Gods & Monsters

Chapter 1

NOTES

Hello! It's been a while since I wrote, and I had this idea brewing for months now. Hope you like it! <3

See the end of the work for more notes.

Lumine had just arrived at Komore Teahouse for another round of hotpot with Thoma and Ayaka. From afar, Lumine could see Thoma outside the teahouse, leaning over the guardrails, seemingly deep in thought. He wasn’t in his usual Inazuman armor, which Lumine thought was strange. Was there a special occasion?

“Hey, Thoma! Sorry, I’m late. Is Ayaka here already?” Lumine yelled as she closed the distance between them. Her footsteps faltered as she approached. Did Thoma get a haircut? And what’s with the red scarf? And the grey shirt...

That’s—

That’s not Thoma.

“Hey, girlie,” Childe said, turning around. “Who’s Thoma?”

Lumine’s eyes widened, taking in the man before her.

No, no, no. Not here. Not now.

Lumine took wide, measured steps, grabbed him by the arm, and dragged him to the side of the teahouse, out of view of Inazuman citizens.

She shoved him lightly against the wall. “What are you doing here?”

“Easy, Lumine,” Childe said, raising his hands in mock surrender. “I know Fatui aren’t welcome here. That’s why I ditched the mask for now.” He leaned against the wall, hands in pockets. “I just thought I’d find you here. I heard what you did for Inazuma. Really impressive work, as usual.”

Lumine clicked her tongue. “What. Are. You. Doing. Here! I just cleaned up the Fatui’s mess in Inazuma and now here you are. I know you’ve come to start trouble, so you might as well tell me what you’re up to so I can stop it, right here, right now.”

Childe laughed. “Straight to business as usual, Lumine.”

Lumine heard footsteps and voices nearby. “Have you seen Lumine, Thoma? She said she’d be here by now.”

Ayaka and Thoma.

Damn it, I can’t let them see him. I have to wrap this up quick, Lumine thought, her heart racing.

Childe held up a finger to her lips before Lumine could speak. “Shh, I know, I know, you’re busy. Let’s talk later. Thoma’s waiting.” With a pause, he continued, moving closer to Lumine’s face, “You replaced me so quickly. Is he as handsome as I am, girlie?”

Heat rose to her cheeks.

He moved away and shrugged. “I guess he is, huh? I might have to see this for myself.”

“You are not coming with me.”

Childe pouted. “Oh, come on, Lumine!” He continued, in a louder voice, almost a shout, “Is that a way to welcome your dear old pal in Inazuma?”

“Oh, is that Lumine?”

Shit. They heard us.

Ayaka and Thoma rounded the corner of the teahouse, smiling and waving at them. “Thoma and I heard someone, but wasn’t sure if it was you. Who’s this? A friend from Mondstadt?”

Childe looked at her, the widest smirk plastered on his face. She stared daggers back at him before turning to Ayaka with a wry smile. “I met him in Liyue, but he’s from—”

“Fontaine. My name’s Childe, by the way.”

Ayaka nodded, in awe of meeting another outlander, probably.

Lumine continued, now facing Childe, “These are my friends, Ayaka and Thoma.”

“Nice to meet you two. Lumine told me so much about you. Especially you, Thoma,” Childe said, bowing slightly. Lumine wasn’t surprised he knew the proper greeting in Inazuma, considering he had been traveling all around Teyvat already.

Thoma looked flustered, blushing. “Me? I hope it’s nothing embarrassing!”

“Oh, no! Actually, she told me you looked handsome—” Lumine interrupted, slapping Childe a little too hard on the shoulder.

“How about that hotpot, then?” Lumine said, ushering Ayaka and Thoma inside the teahouse.

“Well, that was fun,” Childe said behind her.

Lumine turned around to face him. “You’re not coming?”

“You said I can’t join you.”

Lumine rolled her eyes. “Come on, you already met them anyway. Might as well.”

Childe smiled and pinched her cheek. “I’m just messing with you, girlie. I have work to do, but I’ll see you later. By the way, I can see the resemblance between me and Thoma. You got good taste, Lumine.”

“Shut up!”

He winked, then walked away.

Lumine didn’t know if she should feel disappointed or relieved he wasn’t joining them for dinner. But whatever he was here for, it couldn’t be good. Trouble always, always followed a Fatui Harbinger.

Lumine had waited. She half-expected him to interrupt their dinner and join in, charming all of them with his fat wallet, insisting to pay for dinner, and no, he didn’t mind, not at all. That was what he always did, just to be the center of their attention. Her attention.

