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He is the Earth, and here he is the oldest.
The sparkling dust of the Heavens that swirled around each other until it collided on itself formed his crib. From there on, he would gaze at the sky, at his mother the Sun, at his extended family scattered across the cosmos, and he would take it all with his bright golden eyes all alone, contemplating and meditating in his own existence, the sole living thing in this floating stone crib.
But that soon changed too. As the eons marched on, he gained siblings.
Fire was the oldest of his younger siblings, explosive, violent, volatile; she bent stone to her will, carved their crib into a magnificent scalding mansion, settled herself deep into its heart. Wind came right after, playful, mischievous, changeable; he made its mission to be their world's messenger, carrying storm and rain, sound and voice. Water was ambitious, calm but unyielding; she covered the world, gave it its magnificent blue splendor and cooled down Fire's onslaught. Lightning was a surprise no one expected; impermanent and glorious in her brief appearances. Ice was born not too late; patience defined her actions, a promise to slowly cover the entire world. Finally, there was Life, their pride and joy, the genial youngest with unparalleled potential.
Together, they maintained their once-crib, now their realm with the utmost care and attention to detail. They carved cliffs and valleys and mountain ranges, traced rivers and dotted the land with lakes, defined the course of the clouds and covered the landscape with green. Their beautiful, ever-changing home, the most glorious gemstone in the Heavens, Gaia was the name they bestowed it with.
The Heavens, upon seeing not only them but all of their extended cosmic family following suit, decided to lay down rules, all to preserve harmony: every realm shall have its sovereign, the supreme being who maintains its order. After much discussion, the seven siblings decided that, even if they all did their best to take care of their home, there was still one who came before all and laid Gaia's foundation. He, the Earth, became Gaia's supreme sovereign, its Ultimate One, and has ever since been one with it.
And then he finally turned his eyes to the sky once more, and saw her for the first time.
Busy as he was before with his realm's maintenance, he had never noticed that someone settled themselves above Gaia. Perplexed, he tried to reach them, only to find out he couldn't. After exhausting himself with his attempts, he resigned in simply watching them, in hopes of learning more.
She 一he had realized her nature一was always on his periphery, floating lofty above Gaia, almost like a ghost. It was as if what he saw was no more than a mirror to another realm far away, making it impossible to get closer. She, unlike their mother the Sun, never blocked out the stars, choosing instead to be amongst them, shining the brightest on her daily walk from one end of the horizon to the other.
He watched and watched, and found out many things. She was not walking around his realm, but rather dancing through its skies, pirouettes that casted shadows onto her form, like four different stages of a life form. She followed through this cycle, solemn, yet enchanting, pulling Water's waves along with her steps and guiding Life's companions in an elaborate waltz. She borrowed light from their mother and made it her own, bathing his realm in a veil-like silver glow. She made a stage for herself called Night and there she was front and center, and Gaia stopped in its tracks to watch her spectacle.
He found out many things, and he was mesmerized by every single one of them, but he still did not know her name.
As he turned to his siblings, they were as confused as him. They tried everything they could to reach her, to speak to her, but not even one breath could break the distance between them. She still danced her solemn waltz in the sky, and they couldn't even pay respects to such an admirable artist… Or so he thought.
It was then that Water revealed her secrets, as her reflections could reveal what others couldn't: she knew who the maiden in the sky was. Water had watched as closely as possible, felt the pull of her waves, and so she knew more than most. To say he had been excited for the reveal was an understatement.
And so, that was the day he learned: she was the Moon.
He is the Earth, the Ultimate One of his realm, and his name is Morax.
It has been given to him by Life's masterpiece, the beings who walked upright and spoke and made their own little realms. They began to know what it meant to be alive, and felt grateful to be so, so they turned to the seven siblings to give that gratitude to them.
He was revered (reverence, what a new but intriguing and magnificent thing, to be depended on, to be praised) as their creator, the father of them all who laid the foundation they stand on, who crafted the beautiful artwork that was nature. Of course, he did not do so alone, and his siblings became just as revered as him.
Morax, Balaam, Barbatos, Baal, Focalor, Aym, Buer. These are their names from now on, and together they are the Seven.
But the little people weren't satisfied with just that. As they grew and their little realms expanded their sizes, new things were made that were never seen before. New objects, sounds, rules, concepts, all of these came like avalanches, further fueling their progress一civilization came.
And with civilization came chaos. The humans were too late in maintaining their structure, and soon found themselves in a delicate predicament. How to maintain order in this setting that changes in the blink of an eye? How to keep order in their realm as the Seven do with Gaia?
Their solution was found in those same Seven. They turned their heads to the skies and prayed: O' great seven siblings, O' architects of the world, O' great gods who rule the realm! Please grant us your guidance!
