i'm dragging a heart that weighs a ton / holding out for not just anyone

[monoceroscaeli]

[Fontaine: The technological hub of Teyvat.

For as long as anyone can remember, the country of Fontaine has always been the innovative center for the continent. High speed rail was originated here, and now spans across the entirety of Teyvat and beyond. High rises and skyscrapers pepper the skyline, modern Victorian buildings supporting a gear-like aesthetic from an era gone by. A thousand years ago, it was a much different place, but now it thrives with the bright lights and bustle of its people. One can hear the occasional street performer playing for cash, as businessmen and tourists alike walk down narrow cobblestone streets. People are buried in their phones, some take pictures as they gawk at the sights of the city, but one young man in particular walks languidly down the street, enjoying the life around him. He's in no hurry to get where he's going, as he has plenty of time to get there, noting a deli across the street from where he is now that he'll have to try.

Unfortunately, he is on business, so that'll have to wait.

Never being one to be dressed completely formal, he wears a comfortable pair of slacks and dress shoes, with a collared shirt that isn't buttoned up all the way under a grey vest. Various pieces of metal are woven into the vest, notably a crest on his right shoulder with a chain attached to it that hangs under his arm to the back. On his belt lies a Vision, glowing blue with hydro. The young man always seems friendly and easy going, but what lies underneath is something that not many are allowed to know- the heir to the family business of a company who develops tech for various products is also the right hand man of the mafia that runs the city.

And, their true business behind the scenes; creating Delusions to sell on the black market.

Today is a day where some investigating has to be done, and he's headed to see an old friend of his, from university. One that he's sure can help him with this problem he has. Entering the building, he swings in quietly to give a polite wave and a smile to the only person there.

Someone who looked exactly like their brother, whom he can only assume is the twin sister he'd yet to meet that he'd heard about.]

Hello, I was wondering if Aether was in today? I had a...business proposal for him, and I'm sure that he'd love to hear it. Unless of course, you might be of assistance instead.

Comments

[monoceroscaeli]

[Rounding a corner, he finds the kitchen, more looking over the cooking utensils and other appliances that he might purchase for his own kitchen later, wondering if Lumine's finally decided to follow him inside. When he hears her close the door, he smiles, leaving the kitchen through another entrance into the dining room, looking through the doorway at Lumine.]

I'm looking for anything that's out of place, something that sticks out. This used to be Childe's quarters when he stayed in Liyue- perhaps there's something leftover from that time.

[He walks back out to the living room with her, turning and heading down a hallway and poking his head in a few rooms. There's no way he'll be able to tell where anything was back then, but it won't matter.

He just hopes she won't be too terribly mad at him after this.]

Come here for a second.

[traversal]

[ .................. she doubts that. looking around the place and rummaging through the memories that the vision left behind, nothing seems to match the style of childe's apartment back then. sure, the architecture is still mostly there, the familiar beams of liyuen craftmanship visible with the carvings of its adepti, but every else seems to have changed.

whoever's living in it now seems to be more fond of luxury than the harbinger ever was.

lumine hesitates when he suddenly calls her, debating if this is even a good idea. she really should leave him. she really should just leave him here to dry. ]

What is it now? [ she sighs, walking over to where she last saw him. ] I swear, if that vision was going to happen, it should've happened already.

[monoceroscaeli]

[As she joins him, he opens up a side closet in the hallway, peeking in to be amazed at how big it is. But, he guesses some of his own home has large enough spaces as well. You really can't go wrong with that. Taking a deep breath, he turns back to her.

Alright, here we go.]

Not necessarily. I've got a few theories as to how they start, so I do hope you're ready.

[His hand reaches down to grab her own, and covering it with the other. And just like he'd suspected, his vision begins to swirl as another vision floods his mind, eyes closing as they stand in the hallway of the penthouse.


A humid heat envelops them both, Natlan being Childe's most unfavorite place in Teyvat to visit. He's stripped his jacket off of him, carrying it over his shoulder as the two of them make the trek up to the Statue of the Seven. Paimon floats between the two, making her discomfort known.

It's so hot...Childe, Paimon needs more water...

Sweat beads down his forehead, holding a hand out to take the little mascot's water container.]

Give me your canteen then... [With a wave of his hand, the canteen is filled and he hands it back to Paimon, who greedily drinks all of it in one go. He can only smile, sighing before he takes his own water out and drinks from it, offering it over to Lumine.]

Comrade, you should drink up too. Ugh, perhaps visiting Natlan in the summer wasn't the greatest idea...

