#chilumi fic
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New Chilumi Fic Coming Soon to AO3!
Please Allow Me To Introduce Myself
Lumine had often fantasised about meeting her soulmate. She already knew the first words they would ever utter to her: “Hey girlie, hold still.” A sentence that often featured in her daydreams. Never could she have imagined her soulmate would whisper those words while holding a knife to her throat.
"I finally found you."
Art Made by: @thornart
I love the end result! 😍 Looking forward to share this fic with everyone.
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CHILUMI: # a chasmic mistake.
— teaser and table of contents.
summary. lumine is determined to bring the eleventh harbinger down after his crimes against liyue harbour, but the ends to which she will follow him are tested when he descends into the chasm. how much longer will her anger hold up, and how much longer is childe going to tease her for it?
word count. ~20.8k. genre. adventure, enemies to lovers.
posting schedule. every friday starting july 7th, 2023. NOW COMPLETE.
I -- descent. 3.4k
II -- establishment. 5.1k
III - protection. 2.8k
IV - envy. 4.2k
V -- notion. 2.5k
VI - defense. 2.9k
more info ↓
warnings. blood/violence, action as in combat, nyctophobia, insanity/confusion, sfw physical contact, cursing (as in d—n, h—l, one instance of b—h), cursing (as in magic/mind control), crying. canon divergence (from right before inazuma), paimon got booted for the extent of the fic and is only mentioned ~3 times.
author's note. I DID IT!!! I FINISHED IT! i haven't posted anything for tartaglia before this point because i couldn't handle short form fics for him lol. so here we are. i believe that this is the longest thing i have ever posted on tumblr so i understand if it's too much for some to read on this particular platform. just know that i love them and love this fic it is my dear dear child and i am excited by the fact that someone else might read it and enjoy it too.
taglist. reply to this post if you would like to be added!
@wondermumbles @luvhyun3 @ay-asterisms
comments & discussion are ALWAYS appreciated! thank you for your interest in my fic :)
#a chasmic mistake.#chilumi#genshin fanfic#tartaglia x lumine#chilumi fic#childe x lumine#ajax x lumine#genshin x traveler#genshin x reader#genshin angst#genshin enemies to lovers#genshin impact imagine#tartaglia x traveler#childe angst#childe fluff#do you guys like the title i named it almost as soon as i started writing it lol#yells bc i finally posted it
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She crumpled the remnants of the flower in her fist, steeling herself. “Before making my request, I was told that alongside prison administrator, Neuvillette himself would personally review my visitation request. There wasn’t a lot of room for error."
Childe stared at her, eyes narrowing. “So.”
"Well," she huffed. "I couldn't just, as you put it, say we were married, create a poor forgery, and immediately be found guilty for obstruction of justice-"
"Wouldn’t us in the same prison be an interesting experience, though?"
"So I had to make it a little more…" she searched for the right word, "sticky, for it to pass scrutiny."
#cystali writes#chilumi#chilumi fic#fanfic#genshin fic#genshin impact#fontaine#childe#lumine#:) sending this out there again
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gravate (pt. 3) (final)
a/n: so i just realized i never posted part 3 onto tumblr even though it’s on ao3. this is very long overdue, so sorry!
ch. summary: ajax tests just how much he can fall into the depths of his own personal hell, and somehow finds a way to crawl back out.
warnings: angst, drinking, ~16k words; smut tags (MINORS DNI): distension, sub!lumine, dom!childe, size kink, cunnilingus, blowjob, vaginal fingering, begging, degradation and praise, possessiveness.
[the attempt at finding the yellow brick road]
Ajax wonders if this is what they mean by a “waking nightmare”, because when his eyes struggle to pry open the next morning, battling against what feels like the weight of the world, the dread that stews in the pit of his stomach is something akin to that oxymoron. Having been rattled into staying up by his own shaking heart, it was a miracle that he even caught any shuteye. And even then, the ache in his bones from a restless dream of sprinting across school grounds to try and catch up to Lumine’s fading figure makes it difficult for him to delineate the fine line between reality and fantasy.
A few swipes and taps on his phone show that his texts to said girl have been left unanswered. They weren’t frantic by any means, but she would always answer his “see u tomorrow” texts before, and now it sits with two pitiful grey check marks. Ajax can’t tell which is worse: being completely unacknowledged, or being left on read.
Tell me how to fix this, he wants to beg, wants to grab her shoulders and plead until she finally relents and gives him an answer. But that involves part of his pride, and he still feels that some part of Lumine’s reaction to this whole situation is overexaggerated and completely unwarranted. He doesn’t want to remember how broken she looked when he first screamed those words at her. In fact, he’d much rather replace those horrid memories.
