Chapter Text
"I think we're in the right place" Paimon commented looking around while carrying a kamera.
The commission to take a few pictures for an overworked artist might have seemed like something a bit too mundane for such a renowned adventurer as Lumine, but the girl found it surprisingly fun. Everyone called her a "traveller" yet she didn't really partake that much in the usual activities associated with travelling. Always ending up entangled in big affairs Lumi often missed out on small pleasures like sightseeing, enjoying the scenery or taking photos, hence Asagiri's request was such a gift. An opportunity to simply be, and appreciate the beauty of this world. Archons knew she needed that after everything they went through in Sumeru.
But it wasn't all smooth sailing.
"It says we have to take a photo in Chinju Forest by a Tori gate and that the person in the picture should wield a bow," Paimon read from the parchment that suddenly appeared in her hand from gods know where. She glanced at Lumi. "Good thing you always carry around a lot of different weapons, but can you even use a bow?"
Long-distance combat admittedly wasn't Lumine's forte, but well.
"I can at least draw it but don't ask me to hit anything."
She could use the help of someone more experienced, but since there was no one avalia—
Lumine froze mid-step, her thoughts suddenly wiped clean. The girl rubbed her eyes to make sure she didn't just randomly manifest a handy hallucination, because... there's no way, right? That he's here.
Her heart skipped a beat. That traitorous traitorous heart.
"Paimon, am I dreaming"—Lumi pointed at the figure standing between the trees up ahead—"or is that Childe?"
"What?" The pixie flew a bit higher skillfully avoiding the low hanging branches and her eyes widened. She almost dropped from the sky in shock! "It really is Tartaglia! But what is he doing here? ...it's not because of some secret evil Fatui scheme, right? And hey, isn't that Yoimiya over there?"
Intrigued, Lumi stood on her tiptoes and craned her neck.
Seems like it.
The fireworks girl was, as always, surrounded by a bunch of bubbly kids.
But... Yoimiya and Childe? That's an unexpected combination. Yet surprisingly fitting; given their personalities and easy-going nature, Lumine could see these two getting along quite well. And for some weird reason, the thought made her uncomfortable.
She squeezed her fist over her heart.
What the heck is wrong with me? Did I eat something bad?
Frustrated yet unsure why, the blonde turned to her small friend.
"Paimon, you go check on her and I will talk to Childe. We need to figure out what's going on."
"You got it!"
It was a perfectly sound reason to stay. And a good excuse, too. Not that she needed one.
Not that she suddenly felt awkward - like some kind of an unwanted intruder.
Watching the fairy fly away, Lumine clenched her fist and approached the Fatuus. Though she was careful to step lightly and avoid making any noise, Ajax spotted her right away - it was a bit frustrating how it was almost impossible to sneak up on this man. She even tried holding her breath in the past, but he would still instantly sense her presence as if nudged by some kind of a sixth sense.
But maybe that's how you end up constantly living on the edge? Lumine knew a thing or two about it.
Perking up like a shaggy dog (was his hair longer than she remembered?), Childe's face brightened.
But what was there to be so happy about?
Lumi scrunched her eyebrows. He must have been the most confusing person she had ever met.
"Why the long face, comrade? We haven't seen each other in forever." The Harbinger waved in greeting, and as she came closer playfully poked the crease on her forehead. "Don't frown like that or you will get wrinkles."
The blonde swatted him away, the blood rushing to her cheeks.
"My last two encounters with the Fatui Harbingers weren't exactly that pleasant, but..." She looked at his open face and jovial smile. Sighed in defeat. It was really hard to remain wary when someone was making that kind of expression. "I guess the third time's a charm."
"That's the spirit!" Ajax grinned, though she could have sworn his eyes glinted dangerously at the words 'Fatui Harbingers.' That crazy bunch truly wasn't on good terms, huh? Lumi would give up half of her savings to see Childe throw at least one juicy punch at Dottore's annoying face, but... A part of her also hoped he would stay as far away as possible from the mad doctor.
There was something about that guy that made her skin crawl.
"Anyway, what are you doing here?" It was better to change the topic to something safer.
"Ah, you see, you arrived just in time. I'm chasing after the powerful 'Great Mujina Youkai' with some new comrades I met."
"Wait. The Great Mujina Youkai?"
That sounded kinda familiar... which Childe's further ramblings quickly confirmed. It was moments like these when you could really see the youthfulness sealed within his soul – his smile was genuine, his gestures more animated and his eyes felt almost alive – and it was moments like these she enjoyed sharing with him the most. When Tartaglia for a short while was turning into Ajax, a boy excited to hunt imaginary monsters in the mysterious forest.
"Hey!" Childe crossed his arms. "Why are you grinning like that? You don't believe me?"
"Oh no no, how could I?" Lumine quickly waved her hands trying to contain laughter. "So you've met Yoimiya, huh?"
"Oh? So you know Yoimiya too? She knows pretty interesting stories, doesn’t she?"
"She is pretty interesting." And pretty, too. Full stop. But admitting it made Lumi feel a slight pang in her chest. Which was ridiculous. Why would she experience any kind of discomfort discussing her precious friends? They deserved countless compliments for all the things they’ve done for her, yet—
A flick on the nose snapped the girl out of her thoughts.
"Ow! What was that for?!"
"Because," Childe leaned down and their faces were suddenly only centimetres apart. Lumine's throat went dry, "we didn't have any chance to meet lately, and now that we're both here you're clearly thinking about something else."
She blinked—
Wha...?
—and snorted shaking her head.
So I'm not the only one, huh?
Could Childe also have these weird thoughts swirling inside? Groundless worries and unexplainable anxieties?
