Chapter Text
Dear Tartaglia,
I hope this letter finds you well, or at least better than you were when we last saw each other. Both Paimon and I send our best wishes and hope that you’re healing well from your injuries. How’s your family? I’m sure you’re happy to see them, even if it isn’t under the best circumstances. I’m sure Teucer missed you, so take this chance to spend some time with him. I imagine you haven’t got much else you can do - prioritise resting, for your own sake.
Your Vision should have reached you before this letter - I gave it to the Knave so it could reach you as soon as possible. Though giving it to you myself was an option, I presume you couldn’t have waited until the Lantern Rite for your Vision. I hope it has reached you safely.
Next time we see each other, please try not to get into some life-threatening situation. I don’t like cleaning up after your messes.
I hope you’re recovering well,
Viatrix.
Childe had read the letter five times over since he opened it.
It was like a new detail revealed itself to him every time he read through it again. Reading it the first time, he clutched his vision, cursing the Archons for not letting him use it as an excuse to see her again. By the third time, he realised he’d have to explain that he hadn’t actually made it to Snezhnaya, and was actually recovering in Fontaine thanks to the House of the Hearth. During the fifth time, he noticed that she was going to the Lantern Rite - that was his opportunity to see her again. She hadn’t outright said it, but in the past a mere mention of the event was enough to signal that they’d be seeing each other there. By the time the festival rolled around, he should be fully recovered, so he had absolutely no intention of missing it - in fact, he had every intention of using the event to his advantage.
Viatrix had turned him down, but it wasn’t because she didn’t feel anything towards him. He could tell. He had spent the year hoping the feelings would pass, but seeing her again would bring it all bubbling back to the surface. It was impossible to wear a mask around her for long, and he ended up dropping it through his actions. As much as he wanted to keep trying, acting around her had proven to be impossible. Viatrix had seen too much of his real self and could see right through him - yes, he had given her the Vision as an excuse to see her again - so when he saw her again in Fontaine, he figured there was no reason to keep up the facade. The letter had just reinforced that and relit the fire which her rejection had turned to embers. Childe was confident that he would see her at the Lantern Rite, and he was confident that he would not be burned by his own feelings again. What was one more burn to his scar-riddled body? No matter how injured he was, he never backed down from a fight, even if he had lost previously.
Tartaglia was going to get what he wanted. It was in the script.
As soon as he was well enough, he travelled to Liyue before preparations for the festival had even started. Maybe he’d see her there early - she didn’t say exactly when she’d be in the region. All he had to do was wait for a couple of days, which couldn’t be too difficult to do. There were more things to do in Liyue than just wait around for her.
After all, he did know Zhongli.
“Are you alright, Childe?” Zhongli asked him once they settled into their tea. “You seem rather restless this evening.”
What gave him away? His darting eyes, his leg bouncing? “It’s just anticipation for the Lantern Rite,” he replied hastily, stopping his leg from bouncing. Technically, he wasn’t lying.
But Zhongli picked up on the technicality. “Oh? But you’ve seen at least the last three. It can’t possibly be this exciting. Are you perhaps meeting someone at the festival?”
“Why, yes!” Childe wasn’t afraid of admitting that he planned to meet up with Viatrix (though planned was too strong a word). The fear was in letting the man in front of him know that he was so desperate to see her. He knew he was speaking too quickly, explaining too much, but he couldn’t stop his tongue from forming the words. “Viatrix should be passing through Liyue during the festival. I hope to see her then.”
“Ah, I see.” Zhongli took a sip of his tea and smiled knowingly, but he gave no elaboration. All Childe could read was the fact that he knew something, but not what. He could read almost anyone, and Childe did not want his emotions to be read so easily.
“We do it every year,” Childe continued, though he absolutely did not need to. He was actively digging himself a deeper hole. “It’s nice to catch up every once in a while, since we’re hardly ever in the same place.
The other man’s knowing smile only grew, and Childe’s nerves grew with it. He felt his leg start to bounce again. “Oh, don’t worry, you don’t have to explain. I appreciate it may be difficult to keep up a relationship with both of you travelling around.”
Childe’s leg abruptly stopped as he blinked, his expression frozen in shock.