And the Seven answered. No one amongst them had any interest in puppeteering those little people's lives, but they could lay down the groundwork at the very least.
And so, Morax stepped forward, and forged a promise with them, with humanity: his is the guiding hand of the world, until they could stand for themselves. This is the story of the First Contract, the primordial pledge.
And, as they danced and sang and wrote for their gods, Morax came to learn of a new name, belonging to the one that had been eluding him for the longest time. More surprising was that the little people一unlike him一 seemed to know her fairly well, speaking about her in reverence, in affection, in familiarity.
The Moon was named Lumine by the people, and her name stuck with him for ever since then.
Morax decided that he quite liked the little people一 humans , they called themselves, so eager to name and know everything under the Heavens.
They were different from just about anything in existence, for the fact that they were different amongst themselves. Humans that lived in different places developed a myriad of ways of life, and even those next to each other weren't the same. Down to the individual level, everyone had a little something that set them apart from others, birthing even more potential to their species.
And humans dance and sing and write, so they naturally would go their separate ways about that. Ballads, epics, plays and poems were made to the Seven, and soon the siblings found themselves multifaceted, their deeds being given form in different ways all around their realm.
There were plays of Aym and Focalor's eternal struggle as opposite elements, tales of Buer's creations, odes to Wind and Ice alike, and the longest epics belonging to his own exploits. They were heroes, pioneers, creators and sages, revered in every way and form.
But the one that held their adoration captive the most, the one true muse of humanity, was none other than Lumine the Moon.
She, the first and longest love of every poet, the fixation of every shaman, the object of fascination of every scholar, the wild pursuit of every drunkard, the witness to every single promise made under her light; the undisputed queen of every human craft, driving artists insane as they try to recreate her form. Children, adults and elders, no matter where they come from, no matter what they do, they all stop and watch her elegant dance through the Night, as Gaia itself seems to do.
Morax had no shame in admitting that, out of all the things humans create and propagate, the ones dedicated to her are his favorites, but the reason behind it was unfathomably frustrating: somehow, humanity came to know Lumine better than he ever could hope to.
It was in the way poets longed for her, describing her in great detail; the way sculptors shaped her form with suspicious accuracy, as if they could never commit mistakes when it came to her appearance. Most frustrating of all was the way that every single one of the humans smiled upon lifting their heads and gazing at her, like smiling at a friend they met upon reaching an agreed location.
Humanity knew her like it did an old friend, while he was left in the dark.
This brought upon the very first time Morax felt a specific feeling: jealousy was its name, and it was strong enough in him to shatter mountains. Why do they know more about the Moon than him? Why does she appear freely to them and hide from him? What is he lacking, to never be able to greet the Night's muse as the humans do?
Even with his mind in such a state of disarray, Morax did not allow himself to raise one single finger against humanity. They一as upset as he was about it一are loved by the Moon, and while he doesn't know exactly what he has to do to earn her favor, standing against them certainly isn't it. Besides, he did not lie一his own love for humanity is genuine.
In the end, his displeasure does not disappear, but only rarely it rears his head, unable as he is to meet the maiden he seeks so fervently.
He continues to listen to every song and play and poem that talks about her, and in his pastime-turned-mission, he has his confirmation: Lumine does visit the humans.
The myths aren't as unified as they were before, but the motifs are clear: tales about women descended from the Heavens, only interacting with humans for a short period of time before parting to the skies, never to be seen by the same person again. There were as many variations as there were cultures in the world: swan maidens, cranes that returned the kindness received in full, goddesses of clouds, princesses descending from the moon, fairies that taught secrets of their forests. Much mystery was made about these elusive women, but one thing was made very obvious: the best chance one would get to see one of them was to wait for a moonlit night.
It was all the information needed for him to draw his conclusion. She does walk his realm, and if he wasn't awfully interested before, now Morax is downright obsessed. He becomes even more analytical of human prose, scanning every single verse and cross-referencing it with all the others in his memory, in hopes of finally getting a more accurate portrait. Unfortunately, art is a volatile thing, and the descriptions are so wildly different that Morax has to begrudgingly admit defeat once again.
But not so entirely. He managed to get one single crucial fact that appears in almost every single story, evident through all the characters' actions: Lumine is shy. Each tale has its heavenly woman attempt to flee when found, and then fleeing for good again when the humans find out about her true nature. She appears to not want to be perceived at all, and only interacts with people after much insistence on their part.
Human language has provided him with an arsenal of words to describe what he thinks about this newfound behavior: Endearing, loveable, precious, and all the more appealing to him, who might as well be the most curious living being in existence. It's about the only thing he really knows about her, but after millenia upon millenia of virtually nothing, his euphoria can pull continents apart.