She impulsively reached out and gently adjusted the slightly crooked mask in his hair. Sensed the man reflexively stiffened, but then relaxed and leant towards her touch.
Am I messing with him the same way he's messing with me?
Stepping back, Lumine turned away. Willed her wildly beating heart to calm down. It was a dangerous territory to venture into.
She had a purpose in staying on Teyvat and it wasn't this. It... couldn't be.
"I gotta go say hi to Yoimiya."
Yes. What Lumi needed was some space to breathe and gather thoughts - something that, she noticed, was becoming harder and harder to do in Ajax’s presence.
Not waiting for his answer, the girl shamelessly jogged away. Refused to look back. Never wanted to see what reflected in his eyes every time she decided to walk away. If that made her a coward, so be it, but she wasn’t yet ready to face all these complicated emotions. It was too early, too intense, too... everything.
Biting her lip, Lumine noticed Paimon hiding behind a tree. And wait a moment, spying on Yoimiya definitely wasn’t what she sent her out to do. Grateful for the convenient distraction, the blonde quietly sneaked closer and leaned towards her ear.
"What are you doing here?"
"#$!#!%@%!!"
An indescribable sound echoed between the trees. Something between a screech, a howl and a shriek coming straight from the underworld. Yep, that's how legends were born.
"Ahh! Yoimiya!"
"Tartaglia, help, it’s the Great Mujina Youkai!"
The kids screamed over each other, scared out of their wits.
Lumi snorted side-eying her companion.
"It seems you've earned yourself a new title today, oh Great Mujina Youkai."
"Argghhh!" The pixie kicked the air in exasperation. "Paimon is not a youkai! Paimon is Paimon!" And she probably missed the chance to reveal herself amidst all this evil spirit talk.
Well, no matter what, teasing the little troublemaker was always immensely fun~ And easy. And safe. And wasn't throwing Lumine's mind into disarray.
"That’s not a youkai!" Yoimiya finally intervened, patting the agitated children on their heads. Older siblings like her were truly a gift - especially when they always remained within your reach... "It’s Lumine and her friend, you’ve met them before, remember?"
Luckily they did, and assured no monster was gonna eat them for the time being, gladly chattered about their hunt. Truthfully, the gullible attitude and wild imagination of these kids immediately reminded the blonde of a certain other little ginger boy she had to entertain in the past.
They hit him in a weak spot, huh? Still.
"Hey, Yoimiya, so about Tartaglia..."
"Oh, him." The girl answered awkwardly scratching her cheek. "Um... We specially invited him to be our 'Anti-Mujina Specialist.' Fireworks can only do so much."
"Tartaglia is so cool!" suddenly one of the boys cut in, his eyes sparkling in awe. "He becomes like a watery blur when he fights. All you hear is WOOSH WOOSH POW! And then all the monsters are defeated!"
Okay, that was an awfully accurate description of his mess of a fighting style. Childe's chaotic water steamers not once made her groan in frustration - it was so hard to see what's going on on the battlefield thanks to them! But yeah, children probably saw it as the coolest entertainment.
Lumine had to cover her mouth not to laugh. Defender of childhood dreams, indeed. That guy really was a kid magnet. But... not only that. He was a magnet for trouble too. She sighed.
"But Tartaglia, uh... He’s actually..." What, though? Dangerous? Slightly unhinged? A Fatuus? The girl suddenly didn’t know what to say. He was a lot of things and that was the problem.
But Yoimiya saved her from finishing that thought, "Shh, keep your voice down. Don’t let Iwao and others hear you," and grabbed Lumi under her arm, leading her a few steps away.
Sure the kids couldn’t hear them, the fireworks maker sighed and squeezed her nose. "He’s one of the Fatui Harbingers, right? I’ve heard about everything that happened in Liyue, too. I know that he might be dangerous... But Tartaglia isn’t like that at all! He helped us and he’s really nice to the kids."
Ah. There it was: that pang again. The tiny needle piercing her heart deeper and deeper with every next word of praise leaving Yoimiya’s mouth.
Yes, I know he can be nice.
I know he can be much kinder than you would expect.
Reliable, comforting and loyal.
A boy next door... and a cold killer too.
It was so easy to like him and so hard to trust him.
"But don’t worry, I’m not gonna let my guard down!" Yoimiya finished solemnly nodding her head.
Lumi smiled weakly. "Just... let me know if you run into any trouble." After all, no matter what she intended to say earlier, there was no way she would tell them to stay away. Lumine knew better than that. Knew him enough to know he would protect these kids with his life if necessary. At the end of the day, that's the kind of person Ajax was.
Suddenly an arm swung over her shoulder.
"What would you do then, I wonder?" The girl shuddered. Childe’s breath tickled her ear.
"That’s easy"—she glanced up—"then I will deal with you my way."
The Harbinger appeared taken aback for a second and then burst out in delighted laughter. Despite that, he still refused to release Lumi from his grasp and she could feel the happy vibrations of his body spreading onto her own. It... tingled.
"You truly are one of a kind, comrade."
"Someone has to keep an eye on you."
Listening to their bickering Yoimiya could only lift an eyebrow.
Just what was the relationship between these two? It felt incredibly complicated, but... also quite fun, too. Like a mix between an old married couple and a pair of awkward teenagers.
"A-Anyway!" Lumine finally disentangled herself from Ajax's embrace and adjusted her dress. Attacked by the chilly forest air instantly missed his natural warmth. But weather and confusing feelings aside, she still had work to do. And who knows, maybe it was a blessing in disguise. Perhaps what she needed right now the most was exactly that: a change in perspective. And a kamera seemed like a perfect tool for the job.
"Have any of you posed for a photo before?"