A moment passed before Zhongli looked up from his drink and noticed his expression. Zhongli’s did not change, however. “Ah, was that not public information yet? Forgive me-”
“No- I-” Childe cleared his throat to force his expression to move and shake off his shock a little. “It’s just, ah…We’re not together.”
But did it look like they were? Is that what Zhongli thought that? Were the sparks flying as high as fireworks? So high that everyone in Liyue had seen them?
Childe stopped his train of thought there. He feared his cheeks had grown warm enough for the man opposite him to see.
“I see.” Zhongli put his teacup down on the table with finality - he was finished, and Childe’s had long since gone cold. “Good luck to you, then.”
“With what?”
“Talking to her. I can tell it’s weighing on you.” His knowing smile was replaced by a thoughtful expression - he was reflecting on something, but Childe didn’t know what. “I… wish I could offer you some advice, but this matter is very far beyond me. I trust that you know what you want, however, and that you will know how to get it.”
Childe gulped. “Thank you.” It had been by Zhongli, yes, but he had been read like a book regardless. He didn’t like the fact that anyone could just do that - it meant his feelings were more evident than he realised. “I’ll manage. I’m just-...it’s nothing. I’ll manage.”
The man opposite him was still reading him, so Childe continued. “It…let’s just say it hasn’t gone well in the past.”
“Ah.” Zhongli was thinking again, though this time it appeared he knew even less. “I see. There’s a reason she’s still on your mind, though. I trust your judgement - you know, on some level, that…pursuing Viatrix is a good idea.”
“It is,” Childe answered quickly, though he was absolutely wrong. “Not practically, but-”
“For the sake of your feelings, I’d imagine it is.”
“Yeah.”
Zhongli stared at him for a moment, a small smile on his face. “I wish you luck,” he said, standing up to leave. Childe stood with him, though they’d be heading in different directions. “Pass on well wishes to Viatrix for me.”
“I will.”
The Geo Archon’s words would spin in Childe’s head until the Lantern Rite officially started. He would spend every day of the festival looking for Viatrix, down every street of the Harbor if he needed to, but he knew exactly where to find the traveller and her companion on the very first day.
And he would indeed find her then.
After running just as many errands as she expected (most of which didn’t even take place at the Harbor), Lumine and Paimon could finally relax at Wanmin Restaurant as they did every year. Relax was the wrong word, though - Lumine kept looking around, on edge, as if waiting for something to jump out at her. She was ready to defend herself against anything.
“Waiting for someone?” Xiangling asked as she brought the pair their food. The plates being placed caused Lumine to jump, which made Xiangling giggle. “You’re so on edge - your eyes are darting around like crazy!”
“Well, I-”
“Yep!” Paimon grinned and put her hands on her hips as if she knew who the traveller was waiting for. Xiangling then stared at Lumine expectantly, as if she was keeping the gossip of the week secret.
But Lumine just rolled her eyes with a small smile. “It’s really not that interesting-”
Before Lumine had even finished her sentence, Paimon was wolfing down the food in front of her, barely managing to say thank you in between munches.
“So…Who are you waiting for?” Xiangling had barely finished the question before she gasped. “Is it Gaming? He’s a pretty big deal, and I saw you two together earlier getting everything ready.”
“No, it’s not Gaming. I don’t think you know who it is, honestly. It’s been a while.” Once someone else was brought up, though, Lumine’s mind finally wandered away from a certain ginger and allowed her to wonder how the preparations for Gaming’s dance were going. For just a moment, her train of thought deviated from Childe, and it focused on the side characters for once. Lumine could relax a little.
Once she realised Lumine wasn’t going to elaborate, Xiangling shrugged and went back to work. “Well, if you need to leave Paimon with me again, let me know! I’d be happy to have her company again.”
“Oh yeah,” Paimon said, mouth still full of food. “I’m sure Mr More-Money-Than-Sense can-”
“Still using that nickname, Paimon?”
Shouldn’t have let your guard down.
Childe sat on the empty stool next to Lumine and gave her a knowing smile. It was such a calculated move, so nonchalant, as if he was used to it - Lumine suspected that he knew he’d find her and Paimon here. He already knew her far too well. After a moment, she returned the gesture, letting him know that she was happy that he was okay.
Archons forbid she actually said it.
Just as she thought she could relax, though, she remembered that this was a man she was probably going to have to speak to about her feelings, so she went right back to being slightly on edge again.