Even so, he cannot help but worry: is this the reason why she is so adamant in avoiding him? He has never been exactly shy in showing his infatuation towards her, so Lumine must feel overwhelmed in a way.
If this were to be true, it was a gigantic blunder on his part; one that must be corrected at all costs… Or that was his intention, but as things stood, he had no way of personally apologizing to her.
Morax had to content himself in simply turning his gaze to the Moon as he always had done and voice his apologies out loud. It did little to calm his inner anxieties, but he pushed through it with the thought that he will meet her one day.
He meets her once.
The Seven, upon observing how humans conquered every corner of the realm, decided to split themselves, each going to watch over a corner of the world. His chosen land is a vast one, of cloud-piercing mountains, deep forests and the hustle of silk through human hands. Here, his story is that of a king of immortals, who descended from above the clouds in the form of a dragon and made himself the emperor of man.
The Stone Emperor-King, among other new names, is how he was addressed.
With this new identity, thousands of legends sprouted from the human mind, about him and his fellow immortals, about the dangers lurking in the land and how their undying sovereign laid waste to them all, creating a vast and safe haven for the people.
And of course, the legend of the lunar maiden comes to haunt his already tormented mind. His past million years outwardly admiring the Moon really came back at him, and he is honestly suspecting that humanity is trying to tease him, dangling Lumine's attention to them in front of his face.
She is Chang'e in this land, a woman of extraordinary beauty that drank an elixir of immortality and flew to the moon. More stories reveal the company of a tiny creature (generally perceived as a rabbit), an unnatural love for sweets and pastries, and the ability to grant wishes.
She's also said to have had a lover, though he finds this particular detail to be completely tasteless.
Nevertheless, as the supreme sovereign of this human and immortal realm, he has the power to do whatever he might deem necessary. He did vow to never misuse his authority, but… As far as he can see, creating a festival entirely in the Moon's honor and completely catering to her tastes does not seem like a misuse in the very least. No one voices a single complaint either, for humanity is just as in love with Lumine as him, and not a day is spent in his empire in which her figure wasn't admired.
It was simple, really. If he couldn't cherish her up close, he'd simply lavish her with praise and affection from afar.
And, as Morax walked upon his biggest city's streets clad in mortal disguise, he could not help but feel pure pride in his people. He wanted the festival to be the most luxurious and dazzling event in ages to come, but humanity has yet again gone over and beyond his expectations. Everyone had done their utmost to convey their adoration to the Night Muse, and he wondered whether she'd appreciate such a huge present.
His leisure took him to the highest rooftops, as he was a little eager to have the bird's eye view of the festival, and as he climbed to the top, he found that someone else had the same idea. A baffled gasp, soft and feminine, told him a piece of her identity.
"Ah, what is with all of this!? No matter where I put my eyes on, I end up getting dizzy!... All these decorations… All these people celebrating…"
The spark of pride was reignited in full, and Morax stepped closer to talk to the woman. "It's a grand occasion, don't you think so? If it's the Moon we're celebrating, then no effort should be spared."
She did not jump in surprise, but he could see she was terribly flustered, as her hair was short and didn't hide her red ears. She spoke to him in a frustrated whine, "But don't you think this is far too much!? Anyone would be embarrassed seeing all this done for them. Honestly, I don't know why一"
He thought of reprimanding her words, but the action escaped him the moment their eyes crossed. He stood there, immobile, gazing into her golden eyes and bright-colored hair, her soft and pale skin, her pure white garments native to his land. There was something about her that gave him pause, that made him unable to look anywhere else but directly to her.
And then, moonlight shone over them, over her , and he finally knew.
This is you.
She ( skies and oceans and stars above, it was her, it was Lumine ) also stood in place, so straight that one could imagine the strain on her back, seemingly afraid for her life, which meant she also recognized him. Neither did anything other than staring into each other's eyes, incredulous, not fully processing this encounter and what it meant.
Morax recovered first. "You一" He begins, taking a step closer, doing all he can to not just run up to her, but whatever spell the moonlight put on them was ruined by then. Lumine squealed and immediately turned on her heels, face as red as the sunset, and jumped over the roof, managing to squeak out an embarrassed "Sorry!".
Morax could do little more than stare as three pairs of wings sprouted from her back, delicate and ornate like a butterfly's, and she soared over to the night sky, where the full moon shone, completely disappearing from his vision.
Despite the abrupt departure, Morax honestly couldn't care less. The world, his once great realm, was now reduced to nothing but the wild beating of his ancient heart. As he moves his palm to his chest, trying to keep his erratic heart from jumping out, he has a single coherent thought:
I met you. I finally met you, and we finally looked each other in the eye.
All hope for him to be cured of his malady is now lost. This obsession of his is a chronic disease, and he will gladly erect a mausoleum for himself if it means he'll keep it.
