Gods & Monsters

Chapter 4

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Childe woke up.

They both had been slipping in and out of consciousness, hazy visions of a shrine temple, shades of pink and purple hair—was that the Shogun?—but Childe couldn’t tell from his half-conscious state. All he heard were soft murmurs and by the tone of their voices, they were arguing. Childe didn’t care. All he cared about was Lumine, and as long as she was in his arm’s reach, breathing and alive, he didn’t care. Not even if the Shogun was there, or that he was probably in trouble for involving another Archon in the Tsaritsa’s plans. Nope. Don’t care.

The smell of minty herbs filled the air. Lumine’s entire stomach and right arm were wrapped in bandage. His torso was too, and he could feel the scalding mix of heat and cold of the medicinal herbs on his skin.

A tall lady stood from the chair beside him, putting down a book she was reading. She had long, flowing pink hair and was dressed like a shrine maiden, but different somehow. Her Electro vision hung from what suspiciously looked like pink furry ears. There was something about her he didn’t like, but Childe couldn’t put a finger on it. Survival instincts kicked in and told him not to trust a single word this woman was about to tell him.

She hummed. “I was counting on Lumine waking up first, but you’ll do.”

Childe sat upright, pain stinging his muscles with every movement. He had so many questions, mainly who are you and what do you want, but he did not want to give her the upper hand.

The lady opened up her palm and presented it to him. The Gnosis. She closed back her palm before Childe could even attempt to snatch it away. The slightest, instinctive twitch from his arm to grab it and she already knew what he wanted without uttering a word.

Whoever she was, standing before him, holding the Gnosis with no effect on her whatsoever, she was not human.

“I’ve heard all about you, Tartaglia,” she said. “Playing gods’ games in Liyue, and now you’ve come here in Inazuma and you think you could do it again.” The lady sat on the edge of his bed and looked down at him with amusement in her eyes. “I gotta say, Lumine was not exaggerating when she talked about you.”

The mention of Lumine’s name on this lady’s lips flooded Childe with anger, but he took a deep breath. This was not the time to lose control. He needed information. He needed the Gnosis.

The lady continued, looking into the distance and twirling the Gnosis around her fingers. “When the Tsaritsa told us she was going to handle Kunikuzushi, well, let’s just say I expected worse.” She turned to him. “You and Lumine—” she nodded in her direction, “—did us all a favor by getting rid of him.”

With a wave of her hand, a small purple pouch appeared out of thin air. She put the Gnosis inside and handed it to Childe. He hesitated.

“Well, go on, take it,” the lady said, waving it in his face. “Take what you came here for.”

He reached out and took the pouch, checking for the Gnosis inside. “Why?”

The lady tilted her head in confusion. “Why what?”

“Why give this to me just like that? You’re not the Archon.” This was not the Shogun, that he was very much sure of. Still, he wanted answers.

“It’s your reward,” she answered. “You handled the Puppet. Now, give this to your boss, as we agreed.”

As they agreed?

Ah, fuck. The realization hit him like a strike of thunder. “You knew. You and the Shogun, you both knew, but you did nothing.” Everything suddenly made sense. “You could’ve helped us. You could’ve done something—”

“And why would I do your job for you?”

“We almost died. Lumine almost died.”

The lady clicked her tongue. “But you didn’t. She didn’t. You’re starting to sound a little ungrateful, Tartaglia. First, I save your lives, give you medicine, and then I give you the Gnosis, for free, and you’re getting mad at me?” She brought a hand to her chest in mock hurt.

He shook his head. There’s no use arguing with her.

“Now then,” she said, standing up. “Get some rest.”

On the bed next to his, Lumine stirred. She tried to move, but she only groaned in pain. “My arm... what happened?”

The temple was quiet; a shrine maiden must have heard them because one just entered the room. She looked normal for the most part, unlike the lady earlier, but Childe still couldn’t bring himself to trust any of them.