“Are you okay?” His mother asks him when he trudges down the stairs, exhaustion visible in his gaze.
“ ‘m fine,” he murmurs, grabbing the steaming bowl of pork and century egg congee placed by his usual seat at the dining table. The hair ruffle he gives Teucer is half-assed at best, barely lifting a smile when a cheery “Good morning!” is sent his way. Irina wants so badly to intervene somehow, but given that Lumine had the same look in her eyes last night on the way home and that the two didn’t speak a word to each other, she figures they’ll resolve it somehow.
Right?
-
Lumine avoids him with a twenty foot pole in between them. Does it drive him absolutely bonkers? No doubt.
Aether has begun to hover around her more often than before, keeping his gaze steely and guarded when they meet eyes. Ajax was hoping that he’d at least have the other twin on his side, but that was his naivety grasping desperately at any loose ends. In Lumine’s, that streak of sadness still shines through before she turns away almost immediately.
He is lost.
Signora steps in to try and impart him with some sage words, but he wants none of it. Eventually, she snaps at him.
“If you’re going to mope like a lost puppy that ran away thinking its owner didn’t care for him, you might as well just quit. It’s sickening to watch you like this. We know you can do better, and much more without her trying to stop you from reaching your full potential.”
She readjusts her cap before leaving him on the bleachers, ready to jump back in for her next set of drills. “Think about it, and come find us on Saturday at Dottore’s party if you agree. Otherwise, don’t bother.”
Ajax continues to watch as Kaeya slithers up next to Lumine, characteristic limb draped across her shoulders, using her as a crutch, his chest heaving so his lungs drink in all the oxygen they can. Normally, she’d scold him lightly for getting her jacket all wet with any lingering pool water, but instead, she just shoots him a tired smile. Her hands show him the journal and Ajax can only assume they’re discussing his stats.
He punches down the shadows of jealousy that emerge when Kaeya murmurs something into Lumine’s ear before sending her a worried look. She merely waves it off, attempting to reassure him that whatever he asked about was no problem and of little consequence, but ultimately failing. Even as Kaeya brushes her bangs away, she doesn’t falter, yet Ajax seethes. That should be him comforting her. That should be him questioning the dark eye circles and thinking about what he could do to ease any of the burdens off her shoulders.
Diluc seems to catch the tail end of the conversation and gives a hesitant, yet firm few pats on Lumine’s shoulder as an act of encouragement. She showcases her best appreciative grin before she has to move and help Kokomi out with something.
Ajax can’t handle it anymore. He stands up from his seat abruptly, shakes out the tension as much as he can while stepping into a lane, then dives into the pool without a second thought.
It’s just him and the graceful fight against the water, nothing else. No regard for the screaming in his lungs, the ache in his calves.
No need for Lumine.
-
Dottore meets Signora’s gaze before arching an eyebrow that weekend, having caught Ajax walking steadfast through the front door. She merely gives him her all-knowing, shit-eating expression, and he knows they’ve got him good now.
“I don’t need her,” Ajax drawls two hours later, drunk and murmuring to himself in the guest bedroom. “She’s barely talked to me all week, and I was just trying to h-hic-elp so you know what? I don’t need her.”
Dottore sits next to him with a bored expression. “So you don’t want me to drive you to her place like we normally do?”
“...I do, but I can’t,” Ajax pouts before falling back onto the bed. His world spins in a nauseous fashion, making him screw his eyes shut. “She probably locked me out.”
“Dick move.”
A tiny part of his brain tries to speak some sense into him, attempting to convince him that Dottore’s just adding fuel to the fire, but he waves it away, quite literally, and hinting to the senior that yeah, he’s feeling pretty drunk right now. The larger, more inane and nonsensical part of his inebriated mind says that yes, his upperclassman is right, and Lumine’s hypothetical locking of her window and therefore barring him from entry is indeed, a dick move.
Ajax wakes up hugging a plain body pillow the next morning, and Lumine wakes up with frustrated tears in the corners of her eyes as she slams her window shut.
-
Over their last two year of high school, there are a number of times when Lumine considers talking to Ajax again. She gives herself ample opportunities to do so, often making excuses to stay back and completing extra errands before asking Aether to pick her up. She wonders if her anger is misguided. Maybe she should’ve been more understanding, been the bigger person to extend a hand and hope that the sinner would reach out and realize the negative influence surrounding him. Maybe she should’ve created more opportunities for him to apologize to her and explicitly delineate why he shouldn’t have said the things he said.