A single encounter is all it takes for him to not be able to think straight for centuries. His mind replays the brief moments in which her presence made itself known like it's broken as he over-analyzes every little detail it could about her.
Heavens above, no human tale or song came even close enough to do her justice. No one ever wrote about her short hair that looked impossibly fluffy, almost begging him to card his fingers through it. Nothing told him of her petite and kind form, perfect for him to hold. And most of all, there was never anything in existence that held a candle to her eyes, golden, sparkly, completely blinding, exquisite as the stars above.
For the eternity to come, he remembers the expression on her face. Flustered from head to toe as she rambled on about the festival made in her honor, she had deemed herself not worthy of such celebration, but he had to disagree. How could one spare any effort if it is for someone as precious as her? In his eyes, no amount of luxury would be enough for Lumine.
And she was really shy. Morax felt a little guilty for being so forthcoming, but she was just so… Lovely. Her flustered countenance was not bad at all, and he wondered if he could see her rosy-tinted cheeks again. He thought about her attire back then, clad in the flowing robes his empire is known for, and while he never saw her wearing any other garments, Morax could already tell it's a favorite of his.
Despite this long-lasting elation, Morax is nigh insatiable. Gone were the times where he simply stared longingly at the sky, hoping for a single glance at the Moon. Now, he craves even more of her presence, more than just watching from afar. He wants to listen to her voice, see her smile, give her mountains of this realm's most exquisite treasures. He wants to embrace her, to hold her close and never let go, to whisper centuries worth of the highest praise in her ears. By all of creation, he wants her.
Before this point, Morax had never given the exact name of this enduring feeling, but he had never fooled himself into thinking it was anything else either. He is acutely aware of what it is, and now there is nothing else left for him to do other than say its name.
For this is the feeling that moves humanity and divinity alike, the spell that traps the strongest of creatures, the sweet nectar that none can resist; the guide of the lost, the perdition of those who think themselves found; the salvation of the damned, the condemnation of the unaware; the light of the sinful and the darkness of the saints; the eternal pledges and the fleeting moments; redemption and fall all at once.
This is love, the love of an eternal god, the realm incarnate; timeless and absolute, bowing to none but the one it pursues, intense as magma beneath the surface, all-consuming as the tides. And Morax had given himself completely to it.
Millenia passed once more, and humans finally could stand on their own.
Morax, as per agreed upon the very first contract made, retreated from his position of power. His disappearance was quiet and humans eventually thought of him as nothing more than myths, although the most accepted theory is that he was a real historical figure with exaggerated stories about them. It suited him well, as he now was free to roam and observe the human realm as he saw fit.
Humanity is always impressive. Give them enough time, and they will surely change the world in ways none would expect. They eventually will forget who their gods are, but no complaint will be found among the Seven, for progress is all they ever wanted for their little people.
...Not all of them, though. Human faith in the Moon perdures, or maybe it gets even stronger as time passes.
Humans never stopped dancing and singing and writing, and their supreme muse has always been but a single one; the gentle moon maiden who dances beautifully through the night sky. They now take pictures and make movies and erect entire observatories for her; and there is still not a single soul who never looked above in wonder. Some of them even held ambitions very similar to his, launching themselves into space, and by the looks of it, they have been warmly received into her abode.
This thought tastes sour in his tongue. Eons and eons, and a chance encounter is all he ever got.
Over time, his fervent infatuation hasn't faded in the least. In fact, he thinks that the more years go by, the more he loves her. In hindsight, it should only be natural that he, an eternal, absolute being, would have eternal and absolute feelings.
But ah, it does bring him no shortage of woes. Such a huge amount of adoration and the sole recipient of it is nowhere to be seen. He always could simply turn to someone else, if only to try and drown out his longing, but he never considered it as an option in the first place. The pain in his chest might feel like torture at times, but it's all his and he'd rather die than trade it for something else.
Nowadays, he feels a calm but consuming melancholy. His times of grandeur and reverence are all but gone; he's still a god in the flesh and Gaia's Ultimate One, but no human alive will ever know that again. His companions, the immortals that could preserve his memory, are now few and far between in the human realm, all choosing to reside on the mysterious mountains above the clouds. The Seven, his siblings, are all still very much alive, but encounters are now as rare as they come.
Even so, he has little regrets. As long as the world keeps turning, and as long as he can watch his muse in her nightly waltz, he thinks he can live well.
He has a new name: Zhongli.
It was one he bestowed himself with; such a thing is needed to walk among humans. Instead of the father of creation or an emperor-king, he is now an eccentric and charismatic consultant, famous in his once-empire's biggest port city.