[Archons, what he wouldn't give to stand in a walk-in freezer right about now.]

[traversal]

What—

[ lumine doesn't even get to protest having her hand taken, their surroundings quickly shifting and changing the moment his fingers enclosed around hers.

to be honest, she also doesn't know why she's decided to go to natlan during this season. sure, she didn't find clues in fontaine, the hydro archon as unhelpful as ever as the others, which made lumine decide to simply move forward. no use pondering on it for too long when it's not going to be helpful, anyway.

so natlan, it is. and while she and her brother had gone to places where the climate is just terrible, natlan is one of those places that just takes the cake. perhaps aether would like this region, her brother always fond of somewhere warm and sunny. lumine, on the other hand ...

she's tugged her scarf off of her neck, pulled off her bracers and gloves. it's too warm for anything else, truth be told, and if she could undress and wear her underclothes without getting any questionable looks, she would.

even her gaze is getting a little bit hazy, and she can't tell if it's because of the heat or because of dizziness from said heat. ]

I'm fine, [ she says, panting softly as she continues her trek up the path. sweat trickles down the side of her face, eyes narrowing. ] I just want to get this over with.

[ she doesn't want to go back all the way here again. whoever placed the statue at the very top of this cliff, she wants to have a word with them. ]

[monoceroscaeli]

[Shrugging, he hangs the canteen back around his shoulder, letting Lumine complete this trek in the way she sees fit- there's no use arguing with her anyway, and in this heat he's not going to even attempt to cross any lines. He's exhausted, she's exhausted, and Paimon is still complaining. When he gets back to Snezhnaya, he's going to bury himself in a snowbank.]

Finally, we're here. [He dumps his jacket at the base of the statue, pushing his hair off his forehead and backwards. It's so sweaty it sticks there.] I'm excited to see this for myself. Borrowing the power of the elements from the statues themselves, how fascinating.

[Despite how uncomfortable he is, Childe can't help but look on in wonder even if there's not much fanfare to the entire process- it's still amazing to him.]

[traversal]

[ lumine says nothing anymore, too exhausted to reply or entertain his curiosity. she waves paimon away when the little fairy flits over towards her, reaching out with her other hand to press on the statue. the stone feels hot against her skin, almost burning.

but she quickly feels the element of pyro surging through her like a raging river, filling up her with heat. it's very different from the previous ones as usual, not at all soothing like hydro or stable as geo. when she pulls her hand away, the gems on her clothes glow a gentle red. ]

Let's go.

[ as much as she wants to test her powers right now, she'd rather not. it's too hot to do anything at the moment and she just wants to rest and find even just a bit of respite from this heat. ]

Let's find a cryo slime that I can hug.

[monoceroscaeli]

[Setting his arms akimbo, he looks on as the colors on her wrists, chest and flowers turn a glowing red, like she'd just absorbed it right out of the statue. The silent face of the Pyro Archon on the top of it looked down upon them both, just as every statue does, and he looks up at it thinking of how incredible this was. He steps up to it himself, pressing his hand against it, but of course nothing happens.

Chuckling, he turns, joining her at her side.]

Haha, I can't imagine a cryo slime even being able to exist in conditions like this.

[And it's almost as if on cue, something blue catches his eye among the grassy hill they'd just climbed. A few smaller slimes, and one of the larger ones bounce amongst each other.]

Huh. I guess if you really wanted to hug one...

[Paimon chimes in, her eyes wide.

Ooooooo, Lumine! We could make parfaits out of those! Paimon wants a cryo flavored frosted slime parfait to get through this heat!]

You're...serious...

[She wants to eat it...?]

[traversal]

[ lumine can't imagine it either, but she'll take even a hydro slime. she'll take whatever she can get to feel better from this oppressive heat.

and it's as if the gods answered her prayers, spotting a bunch of bouncing slimes from the distance. they're blue, which means they could either be cryo or hydro—she honestly doesn't care, they're all the same to her. with a look of determination and purpose on her expression, lumine starts walking over. ]

We'll make parfaits out of all of them. All the flavours of parfaits after I hug them.

[ honestly, she doesn't want to eat the slime. but if it'll cool her down, then she'll take it too. ]

How many do you want to eat, Childe?

[monoceroscaeli]

I can't say I've ever eaten a slime before.

[Sounds really sketch. He wants to inquire further, to ask if they've actually eaten slimes before. Unbeknownst to him, he may have already eaten them as well- he's dined at Wanmin more than once, and Xiangling is partial to using them in her cooking sometimes.]

