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

[There's an itch to his eyebrow as he grows even more annoyed, not mortified by this, but not comfortable either. Childe looks down at the flower in his hands, before looking to her with the most incredulous look he can muster. Luke doesn't seem to see it though, speaking with the famed traveler and all.

He cannot believe she is setting him up on a date with Luke. His own lover. Pure betrayal...]

And why is it that no one has bothered to ask Lord Tartaglia if he's okay with this?

[She's laughing at him! How dare she!

Luke fidgets, uncomfortable with the fact that Lumine has so brazenly used the name Tartaglia to address one of the Fatui Harbingers, as he's not allowed to dare speak that name, not in Childe's presence.

My apologies lord, I never intended for this to go this way...]

[ lumine presses her lips together, trying to subdue the smile that keeps growing on her expression, as she turns to childe. he's annoyed, all right, but that's what makes it even more hilarious to watch.

... well, maybe not for luke. the poor guy is practically vibrating like one of the thunder sakura trees before it launches a bolt of lightning at an unfortunate passer-by. ]

Aren't you okay with it? [ she feigns a look of confusion, biting her lip to keep the corners from curving upwards. ] He's your subordinate, after all, and I'm sure he'll be glad to do it. Right?

[ lumine looks at luke expectantly. ] Right?

[Yes ma'am!!! Is the rapt reply from the guard, who indeed is quivering in the presence of one of the Harbingers, and the traveler, who might get him killed at this point.

Childe knows that Lumine is enjoying herself, oh, she is, watching this all unfold. Luke has overstepped his boundaries, that's for sure, but he also knows that Lumine will be upset with him if he punishes Luke for this. He can't believe someone so low on the totem pole would have such confidence to approach him, with a flower of all thing, to give him during Windblume.

Fine. He'll...make this work. Somehow.]

Alright, [Childe finally says, fighting down the urge to pick a fight with Lumine right here.] Luke, you'll be accompanying me and showing me the finest places in town so that I can utilize them later. Traveler, since I know you were to see some of the Knights today, I suppose you don't need me to accompany you any longer, seeing how the headquarters is right here.

[He shoots her a look that has a smile with a hint of venom to it. He'll get her later for this.]

[ look, it's not that bad. after all, love knows no hierarchy, no titles. if it did, then they wouldn't even be together at all. besides, lumine wants to argue that this is mondstadt, celebrating the festival of windblume. they're not in snezhnaya, in the middle of a fatui training camp.

lumine grins at childe once more before she looks past his shoulder, waving at a familiar brunette in red. a taller woman accompanies her, looking quite cross that she's hanging out with someone from the fatui. ]

Great, that's settled, [ she nods at the both of them, even ignoring the look childe sends her way. nope, nothing's going to ruin this for her. ] I'll see you around, Luke. [ a beat: ] ... Lord Tartaglia.

[ time to go! lumine rushes over to amber and, happy to see the two after a while. ]

Ah-!

[He exclaims as she blows past him now, his jaw dropping at how quickly she just bailed to go over to the two ladies who clearly look like they belong with the Knights. Sighing, he turns to Luke, stern as ever.]

Let's go.

[And they go their separate ways, with Lumine enjoying her day while Childe is dragged around Mondstadt by a smitten Luke...

Later that night, he meets up with Lumine again, standing on the second floor balcony of the Grand Goth Hotel as he waits for a certain traveler dressed in white to meet him up there secretly. He spots her, gliding down from the statue of Barbados, until she lands next to him. He takes a seat at the small table there, setting back into it while crossing his legs and folding his arms over his chest.]

You look like you had a wonderful day today.

[He, however, had less than a wonderful day.]

[ to say he's upset is, well, an understatement, and lumine tries her best not to laugh when he greets her very severely. she pretends to be busy as she folds her glider, stowing it in the same portal where she keeps her weapons. she'll let childe stew for a minute longer, if only it might keep him from strangling and tossing her over the balcony.

when she's done, lumine turns to him with a smile. ]

Very wonderful. I had a meal with Amber and Eula, and Lisa made me some tea.

[ she'd add a few more things to that, like kaeya treating her to a drink in angel's share and babysitting klee near the starfall lake, but she's pretty sure childe will explode. ]

You didn't?

Very funny, [he says, closing his eyes and trying to push thoughts of how weird Luke had been around him all day. Sighing, he gives her a look, before relaxing.]

If you'd like to hear about my day, I'll tell you it was less than exciting and more of quite possibly one of the most awkward experiences I've ever had. I don't really enjoy knowing that I'm the unrequited love of a subordinate.

[Though he may have several of those, because of how women are- they're just not stupid enough to tell him.]

[ please, she didn't mean for it to be funny. ... okay, well. maybe a little.

lumine takes a seat on a chair across him, resting her elbows on the table and cupping her chin as she listens to him whine—or the closest to a whine he could ever make. a smile plays on her lips, closing her eyes as she tries to imagine his exasperation for the entire day. ]

You have no idea how many times he's mentioned you to me. Something about seeing you in action, how it was quite a scene, how he even ...