This life has all sorts of little exciting things, things he never once saw himself experiencing. There are cats on the sidewalk to be petted, deadlines looming to be attended to, weird people in the street to hold nonsensical conversations with, and even boring days where nothing happened. A perfectly mundane life, and all the more mesmerizing for it.
What is not mesmerizing in the least is his current employer's habits. "Don't worry, old man, you can do it! It'll be no different from what you're doing now!" Says the tiny woman that is Hu Tao, pleading without a shred of guilt for ruining his schedule like this.
"Master Hu, I'm helping to organize a funeral. That is a wedding." He sighs. He'd been hired by her as a consultant for quite some time now, as she always paid well and his work was well-received by the funeral parlor's clients, as well as just about anyone. It's hard to have competition in this department when you have literal eons of knowledge, after all.
But unfortunately, he can't use his authority as the supreme being of the planet to settle differences, so more often than not, he was subjected to Hu Tao's whims, treating him like an employee she could send away anywhere randomly. Not that her employees should be sent away anywhere randomly either, but well… He's in the same boat as them.
"Weddings and funerals have a lot of things in common, didn't you know? Flowers, seating arrangements, crying people… In general, they're both important rites of life, old man." Comes her absurd reasoning. He almost, almost wanted to argue that a funeral is a rite of death, but that would mean being pulled in her pace and he couldn't afford that.
"I am not an old man." He says instead, fully aware of how he is straight up lying.
"Then stop acting like an old man and go help my friend! It's the first really big wedding she'll plan and everything needs to go super smoothly!"
"Don't you trust her to be able to see through that on her own?" He tries to argue.
"I do trust her, but you know how she is, right?" He does not. "She's really self-conscious and overthinks everything, so I think someone experienced like you will be more reassuring."
"Master Hu, as much as I'd like to help your friend, I can't possibly abandon my current job this easily without any sort of compensation for it."
"Aiya, so the issue was compensation all along?" Hu Tao's eyes sparkle with mischief. "Then it's all settled! I'll give you a little extra for it and you can share the profits with her! She will definitely agree with a fair price."
And once again, he marvels at the savviness humanity can exhibit. Now, the scales were inverted and there was no longer a strong reason for him to neglect such an offer.
"Fine." Zhongli relents. "I shall accept this job."
Hu Tao smiles like a cat from a children's tale. "Great choice! Here, take her address and pay a visit, tell her I recommended you! Just try not to fall in love at first sight, okay?"
He narrows his eyes at Hu Tao's last remark. She had been pestering him about his love life for ages now, and her attempts to make him meet people were not few, though fruitless.
His heart always had one single owner, and he is sure that it will remain that way for eons forevermore.
"Was this all for the sake of another blind date?" Zhongli asks, ready to go off on a long lecture.
But surprisingly, she denies. "Well, while I'd love it if it were the case, this time it's honest advice. You see, my friend has this ability to make everyone adore her… It's almost uncanny."
That curious description is what ends their conversation, and Zhongli soon finds himself knocking at the door of a woman he does not know, ready to abandon his previous job in favor of his employer's whims.
The door is open enthusiastically. "Hey, Hu Tao, is it you? You really came right on time一"
Silence. They both stare at each other, each on opposite sides of the door, stunned.
This petite frame. This blond short hair begging to be petted. These beautiful, starry, hypnotizing golden eyes. This voice.
There is no way for Zhongli to forget a single detail about her. An eternity spent adoring each one of them is enough for it.
And she recognizes him too, again , because she gasps with an astonished expression and quickly tries to close the door in her stupor. Zhongli is faster (more desperate, too) and moves his feet to block the door, and now they're back at staring at each other again.
A million, billion things he'd like to say come to mind, but first things first, so he forces himself to say "Miss Lumine, would you pardon my intrusion for a while? There are many things I'd like to talk about with you."
It works, and she reluctantly opens the door again. "P一Please be my guest." She stutters in an impossibly small voice.
They're sitting opposite to each other yet again, she on her couch and him on her armchair. Between them, a low table where a tray with a teapot and tea cups rested, the scent pleasing to Zhongli's senses.
By the time it takes for Lumine to brew the tea, his anxiety has been completely lost to him, replaced by barely concealed euphoria. It's her, it's her, it's her, his mind chants, and he tries his hardest not to fidget on the seat.
Meanwhile, Lumine is positively fidgeting. Her awkwardness, while endlessly endearing to his eyes, also urges him to take action.
"I believe that by the way you reacted both now and back then, I am not a stranger to you. Likewise, I have been aware of your existence for eons. Nevertheless, introductions are in order." He stands and bows to her. "I had many names through the course of history, but it would be most appropriate to present myself as Zhongli, for now."