The shrine maiden took no note of him and approached Lumine’s bedside. She stretched open her eyelids, staring too closely at Lumine’s eyeballs like she lost something in them and was trying to find it. Next, she brought a finger up and slowly moved it in front of Lumine, her eyes following the movements.

“Can you hear me?” the shrine maiden said. “Do you remember your name?”

Lumine nodded. “Yeah, Lumine. What happened?”

The maiden didn’t answer.

“What are you doing to her?” Childe asked.

She turned and looked at him like she was only noticing him just then. “Checking her vitals.”

“And?”

“Looks like there wasn’t much irreversible damage done. She might have short term memory loss, but she’ll only need a little jogging to remember what happened.”

The shrine maiden turned to leave.

“Wait, aren’t you going to check my vitals?”

She glanced back at him, giving him a once-over. “You look fine to me,” she said, before promptly leaving.

Childe turned to Lumine. “You good?”

“I think so. I could barely remember what happened,” she said, sitting up with a lengthy groan.

Maybe it was better that she couldn’t remember. “Best not to think about that right now.”

“What about you? Do you remember?”

He hesitated. “Not much.”

Lumine brought a hand to her brow, massaging it. “I can remember what happened... yesterday, if that was yesterday, when we first met again and, um, what followed.” Heat rose to her cheeks, tinging it a rosy hue. “But that’s all.”

Childe stood up and joined Lumine on her bed, tucking himself under the blanket beside her. “I think you should get some rest.”

She shook her head, her brow furrowed in concentration. “Wait, why were you in Inazuma again?”

He was not about to have this conversation again. “You don’t look well, Lumine.”

“No, I’m fine. Shush, I’m trying to remember something.”

Childe sighed. Any moment now.

“Childe,” Lumine said, her voice tentative. “Do you have the Gnosis?”

Well, it was worth a try.

She continued, “Where’s Scaramouche? Archons, did I kill him?”

He snorted. “Almost.”

“I think I died. I don’t know. It’s still coming back to me. Wait, didn’t you die?”

Childe shrugged. “I thought so too. I honestly thought we were both going to die.”

Lumine smiled, and his heart just melted at the sight. Then, her face dropped. “He’s gone, isn’t he? Scaramouche?”

He gave an imperceptible nod. “I didn’t have a choice. Lumine, I hope you don’t—”

She seized him by the chin for a greedy kiss. He let her tongue part his lips, enjoying the way Lumine was being aggressive and eager. She pressed on, cradling his face in her hands. Childe could feel the minute way her fingers and lips were trembling, the way she tried to steady herself against him, and he knew something was wrong.

He pulled away and saw a film of tears in Lumine’s eyes. He brushed it off with a swipe of his thumbs. “Lumine, what’s wrong?”

“I remember. I remember now,” Lumine said, her voice shaking. “I remember seeing you die, and I just lost it. I really thought I lost you.”

“Look at me, Lumine. I’m still here.”

Lumine leaned into his hand cupping her cheek. “I know. But I remember everything now. I thought you died. And that rage I felt? I didn’t want to let up on Scaramouche. If you hadn’t called my name then, I don’t think I would have stopped. The scary part is, I really wanted to kill him. I wanted to break his bones and let him bleed out. I know I could have.

”I still feel it. Only a little, but the rage is still there. I had thought I could resolve things peacefully, like always. That no one had to die. What a joke.” Lumine laughed bitterly. “If you hadn’t killed him, we’d both be dead by now.”

Childe sighed, remembering his own little meltdown upon touching the Gnosis. He could still feel it—the high he felt from that power. It was dangerous, even for his standards, and for a split-second he thought of the Tsaritsa and her plan. He wondered what it would be like to have all of the Gnosis. If he trusted anyone to handle that kind of power, it was Her Majesty. He would have counted Lumine, if not for her own violent frenzy. He wanted to count himself, too, but he knew he was not ready. Not when he could not control himself with it.