But he didn’t come. This, she half-expected, too. He wasn’t lying when he said he had work to do. And somehow, the worst things always seemed to happen when he was completely honest.

She walked back to the inn and up the stairs to her room. There was someone inside.

Lumine had opened the door, and while the lights were off, she knew someone was there. She didn’t know how or why, but her eyes had always seen a little more in the dark than the usual human. Perhaps it was a remnant of her true powers? To bring light into the dark? She waved the thought away.

She crossed the threshold slowly, closing the door behind her. It was pitch black now, but it didn’t matter; she knew where he was. Without a second thought, Lumine lunged at the person sitting on the bed, pinned him down, and pressed her arm down his throat.

Face to face, Lumine saw who the trespasser was. So, he did come. Of course.

“It’s you,” she said, not releasing him from her grip.

Childe gave a wide grin. “It’s me.”

“Knocking is what people do, Childe.”

Childe had locked his legs around hers and flipped themselves over, holding Lumine down. “Where’s the fun in that?”

Lumine could feel her heart pounding loud and fast in her ears. It had been a long time since they were this close, so close she could breathe in his scent. How intoxicating. It’s been so long—

Get a grip, Lumine.

It never ended well for the two of them. Being close to him again... Her chest twinged with pain and longing.

Childe gazing deeply at her didn’t help. Those deep blue eyes, always searching. And his tousled hair, never in place. His lips...

Your lips are a mistake, Lumine thought. But she closed the distance anyway, cupping his cheek before planting a soft kiss on his lips. She felt him smile into her mouth, then he gently pushed her down on the bed to deepen the kiss.

“Straight to business as usual, Lumine,” Childe said, and pulled away with a giddy grin.

She grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back down.

How am I supposed to stop myself when you’re this close to me? Lumine didn’t know how to say it out loud, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to, so she did what she did best. She turned themselves around so she was sitting on him. Her finger trailed over the buttons of his shirt, unclasping them one by one.

Slowly, she thought. He only watched her undress him. Lumine peeled his shirt back, taking him in. She traced the scar on his abdomen. Childe never told her the stories behind his scars, and Lumine never asked. Perhaps it was a boundary they both didn’t want to cross. Too much intimacy, the thought passed her mind. It seemed silly, given they had done things ordinary friends did not normally do.

If she could even call this a friendship. Hell, they didn’t know what to call it.

I missed you, Lumine thought, despite herself. She took the plunge and kissed him again, guiding his hands to wrap around her. Feel me, she wanted to say.

I missed you too, Lumine, Childe didn’t say, but she knew that look in his eyes. That perpetual hunger, never satisfied, never sated. Only knowing how to devour and ravage.

And oh, how she wanted it. It didn’t matter that they were supposed to be enemies. All the things he did, how he betrayed her and her friends. All his deeds faded away in the moment. Like it didn’t matter. None of it did when their bodies became tangled together like this.

Nothing else existed—only her riding him with insatiable need, and him gripping her hips and shoving himself deep within her with every thrust. Even when Lumine was on top he couldn’t relinquish control. No, he never did. Maybe this was another boundary they would never cross.

Childe fully took control now, swapping their positions and placing her beneath him. They fell into silence for a while; he only gazed at her, drinking her in.

Lumine looked away. “You're making me feel self-conscious.”

He laughed. “We've been at this for months, and you still feel self-conscious when I look at you?”

She clicked her tongue. “Just get on with it already.”

He obliged, leaning down to leave a trail of light kisses from her jaw, down to her shoulders, her breasts to her belly. Why was he suddenly being so gentle? Lumine bit her tongue at the thought.

The only time he ever was this gentle, this intimate was... Well. The last time was the night before Osial.

“Childe, please. No more teasing,” she whimpered.

He looked up at her from between her legs. “Please, what?”

“Just... please.”

He planted a kiss, but not quite where she wanted it. “Use your words, Lumine.”

There it was. That's the Childe she knew.

She gripped him by the hair and shoved him down. “I want you to make me cum, Childe.”

“My pleasure,” he said, getting to work.

Fuck, it's been so long. They had been at it for months, until he left and she had to move on to Inazuma. Lumine had her fair share of conquests since, but none of them could compare to him, as cliché as it seemed. No one else knew her body, her curves, her desires like he did.

It wasn't even that she didn't enjoy the others. It wasn't even that he could make her unravel and fall apart so, so easily under him. It was something else. She couldn't explain it.

