#multihearted

Angst starters!! – Accepting!!

“That so?”

He chuckles quietly. His expression is unreadable. What he thinks, what he feels… are carefully contained by several layers. He wonders who Saihara’s really trying to convince. Is he trying to convince Amami or himself? Truthfully, the yakuza boss has little idea of where the L Word has come from. He knows they’ve had some… precarious interactions when he’s been drunk, but…

He’s not one to say such deep feelings so readily, even if circumstances were far different than they were. Perhaps in action, his feelings had been obvious whilst drunk. But that was so time ago now. And time changes things, does it not? He knows that change doesn’t come easily, ironically. He knows Saihara can’t change his way unless he wants to. Amami still wishes he would for himself, rather than for him.

After all…. time and distance change things. They no longer see each other or speak in the chatroom regularly. Amami’s in this or that place. Traveling for work. He has priorities that take up most of his thoughts and times. He has time to go sailing as he always dreamed, too.

“Would be lying if I said I knew why you’re bringing this up right now, Saihara-kun.”

He rubs the back of his neck as he looks at the con-artist. He still cares for Saihara. More than just as an ex-business partners. Far less than someone he likes in the sense that has been brought up. Saihara’s just… someone who knows a lot about his past.  An acquaintance. If things were different, maybe he would feel different. Maybe Saihara’s would feel more than like just a dull ache in a corner of his heart. Amami’s been living his life with or without Saihara for some time now. He’s come to terms with it some time ago. He’s made peace with it.

After all, it isn’t as though he’s ever huddled for warmth in a blanket fort with anyone before. In fact, this isn’t huddling. They’re undeniably cuddling.

It’s for the warmth, he reminds himself in a weak attempt to feel a little cooler. His body temperature has certainly skyrocketed, as evidenced by the blush dusted across his cheeks.

…

Despite it all, he feels… content in this peaceful moment with Amami, amidst a rather hectic life. This warmth means something more to him. He can’t help but wonder if Amami feels the same. It’s an unspoken question that lingers in his mind for a second too long, knowing that their priorities had to be placed elsewhere for now.

Even so…

“Are you, ah… warmer now, Amami-kun…?” 

His voice comes out even quieter and softer than usual regardless.

Amami’s a quiet smile, a quiet presence, as they huddle close for warmth. For him, alone is a friend, self sufficiency his life partner, but since they’d gotten out... he finds himself drifting further away, and into his current travel partner’s arms. Quite literally, it seemed.

“Haha, thanks to you.”

The apology’s in his tone, unsaid but conveyed-- sorry, I don’t usually try to sleep outside, he could have said. But after so much travel, he’s sure Saihara understands.

Bad weather conditions aren’t new to him. But with Saihara around, he finds himself taking more care to get to a safer place to sleep.

Shifting the blanket so that they were comfortable, arms wrapping warmer.

“Didn’t mean to stay out here. Sorry about that.”

In the end, it comes out.

“How about you? Are you alright?”

@multihearted​ asked: “ does your pain have a voice ? ” ( venti -> xiao. from jade / multihearted )

Golden eyes narrow. For a gaze that once frightened gods and demons alike, he can’t shake the bard before him. Arms fold across his chest. A shield of his own making. A wall built between himself and the outside world. For their sake, more than his own. No amount of time will be enough to atone for his sins. Nor does he know anything of a life beyond strife and suffering.

Thus he stands guard over Liyue. An endless war. Whether Morax sees their contract as concluded in the wake of his ‘death,’ Xiao carries on as the Bane of All Evil.

A task grueling mentally and physically. He never once complains. Nevertheless, Zhongli insists upon getting his acquaintances to send medicine. That is, if he doesn’t stop by himself. While he doesn’t object to the medicine, the constant company... He doesn’t know quite how to deal with it either.

Not when the bard insists upon asking questions like this. It’s met with silence, at first.

“...”