It was not a pretty sight, and he was grateful Lumine was not conscious for any part of it. Childe knew she could take it, take him on if the need arose. She didn’t need protection, least of all from him. Still, he couldn’t help but be protective. It was in his nature, just as deep-rooted as the Abyssal blood in him.

“Humans are capable of unspeakable things when it comes to their own survival,” he said. “And you were right. What we do—we make our own justifications. To believe what we’re doing is right. That it is the only way. If we stopped to think about the consequences and morality of our actions, we would never get anything done.

“I used to think about it every day. What would happen to a man’s children when I killed him. How old they were, if their mother was alive, where would they go. And I thought, it didn’t matter. What I do in this job, I do it for my family. That is my justification. My greater good.”

Childe reached out to brush Lumine’s hair off her face, tucking it behind her ear. “I’ve done horrible things, Lumine. Tortured. Killed. And I would do all of it, again and again. No hesitation. No regrets.”

He knew Lumine would understand. She was like that, too, even if she did not want to admit it. She rarely admitted anything like that out loud. But he knew, if Lumine was given a choice between her twin brother and him—or anyone else, really—he knew they both would make the same decision in a heartbeat. Morality be damned.

And when Lumine nodded, wiping off the tears in her eyes with her wrists, Childe knew she understood.

Childe planted a kiss on her forehead. “Let’s get some rest, Lumine.” He jumped off her bed and before he could climb on his, he felt a cold, clammy hand holding on to his wrist.

“Don’t you dare leave when I wake up,” Lumine said.

How cute. He gave her a smile. “I won’t.”

“Promise me.”

Ah, yes. Lumine knew Snezhnayans kept their promises lest they get thrown in the ice, thanks to a rhyme Childe taught to his own little brother Teucer.

“I promise I won’t leave you.”

Her hand on his wrist tightened, but she let go with a wistful smile.

It was a tall order, his promise to her, but it was nothing he hadn’t done before. And if it was Lumine, his Lumine, he would do anything.

Lumine woke up.

It only had been a day since, and she returned to her cozy room at the local inn after sending her thanks to the Lady Guuji. Lumine tried asking questions about what happened, but of course, it wouldn’t be Yae Miko if she didn’t give away vague answers to important questions.

As he promised, Childe was still there when she woke, following her back to the inn. They both promptly passed out, still recovering from getting beaten half to death.

And here she was, awake, her head laying on Childe’s chest, his arm wrapped around her. Childe was deep in sleep, his chest slowly and steadily rising and falling.

Lumine snuggled closer, trying to savor the moment—his warmth, his scent. This was rare; normally he would not stay and she would wake alone. If she knew getting Childe to promise to stay would work, she would have done it earlier.

Nothing quite like almost dying could give her clarity on their mortality. Lumine was more than 500 years old, and she took it for granted. A few months with a lover was nothing but a blink of an eye to her in the grand scheme of things.

And yet, that whiff of death got her feeling like she was only twenty years old again. Young, naive, unknowing.

So it did not come as a surprise to her when she blurted out, Promise me, like a desperate plea. It was desperate. 500 years did not matter if she lost him. It was such an insane thought, but there it was. Like she was twenty again and falling in love for the first time and inevitably getting her heart broken when she outlived them.

Lumine thought she knew better by now. But as she caught herself studying Childe’s adorable face as he slept, she knew: she was fucked. Literally and figuratively.

She lightly brushed his hair with his fingers. His hair that never stayed still, always so fiery and wild, just like Childe himself. Her thumb grazed his cheek softly. His face was peppered with freckles so light she could only really see them when she was this close to him.

Childe stirred at her touch. He was always a light sleeper, an asset for a Fatui Harbinger like him, a disadvantage for Lumine, who only wanted to admire him quietly for longer.

“Mmm,” he hummed, leaning into her hand.

He was awake, but his eyes were still closed. He turned to Lumine and pulled her closer, leaving a trail of kisses all over her face.

“Childe!” she couldn’t help but giggle, warmth spreading throughout her body from the kisses.