Perhaps I'll pass on the time being. Uh...

[He trots to catch up to her, keeping his eyes on their enemies. It's not long before they're noticed, and he sees the large one narrow its eyes at them. It tries to produce ice spikes, but as soon as it does, they disappear almost immediately. That's Natlan heat for you.]

Hah, looks like they're cryo after all. But the big guy doesn't have the ability to shoot us with its icicles due to the heat. So what are you going to do, ask them to let you hug them?

[He inquires with amusement, looking over to her while Paimon drools beside them.]

[traversal]

[ he ... probably has eaten one. knowing xiangling and her proclivity at using strange ingredients, she wouldn't be surprised if she's fed every single one of them slimes before. or maybe even, vishap meat ...

okay, not the time to think about that.

she creeps over towards one of the smaller slimes, watching it bounce away from her. it does that, it always does. like it's revving to surprise her in some way by putting distance first. and she's right, the little slime suddenly springing towards her in an attempt to attack it.

lumine doesn't dodge, catching it instead in her arms. it's cool to the touch, even as it flails and tries to get out of her grip like a bouncy ball. ]

Hold still—

[monoceroscaeli]

[The other small slime and the larger one bounce closer to her, primed and ready to attack- but he's there in a split second, the small one splattering everywhere in a splash of cold cryo energy as his blade rips through it. The larger one turns towards him, but he's already there, his blade primed and pointed right between its eyes.]

Now now, you don't want to meet the same fate, do you?

[It doesn't understand him, but it does understand what it had just witnessed. It quivers in place, unsure of what action to take. He calls over to her, to ask a question. The answer will decide the larger slime's fate.]

Lumi, you're going to share the little guy with us too, aren't you?

[traversal]

[ childe! can you not waste the slimes, please?

paimon flits around, collecting the slime condensate for their parfait late. this is the first batch of cryo slimes they've encountered and being surrounded by them is just pure bliss, even if lumine's starting to sense that it has a few side effects.

like significant weakening with every puff of cryo the little slime in her arm makes. ]

You can get your own, Childe. [ she snuggles the little bundle in her arms, sighing in relief as she presses her face against something nice and cool. ] There's a number of slimes around you.

[monoceroscaeli]

Hmf. Fine. I will.

[He turns his attention back to the large cryo slime, its eyes widening in fear when his gaze falls back upon it. Childe makes a gesture of fanning himself and wiping the sweat from his brow, and then looks at it with expectation. The slime understands, quickly breathing out an air of cold in front of it, flakes of snow forming and disappearing in the heat. But the aura is there, and as long as it keeps breathing it out, it'll keep them cool.

He pats the slime a few times, nodding, and then sits on the ground to lie his back against the cold body, sighing. Frost surrounds him, and he can feel his body finally being to cool off, even if it comes at a small price of slowly weakening him. He's used to cold like this anyway.]

Paimon, come enjoy this cold since the traveler here doesn't want to share. Ah, it reminds me of home...the frost slowly creeping into your bones, threatening all that dares venture into its grasp. How I've missed it...

[traversal]

[ ... that's rude. and selfish.

lumine huffs when he calls out to paimon, the fairy fluttering over the harbinger and plopping on top of the slime, while she collapses on the grass and buries her face on the surface of the one in her arms. childe may be hogging the large slime to himself and paimon, but she can feel the cool air being expelled by the creature anyway from a couple of feet away.

she lets the slime sit on her knees, closing her eyes with every flurry of cold it expels. ]

Let's just stay here for now. Until the slimes melt from heat ...

[ they won't, but who knows in natlan heat? ]

[monoceroscaeli]

[He folds his arms over his chest as crosses his legs while he sits, giving the big slime a good pat as a thank you, and to let it know that it gets to live while it provides a service to them.]

I think it would serve both of you better to come sit over here.

[He pats the ground beside him, because that little slime looks like its starting to sweat itself.]

It's much cooler here. Isn't that right, Paimon?

[Ahhhhhh...Paimon is much cooler now, eheh. Come over and join us! It's nice and cool, just how Paimon likes it.

He gestures to her, as if to say see? The smirk on his face is undeniable, but at least he's not going to keep it from her.]

