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Tartaglia found himself quickly sinking into a foul mood. This was most surprising because he was around neither his bothersome co-workers nor troublesome debt and tax evaders, but rather the only person he could say he cared for besides his family— the ever-popular traveler, Lumine.
Emphasis on ever-popular, for it was the sole reason his bad temperament had begun to come to light tonight.
After every battle, as per routine, they would grab dinner together and simply talk. None of their conversations delved into private category, they were both aware of their positions and knew their responsibilities, but by no means were they strictly professional. More often than not they would leave that meal with new tidbits of information on each other, some simply interesting and others more personal.
With him, he liked to talk about his family— specifically his adorable younger siblings whose photos he kept in his wallet, a precious sight that had her cooing at their cuteness.
“Hard to imagine you being this cute when you were younger, too.”
“Of course I was cute! How else could I grow up this attractive? Should I take you to Snezhnaya to show you the picture proof?”
With her, she liked to talk about her adventures. She started off with her daily battles and experiences in Teyvat, including her fights with the Wolf of the North and Stormterror.
“I could take you there, sometime? I’m sure you’d like the challenge.”
“The chance to fight against two of the four winds? Count me in, comrade!”
Then he began letting slip details about his past— his descent into the abyss, the swordswoman who’d taught him all he knew, his troubled teenage years and the lead up to who he became today.
“The abyss… I knew there was always something off about that place. I should be more careful next time.”
“Yes, and take someone with you. Seriously. I’m sure you’ve noticed, but time flows much differently there, and time changes people.”
Then she began letting slip details about hers as well. Hers, and naturally her brother’s as well. Her stories all had something unique about them, something fascinating, and as far-fetched and implausible some of them could get he knew he wanted in on them one day.
“If I told you these all came from different worlds, worlds so different from Teyvat, would you believe me?”
“Only if you tell me you can take me with you. It’d be a tragedy to know of their existence but never go.”
Family, battle, adventure. Though perhaps their morals were misaligned with one another, neither could not deny the strongest links that bonded the two. More often than not he had caught himself fantasizing joining her journey, for who could be more interesting than Lumine? Who else could be his perfect match other than him?
Perfect match . Those words often rung in his head as well. If they had been on the same side of the coin, would he be allowed to pursue her time, her company, her affections, her so freely as others presumed they could?
“Childe, you okay?”
“It’s nothing,” he replied with a forced smile, and by her narrowed eyes he knew he was doing a bad job at fooling her. Was it because he wasn’t trying that hard, knowing there was barely any point to hide that from her, or was it that she had spent so much time around him that she was able to read him so well?
“So, you’re spending the Lantern Rite with that adeptus and that fallen Archon? Then an upcoming festival with… two Knights of Favonius captains and a certain Uncrowned King of Mondstadt. Right .”
“... well, I’ve yet to ask Zhongli about Lantern Rite.”
“Yet you never bothered to ask me,” bitterness seeped through his voice like the splashes of water would to their clothes amidst sparring sessions, his feelings as obvious as the state of their wetness would be as they left their designated training spot.
Lumine frowned, and a part of him was relieved that she seemed at least the slightest bit regretful. If he were in her spot, he would’ve sought the chance to ask her out immediately and act as her companion any celebration.
“You know that’s not it,” the blonde stated, slowly sipping her tea as she thought over her response. “You know I would’ve taken you with me, reputation be damned… well maybe not with Xiao, but literally everywhere else, but I can’t. You’re leaving for Snezhnaya in a few days, aren’t you?”
“Of course,” he replied, quietly cursing out his circumstances. He had tried to map out a few ways where he could somehow stay in Liyue for a little longer, a way he could go to Inazuma and bring the traveler with him, both to no avail. When had he gotten so… clingy? “I could’ve delayed for you-”
“A direct order from the Tsaritsa? I doubt it,” well, maybe not now, but if she knew of the festival a little earlier and subsequently invited him, he would’ve tried his best to propose at least a week of delay. “I can always just mail you some souvenirs, you know. I can probably slip in a few photographs with my next letter to you.”
“Include some pictures of yourself then, pretty girl,” Childe quipped immediately, “I’m sure you’ll be the best view that night.” That and his family were dying to see who the woman he talked so frequently about was, asked him to bring her home already, if she was even real. Teucer must’ve proven that already, but a little more evidence and a little more something for him to keep would be nice.
Lumine wasn’t responding, looking into her teacup like it held all the secrets of the universe, which was odd. Usually any form of flirtation from him led to some quick banter, those times he could admire the quick remarks shared between them and how she fought down the pink on her cheeks, or a flirtatious remark from her as well, those times igniting not only his competitiveness to defeat her at this new game, but the feelings he long grew to acknowledge the existence of.
“Pretty girl, you okay?” he supposed it was his turn to ask.
When she only looked up at him and continued staring straight he found himself all the more… confused— and concerned. Was that tea, maybe the Fullmoon Eggs, spiked with something? His knowledge of poisons and drugs were unfortunately limited to Snezhnayan, but surely Dr. Baizhu or even Zhongli would know if asked?
Before he could even think of dragging her away immediately towards one of them, the blonde in front of him seemed to finally snap out of it.
