Chapter Text
A shiver ran down Chongyun’s spine, as he trembled uncomfortably. He usually liked the cold, and the icy mountain mist was a companion to him rather than a foe, yet… somehow, that place gave him the chills. It was the familiar thrill of haunted mansions, a feeling he (as an exorcist) recognized very well.
In the hazy light of the spooky will-o’-the-wisps, he kept reading in a monotone voice, his boredom and discomfort evident on his face. "Perhaps, the constant lack of sunlight and the nou… nourish…"
"Nourishment," Xingqiu promptly interrupted him.
Chongyun rolled his eyes and forced himself to keep his usual composure. Even if they were engaging in such a… trivial leisure activity, he was still at work. And as a professional, he knew better than to let his guard down, or give up his serious attitude at any moment.
But, he had to admit it— Xingqiu was seriously testing his limits.
He glared at him in silence, hoping the weight of his gaze would be enough to get him to finally shut up. The dark-blue haired boy was lying on the ground next to him, his head resting on his arms while his clothes sank in the soft humid grass. Although his eyelids were closed and a peaceful smile rested on his lips, Chongyun knew he was far from being asleep. In fact, he had been correcting his reading ever since he had opened that book.
Why did he have to go through that humiliating experience? That wasn’t even the reason they had come there in the first place. He regretted the way his pride had taken over his logical mind…
❀
The sun was shining bright that afternoon, and Chongyun was casually strolling around Liyue Harbor after his daily training. He didn’t know what it was exactly that made him end up at Wanwen Bookhouse, boredly scanning the shelves in search of inspiration— he had a feeling it could be called “instinct”, perhaps.
Or maybe deep in his heart he simply wanted to see him.
As expected, Xingqiu was among the other customers, standing out with his beautiful attire and his elegant composure, as he chatted with the vendor about the last installment of his favorite saga. Something in the way he was leaning against the red wooden bridge, looking completely bewitched and lost in his own world, reminded Chongyun of some wandering traveler straight out of a fantasy tale. And he knew that side of his friend to perfection— the childish, adventure-loving Xingqiu, so different from the usually serious and polite heir of the Feiyun Commerce Guild.
Their eyes met through the bustling crowd, and Xingqiu snapped out of his trance to greet him with a cheerful gesture. "Oh, if that isn’t Chongyun!" he said. "Hello! It’s been a while."
Chongyun waved back at him, one hand too busy holding the stick of his popsicle.
Even though they had been hanging out together since childhood, he never got used to how different Xingqiu was with him. To everyone else, he acted as a true gentleman, speaking wordily and emphatically, addressing them as “my liege”; while he received a… friendlier, less ceremonious treatment. Of course, he wasn’t straight-up impolite, as he did indeed enjoy his company, yet he felt a little note of over familiarity in the way he spoke to him.
Not that he minded, to be honest. It was easier to be around him like that, rather than his pretentious professional facade. He wished he could return him the favor of being his true self at all times, but his hidden side was… well, way more energetic and problematic than just a mere change of register.
He shivered at the memory of what he had done when he had lost control of himself in the past…
Still lost in his fantasies, he caught a glimpse of Xingqiu slipping through the crowd, vanishing from his sight until his dark-blue hair peeked out of the group and he approached him. "What are you doing here?" he asked.
Truth is, Chongyun had no idea. He wasn’t truly a book fan, so he had no real reason to be there. Aside from seeing his friend, he guessed. He shrugged.
"Just killing time after training," he said. "Nothing special."
A mischievous sparkle lit up Xingqiu’s eyes. "Training?" he asked maliciously. "And what was it today, weird martial art poses or wordy exorcisms?"
Chongyun glared at him. They were both skilled in physical combat, even if his technique wasn’t as refined as the Guhua style— still, he surely wasn’t inferior to him or anything. "Why do you sound like you’re making fun of me?" he hissed.
Xingqiu chuckled, his laughter a gentle rainfall. "Oh, I’m not," he said after catching his breath. "I simply can’t bring myself to understand what’s the charm in fighting evil by using words."
Seeing him laugh in such a carefree way made Chongyun drop his will to fight on the spot. "That’s strange coming from a bookworm like you," he mumbled. "The words you use often sound as pure gibberish to me too."
