#dawnscall

Hiding things from a man with a wide net cast to collect information was certainly not an easy thing, but it surely was not impossible for a stubborn, ancient, ex-archon to do when he was determined to. Diluc's birthday was something he had been looking forward to for some time, and though he had been made aware it was not necessarily a cheerful occasion for the young redhead, Zhongli couldn't sit by and do nothing- and he certainly couldn't allow his beloved to be alone if he felt inclined to hide away and wait it out.

It was early in the morning that he'd arrived at Dawn Winery before the sun had even risen as he'd detailed in secret notes he'd exchanged with the head house staff he's gotten to know during his visits. They were all quite enthusiastic to help surprise their young master, and that worked to his advantage with being offered all of the help he could've ever wanted to be ready for the day. However, he chose to be left to his own devices in the kitchen for now to prepare the ingredients he'd slyly had delivered beforehand. It was a long, laborious process- longer only because Zhongli was so particular in how he wished to prepare his beloved's first meal- but one he was more than happy to do on this very special day.

Peaceful and enjoyable were not words Zhongli would have ever thought to associate with Mondstadt given the presence of a certain drunkard bard that he would expect to run into if he so much as stepped foot in the land of freedom, but as he found himself quietly sipping a passable cup of tea in a quieting bar late at night that is what he felt. The earlier hours had been a bit loud and rowdy, but as the night wore on the bar's patrons would find their way home leaving Zhongli to eventually be the last customer seated at a table, glancing at the bartender who was boring a hole right through him with a particularly fiery gaze.

These were the moments Zhongli would never find himself taking for granted. The quiet calm which settled between them as Diluc fully let his guard down was something precious- something to be truly treasured as it was a show of trust not many could earn. It was something that made the old god extremely proud, content to melt right into his beloved as his work came to an end and arms found themselves wound around this irresistibly cute man nearly dozing off right in front of him.

"I may have indulgently prolonged the process, but it would certainly become no issue to carry you to bed where you could rest." Not that Zhongli made any move to do so. His arms remained firmly wrapped around Diluc, pulling him back until he was settled his lap so that he might finally be able to give into his long-held desire to press his lips to the exposed skin of Diluc's neck.

"All time spent at your side is more valuable to me than gold, and even if sleep should take you earlier than usual that will not change. As a matter of fact, I quite enjoy watching you sleep." Another kiss, or two, or three trailed up Diluc's neck, one of Zhongli's arms only releasing it's hold to brush aside the freshly tamed mane of red hair so that he could continue.

"Seems like it's my lucky day when I've been informed you're in as the master of the house. Who better than you to get the answers I'm looking for?" It had been a long trip to make from Sumeru City to Mondstadt to not even be sure he'd meet the famed Ragnvindr heir of Dawn Winery, but as always things seemed to fall right into place with his plans. Excellent.

Nervousness was not a feeling Childe has experienced much in a long, long time. Feelings like fear and nerves and hesitation were things he'd left behind in what felt like a completely different life before he fell into the Abyss and all he was really left with was a near insatiable desire to grow stronger by any means necessary. Even now he didn't feel nervous as he walked up the well-worn path to Dawn Winery where he'd left not so long ago after an action he'd taken purely on impulse that might finally get him killed at the hands of a certain pyro-inclined claymore user after already asking the world of the man who had no real reason to want to help him.

There was no nerves here, just a hint of embarrassment that tinged the tips of his ears pink as he gave Diluc's door a knock and debated whether or not he should summon his hydro swords now just to be ready for what was probably going to be a fight for his life. Why had he even kissed Diluc like that so suddenly? It wasn't like him to get lost in his emotions after years of intense training with the Fatui, but after the whirlwind he'd gone through alongside the feisty redhead he hadn't been able to look away from that damned objectively handsome face and how he looked stunning tearing into his enemies and downright breathtaking when the Harbinger hadn't known whether or not he'd ever see it again and then-... well... he'd leaned in and before he knew it his lips met Diluc's and he was off without a word to handle the rest of his business.