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Today was going to be a good day.
Today, Zhongli and him will go to the tea house, sip some tea, talk about pointless things.
Today, Childe will find more reasons to fall in love with the man.
Today—
"Childe! Please open the door!" Childe hears a muffled voice from his door, and walks towards to open it. He was busy trying to fix his hair and his outfit today, and he doesn't appreciate a distraction.
The Fatui opens the door, and before him its Lumine and her pixie friend, Paimon. He blinks, because the girl is out of breathe so early in the morning. Had she ran? "Yes—?"
"I-It's Zhongli! He's... he's being treated back at Bubu Pharmacy, you have to—-"
Before Lumine could finish her sentence, Childe runs past her, slamming the door behind him and literally in front of Lumine's face. Paimon yelps. "Ugh rude! We came all the way here and he slams the door on us—Lumine?" Paimon looks at her, head tilted.
I wasn't imagining that... right?
"Lumine? What's wrong?" Paimon waves her small hand in front of the traveler, and Lumine snaps out of her thoughts, sheepishly smiling. "Haha, it's nothing. The door slam probably hit my head a bit. Let's go?" Lumine turns and starts to walk back to the pharmacy. Paimon trails after her, calling her name but she doesn't turn back.
That feeling...
The moment Childe steps in the backroom of the pharmacy, was the moment his heart sank to the bottom of the depths.
There on the bed was the consultant to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, eyes closed and seemingly asleep. The difference was, he had several bandages on his head, his arms, and his torso.
Beside Zhongli's bed was Qiqi, who was busy mixing some herbs while humming a tune to herself. In a few moments, she notices a presence behind her and her eyes neither widened nor moved in recognition. "Oh, it's Mr. Childe. Are you here to look after Mr. Zhongli?" she asks, and Childe feels himself go cold. He recognizes some of those herbs. They were—
"Oh these herbs?" Qiqi asks, and turns back to the herbs. "They're poison remedies. Mr. Baizhu said that these would be really effective, but they taste nasty. Good thing Mr. Zhongli is asleep," the girl comments and proceeds to mixing them.
Childe takes one step, but his feet refuses to cooperate any further. His fists clench at his sides. "May I ask what had happened to Zhongli?" the Fatui asks, and Qiqi hums. "Ms. Lumine apparently found Mr. Zhongli by Guyun Stone Forest, slumped on a nearby rock. He was bleeding really bad, and he couldn't talk when they came by. Mr. Baizhu led them here in this room and instructed Qiqi to make Mr. Zhongli fall asleep."
Qiqi continues, "Upon further examination, it seems that Mr. Zhongli was poisoned with a toxin that is commonly found in Snezhnaya. His wounds were a result of a struggle between his attackers and him."
Snezhnaya.
Toxin?
"Qiqi is finished preparing the herbs for Mr. Zhongli's antidote. Now all that's left is to make him drink it so that the poison would be neutralized." The little girl takes a step stool from underneath the bed and brings a spoon filled with a green liquid near the consultant's mouth. Childe stands near the door, watching the scene silently.
Snezhnaya.
Poison.
Attackers.
Ambush?
Qiqi steps down from her step stool, blissfully unaware of the Fatui's inner turmoil. She nods, and at that moment, Lumine and Paimon walk in. "We're back— oh hey Childe!" Paimon greets the other, but the latter doesn't respond to her. This makes the guide annoyed, so she floats over to face the Harbinger. "Childe? What's wrong?" she asks, as she notices the forlorn look on him.
"Childe—"
"Ah good timing Ms. Lumine. Were you able to obtain the herbs Mr. Baizhu asked?" Qiqi cuts off Paimon, and Lumine nods, handing over the bag filled with herbs. "Sorry it took us long. Had to defeat some hilichurls and Treasure Hoarders that were around the area."
While they talked, Childe takes a deep breathe. If the poison was from Snezhnaya, then one thing was certain.
Ah, he forgot to check today's mail.
The Fatui opens his mailbox, and grabs the lone mail in it.
Dearest Tartaglia,
I'm reminding you of your deadline. Our Lady is a patient one, but she insists that I remind you of your task.
How was the present I sent? Did he like it?
Yours Truly,
La Signora
"I'm going out," Childe announces.
Lumine stops peeling the apple and looks up to the Fatui. "Where are you going, Childe?" she asks, but Childe smiles and shakes his head. "I remember that I have some business to do for the Northland Bank. Ekaterina wouldn't be pleased if I forget my duties," Childe sheepishly chuckles, and scratches his head.
Paimon huffs and crosses her arms. "Yeah you should go back! Who knows, you were probably the one who sent those Fatuis—"
"Paimon!"
The smile on Childe's face is abruptly wiped off. "Fatuis? Zhongli's attackers were Fatuis?" the Harbinger asks, his eyes piercing through the traveler's guide. Paimon gulps. "U-Uh..."