[traversal]

[ her cryo slime does look like it's starting to strain, and lumine lets it slide down her legs and bounce around her. that seems to give it a bit of energy, but then, its departure also leaves the warmth enveloping her again. what an inconvenience this is.

she huffs again at childe's remark before she gives in, shifting and moving on over to the space next to him. with the bigger slime nearby, it's certainly much cooler than when she had the smaller one.

lumine lets out a sigh of relief, leaning back against the slime's cold surface. paimon continues to bounce on top of it, thinking of various recipes for parfait. ]

I wonder if Tubby will let me bring one of these into the teapot ...

[monoceroscaeli]

If you can convince it to behave, I don't see why not. It doesn't seem like such a difficult task, after all. Perhaps you've already found the perfect candidate for it.

[Since this one seems to be behaving, if not only because of Childe's blade. His hand falls on the top of her thigh, only resting there as they enjoy the cold that's being provided to them, closing his eyes.]

When we arrive in Snezhnaya, I'll make sure we'll go ice skating and ice fishing. I have a small cabin out in the woods that we can use, overlooking a lake that has ice as clear as glass. It's a marvelous sight, and I can't wait to show it to you. I think you're going to love the motherland.

[So hopefully they'll be able to leave Natlan soon, though who knows what dangers are already brewing behind the scenes.]

[traversal]

[ lumine closes her eyes too, only for her hand to push childe's away. it's already hot even with the cold air being expelled by the cryo slime, and she'd appreciate it if they could put some distance between them for a while. he can resume his touchy-feeliness when she's no longer sweating buckets and feeling like a sinner in church. ]

I need to get out of Natlan first.

[ find the archon, sort out whatever problem it has, learn that they have no information about her brother—rinse and repeat, and yet she has to do it anyway. for this journey, for this trip.

are there pyro slimes in snezhnaya? paimon will need pyro slimes if snezhnaya is going to be super cold. ]

Don't worry, Pai. We'll find you pyro slimes that you can hug and eat.

[ so long as it doesn't burn their clothes off, she guesses. ]

[monoceroscaeli]

[He can't help but chuckle when she pushes his hand away, letting it fall to his side and rest there instead since she doesn't seem so inclined to let him touch her. Instead, he falls silent, comfortable against the cold of the slime's body that continues to cool them off, debating on letting it live if Lumine deems it so. He doesn't answer Paimon's question, breathing out a sigh of content.

It's several minutes later of enjoying the cold that he looks over to her, thinking at least by now her skin shouldn't feel so sticky from the humid temperature surrounding them, reaching out and letting a finger twirl into one of the longer locks of hair that flows downward. His eyes focus on the gentle sweeps of it across his finger, the soft brush of red on her cheeks from the cold, her golden eyes that shine like a star in the night sky.

He just wants to appreciate that he has her here with him. He'd missed her in the time she'd been in Fontaine, and he's grateful now that a work opportunity has come up for him to join her in Natlan, weather aside.

A finger finds her chin, turning her face completely towards him, taking advantage of the fact that Paimon sat on top of the slime, out of view. He doesn't care if she sees or not, but at least now, he won't have to hear her screech about public displays of affection. He pushes himself closer, and his head leans downward and in to press his lips to hers, his feelings on full display of how much he'd missed her. There's a needy, selfish tone to his kiss, as if he'd been deprived of her for far too long. His tongue searches and plays with her own as he opens his mouth to take her in fully, not taking any rejection as an answer to his advances. Eyes closed, he drinks her in, taking as much time as he wants.


Ajax lives vicariously through Childe's memory, and he doesn't notice that the vision has ended. His mouth works against Lumine's, cupping her face with one hand that he didn't know had moved from her own hand upwards to do so; his own mouth slowly massaging hers over and over again, brain in a fog of desire and want for her. His eyes are still glued shut, his focus on her, before a sudden click and slam of the front door to the penthouse reverberates through the walls. Voices of confusion as to why the front door was unlocked start to sharpen in his ears.

That's when his eyes snap open, and he realizes Childe isn't kissing Lumine anymore.

It's him. He's the one kissing her.

And the owners just arrived back home.

Shit.]