“Childe!” Paimon exclaimed through her food. “You’re alive!”
“Of course I am!” Lumine’s eyes caught a glimpse of his vision on his hip, shining now that it had been reunited with its master. “You didn’t think that Narwhal could finish me off, did you?”
Lumine shrugged, grinning when he looked at her. There was no sign of a mask on his face. It terrified her, but she didn’t let hers slip off. Not yet. “It looked like it. Besides, without our help-”
“And how about I thank you for that help with a walk around the harbor?”
By the time Lumine had even nodded yes, Paimon had gestured for Childe to drop off Mora and he had done so as if on instinct. Once that was done, he and the traveller were off immediately.
He caught her off guard with how forward he was being, mask fully off just like in Fontaine. As they walked through the harbor and towards the outskirts, hardly stopping to interact with the festival, Lumine wondered if her letter had caused his attitude. She wondered if her words had encouraged him to pursue her again. They started to talk about the scenery, how lively Liyue got around the time of theThey had encouraged him to go to the Lantern Rite, but had they made it possible for them to act the same way they did two years ago?
The question was left unanswered and she put her hope on a tighter leash.
“Did you get any more leads in Fontaine?” Childe asked as they ascended the steps towards their vantage point. They hadn’t exactly agreed on it, but he was following her, and she knew where she was going.
Lumine shook her head. “I was too busy solving a serial killer case, trying to keep Fontaine safe from a prophecy, and saving your ass.”
He put a hand on his chest as if he’d just been shot, but his smile betrayed him. “You hurt me, girlie. You really do.”
She rolled her eyes in response, but her smile betrayed her, too. “But on a serious note, no leads yet. I’m glad you’re okay though. I was…worried.”
“And I thank you for your concern. Really.” His smile was genuine - he wasn’t teasing with a grin. “I really appreciated the letter, though- uhm…it didn’t reach me quite as you expected.”
“Oh? What happened?”
With far too much pride in his voice, he described how he made his way back to Fontaine by himself, still injured, all because he had unfinished business with Skirk. He recovered with the help of Arlecchino and the House of the Hearth, and he stayed in Fontaine until the Lantern Rite. After the festival, he’d be going right back and would seek to tie his loose ends.
Childe had a proud grin on his face, but it faltered when he saw Lumine’s wide eyes. “What’s wrong?”
A moment passed as Lumine blinked. “You’re…” Insane. Reckless. Stupid. “...dedicated.”
“Of course. I still have…so many unanswered questions.” Something flashed in his eyes, some sort of nostalgia, but it was gone before Lumine could make it out - it was replaced with a glint of mischief. “And I knew I had a chance of running into you there, since you couldn’t give me my vision in person.”
She rolled her eyes. “You did not come back to Fontaine just to see me.”
He shrugged. “Maybe I did. I did come to Liyue just to see you.”
“Well, I-” Lumine sighed; her blush finally betrayed her. “I would’ve liked to give you your Vision back in person, but I have to make preparations for the journey to Natlan.”
As she spoke, Childe sat down, his arms behind his back to support himself, at their spot - the cliff overlooking the harbor. It was the perfect spot to see the lanterns being released; wishes being given to the universe for it to take care of them. “Ah, you’re telling me exactly where you’re going next. Are you not scared that I’ll send my minions after you?”
“I trust you,” she replied quickly, sitting on her legs next to him. “And I’m running out of regions, anyway.”
But Childe was still caught up on her former statement, eyes wide. “You trust me.”
“Well, yeah,” Lumine confirmed, shrugging. Evidently she didn’t trust him too much - he still didn’t know her real name - but still a significant amount, considering his position relative to hers. “I do. At least enough to know you don’t want me dead.”
“Far from it.” He shot her a smile and looked down at the harbor, his expression pensive. His eyes reflected the lights of the city like the ocean did, tinting the scene with the same shade of blue that the ocean would. A grin appeared on his face - he’d noticed her staring; she didn’t look away. “I hope you know it’s reciprocated.”