Lumine stands up, placing the apple back on the porcelain plate. "Childe, we're not suspecting you of anything. I apologize—"
But before Lumine could finish her sentence, Childe runs out of the room. A few moments passed, and Lumine turns to her guide, arms crossed. "Paimon! We were supposed to keep that a secret! Now look what you did, Childe is probably upset that we suspect him!"
Paimon nervously chuckles, "Paimon apologizes..." Lumine sighs and casts a glance toward the sleeping funeral parlor consultant. "Let's go find Childe and apologize to him."
"That was a very easy job, doncha agree?"
"Haha too easy! The guy carried no Mora though."
"Seriously, who carries no Mora nowadays? How is he even alive?"
"Good question, is he even alive after that poison we got from the boss?"
"So you're the guys that La Signora sent?"
Five heads immediately turn to the source of the voice. Lo and behold, a man with ginger hair waves at them with a smile on his face. One of the Fatuis side glances their friend and nods.
"Yeah. What's that gotta do with you, punk?"
"You askin' for a fight?"
The man laughs, and claps his hands. His eyes open, and they stare straight into their eyes. "I really applaud you for doing such a bold yet stupid decision. Really, it looks like neither of you regret attacking a poor helpless man?"
One of the Fatuis huff, bringing out their gun. "Poor helpless man? That guy literally killed one of our friends! Though, he was dirt poor." the Fatuis bitterly laughs, and Childe stops clapping. His eyes suddenly sharpen, and his Vision starts to brighten the dark cave.
"Well, since you guys are missing your deceased friend, why don't I let you guys see him, hm?" Childe smiles with all teeth, eyes sharp like a predator. His Hydro pole materializes in his hand, ready to strike.
"Let's begin the fun, shall we?"
A loud scream echoes out of a nearby cave, and Lumine immediately catches it. "I heard a scream! Let's go check it out!" Paimon floats to the direction of the scream, Lumine also running towards it. As they run nearer to the cave, a loud laugh is heard. Lumine places a hand to her chest, eyebrows furrowing.
It's this feeling again...!
"Hey doesn't that sound like Childe?"
"Childe—!" Lumine calls out as she steps into the cave, but before she could catch her breathe, she looks at the grotesque scene in front of her.
The aforementioned man turns and faces the traveler, smiling.
"I found them, Traveler!"
There was blood dripping from his face. Not only on his face, but on his hands, and even his whole outfit was drenched in blood.
Lumine takes a step back, horrified with the scene. She brings a hand to cover her mouth, eyes wide as saucers. Paimon who was beside her, also had the same reaction. There was blood all over the place, with bits and pieces of flesh hanging from somewhere. In the midst of the massacre, Childe stands tall and firm, blood dripping from his face while he holds a dagger. The Fatui wills the dagger to disappear and wipes the blood off his face like its just dirt.
"Phew~! That was tiring. They weren't cooperating, you see. And—"
"K-kknghhhh..."
The Harbinger stops in his tracks and looks behind him. The man on the ground groans, but his eyes have been gouged out. He tries to speak, but his neck was gushing out blood just by speaking. "I must've missed a spot. Don't worry, you'll meet your friend soon."
Childe walks back to the man and re-summons his dagger in his right hand. With vigor, he thrusts the dagger back in the man's chest repeatedly. Lumine watches in horror as Childe repeatedly stabs the now-corpse with a smile on his face. Gone were the light in the Harbinger's eyes.
Ah, I know what the feeling was.
It was blood lust.
The walk back to the pharmacy was a quiet one.
Childe notices the considerable distance between him and the traveler. It was understandable. Anyone who witnessed that incidence would be wary and scared of whoever committed that.
As they enter the pharmacy, Qiqi peeks out from the counter and waves at them. "Hello. Mr. Zhongli is feeling better now, so you can talk to him right now." The three of them nod but Childe goes first, entering the backroom without a word.
He opens the door and relief floods his heart as he sees Zhongli quietly reading a book with his back against pillows. The said man notices Childe at the door, and smiles. "You look worse off than the last time I saw you, dear."
Childe laughs, a hearty laugh, and hovers beside the consultant's bed. "Had to take care of some business outside. Those Treasure Hoarders were a tricky bunch, not going to lie." Zhongli closes the book and places it down on the sheets. He reaches over to wipe the blood off the Harbinger's cheek, eyes softening.
"You need not to go for such lengths, my dear Tartaglia. Seeing you like this... pains me." Zhongli chastises the other, frowning as he lets his thumbs wipe off the blood from the other's cheeks. The Fatui leans into the touch, nuzzling the calloused hands. He closes his eyes and smiles sadly.
Only I could hurt you, Zhongli. Only I can do it.
Will you still look at me like that when I steal your heart?