[traversal]

[ somehow, lumine isn't surprised that this is how things develop.

she too missed childe during her time in fontaine, but she's never been one to openly show or say it. it's too complicated, and even then, she's never the type to show her heart on her sleeve. besides paimon, while not allergic to childe's bank account, seems to be averted to the topic altogether, and would've no doubt reacted terribly if she expressed anything remotely close to missing him.

so she doesn't really try to deny him, letting herself get coaxed into his neediness, his demands. her eyes flutter close when she feels his lips on hers, mouth parting to silently answer him.





an answer that seems to resonate to the present, lumine herself caught up in the vision and the shenanigans of her counterpart. she hasn't even realised it, drawn in by the vividness of the memory, that she too has found herself responding to ajax, eyes closed, hands curled into his shirt as she leans in.

the kiss was sweet, achingly so. and she can feel herself getting swept more and more in the softness, the warmth. she tugs him closer, breathes him in, tries to drink as much of him—

her eyes flash open too at the sound of voices, and lumine finds herself staring at a pair of blue eyes, looking just as much as surprised as she is. not just because of the sound of the owners returning, but the fact that they're kissing.

here. now. what is even going on?

lumine quickly breaks off the kiss as her gaze darts around, the voices getting louder with each passing second. her hand grabs his arm, tugging him inside the closet he was checking out earlier, closing the door quietly right before they're found.

it's only when the voices pass them by that she glares up at him. hissing quietly: ] What were you doing?

[monoceroscaeli]

[As she breaks the kiss, he too steps backward in shock, not understanding how he'd ended up with her hands entangled in his shirt, kissing him with the same amount of fervor he had been...

She tugs him into the closet, not daring to breathe as his heart beats hard in his chest. He's done a lot of things that could land him in a lot of trouble, and being caught in someone's house is hardly one of the things that would send him into a panic. But he hasn't processed anything yet, in regards to her, in regards to that intimate moment. He can see her anger in the small amount of light the shines in through the cracks under the door and on the sides, a man's voice faintly heard in the bedroom across the hall. He can hear him scold his wife for leaving the door unlocked.]

The same thing you were doing-! [He hisses back, trying to think of how he can get them out of this mess.] We can talk about it after we get out of here, ok?

[He's trying to listen again, to get a bead on where they are in the house. If they go back to the living room, kitchen or dining room, they can sneak out of a window in the bedroom, or the bathroom. Easy.]

[traversal]

[ lumine tries to ignore him, which is a little difficult to do considering the space between them (and the fact that her hand is still on his shirt, but details). but she does her best to focus on the noises and voices outside the door, the argument between the husband and wife (???) louder than she would've wanted it to be. at the very least, it gives her an idea of where they are.

she does wonder absently if they also know where they are, only because the pounding of her blood is loud in her ears. her breathing has gone short too, and every air she takes in sounds terribly deafening.

it feels like forever when she finally hears their voices fade, the couple seemingly has moved away from them. lumine gives it a beat, before she opens the door of the closet, peering out. ]

... I think they're gone.

[monoceroscaeli]

Hmmm.

[He thinks again. Bathroom is hit or miss on a window. Bedroom is the most likely they'll find one that will fit them to escape.]

The bedroom is right across the hall from here. Let's head there, quickly. Out the window.

[He keeps it short, urging her to move as they open the closet door and scurry to the bedroom. As he thought, there's a few windows to choose from, and he inspects them to see which will have a place where they can safely crawl out of without falling, given this penthouse is on the second flight up from the street below.

He opens one on the side, gesturing towards it.]

Come, you'll be able to step out here. Be careful, it's not a true walkway, just a little sliver of one since it's on the edge. Walk to your right when you get out, that'll lead us behind the apartment ok?

[traversal]

[ you know, this entire thing at least proves several things: that she's right, that ajax did steal (or did something) to the key, that they're not actually entering this apartment legally. but that is something she can throw at his face later on along with another punch.

hitting him can wait for a few minutes, not years while she's in prison for breaking and entering.

that doesn't mean, however, that lumine can't stare at him in disbelief when he gestures at the window. but she can't even voice out any complaints, concerned about being heard by the apartment's owners. instead, she simply sighs (she'll start to charge him with every sigh she sighs from here on out) and leans down to take off her shoes, holding them in one hand. ]

If I die, I'll haunt you forever. Give you dreams of making out with Aether.

[ with another deep breath, she moves towards and out the window. it's a long fall down, even if it's just one floor up. still, she braces herself, taking one small step at a time. ]

[monoceroscaeli]

[Ajax follows her out, making sure to stay behind her just in case she does fall, sliding the window shut behind him the best he can while they both shimmy along the side of the penthouse to the more wide open platform behind the house. Thankfully no one's paying attention to them, and they safely make it there save for a single shoe that falls from Lumine's hand.]

Whew. I didn't count on them coming home so soon. That was a little exciting, don't you think?

[His hand goes up against his head, because he knows it's coming. He's very aware of what fury looks like, and she's got it written all over her face. Best to just take it now, let her hit him and yell at him or whatever she wants to do.]