“Fuck, Childe—”

It was all the signal he needed. He kept lapping at her, steadying the pace as she finished.

Childe crawled up to meet her and kiss her. Lumine tasted herself in his mouth. He leaned down to her neck, grazing his teeth over her skin. A soft moan escaped both their mouths as he entered her slowly. He slid in, out, so torturously slow.

“Are you going to make me beg again?” she groaned, raking her nails on his back.

He hummed. “Did you miss me? Did you miss me inside you, fucking you like this?”

Heat rose to Lumine’s cheeks, despite herself. They were literally having sex, and yet she’s still not used to him talking filthy in her ear.

“Come on, Lumine,” he urged her on, still going painfully slow. “Don’t be shy. Tell me. Did you miss me fucking you slow, or do you want me to fuck you hard and rough?”

She let out a soft whine. “Please... hard...”

“What was that?” This time, he stayed still inside her, his length filling her up. “Words, Lumine.”

“Fucking hell, Childe, you’re never going to make this easy, are you?”

He grinned. “Never, darling. Now, tell me, I wanna hear it.”

Lumine cursed under her breath. Her need outweighed her pride. “Fuck—I want it hard and rough. Fuck me like there’s no tomorrow.”

“Happy to oblige.”

He picked up the pace, falling into the rhythm they were used to. The first time they did it, they were an awkward mess of limbs, with him constantly asking if she was really okay with him going all out and her nodding every time. Now, they still danced around it, but it was more to tantalize her than anything else. Lumine would never admit it out loud, but she loved it.

Childe lifted her legs on his shoulders and held on the headboard for balance. Lumine gripped the sheets as he fucked her, stifling her own moans with a soft whimper. She loved it. She loved the way she couldn’t feel anything else but him, an amalgam of pain and pleasure, sliding in and out of her with a force that’s sure to leave her walking side to side in the morning. And she loved it, all of it.

He pulled out and guided her by the hips to get on her knees and bend over. He kneaded her ass, spreading them apart and slapping her lightly on the cheeks. Lumine’s breath hitched at the sharp contact. Again, eliciting another gasp from her. And again and again and again until her elbows gave way and she’s a whimpering mess. Finally, finally, he entered her again, and this time she didn’t have to beg for it.

This angle—ass up and fucked from behind—hit her in the right places. Lumine felt the knot in her building up, twisting and tightening, pleading for release. Childe didn’t let up; instead he steadied the pace as she clenched around his length.

“Yes, that’s it, keep going,” she said, almost incoherent. “I’m so close.”

Childe leaned down on her and whispered in her ear, “Lumine. Come for me.” And like a command, she obeyed involuntarily, the knot finally unraveling into her release. Her body went slack, the waves seizing her under.

“That’s a good girl.”

He didn’t stop, his hips thrusting harder and harder. She’s a mess, panting and gasping his name over and over, the pleasure gradually turning to pain in her sensitive state. He muttered a curse and she knew he was coming. His thrusts became relentless, his voice a deep guttural groan and with a quivering “Lumine—”, he eventually slowed to a gradual stop.

He collapsed on her, their skin sweaty and hot, and held her close, both basking in the aftermath of their orgasm. He pulled out of her, cum dripping, and cuddled her from behind.

Childe traced the skin on her arm with a finger. Lumine leaned back on his chest, sighing. Silence fell over them, and she was content to lay peacefully like this. Except, her mind was telling her different. She needed answers.

“That was—” Lumine started.

“Shh. Let’s just stay like this for a while.”

“Why did you come here? To Inazuma?” Was this another mistake? she thought. Or did you really miss me?

“Let’s not talk about this right now.”

Lumine turned to face him. “No, Childe. You didn’t come all the way to Inazuma just to sleep with me.”

“Are you really going to ruin the moment? Never mind, it’s already ruined.”

She rolled her eyes. “You know I’m right. What a coincidence, too, that the Sakoku Decree just got lifted. What are you really here for, Childe?”

“Let me just get this out of the way: you’re the one who kissed me.”

“Don’t pretend that wasn’t what you intended to happen.”

Childe sighed. “Maybe if you stopped pretending you didn’t want it, that this is bad, then maybe you’d stop feeling so guilty after. And you’re right, I’m here for business, but I thought it wouldn’t hurt to see you again. I guess I was wrong.”

He sat up and put on his undershirt. “I thought it’d be different this time,” he muttered under his breath.

Never ends well. She swallowed the thought and sat up beside him. “Childe... I didn’t mean—”

Childe shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. I’m leaving tomorrow, right after I’m done with my job here.”