Silence sat beside them, and they let it stay. Lumine joined Childe in admiring the harbor and the few lanterns that were starting to be released, blocking and replacing the stars as the wind carried them away from the coast. A couple of kites had joined in this year, the darkness of the night hiding the string that tied them to the ground and making it appear as though they were as free as the lanterns. Keqing had said the kites symbolised longing, which Lumine felt was a direct attack by the universe which she should swiftly block and dismiss. Seeing the kites, though, and seeing how free they looked, made her reconsider. Sitting so close to Childe, comfortable with the silence between them, made her blocking of the attack falter - she had to admit that this was longing.
Lumine took a deep breath and loosened the leash she’d put around her hope, letting it run a little wilder, as free as the kites of longing.
Before she could act on this, though, Childe cleared his throat and moved his gaze towards her. “What did Skirk say about me?”
She shrugged, returning the look and maintaining eye contact. “Not much. Nothing that I didn’t already know from you.”
“Right,” he sighed, sitting up straight, the light fading from his expression. There was something dark plaguing him still, just like what had made his vision falter in Fontaine. “Well, you know she trained me when I fell into the Abyss.”
“Yes.”
“But did I ever tell you what happened when I got out?”
That was the darkness. Not the Abyss, but its consequences. “No, I don’t believe so.”
He inhaled deeply before he started, as if bracing himself to live through it again. “Well, my family was worried sick, obviously. I came out a different person than I was when I went in. Suddenly I had this…fighting spirit, this need to fight that I couldn’t satiate, and they didn’t know what to do with the fourteen-year-old boy that wanted to cross swords with everyone he met. They made me join the Fatui, and of course that helped me, but it didn’t…fix me, not in their eyes. I’m the youngest harbinger in the Fatui but I’m not the son they lost when I fell. My parents and older siblings have not looked at me the same since, even if I’ve grown into what I am.
“But Teucer, Tonia…They didn’t care. They don’t know, after all. So ever since then I’ve thought that the only way to be seen normally is by not being me at all, or dividing myself in two so my younger siblings never look at me like my parents do - a longing for something they can never get back, a twinge of disappointment I couldn’t take away from them even if I became a god somehow. I thought I had to keep those two aspects of myself separate to be seen as normal. At least, that was before I met you.”
Lumine’s eyes widened - family was so incredibly important to him, to them both. Being put on the same level as them was an honour she couldn’t believe Childe had just given her. “Me?”
“You. And it took some time, yes, but even after everything, I can be myself around you and you won’t…run away. Archons, we even spar together, and you have fun doing it. I trust you enough to be both sides of myself around you, Viatrix, and that’s-”
“Lumine.”
In that moment, being put on the same stage as he put his family made her realise she felt the same about him.
Childe blinked. “I’m- sorry?”
“Lumine,” she repeated with shaky breaths, her name having gone rusty from not being used for so long. “That’s my actual name. Viatrix is an alias, one I give to everyone in Teyvat, because…the last person I let call me Lumine was Aether. But-...but you can call me Lumine.”
The name took some time to sink in, but the light returned to his face when it did. She didn’t need to explain that she felt the same way about him - she felt most like herself around him, almost like she was with Aether again, except of course she wasn’t, because this was more than a familial bond. Without her saying it, with her giving him just her name, Childe understood what she meant and shuffled closer to her, keeping their eyes locked on each other. The light of the lanterns in his eyes imitated the natural brightness of most people’s gaze, one she imagined he’d lost years ago in the Abyss. With her hope on a looser leash, she let herself wonder if she’d lit up the dark ocean in his eyes, or if it really was just a trick of the light.
Her longing leaned towards the former.
His hand rose towards her, asking for a handshake. “It’s nice to meet you, Lumine. My name is Ajax.”
Suddenly, she understood why her name took so long to sink in.
“Ajax,” she forced out, like she was learning to speak a new language, blinking in shock as she breathed in the sound of his name. He inhaled sharply, doing the same. “Why…why did you tell me?”
“I trust you,” Ajax raised his hand again, reminding her of the handshake. A blush rose to her cheeks as she took it, her cheeks growing warmer when he chuckled at her. “You might just know me better than anyone, Lumine.”
As he said her name, each syllable rolling of his tongue perfectly, like a spell, her hand tightened around his in shock. Lumine inhaled sharply, just as he had, trying to breathe in the sound and store it in her lungs as if that was the last time he’d hear him say it. The sound was sharp around the edges, aiming right for the leash around her hope and letting it fly as free as the lanterns.