[ she trails off like luke did during their conversation, waggling her eyebrows suggestively. although she's pretty sure the man didn't mean it that way. ]

I honestly think he's enamoured with you, Lord Tartaglia.

[Make it worse, will you Lumi?

Childe only groans, letting his head fall back a little as he brings a hand up to his forehead in exasperation. Luke even talks about him when he's not around, an unsurprising fact, but still not what he wanted to hear.]

Oh, stop calling me that. If you're not going to use my title without some kind of modicum of respect, I'd rather you not use it at all.

[Plus it's not even expected of civilians anyhow, especially not her. She only says it to get on his nerves.]

Of course he's enamoured with me. Who wouldn't be.

[Never failing to let his ego shine through, but he's still annoyed because he had to waste his whole day with Luke.]

[ cue eyeroll at that self-absorbed compliment of himself. and here she thought that little date of theirs would knock him down a peg or ten. clearly, it's not effective enough to even make a dent on his ego. she'll have to come up with another plan later on ... ]

I could think of a few names who wouldn't be too enamoured with you, Lord Tartaglia.

[ definitely saying it to get on his nerves, especially when he's still being an asshat about this entire thing. she only hopes luke survived the ordeal of dealing with him. ]

Ningguang, Zhongli, Scaramouche, Diluc, the entire city of Liyue Harbour ... [ a beat: ] The famed traveler of Teyvat, Lumine ...

[So annoying. He stands up, having heard enough of this talk for the night, and walks right up to her to grab a hold of her hand. Tugging her up out of her seat, he pulls her into him, wrapping his arm around her waist as he presses close to her. Childe's face cranes downwards, a mischievous smile on his lips.

He's still irritated, don't get him wrong.]

Oh? I think your list is wrong, comrade.

[Letting go of her hand now, he trails a finger along her jawline.]

I seem to remember the famed traveler of Teyvat in my bed not so long ago. I can remember exactly how she sighed with content beneath me...

[ lumine blinks when he suddenly pulls her out of her seat and into him, chuckling when she realises that he's doing it out of spite. he's still upset, clearly, by what's happened and what she's said, and this is his way of getting back at her.

still, her body also has a way of responding to him, her eyes closing instinctively when he traces her jawline, leans down closer to her. ]

Did she now? [ her eyes flutter open, gold meeting dark blue. ] Are you sure you're not remembering it wrong? Or maybe you're remembering another blond in your bed instead ...

[ like you know, the guy who just gave him a cecilia. ]

[Even now, still teasing him. Childe huffs in response, his eyes glittering in the moonlight with incredulity, amusement and a fire that craves conflict. It's almost as if he hasn't decided which emotion to follow through with.]

You, [he says, pausing to press a kiss to her lips,] just love to ruin the moment, don't you?

[Please spare him the thought of Luke, the Fatuus who guards the door of the Grand Goth Hotel, being in his bed. Ugh.]

[ lumine smiles against the kiss, stifling a giggle in in the aftermath of his remark. she almost feels bad teasing him up until this hour, especially after forcing him to go on a date with luke, but he's certainly making it too easy for her with his pouting. who could resist it then? ]

I don't see you trying to stop me.

[ in fact, childe's just letting her continue. see? not her fault completely. ]

Besides, it's Windblume, [ she says quietly, lifting herself a little higher to return his brief kiss. ] And you haven't really given me anything today, so think of this as payback.

Windblume is hardly far from over.

[Childe presses into her again, stepping to turn her so her back is facing outward, so all she can see is the door into the Grand Goth Hotel for the moment. He looks outward past her, catching a glimpse of something for a second. Ah. Okay.]

You don't know what I have in store for you. Maybe I was just waiting for the right moment to give it to you.

[He chuckles, tilting his head to give her a longer, slower kiss, enjoying the sweet taste of the tea she'd had earlier lingering on her tongue.]

[ what does that even mean? lumine gives him a puzzled look when he pauses, seemingly distracted for a moment, before he chuckles and kisses her again. longer, slower, almost deliberate in the way he coaxes her to open up to him. what was he even looking at?

then again, it's a little hard to linger on it and think too much. her fingers curl into his hair as her eyes close once more, tasting a hint of wine on his tongue. ]

Did you go have a drink with Luke? [ she giggles against his lips, the laughter muffled. ] Cute.

[Childe steps again, almost slowly rotating them while they indulge in each other, slipping his hand down to her lower back now while he presses his forehead against hers. He lets his lips tickle hers as he speaks, allowing himself the pleasure of getting swept by her touch, her closeness even as she still teases him.]

We may have stopped by the Cat's Tail on our rounds. I'm not a bad date, you know. I had to coax him into having a drink.

[Because Luke was still terrified, and he thought it would help to loosen the man up a little.]