"Ah, yes, o一Of course!" Lumine stammers, tensing a bit when she hears the words "back then". "You can call me Lumine! It's an honor to have the Ultimate One as my guest… If I may ask you, what brings you here?..."
"You are friends with Master Hu, are you not?"
"Oh, Hu Tao? Do you know her?" She visibly relaxes now that she knows there is something connecting them.
"Yes, Master Hu has been paying me for my job as a consultant for quite some time. She has also sent me here for work-related reasons."
"Really? Like what?"
"To put it bluntly," He pauses a bit, mulling over his next words. "She wants you to collaborate with me for your next project… A fairly big wedding, if I'm not mistaken?"
"Huh?" Lumine sports a confused expression. "She… Sent you to help me?"
Zhongli immediately tries to quell whatever displeasure she has with this arrangement. "I am deeply sorry if the notion offends you in any way. Neither I nor Master Hu wish to belittle your efforts, but she claims that someone helping you might get things smoother, as it is your first big job."
She takes some seconds to absorb what he said, but she's soon waving her hands at him energetically, in an attempt at reassurement that Zhongli found adorable. "No, no, it's fine! I'm a nervous wreck most of the time, and you're more experienced than me, so it would really be a big help if you could do this with me! We can discuss the share of profit right now, too…"
"There's no need for such a thing." There really isn't. It's almost hilarious that he was planning on neglecting Hu Tao's whims on the basis of compensation, but now he could walk away from this ordeal without a single penny and he wouldn't bat an eye at it. This moment, this chance , is worth the Earth's weight in gold and more.
"Huh?"
But he still has to at least pretend he's not desperately in love for now. "...Not for now, at least. That discussion is best saved for when we actually have gained said profit."
"Oh, I see. If it doesn't hurt your schedule, could we discuss this further tomorrow morning?"
"If you see fit." He actually wanted to say that he would sooner throw his entire schedule away than miss a single second with her, but he was still able to keep himself in check.
"Well then, it's a deal!" Lumine, still nervous from their encounter, extends her hand to him, offering a handshake to seal the deal. He stares at her pale, elegant hand for a second…
...And he can't quite help himself, instead taking her palm in his and lowering his head, kissing her knuckles with as much reverence as he could muster. He can feel her surprised little jump and it makes him smile against her skin.
He looks at her golden, wide eyes, and speaks, voice barely above a hushed whisper, only loud enough to reach her ears: "Our contract has been sealed. It is my utmost pleasure to finally meet the Great Muse of the Night." She sees something in his gaze, focused on her as it is, and it makes her skin flushed red from ear to ear. He inwardly preens at her reaction, already thinking about a thousand other ways to replicate it.
"I一I一It's a pleasure to meet you too!" She eventually manages to get out. "I… I never thought I'd get to meet Lord Morax as well… Ah, I was too casual just now, wasn't I!? Wait, let me start again!"
"There's no need for formalities if you can't find it in yourself to adhere to them. You may call me however you wish." It'd be probably better for both of them if Zhongli stuck, though. Any of his other ancient names and he might not be able to hide the goosebumps running through his muscles.
"Right… Mr. Zhongli. Then there's no need for me to call me anything other than Lumine. It'd be too embarrassing otherwise, hearing someone like you calling me titles…" She mumbles the last part, and though he pretends to not have heard it, he stores this piece of information to scrutinize it later.
"Miss Lumine." He experiments, and even the most common of honorifics is enough to make her a bit flustered. Charming.
After that, there wasn't much talk, and Zhongli (regrettably) had to excuse himself. But this passing discontent was virtually nothing compared to the ecstatic, maniacal, almost delirious rhythm of his heartbeat.
A mundane and mesmerizing life it was, and it was about to be ten times better.
Lumine's preferred workplace is the open balcony that faces her garden. It gives a perfect view of the vivid green littered with whites and blues and pinks, like a scene from a children's book. The atmosphere it gave was entirely enjoyable, and Zhongli could feel the day dragging along in a pleasant manner as they worked together.
Her figure against the garden had Zhongli's hands itching for a camera, anything that could immortalize that moment beyond his own memory.
But, if he is to be honest, what takes almost all of her attention is the lunar maiden herself. She is now more or less comfortable with him, even though she can still be easily flustered if he acts even slightly more forthcoming (and for that he must plead guilty, as he thoroughly enjoys the reactions it brought), so now Zhongli can interact more freely with her.
It seems she hasn't changed much over the millenia. Just as the countless tales described, her charisma is undying. she has a small furry companion, the immortal (and incredibly feisty) rabbit Paimon. Her love for pastries and sweets is undoubtedly unmatched, driving him to buy packages and packages of them just for her. To his immeasurable relief, no lover is there to be seen, despite her social circle indicating that there was no shortage of attempts from others.