But maybe she didn’t love him enough. Maybe she was in the wrong for having left Ajax to fend for himself with Signora, Dottore, and Pulcinella. Maybe she should’ve spoken up more strongly in the beginning against the Harbingers instead of laying it down gently in front of him. Maybe this could’ve all been prevented on her end, and she wouldn’t have to watch Ajax in the pool for an extra hour and a half, silent and morose as he pushes himself to the absolute limits.
Maybe she wouldn’t be in this position where she could feel and watch the physical separation of her soul, so close and yet, so, so far away.
-
[the endless pining]
There is a dull pain in his chest when she walks by – the bang of a gong, the beat of a drum, the soreness of a phantom scar. After two years of feeling the same thing five days a week, occasionally during the summers, and often on the weekends, he wants it to fade. He craves a certain numbness to everything he feels when he sees her. Ajax wants to blame it on puberty, as Anastasia and his mother so often do. Said mother often laments about never having Lumine and Aether over anymore (read: mainly Lumine), and he tries to ignore it. It’s her fault that she never comes by anymore, her fault for never dropping off baked goods or a portion of Xiangling’s new concoctions, her fault for never really being in his life anymore. She was the one who chose to walk out of it with little to no reason, he tells himself.
It’s easier to fall prey to his delusions. He ignores the memory of his health teacher’s lesson on the five stages of grief and the way the word “denial” in all of its bold, Times New Roman print audacity, glares menacingly back at him. It makes him want to tear up the worksheet, but that would be an infraction and he’d like to not be benched from competing this weekend.
But she radiates and glows wherever she pleases. He knows she doesn’t mean to, that it is just in her name and hair, and people gravitate towards her like moths to a flame. Ajax had been one of those moths for years and she had hosted and warmed him. A bitter, conniving part of his soul draws the analogy of the spider and the fly, except she chewed him up and spat him back out in a state of worse than worn. But he stops himself because as strong as his negative feelings are, Lumine was anything but manipulative and evil.
Nevertheless, he still blames her for leaving him, for turning the other way. He was in the right, he believes. Ajax did what he had to do, and she just couldn’t accept him and wrap her brain around it.
He meets her eyes over and past Xingqiu’s head and part of him is tired. The world around them falls to a quiet hum, their steps seem to slow to a turtle’s crawl, and he takes in everything he can about her. It could be the strands of golden locks that are a little out of place, the eyebags signaling unhealthy levels of exhaustion. It could be noticing that Lumine has swiped on a coat of mascara and done her eyeliner, or the color of her lip gloss has changed. But every time, what shakes him most to the core, is the mixture of vulnerability and gentleness that bores straight to his soul. The gaze is all too familiar, one he had seen in all stages of happiness, anger, grief, compassion, and love. And with the extra punch, her eyes harden, and she turns away to direct her attention back to Xingqiu.
Everything comes back to a full roar, and it’s the same breeze of the whiplash, multiple times a day. The environment picks up the pace once more, and he must continue with his day as if he isn’t missing the other half of his soul. Because no matter how much he hates her, wants to grab her shoulders and yell in despair to question her actions, possesses all the bitterness and darkness in the universe, he, undoubtedly and sorely, misses her.
-
When graduation comes, he gazes longingly as she crosses the stage to receive her diploma, giddily accepting the whoops and cheers from her friends in front of her and parents sitting in the audience. Ajax pretends he doesn’t hear his siblings calling out her name or his father’s voice more sonorous than her own father’s. He drinks in every detail of her that he can, hoping that he doesn’t look too much like a lovesick puppy. The entire time when they were waiting beneath the stage before filing out into their chairs, Ajax never caught a glimpse of her. It was predicted, to be fair, since their last names were some ways apart. After two years of never reconciling, part of him wasn’t about to start now. From what he’d heard over his mother’s purposely loud phone call with Lumine’s mom, she was attending a different university than his, a fact that didn’t settle well at all with him. In fact, it had kicked him right in the gut and stomped on his lungs. The sudden dread of realizing that this year might be the last time he’d ever really see her was more devastating than he expected, and he wanted to dial in her number from muscle memory right then and there.
But for what, he has no idea. He still didn’t want to apologize, had no clue of what the right words would be, and the fear of her potentially ignoring his phone call all together was a blow to the pride he refused to face. So Ajax just stares and stares, hating and loving her more than ever for residing in his brain at all times, and wishing that he’d been the cause of her glowing blush kissed by the overhead lights. She shakes hands and sends a wave to her parents, but walks too quickly for him to see how she’s decorated her graduation cap. While Ajax was good at whipping things up in the kitchen, he didn’t have a single arts and crafts bone in his body and had simultaneously rejected Tonia’s offer to do something about his own cap. He had no idea what he wanted anyways.