[ lumine unwittingly matches his step, absently wondering if he's trying to get her to dance with him. he's not drunk, is he? then again, she doesn't think she's ever seen him drunk in all the times they've been together. had always had better alcohol tolerance than she does.

she snorts at his reply, nudging his nose with hers in a wordless protest as she presses another kiss to his mouth. ]

Were you hoping to reject him while he's inebri ...

[ her sentence trails off when she freezes, her eyes meeting a sharp, red gaze from a few feet away. for most people, it's a little hard to tell, but lumine has always had sharper senses than most. besides, there's only one person who would be out on a rooftop at this time of the night. ]

Diluc!

[ lumine pulls away from childe, looking almost panic-stricken. the wine tycoon's disapproving expression is not difficult to parse even in the darkness. ]

[Childe raises a hand in greeting to the wine mogul, all smiles even though Lumine has broken away from him.]

Did you just notice he was there?

[The Harbinger only laughs, amused by the situation. Diluc doesn't look all that entertained, and he's sure the man has several questions as to why the Honorary Knight is spending such an intimate moment with a Fatui Harbinger. He's not ashamed, or upset though. In fact, he waves Diluc over if he'd like to talk.]

Don't be a stranger. I don't mind having a little chat if you'd like.

[ omg, not the time for any chat!

lumine swats at childe's arm to get him to put it down and stop trying to piss off the former cavalry captain. but that's all in vain, diluc hopping from one roof to another until he's on the hotel's roof right above them. his gaze on her bores like a drill and if there's any time she'd like to take zhongli's wrath of the rock, this is that very time.

enjoying the festivities, traveler? ]

Ah ...

[ lumine's eyes flutter open once more as the vision fades, the morning sunlight brighter than earlier when she first roused in ajax's bed. but still, she finds herself trapped in his arms, the man unmoving even after all of that.

... honestly!

she's not going to lie, though. she does wonder if childe died that evening, given the sharp daggers the other male was sending his way. diluc, was it? and someone from mondstadt, too, a wine tycoon who's no doubt from dawn winery. ]

Ajax, vision over. Time to get off me.

[As the vision fades from his dream, the bright sunlight streaming through the window is hard to ignore, his eyes fluttering open to find her in his arms. He only sleepily smiles back, letting her go and rolling onto his back while he rubs his eyes.]

At this rate, there isn't going to be a place in Teyvat where we could go that they haven't been to together.

[He yawns, the light pounding in his head from the hangover he's experiencing making this less than ideal, but he'll make the best of it. Sitting up, he rubs his eyes one more time.]

Hey, I hope you didn't get any ideas from that vision. I'd appreciate it if you didn't hand me off to some guy...

[ that admittedly is very alarming, lumine thinks as she rolls out of bed, picking up her phone from the nightstand. does this mean she'll be forever haunted by whatever is going on between this other lumine and childe wherever she goes? does he have to ditch the continent, then? ]

Even if that guy is Aether?

[ not gonna lie, that seems like a really good plan to get him out of her hair. she wants to know if there's someone working for him that also has unrequited love towards ajax ... should she start investigating, she wonders?

speaking of her brother, though.

are you okay? is everything fine? i hear ajax is staying in the grand goth, too. make sure to let me know if anything happens. ]

... How does he even know?

[He's too tired to think much on it, swinging himself out of bed and picking his own phone up to start to check it himself. After a few moments, he's already ordered room service to bring them breakfast.]

At least Aether is my friend. I'd be more than happy to spend a day with him in the city. That Luke guy, on the other hand...

[Ajax shudders for Childe, because that was uncomfortable all around.]

The alcohol didn't help. Luke was kinda creepy towards him the whole time. [Changing the subject though.] Hey, I ordered room service so we'll have some food in about twenty minutes or so, okay? ...How does who even know what?

[She didn't specify what that meant.]

[ lumine's sitting on the edge of the bed, scrolling through her messages and emails. almost as if mornings like this are normal for her, to wake up in someone else's hotel room while wearing their clothes. she tries her best not to think about it, unwilling to address anything and everything that's happened last night. ]

He didn't seem that bad ...

[ maybe a little enthusiastic and excited to spend time with a guy he likes. lumine doesn't want to judge, knowing how and what that feels lately. ]

Why, did he come onto you the entire time you were on a date?

I wouldn't put it quite like that.

[He crosses over to rummage through his suitcase for a shirt, finding on and tossing it on the bed for a moment. His imagination briefly settles on meeting a man outside that looks exactly like Luke, just to make that nightmare more of a reality. Ugh.]

I think he was bursting at the seams to confess his love or something, but was far too terrified to say it. So he just acted weird the whole time. Childe handled it pretty well, so I'll have to give that to him. I won't say he let him down gently...but he wasn't harsh either.

[Ajax grabs a few bottles of water he'd had in the mini fridge in the room, also grabbing some painkillers and popping a few in his mouth, washing them down. He comes and sits on the edge of the bed with her, offering her her own bottle and the bottle of pills.

Because there's no way she isn't hungover too after how much she had.]

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