Xingqiu moved closer to him. He stepped on his tiptoes, tapping lightly with his finger on the stick of Chongyun’s popsicle. "That’s because you need fewer popsicles and more books in your life, my dear friend," he said teasingly, "Or else you would understand that sword fighting is far more epic than spells and kicks."
Chongyun blushed for that sudden vicinity. Being the loner he was, he wasn’t used to people staying so nearby, and that unexpected physical contact made him way more embarrassed than he thought.
"That’s because," he answered and took a step back, desperately trying to hide his burning cheeks, "you need to see a proper, real exorcist in action instead of daydreaming about fictional ones."
Xingqiu caught the mockery in his words, and a challenging spark lit up in his amber eyes. "Oh, is that so?" he muttered, theatrically. "Then why don’t you show me what a real exorcist can do?"
Chongyun swallowed. He was a professional, yes, but still a trainee. The boy in front of him, instead, was a prodigy. And everybody knew that. As hard as it was to impress him, he didn’t want to make a fool of himself. But at the same time, he didn’t want to look weak and back up from a challenge. "As you wish, my liege," he said, mockingly.
Xingqiu smiled approvingly. "We have a deal, then," he said. "And I just so happen to know the perfect place for our… test."
Chongyun felt a spike of fear straight in his guts.
❀
And that’s how they ended up there, on top of Wuwang Hill, surrounded by the ever present darkness of the mountain mist. Possibly the most well-known haunted place in the entirety of Liyue.
Chongyun wasn’t scared, yet the atmosphere of that ruined village was… something else. When he had first heard about it from his master, he would have never imagined just how chilling the real deal was— the will-o’-the-wisps were the only source of cold light in the whole area, and any torch one could try to ignite would hopelessly burn out at incredibly fast speed. When staying silent for too long, one started to think voices were running straight to their head, like charming whispers of lost sirens.
Naively enough, Chongyun didn’t expect Xingqiu to know that place— and even less so to take him there. Apparently, his curiosity had grown bigger since the Outlander had mentioned it to him in the tales of their travels. They recalled meeting the actual spirit of a little girl and talking to her, before finding out about her true identity moments later when she vanished into nothingness.
An expert in dispelling curses, a professional in exorcising vicious presences, Chongyun had, in fact, never seen a real ghost. And he couldn’t tell whether the idea of doing so was exciting or terrifying.
Somehow, Chongyun had the feeling that this had been his plan from the start. He just wanted to see what his work was like, or perhaps to meet that famous ghost, and had plotted all of this the moment he saw him at the bookshop. Talking people into doing what he wanted rather than directly asking – that was typical of the smart, scheming Xingqiu.
And he felt dumb for falling for it once again.
Luckily enough for him, no evil spirit ever showed up. They waited for almost two hours, sitting at first among the destroyed ruins of the houses, and then moving all the way up to the small lake in front of the Hidden Palace, their shoes splashing in the muddy water for what felt like an eternity.
Chongyun was the first one to give up on their search. He could show him his skills literally anywhere else, no need to be so obstinate on a lost cause. And even Xingqiu, although he’d never admit it, was definitely discouraged— in fact, at some point he decided to take out his book and start reading.
That’s when Chongyun made his mistake.
"Reading at a time like this," he said, "What a geek."
Xingqiu snapped the tome closed, in a gesture so swift and full of irritation to instantly freeze the blood in Chongyun’s veins. "As I said, you’re the one who’d need some practice with his vocabulary," he said gloomily. "So why don’t we catch two birds with one stone and have you read it for me?"
And next thing he knew is they were there, on the grass, carrying on with his torture. He couldn’t even decipher half of the words in that romance novel, and Xingqiu kept annoyingly correcting him from his spot, his attitude as irritating as it could possibly be.
"The Light Prince drew closer to her, and gently brushed a strand of hair away from her face. Then, in a quick and charming movement, he grew closer," he read, "And he… P-pressed his lips on hers… embracing her in a w-warm and gentle kiss."
Damn, it was hard to breathe. He wasn’t sure of the reason, but reading this scene out loud was extremely embarrassing. Especially when he didn’t know how to pronounce half of the words in the paragraph. He paused his reading for a second and covered his face with the palm of his hand, surprised to feel his skin so warm. Was he really blushing over such a small thing?