He certainly could give a voice to his pain. Perhaps Venti is trying to get him to. A question that can lead to more. He’s not oblivious to that. After all, he’s had the freedom to do so for the last millennia. He hasn’t. How could he start now? How could he believe he deserved to? His gaze shifts from Venti, out toward the mountains of Guili Plains.

@multihearted​ asked: intimacy +23 ( zhongli -> diluc. from jade / multihearted )

number twenty-three: moving your head to listen to their heartbeat.

intimacy!! -- not accepting!!

Rex Lapis may no longer be the presiding Archon over Liyue, the man Zhongli is still busy as the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s Consultant. Diluc, too, has little free time unless he plans far ahead. When he’s not at the Winery or the bar, his efforts are put to investigating the Abyss Order. An endless task. To protect Mondstadt, he throws his all into it regardless.

Letters between the two are what must suffice during prolonged times apart. And though the flame wielder may never outwardly admit it, absence does make the heart grow fonder.

Just as he won’t quite admit how much he anticipates their rendezvous at Wangshu Inn. A convenient half way point from their homes. Diluc has planned, with the utmost care, around the fact he would be away from the city for several days. Knowing his contingencies are solid allow him to have peace of mind. To relax.

He’s more than content to spend the day exploring the surrounding area with Zhongli, taking in the sights, learning the history. Trying Liyue’s cuisine, with the other’s opinions on how to cook it to perfection. Until night falls and they retire to their room.

@multihearted​ asked: intimacy +15 ( amber -> lumine. from jade / multihearted )

number fifteen: linking arms.

intimacy!! -- not accepting!!

To most, the trek from Liyue back to Mondstadt would take several days. For this Traveler, however, it’s only a matter of minutes between teleportation points. And with commissions often taking her all over these two nations return trips are no issue for Lumine.

Of course, Mondstadt has become a home away from home for her. Several worlds away. But how could it not be with the amount of friendships she’s formed? Or the adventures she’s been pulled onto? She is, after all, the honorary knight of the Knights of Favonius too.

“Ambeeer..!” she calls out to the Outrider with a warm smile upon her lips when she arrives. She won’t quite admit it, but there’s another she comes back to Mondstadt so frequently. Rather, someone... she wants to see.

@multihearted​ asked: “I’ve been lying to you.” ( zhongli -> tartaglia. from jade / multihearted )

angst starters!!

He’s no stranger to deceit. Treachery. Lies. He’s the Eleventh of the Harbingers. Anyone knows well how the Fatui are full of lies. Tartaglia is, to an extent, the sole exception. He has no interest in lying. He’d rather confront the goal with fierce battle. More often than not, he does. He cares little about the fallout, even if and when scandals erupt.

It’s only when the Tsaritsa herself orders that he play the long game that he’ll comply. And he’s meticulous in his lies, just as he is wielding weapons. Caring for his family. Carrying out the Cryo Archon’s will.

He hadn’t intended to form a friendship in Liyue. He can’t even quite place why he’s willing to spend time with the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor Consultant. Perhaps he’s testing to see how long until Zhongli grows tired of his antics. The day never seems to come no matter how much he expects it.

(Maybe it leaves Tartaglia feeling more complicated than he’d like to admit.)

He admires, respects Zhongli’s love for his home, He, too, wonders why he never questions Tartaglia’s goals in Liyue. Even if news has not spread of Signora’s stealing of Barbatos’s Gnosis, all kinds of rumors circulate about the Fatui’s dealings within the countries of Teyvat. And with how often he’s either with Zhongli or doing this and that around Liyue, it’s evident he’s not in charge of the Northland Bank in the way he’s supposed to be.

Far from home as he is, he’s... somehow content to pass the time until the Rite of Descension. And what a mess it is. Not that he has any complaints, despite the suspicions pointed in his direction. The only disappointment, in the eyes of the warrior, is the chance to fight Rex Lapis has gone with his death.

Nevertheless, with Zhongli spearheading the Rite of Parting and the Traveler assisting him, things are falling into place. Now all he must do is wait for the Qixing to release the Exuvia and the Gnosis will be claimed.

