to finish your little commissions due to the rain? Such a shame, I was really looking forward to taking care of those Treasure Hunters.”

“Sorry you couldn’t feel the excitement you were looking for.”

“It’s no problem, really. Besides, I have you here, don’t I? I’m fine with anything when I’m with you, pretty girl.” Lumine noticed that Childe’s face was much closer to hers than before. Her cheeks grew pink at their closeness and she started looking away.

“I… We should really talk to Verr over at the reception desk and look for rooms to stay in.”

“You know, we could both save a lot of mora if we just shared a room.”

“And worry about you waking me up in the middle of the night to go fight to the death in the rain? No thank you.”

Childe situated his hands on his hips. “Fine. If you have the mora for your own room, We can part ways and I’ll see you in the morning.”

Lumine’s eyes widened. She’d been running out of mora as of recent thanks to weapon enhancements and Paimon’s insatiable appetite. Slowly, she reached for her coin pouch and opened it up. There were a few coins in the pouch, but not enough to cover a nice room for the night.

The young man in front of Lumine had to stifle a laugh. “Just as I thought. Did Paimon end up eating your mora now, too?”

“She might as well have,” Lumine said with an embarrassed laughter. “Fine, then. Let’s go find a room.” Childe was beaming and took her hand in his, leading them over to the reception desk. Lumine swore her face was as red as Childe’s scarf that was still draped around her.

Verr Goldet looked up at the two from the papers scattered across her desk. “Welcome to Wangshu Inn. How may I help you?”

“We’re looking for a room to stay in for the night.” Lumine looked over her shoulder and saw Childe preoccupied with petting the cat that laid on the end of the desk. She couldn’t help but smile at the sight, but eventually she lightly tugged on his sleeve to have him pay attention.

“Yes, a room… let me check to see what we have available,” Verr said as she dragged her finger across a list of rooms and its occupants. Her finger stopped at one empty slot. “You’re just in luck, we have one more room available.”

Childe and Lumine looked at each other and nodded. “We’ll take it.”

“Okay, a single-bed room would be…”

What?

“A single-bed room?” Lumine felt like she was going to explode in a matter of seconds.

“The only room we have available is on the smaller side and has just one bed. I assumed it wouldn’t be such an issue for a young couple such as yourself.”

WHAT?

“I— we’re not—”

Childe cut her off by handing Verr a good sized pouch of mora. “That’s completely fine with us, isn’t it honey?” Lumine was frozen still. “Here’s everything to cover the cost, you can keep the rest. Good night!” The situation ended faster than Lumine could keep up with. Her mind was spinning. Her and Childe together? As a couple? Sure, she’d admit that the idea has popped up in her dreams one too many times, but that’s all it could ever be. Just a hopeless, made up dream.

Lumine felt Childe once again taking her hand and leading the way up to their room. Archons, that’s probably why she believed we were together, she thought. She looked down at their hands. She never paid attention to it until now, but his gloves were off after being soaked in the rain. Lumine was surprised at how soft his hand felt around hers, with the exception of a small scar or two. She began laughing at herself in her head. Something as minuscule as how well their hands felt together set her heart aflame. But it made her wonder. Why would Childe go along with the idea that they’re together?

By the time Lumine snapped out of her thoughts, they had reached the door to their room. Childe fiddled with the key for a second before the door opened. Verr was right about the room being small, but nonetheless it was still nicely furnished and had anything they needed for a quick stay. A functional bathroom, a window showcasing Wangshu’s beautiful view of the land, and of course… the single bed. It was definitely big enough for two people, with a good amount of soft pillows and a plush comforter for warmth.

Lumine’s chest began to gain that warm, fluttery feeling again. She eyed the chair in the corner of the room. “I can sleep in that chair for the night.”

“What? No, absolutely not. There’s enough room for the both of us on that bed.” Childe locked the door behind them and walked over to the window to look out at the rain. “If you don’t get warmed up you could get sick from being in that weather for as long as we were.”

“I know but… us together is just—”

“Lumine. It’s just a bed, and we’re just sleeping. It’s not like we’re gonna be making out all night.” The serious face Childe wore disappeared. Lumine could practically see the gears turning in his head as a smirk formed. “Unless that’s what you want.”

Lumine choked on her spit. She’ll also admit that with the dreams about them being a couple, that has popped into her mind once or twice. “… No.”

“You hesistated~”

“I said no!”

Childe laughed, raising his hands up in surrender. “Alright, girlie, alright, I’ll stop. But I’m serious about the first part. Just stay here with me and if it makes you so embarrassed, we won’t talk about it ever again after tonight.” Lumine picked up on a tinge of disappointment in his voice as he continued to speak. Why was this man confusing her so much?

“Okay.”

Childe looked her up and down. “Do you have a change of clothes? You’re still soaked.”

“I… don’t. I usually just camp outside, I pack light.”

“I think that’s a little less than packing light. You literally have nothing on you besides a sword and an Adventurer’s Handbook. Here, hold on.” He began unbuttoning his jacket, slipping it off with ease. “As a Hydro user myself, I made sure my clothes have good water resistance. This should be dry,” motioning towards the deep red undershirt he wore.