“Sorry, I was just thinking of something,” she explained, twiddling her thumbs together. Childe gave her a once-over, trying to make sure she was really fine.
“Thinking of another man while you’re with me? You’ll break my heart, pretty girl.”
She rolled her eyes, not bothering to hide it at all, before her lips settled into a pout, “I literally said some thing not some one! ”
The ginger raised his hands up like a man under arrest, chuckling lowly, “fine, fine, but at least let me know what you were thinking about!”
“I was planning to anyway,” she replied, lifting her teacup once more to her lips before furrowing her eyebrows at the contents, or lack of it.
“Pfft,” he had to give it to her, so distracted to not notice she had finished her tea earlier? “I’ll order you more… unless you want some of what I’m having?”
There was alcohol in there, she must’ve known from the how many times they’ve sat in the same place and ordered that same beverage across several weeks, but surprisingly her eyes lit up like the lanterns did these recent nights.
“You’ll… you’ll really let me drink?”
This poor girl, was no one letting her buy alcohol?
“I’ll buy you even more if you have any preferences.”
Suddenly she smiled brightly, like the sun had decided to pop up and visit even during the nighttime, and nodded to herself.
“Okay, I’ve decided, I know how to make it up to you!” she said, so self-assured of herself that he had to wonder where that sudden burst of energy came from.
“If it’s buying you things, you really don’t have to pay me back.”
“No, not that silly! Lantern rite , and, uh, the other festivals,” she began, taking a sip of the drink he had long pushed towards her, barely having much of a reaction to the drink despite its strength. With that discovery he made a mental note to have her try more varieties, maybe even challenge her to see which one of them could hold their drinks longer without getting drunk.
“So… is Valentines day a thing here?” Who or what the fuck was a Valentine?
“No? I’m sure I would remember a day with such a weird name.”
“Um, Hearts day?”
She looked a little upset upon seeing him shake his head, and he immediately tried to dig through his head for anything that bared any name resemblance so she could stop looking like that.
“Maybe you can tell me about it? I’ll try to see if there’s anything similar!”
It was instantaneous, how entranced he became by the enchanted expression on her face as she talked about this mysterious celebration, how she described details and events so simple by comparison to the festivals he knew here, how she made them sound so interesting and captivating.
Was that normal? He was hanging onto every word, really, because who could not enjoy listening to her voice, but was it normal to pay so much attention to even the tiniest movement of her lips and the way she’d slight lift her eyebrows then sequentially turn her eyes into crescents the moment she recalled something exciting. Cute, cute, cute…
Hold on. Flowers? Chocolates? Dates? Weren’t all of those extremely romantic by nature? Why was she so knowledgeable about this event? Who taught her all of these things? Who was the reason she got so excited about this upon recollection? Did she ever celebrate it with anyone?
Of course, Childe would learn this later on, that Aether was too overprotective to let his darling sister celebrate with anyone other than him, her precious brother, anyway. As for now, he remained jealous, and Lumine, who took a break from talking to peek at him in the midst of drinking the cool beverage, knew this.
“Is it really that special? It just sounds like a regular date to me,” the Harbinger scoffed, sliding back the glass towards him as soon as his companion put it down, deciding he needed a few sips as well, even if the whine of complaint she made as soon as he took it away from her was adorable.
“Hmph! And here I was planning to celebrate it with you! Should I just ask someone else instead? I’m sure Mr. Zhongli would love to learn the all about-”
“ Hah? That old man?” his anger reached a boiling point, clearly unable to handle the thought of Lumine celebrating her beloved little holiday with Rex Lapis of all beings. “If it’s a day like that, he’d just bore you to death! Between the two of us, I’m definitely the better suited date!”
Despite his short and sudden outburst, Lumine was giggling, and if he didn’t know otherwise he would’ve thought the alcohol suddenly got to her.
“So, you agree to be my Valentine, then?”
Her Valentine? That… that was the equivalent of being her date, right?
Even with the sudden malfunctioning of his brain, he was somehow able to stammer out a yes in reply.
“What… what brought this on?”
“You forgot already? You might be the old man here,” she joked, “but I told you I was making up for it, right? Neither of us know the next time we can meet again once you go back home, so I didn’t really want to wait until then to celebrate something with you, so I thought of the festivals I’ve experienced before and… Valentines was the only one that fit the timeframe and I could think of celebrating with you.”
There was a moment of silence between them, her fiddling with the chopsticks and the remnants of food left, and him looking at her through his drink, before sighing.
“Lumine,” it’s not often he called her by name, but the times he did always seemed to catch her by surprise, “I just have a question. Would you have actually asked anyone else to celebrate with you?”
Though the ripening flush on her cheeks should’ve been enough to answer that, he still waited for her to shake her head until he was satisfied.
“No, I only offered because it was you.”
For probably the first time that night he was filled to the brim with genuine happiness, tingling in his fingers and toes as warmth spread through him like a passing ocean wave or the seaside breeze he loved so much.
Though nothing official could be born between them, not in the moment, for now he could relish in the contentment of their relationship shift. He was a selfish, selfish man, but for now he would learn to be patient and accept this much.
“I’m all yours, then,” he rested his gloved hand atop her own, “your valentine.”
She smiled. “Then I’ll be yours too.”