Until Zhongli surprises him once more.

Tartaglia is not easy to catch off guard. An instrument of war cannot afford mistakes. He cannot afford a mistake. He fights with precision. He calculates plans with deadly accuracy. He moves without missing a beat. He never misses a step be it taking down opponents or entertaining diplomats. How, then, is it that one person’s admission can upset his carefully devised balance?

He’s come to value Zhongli’s honesty more than he’d care to admit. Whether it’s spending money, critiquing the most popular dishes in Liyue, observing performances with the  most critically acclaimed actors on stage... the Consultant might just be the most genuine person he’s ever come across. Tartaglia is drawn to that in ways he hadn’t realized until five words bring everything to a complete stop.

“Shouldn’t that be my line, Mr. Zhongli?”

@multihearted​ asked: “You’ve damned us all.” ( scaramouche -> tartaglia. from jade / multihearted )

Scaramouche. Sixth of the Harbingers. Of the eleven, Scaramouche and himself were considered the outsiders. Their attitudes made them stand out from the others. Not that it’s bound them to one another. After all, the Sixth still chooses clandestine operations. Tartaglia is the sole exception to this. He prefers throwing himself in head first. Be it a battle or a show.

To most, his actions are reckless. Dangerous. However, he’s meticulous about every choice he makes. Though he prefers honesty over deceit, the Eleventh Harbinger is fully capable of manipulation like his peers. And it was in his honesty he had been known. Loyalty to his family. Loyalty to Snezhnaya. Loyalty to her majesty, the Tsaritsa.

“It is unfortunate I don’t get to give her majesty a proper goodbye one last time,” Tartaglia laments wistfully. His words are genuine. Just as his respect toward the Cryo Archon is. He respects her even now as he sides with the Geo Archon. As he raises bow, arrow, dagger, spear against her army.

Burn away the old world for me.

Her Decree that he’s carried within his heart since he started climbing the ranks of the Fatui. It might not be in the way she intends, but... Tartaglia is never one to break promises. No matter how ridiculous they might seem. Even as he stands against her, he will one day show her a new world. A world of his own making.

In the meantime...

His melancholy fades away into a daring grin. He can’t deny his thrill for the fight that stands before him. Of the other ten Harbingers, Scaramouche is the one that poses the most threat to his life. And as they once stood on the same side of the Tsaritsa’s war on the world, he couldn’t challenge the other. Now?

All bets are off.

There’s no immediate reply to his request. Red eyes as warm as the evening sun close for a moment. A soft tune is hummed under her breath. One long forgotten in Liyue. The one she once sang to the Glaze Lilies millennia upon millennia ago. One he remembers, no doubt. Guizhong knows well how much he remembers everything.

Everything except Mora, it seems.

Just as she knows he’ll remember this is but a dream in the morning. After all, they cannot stand atop Qingyun Peak together in the real world. Moon Carver created this place after the Archon War.

“I’m not as far away as you think.”

She reaches up, tucking a Glaze Lily behind his ear. She must have picked it somewhere along the way, but where and when? Few wild Glaze Lilies still exist. Guizhong smiles. It’s more melancholic than her usual playful, bright smile. Her hand drops from his ear to cup his cheek.

“I may not be able to follow you any longer, but...”

Her touch lingers, then pulls away to gesture at the beauty of Liyue spreading before them. “I’m here in the beloved nation we built together. In the stone, the trees, the flowers... In the people you’ve spent years guiding. In the freedom of the future you’ve given them to make Liyue their own.”

She faces him once more. A hand reaches out, resting against his chest... Above his heart.

“And most of all, I’m here. Our time has long since gone, but I live on in your actions.”

Guizhong grins this time as her hand moves upward, lightly flicking his forehead. She can just barely reach.

“That’s why you need to keep living your life for you now, Zhongli. You’ve found new and old friends alike, so you don’t have to do it alone. Barbatos... The Traveler... Well, you do need to go apologize to Tartaglia still. Don’t forget that!”