Childe’s shirt became unbuttoned and he took it off, handing it to her. Oh gods. “It might be a bit big on you, but it’ll be a lot more comfortable than a soaking wet traveling outfit.” Lumine tries so hard to keep looking into his eyes and not look down at his bare skin, littered with battle scars and toned well…

He’s trying to hold back a laugh. Does he find it funny that he’s going to be the death of me?, Lumine thought. Without a word, she took his shirt and made her way to the bathroom.

The shirt was indeed way too big for Lumine. The small slit in the bottom that usually showed off Childe’s Vision had rested at the middle of her thigh. She kept her own undershirt and shorts on; even when buttoning up there was too much visible for her comfort. Lumine looked into a mirror. She was drowning in the fabric, but it felt perfect. It smelt good, too — like clean, fresh water, warm spices and a hint of cologne.

When Lumine walked out to their room, she noticed Childe was already sitting up under the covers on his side. He looked up at her, mouth slightly open.

“What?”

He shook himself out of a daze. “Nothing. That color red just looks well on you, that’s all.” He smiled and patted the spot next to him. Hesitantly, Lumine pulled the covers over her, gently laying down on her side. Soon enough, Childe laid down on his side, propping his head up in the palm of his hand. “See? Isn’t this much warmer than sleeping in a chair?”

Lumine nodded. “Thanks for the shirt.”

“It’s all good. What friend would I be if I didn’t make sure you felt okay?”

Friend. That word made Lumine tense up a little, her mind going back to the thousands of questions she wanted to ask Childe earlier. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything you’d like to, Lumine.” The way her name sounded softly in his voice sent shivers down her spine. He seemed to like the way it sounded, too, as a genuine smile formed quickly after he was done talking.

“Why have you been so nice to me? How is it that you’ve somehow found your way into everything I do?”

Childe paused for a good second, looking up to the ceiling as he thought to himself. “Well for starters, I want to repay you as much as I can for helping me with Teucer a few months ago. I know he can be a handful, as most kids can be, but he loved spending time with you back in Liyue Harbor. He still asks about if you’re doing well when Tonia and him write letters to me.” He smiled. “Thanks to you going along with my act, he still looks up to me. And that’s something I hope he’s able to do for many more years.”

He looked like he wanted to say more, but struggled within himself. Lumine gave him another question that she’d been struggling to ask herself. “Why did you pretend that we’re a couple tonight?”

Childe laughed lightly. “There wasn’t much to it, really, I just enjoy going along with someone’s ideas. There’s no harm into playing along, I’m sure you know that.” He paused for a moment again, expressing an emotion so foreign for the young man that it took a while for Lumine to realize it was nervousness. “There’s… also the fact that I feel… drawn to you.”

The fluttering came back into Lumine’s chest. “Whenever I hear you’re around, I can’t stop myself from wanting to find you. I find myself wanting to talk to you constantly, Archons, even just seeing you is enough sometimes. Ever since our fight at the Golden House, I’ve felt different. No one’s ever beaten me the way that you did, Lumi. I know I already said I’m not the same man as I used to be, but I really meant it. You’re really one of a kind.” Their gazes locked with each other’s, deep oceans meeting Cor Lapis. Lumine swore she saw a sparkle return to Childe’s eyes.

The Harbinger laughed at himself. “Look at what you’ve done to me; you turned one of the most dangerous people in Teyvat into a complete sap.” He laid down on his back, staring at the ceiling once more. “It’s not like anything could work between us. You’re a hero in the people’s eyes. I have far too much blood on my hands to clean off. I care about you yet I’ve been the reason you’ve almost died.” His words are turning into mumbles as he continued to speak.

Is he…? As if on cue, a clap of thunder boomed outside as Lumine realized how he felt.

Lumine wasn’t sure how it washed over her but she found herself pulling Childe up into a tight hug. His arms were frozen in mid-air around her out of shock, but soon after they found his way around her. Lumine’s own hands rested on his back and tangled in his hair, which Childe seemed to be melting into.

“You care about me?”

“Lumi, I— It would never work—”

She pulled back slightly to look him in the eye. For once in the short time that Lumine knew him, he didn’t look confident at all.

“Forget how people view the both of us. Forget the Fatui, our titles, forget everything. You care about me and I… I do too.”

A radiant smile appeared on Childe’s face. “Well, would you look at that. If you kept saying anything else, I may have thought you’ve completely fallen in love with me.”

A blush scattered across Lumine’s face. “I think you’ve said enough to where I can make my own assumptions on how you feel.”

“Is that so?” Childe’s grip on Lumine’s waist tightened slightly as he shimmied down onto his back, Lumine following suit. He held her close to his chest as she snuggled in. “You’re really something else.”

Lumine could barely register the feather-light kiss he placed on the top of her head as they fell asleep to the sound of the pouring rain.

☆彡☆彡☆彡☆彡☆彡☆彡☆彡☆彡☆彡☆彡☆

in conclusion they’re in love your honor-