Still, a mystery remains to be unfolded: why exactly does she feel so nervous in front of him? After much time pondering, he starts suspecting that this particular reaction is more specific to him than her usual shyness.
He doesn't really want to put her on the spot, but there is little else he can do. And so, on a lovely afternoon discussing the wedding they're organizing over tea, he takes his chance. "Miss Lumine, may I ask you something?"
"Oh, go ahead." Says Lumine, lifting a tea cup to her lips.
"It could be merely my impression, but why are you so flustered in my presence?"
She chokes on her tea. Zhongli blinks, belatedly realizing he had been too blunt.
"I一Uh, I一" A cough. "I...Beg your pardon!?"
"Allow me to profusely apologize if I am mistaken, but… Ever since that day on the festival in the distant past, I have been somewhat aware of your avoidance. Have I done something, perhaps?"
Lumine sweats bullets in front of him. "Ah? No, no, no, you didn't do anything! It's just, you know… I'm really, really shy."
That brings a frown to Zhongli's face. As the oldest being on the planet, he certainly had enough human and divine interaction to discern the telltale signs of lying, and Lumine was particularly bad at hiding. He had feared offending her, but even despite her lie, she still sought to reassure him it wasn't the case; what was the problem here, then?
"You are certainly under no obligation to tell me anything. But, would you allow me to be honest, Miss Lumine?"
"...Go ahead?" She says, hesitantly.
He takes a deep breath, considering what he was about to say. Eventually, he finds the words. "This distance that has been between us since time immemorial… I dislike it, quite intensely. Ever since the day I first gazed at the sky and saw your noble form, I feel like distance, any distance, is an unnecessary thing. I do not wish for you to go along with my whims, so I will just relay my true feelings for you as they are, so as to not leave anything in the dark."
He looks her in the eye, and while he cannot see himself, he doubts his expression is any different from the ones he wore while observing the Moon from afar, nothing but raw longing etched onto his face.
"Miss Lumine, my muse. Ever since the day you first set up your stage above my realm, I have been fully enraptured by your beauty. Nothing in this world can hope to stand against your pure splendor, and none can resist admiring you, but I am sure I have been your captive for the longest time. I sought you, I dreamed of you, I erected monuments and decreed festivals in your name. Every single day, I prayed like a delirious man that one day you would descend from the sky and we finally could see eye to eye."
"This feeling cannot be mistaken. Miss Lumine, I am hopelessly, endlessly in love with you, and I sincerely doubt it will ever wane. Even so, the choice to return my affections is only yours, and you need not appease me. The only thing I seek with this confession is your honesty."
After saying so many words in quick succession, the vacuum of silence that followed was strange to Zhongli. In the first few seconds,he feared he might have scared her for good, but then he began to think she might have been overwhelmed by the amount of information.
So he waits. And waits. And waits some more.
And his reward is Lumine's skin turning red from head to toe. He can almost feel the sheer heat of her blood through his layers of clothes. She spends a grand total of five seconds like that, back straight as a pole, visage incandescent.
She gradually recovers her ability to speak. "Uh一I一 Huh!? "
"To summarize, I am in love with you."
Somehow, his sentence manages to further aggravate her condition. "No, I understood that, but一 Huh!? You!? In love!? With me!?"
"Yes, me in love with you."
"You!? Morax!? In love with me!? Lumine!?"
"Yes." He patiently assures her for the second time.
And then she averts her eyes with a nervous laugh. " Nonononono , no. Lord Morax, in love with me? The Ultimate One? The Earth incarnate? No, that's not possible."
Zhongli frowns heavily at that. "What makes it so impossible for you?"
Lumine flails her arms at him in a frustrated attempt at non-verbal explanation. "It's一You know! You're Morax! I'm Lumine!"
"I fail to see the issue."
In this exact order: Lumine groans audibly, lets her head fall on the table with a loud noise, gets up and then turns the upper half of her body away from him, crossing her arms and avoiding his gaze. She mutters something, and Zhongli only knows that because he sees her lips move.
"What did you say?" He presses.
She sighs, defeated. "I already said it. You're the one who created this realm, the most supreme being on the planet. In comparison to that, I'm just a speck of dust in space."
He is so stunned by her words that it allows her to go on uninterrupted. "I could never do anything for the greater good. All I could was dance my days away and sometimes, give a bit of guidance to a few people. I'm not good at spending too much time with anyone… The humans would probably be bored of me once they meet the real me and stop singing, dancing and writing. I think that will go for you too. I was never good at fulfilling people's expectations either…"
"...But even so, you still looked up at me. For an eternity, I watched you and your incredible deeds. You're the one who molded the world, who guided humanity with your hands, who felled the greatest nightmares and birthed the most astounding miracles. Lord Morax, you're the most incredible individual to have ever existed, and I'm just…" Lumine chokes on her words, lowering her head. She isn't fast enough, and once Zhongli sees the wetness of her eyes, his ancient blood freezes.