If Ajax leaned in, Lumine would not say no.
“You do,” she replied. When he went to take his hand back, assuming the handshake was over, she held his hand in place. Ajax glanced down at their hands and then back at Lumine, confused, but she looked down at her lap and ignored this. “And I do. Trust you, I mean. Which is why I’m going to ask if you have a room that we could share.”
If Ajax was any weaker, he would’ve begged Lumine to loosen her grip.
Instead he used his other hand to gently lift her chin. Their faces - their lips - were inches apart. “I was just about to ask.”
Lumine felt her breath quicken as his did, making her face warm. “And if I wanted to stay tomorrow as well-”
“You can stay for every night I’m here for.” He leaned forward slowly, with care, and lifted her chin a little more. They were slowly reaching the same page. “As can Paimon.”
“And,” Lumine lowered her voice to a murmur. “If I wanted this next year-”
“We will.” He rested his forehead on hers, speaking breathlessly. “Lumine, I pray to the Tsaritsa that we get to do this every year.”
At that, she exhaled, a weight lifted off her shoulders as their scripts started to become one. But not yet.
Lumine needed confirmation.
So she started to mouth a small ‘can I?’, but Ajax had nodded before she'd even finished. In response, Lumine took the hand that was holding his, lifted it to the side of his face and put their lips together.
For a moment, there was no stage. No spotlight. There was just Lumine and Ajax, starring in each other's lives as the supporting actors, as another protagonist. This scene was one that only they would remember as the rest of the world fell away. Though neither of them could say anything, it was the most vivid memory either of them had ever experienced. Even after everything Lumine had been through - gods met, regions saved, battles fought - her lips against Ajax's might just be the most important scene in her play. The most significant emotional beat.
The way Ajax looked at her when they pulled away told her that he felt the same.
“The Lanterns paid off,” Ajax said, reaching for her other hand. His mind was struggling to stay grounded - having kissed Lumine (Lumine, not Viatrix) he now felt like floating away with the lanterns.
Lumine tilted her head, but kept her amber eyes firmly on his. Bright as the lanterns. God, this is one hell of a setting. “What do you mean?”
“The Lanterns,” he repeated as he put an arm around her shoulders. “I wished on Lanterns every year.”
“You…” the blonde tensed a little. “You wished for me.”
“I wished for the world.” Ajax looked up, staring at the sky briefly, but Lumine’s eyes were staring at him intently, enticing. He couldn’t help but look back at them again. “And now I've got you.”
After a couple blinks, she wrapped her arms around him like it was the last time. He gladly returned the gesture.
“This isn't going to be easy.”
“I know.”
“We're hardly ever in the same place-”
“I know.” He put a hand on the back of her head, holding her closer.
“And I'm literally about to head off again-”
“I know.” Then he pulled away and held her by the shoulders, but she was still going.
“And you’re doing…Fatui stuff-”
“Lumi.”
That made her freeze, so he continued, a hand under her chin. “I know. This is going to be difficult - you knew it before you kissed me, but you still did it. Lumi, I've chased you around Teyvat for years, even when I tried to stop. I will keep chasing you even if Celestia herself tries to top me. I promise.”
After a few moments, Lumine gave a heavy sigh, as though he'd just taken a physical load off of her.
“...I wish you could come with me,” She said finally. “We could travel together.”
“Oh, I'd love to. Once…this is all over.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders again, holding her tightly. Explaining 'this' was for another scene. “I'd go anywhere with you.”
She smiled. “Once I find my twin, I-” Concern flashed past her face briefly, but she pushed it aside. That was for another scene, too. “...I'll introduce you. Then we can…”
“Be together?”
“And meet intentionally.” Lumine answered.
He nodded, chuckling lightly. “No more cryptic messages in letters.”
“Oh, but more letters-” she stopped herself too late, blushing. That thought was not meant to be heard.
“Of course! Entire books’ worth.” He pulled her closer. “I promise if you do.”
A sigh escaped her lips, leaving a gentle smile behind. “Of course. I promise.”
They were flying so high that they were no longer like lanterns - they were higher and brighter and permanent.
They were like stars in the night sky. Their love would never cease to shine.
It would become the spotlight that the two protagonists danced under.