“Already?”

“It’s a quick job, not like last time.”

There was nothing else the Fatui needed in Inazuma... except—

“The Gnosis,” Lumine said out loud. “I thought Scaramouche had it?”

He nodded. “We lost contact. I have a feeling he’s not planning on giving it up.”

Lumine was afraid to ask, but she had to know. “What will you do? I hope there’s no awakening ancient underwater gods this time.”

He chuckled. “No, nothing like that. This time, I don’t need to put on a show. But I am raring for a fight with that little brat. I’ll make sure he gets to meet Signora too.”

“Childe!”

“What? I’m serious. We both know he’s not giving it up while he’s alive.”

He continued, “Scaramouche has become a liability to Her Majesty. He’s an automaton that gained sentience, and with the power he wields? The Gnosis might be the only thing he needs before his power reaches Archon levels—it might even reach beyond that—and then.” In a softer voice, “Then it will be too late.”

Memories of her friendship with Teppei came flooding back. He died because of Scaramouche’s actions. Rage bubbled beneath her but Lumine swallowed it down. This line of thinking—playing judge, jury, and executioner, Lumine thought, is a slippery slope to madness. And with that, Lumine replied, “You know I can’t let you kill him, Childe.”

“And why not? He’s not human. He’s a monster.”

“He’s a live and sentient being, Childe!” She scoffed. “And speak for yourself. Does your Foul Legacy not make you a liability as well? You know how easily you can lose control in the heat of battle. How do you know the Tsaritsa doesn’t have that same plan for you?”

Childe grimaced and looked away. “If I lose control, then it’s only right for Her Majesty to have me killed. This curse, this tainted blood—it made me who I am now, and I can’t change that.”

“And what is that?”

“A monster.”

Lumine remained silent, but she knew Childe was searching for an answer in her face. An objection, anything to disprove him, that he wasn’t what everyone thought he was.

Childe’s eyes flickered with a violet flash. “I don’t blame you. Or anyone else. Even I don’t know if I’m still human. You cut me, I bleed. I eat, shit, sleep like any other human. When I’m happy, I laugh and I swear when I’m mad. But what does this all matter if at the end of the day I’m just a weapon? A trigger to be pulled? Is that really such a bad thing?”

When Lumine didn’t speak, Childe continued. “Does that make me a monster?”

“I can’t answer that for you.”

“What do you think?” he asked after a moment’s silence.

“No, it doesn’t.” She moved closer to caress his bare arm, patterned with scars, old and new. “But there’s a line.”

Childe pulled away from her. “And if I cross that line, will that make me a monster to you? No, don’t answer that.” He sighed. “Trust me, Lumine. What I’m doing, this mission, it’s the lesser evil. For all of us.”

“Evil is evil, Childe. Anyone can say anything is a lesser evil for their own agenda, as justification for the horrific things they do.”

He shook his head. “I hope there doesn’t come a day when you’re faced with a choice between lesser evils, and you can do nothing but watch as fate makes the choice for you.”

“I don’t believe in fate.” She nudged closer, tracing his jaw to face her. “Listen Childe, I know I haven’t only done good in my life. I’ve made mistakes. But in a choice between evil and the lesser, there’s always another path. Always.”

He kissed her softly. “I wish I lived in the same world as you do, Lumine.”

Lumine took his hand and pressed it to her cheek. “Don’t do this, Childe. Please.”

“If I lose control, you know how to stop me.”

“No. Stop. Stop it. I can’t let you do this. You’re not going to kill Scaramouche. No blood is going to be spilled. I’ll make the choice to get the Gnosis, and no one is going to get hurt.”

Another soft, lingering kiss. Childe pulled away with a fraction of an inch and whispered to her mouth, “Alright, you win, Lumine. We’ll face him together.” His hand snaked around her waist, pulling her in. “But for now, come. I’m not done with you yet.”

Lumine leaned into him, leaving a trail of kisses from his neck down to his shoulder. “You never play fair, do you?”

“Where’s the fun in that?”

NOTES

I'm a sucker for characters having philosophical/existential conversations, and I think you'll find I write it in all my fics. This one was inspired from the book, The Last Wish. Witcher fans will know, lmao.

Also! I feel like I'm improving with my smut scenes, I think. It's definitely a bit milder than the tags might suggest, so if you expected a bit more spiciness, sorry about that!

If you liked this work, consider leaving kudos or a comment on AO3↗.