"...I'm just a nobody, too cowardly to even pay my respects properly. But even if I am a coward, even if I didn't deserve it at all… You still looked up at the sky and saw me. You talked to me, you praised me, you did all these things for me… I could hardly believe it, but despite it all, I felt truly happy. Even if I wasn't worthy of anything, you still made me feel loved like no one before, and… I think… I might have fallen in love with you too."
She finally finds it in herself to raise her head and look him straight in the eyes. Tears aren't rolling down anymore, but her cheeks are clearly wet. Zhongli desperately wants一 needs 一to wipe them.
"But, Lord Morax… I can't do it. This love of yours is terribly misplaced. You should find someone else, someone that can return these feelings properly… I have nothing to give back to you, even after you gave me everything."
He stands up abruptly, startling her as he circles the table and suddenly takes her in his arms, cradling her as close to his chest as he physically can.
"Lord Morax!?一"
"'Mr. Zhongli' is fine for now." He says, as gentle as his voice can possibly be. "And I am deeply sorry, Miss Lumine."
"Sorry?..."
"Yes, sorry. For being such an incompetent buffoon."
She partially releases herself from his hold and looks at him, incredulous. "What? What do you mean?"
"Eons and eons I spent doing all I could for you, and it seems it wasn't nearly enough. Dear Heavens, I am ashamed."
He holds her face between his palms. "I should have adored you more." He comes closer and closer, until their foreheads touch. "I should have cherished you more.". He loses himself in her perfect golden eyes, trying to capture every hue and commit them to memory. "I should have loved you more, so you'd never feel like that again."
"I一" She tries to move her head back, and he complies, content in carding his fingers through her blond hair. "I don't deserve any of it. I never did anything but bring you torment."
"I beg to differ." Zhongli easily refutes her argument. "Unless you trapped me on some sort of spell, I believe my secular agonizing over you has been of my own doing."
She makes a face, and Zhongli laughs freely. She slips fully from his arms, but he maintains hold of her hands. Lumine then bashfully looks at their laced fingers.
"Why would you fall in love with me, then?" She asks in a whisper. "Why would you want to spend eons agonizing over someone who barely gave you the time of the day."
"Why, indeed. I don't think I will be able to convince you with words, unfortunately." He brings her closer to him again, relishing when she complies. "But that isn't the only way I have. Miss Lumine, would you allow me a selfish request?"
She sways their linked hands, looking up at him with gentle golden eyes. "If it's something I can grant you, then please go ahead."
He puts as much intent as he can behind every syllable. There is no room for uncertainty. "Would you allow me to love you, even more than before? Would you let me hold you close, until every last doubt of yours is taken away?"
She ponders over his request. And then, she delivers her answer, still doubtful but not reluctant: "...Yes. I don't know if I'll ever feel worthy of it, but… I said my heart was set on you. If I can make you happy, then一"
Zhongli doesn't restrain himself after that. He dives for a kiss, aiming to steal all the air from both their lungs, putting passion tenfold on the effort to make her understand. Once their lips part, Zhongli's start to wander to her cheeks, her forehead, peppering all her face with little kisses.
Lumine soon gets overwhelmed and puts a hand over his mouth. She looks at him, bewildered, and if she can't see the crinkle of his eyes, then she could certainly feel the curve of his lips.
"W一what was that for!?"
"It was absolutely necessary. How am I supposed to make you feel loved otherwise?"
"You一Ugh!" She gives up, slumping against his form. Zhongli, all too content in holding her again, makes good on his ancient wish to whisper praise in her ears.
"Lumine, my eternal muse, the heavenly maiden of my dreams. You might think yourself lacking, or inadequate, but if you hold me as highly as you told me, then please take my word for truth: right now, I am the luckiest living being in the world. I am the unworthy one, and I have longed to have you like this for an eternity, and for an eternity I shall long forevermore; no matter how much time needs to march on, I am sure that one day, you will be able to understand why I一why all of creation一cherishes you so dearly… As long as you give me this chance of course."
He can feel his coat being stained with her tears, and he prays to the Heavens that from now on, she'd only cry out of joy. These feelings won't be so easily dispelled, and her journey in this is as long as his, but what is the matter? If they can walk it together, then it shall be beautiful.
"...Okay." She finally accepts. "I… Want to do this with you."
Their embrace lasts for a long time, but there is no need to rush anything anymore. She's now here for him, and he can be here for her, so Zhongli has no regrets or complaints.
It's an eternal pledge. He swears that, for as long as his everlasting, absolute existence stretches on, he will make her realize just how bright the Moon shines for all.