He pulled away, finally opening his eyes. “What?”

This feeling… it was dangerous and Lumine knew better than to lean into it, but she was well past that at this point.

She kissed him. It was a tender kiss; her soft lips pressed into his, trying to restrain herself from just consuming the warmth of his mouth. Childe followed her lead, taking it slow and gently biting her upper lip.

It was not like they could actually get rough; her entire body still felt swollen from the ordeal. But she wasn’t complaining. Lumine loved the change of pace.

“More,” Lumine whispered into his mouth, but it was more like a moan than a word uttered.

Childe was more than happy to oblige. In a split second he was on top of her, his teeth grazing the skin of her throat. His hands were everywhere—caressing her arms down to her thighs, pulling her close to him.

“More,” she gasped. He palmed her breast, rolling a nipple between his fingers. “More,” and he switched his attention to the other one, sucking and biting it swollen. “More,” again and again she repeated her pleas, her voice turning into incoherent gasps. It was out of her control now. He knew just the right ways and places to touch her, and she wanted more and more, tugging and pulling on his hair to urge him on.

Childe fulfilled her requests with enthusiasm. His fingers traced the curve of her inner thigh, moving upward in a languid manner until he reached her drenched cunt. His breath hitched at the touch, but he didn’t say a word. He rubbed her clit in slow circles, looking straight into her eyes. Lumine could not look away, not even if she wanted to. Childe’s eyes had a way of riveting her, locking her in place.

He picked up the pace; her cunt made obscenely wet sounds as he worked into her. She was close, and he knew it by the way her gasps turned into affirmations after affirmations, begging him not to stop, “Never,” he answered—and there it was, her voice a yielding crescendo, her hips quaking in pace with his fingers.

Lumine’s breathing turned shallow and she could feel her heart beat in her ears. She held on to Childe’s arm for purchase. He leaned down and gave her a kiss. It was another tender one and Lumine could just melt at the softness of it all.

“I love you,” he whispered, almost inaudible, so he repeated it, louder this time. “I love you, Lumine.”

What? she wanted to say. Instead, she settled for a very intelligent, “Uh…”

Childe stifled a laugh. “It’s okay, you don’t have to say it back. I just wanted to tell you, let you know before…” his voiced trailed off. He didn’t need to continue; she knew. Before anything else happens. Before one of them died and missed the chance. More likely, he would die first.

Lumine would never admit it, let herself be attached and give herself away again. But maybe it was high time she did. She really was well past it already. Might as well.

She caressed his face, staring into his ocean blue eyes and felt like she could drown in them. “I love you.”

His eyes widened, like he honestly didn’t expect it from her, then his smile turned so wide it reached both his ears. His smile turned into a laugh, not like he would with a joke, but more like a laugh of relief. Then he was kissing her everywhere again and she clung onto him and didn’t want to let go.

She waited for that feeling of regret in her stomach, but it never came. Instead, there was only relief. A weight lifted off her shoulders.

“Again,” he whispered. “I want to hear it.”

Lumine giggled. “I love you, okay?” She didn’t want to think about outliving him, or anything else, really. For once, she would live in the moment, this moment precisely. “Happy now?”

Childe nodded, studying her face intently. “More than, Lumine. Are you?”

She smiled in earnest, nodding back. “Yes.”

Hearing this encouraged him, going back to kissing her, on her shoulders, collarbone, and just above the curve of her breasts. “I’ll make you happy, Lumine. The happiest.”

NOTES

3.3 update/spoilers:

hey, soooo this fic is obviously canon divergence, not that it wasn't ever accurate to the lore or any theories, this was more for fun and what I thought would've happened with scaramouche and with childe if he was involved? (not that I thought he would've died in game, anyway)

also looking back on this four months later, i realize i might not have executed the idea like how i originally wanted it. i won't be coming back to rewrite the whole thing but i might revisit the idea in the future :)

regardless, i hope y'all enjoyed this short story!

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