Xingqiu noticed the sudden silence and opened his eyes to glance at him. "Hm? What’s wrong?"
Chongyun shook his head and sank his face back into the page, trying to find the line where his focus had drifted off. "The Princess was charmed, for she had yet to experience her f-first kiss,", he stuttered again. "But she promptly returned the gesture, feeling in l-love as she had never been before. His lips felt as s-soft and fruity as a field of daisies, and… she… she…"
The noise of shuffling fabric caught his attention. Xingqiu had moved, sitting up right next to him, so close their shoulders were touching in a feather-light caress. He grabbed the book with one hand, inspecting the scene that was making Chongyun struggle.
Then, Xingqiu chuckled softly. "Aw," he cooed, "Getting a little shy, aren’t we? My dear Chongyun, what would happen if one day a Princess were to kiss you for real?"
Chongyun pouted, and snatched the novel from his grasp. "As if that could happen," he complained, looking away. "And it’d be an entirely different matter."
"Oh, really?" was Xingqiu’s puzzling answer. Before he could ask for an explanation, he felt him drawing closer, his lips barely brushing against his cheek.
Chongyun shivered, without fully realizing what was happening. When he did, overwhelmed by the embarrassment of the moment, he waited helplessly for his consciousness to slowly but steadily fade, as he heated up and his head started pulsating. Oh no, he knew what would come next— he’d lose all grip on his nerves, and his self-control would disappear.
He was terrified of the consequences of his action. What would he do without remembering it afterwards? But he had no idea how to prevent it from happening. It was his curse, a stupid curse that no spell, talisman or ritual could hope to vanquish.
"Look at you," he vaguely heard Xingqiu laugh, gently teasing him. "You’re just as red as Jueyun chili—"
His mind lost in the dizziness, Chongyun didn’t bother to let him finish his sentence. He threw away the book, hearing a blurred out splash of water somewhere behind his back. He quickly moved his hands, grabbing Xingqiu’s cheeks in a strong hold and cupping them firmly as he forced their lips together.
Xingqiu had said so himself— Chongyun was too awkward around people to have ever kissed anyone in his life, so this was in fact his first time. And he wasn’t fully aware of the situation, his body moving out of instinct as his thoughts wandered in the hazy mist of his daydream. He clumsily moved their mouths together in a goofy, but passionate kiss.
Xingqiu had surprisingly sweet lips. They tasted almost like… chap-stick, he’d say. And they were a little sticky, even if the cause of that was probably the remains of the popsicle on his own mouth rather than his.
He was glad they were sitting on the floor, since his legs were shaking as leaves in the wind. It was such a warm contact, and he felt at peace like never before— he could have kept kissing him forever, and it’d be heaven on earth for him.
A sudden pain on his cheek, together with a loud smacking sound, brought him back to his senses. Before he could fully regain control of his limbs, the warmth had left him, as he got pushed back mercilessly by a furious Xingqiu. The dark-blue haired boy stood up, ignoring him, and almost stepped on his hand while storming away.
"What did you do?!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. "You absolute moron!"
For an instant, Chongyun thought he was angry for the kiss. It would have been reasonable, after all. He had simply pecked him on the cheek as teasing, while he took things a clear-cut step ahead. But then he realized what he was actually talking about.
"For the love of Morax! Tell me the book is safe!"
He ran to the place where the tome laid, sadly flopping over the small rock bridge.
Chongyun, still hurt by that sudden slap, slowly regained his composure. As he sat down on his back, he recalled what he had just had the bravery to do, and his face lit up once more— this time, in pure shame and regret. "Calm down…" he managed to mumble, his throat as dry as a desert.
Xingqiu picked up the wet pile of paper from the puddle. He tried to return it to its shape, but the water had clearly ruined it forever. "Oh, my—" he was on the verge of tears, as if he had been stabbed in the leg. "Chongyun! It’s all wet, I’m—"
He stopped to catch his breath, and literally glared at him with pure rage in his eyes.
"I’m gonna murder you," he hissed.
Chongyun sighed. Yeah, a spoiled, bratty kid— that was the real face of the heir of the Feiyun Commerce Guild. How could he even react to that? He worried so much about the book, that he didn’t even comment on the moment they had just shared.
If he was the Light Prince, well… Truth is, one could say he had fallen for quite the complicated princess.