The rest of the ceremony goes off without a hitch, their voted class song blaring through the speakers at the end as they shuffle and file out of the building to meet their families outside. Ajax supposes he should be proud of himself to some degree, for there was a period when his truancy and occasional delinquent behaviors were rearing to get him in serious trouble, but his older siblings had all gone off to college without issues. The glomps he receives from his parents feel like forgiveness and pride, his mother quickly rallying them up for photos. Ajax has no problem picking Teucer up in his arms for a shot, then later crouching down so Tonia can climb on his back and press a loving kiss on his cheek for the pose. Anthon just stands next to him, half hidden by Ajax’s billowy gown.
“Ah, wonderful!” His mother exclaims, spotting a familiar figure walking by them. Naturally, his heart skips a beat when he sees two figures and their blonde strands blowing in the wind, now somewhat unkempt after having been stuffed into an ill-fitting cap for three hours. Irina quickly asks Lumine’s mother to take their whole family shot, grins wide and trying to crowd together as much as possible to fit into the frame. Instead, he stares straight past the camera and towards the twins standing idly behind, taking note of everyone passing by and giving them hugs and congratulations. Even Kaeya and Diluc, already-graduated upperclassmen and fond of the twins, hand their own congratulatory bouquet to a flustered Lumine. She tries to balance it with the other bundles in her arms, saying something that he can’t hear but it makes the other two laugh (or crack a smile in Diluc’s case), and Ajax does his best to ignore the waking jealousy in his gut.
And Kaeya, the conniving snow leopard that he is, sends him a teasing glance before leaning down to place what seems like an extremely tender and affectionate kiss on Lumine’s cheek. It lasts for an eternity in Ajax’s mind, his vision honing in on his next victim as the world turns red. But before he can step forward and wipe that smirk off his face, Tonia tugs on his gown to gain his attention. Any ill will immediately dissipates from his system, giving his little princess all his focus. She waves him down to her height, then whispers, “Look at Lumi’s cap.”
He had been so caught up in Kaeya’s little scheme that he didn’t realize Lumine had been precariously holding her cap between two fingers, but the face of it was completely open towards him and accessible to read. And when he does, Ajax feels sick. Sick, but giddy, moved, torn, and guilty.
Shades of blue swirl together, like the ocean front of the nearby beach they used to frequent. In a calligraphy font and in black paint to stand out, they read, “Take the world by storm.”
The saying itself was mediocre at best, common, and publicly cliché to some degree. But coming from Lumine, with their history and her sentimentality, it meant something much more. He would always say that to her when describing his aspirations and goals, ready and eager to make history in the world of competitive swimming. Part of the enthusiasm had died and disappeared when he and Lumine had their disastrous falling-out. “We’ll do it,” he’d say. “Take the world by storm and leave them in the dust.”
“Well, if anyone could do it, it’d probably be you,” she’d reply with a fond smile.
“Let’s call it – by the time we’re 25, you’ll be there to watch me sweep gold at the Teyvat Championships, and I’ll be the youngest and most decorated swimmer in Teyvat history.”
The gut-wrenching slime of guilt seeps through his lungs – he could be overthinking it. It might not have anything to do with him at all, or anything to do with the fact that he just couldn’t be the bigger person and apologize properly. Maybe, maybe she wanted to rub it in his face that she could move on with her life and it didn’t have to have him in it. He realizes how much his thoughts don’t make sense, but there’s a reason why Tonia pointed it out in the first place.
But with how openly he’s staring at her, it’s not unexpected that she feels it and returns his attention. Once again, he is stricken with the soft vulnerability in her eyes, how her grip on her flower bouquets seem to tighten with anxiety. He’s never wanted this – signs of fear of him, that he couldn’t just walk up and give her a hug like the old days, and chat about simple nothings.
The best they can offer each other now are small, tired smiles. She turns on her heels and walks away Aether, Kaeya, and Diluc by her side, Kaeya’s arm still slung over her shoulders, her parents soon following them.
The most painful goodbyes, he realizes then, are often the ones you cannot say.
-
[what i’ve mistaken for as enemies but really it’s just karma]
Second year of university
At first, it’s shock. Then betrayal. Then confusion. Then all three in a nasty, deadly cocktail coursing through his veins.
Ajax hasn’t seen her since his family’s annual summer barbeque. Lumine had spent most of her time playing with his younger siblings, mainly Tonia, who bemoaned her current love life (or as much of one a middle schooler could have.) She’d been donned in a cute bikini set, her top covered with a larger, off-shoulder tee that inadvertently helped keep his sanity intact. Luckily, he was distracted by chasing Teucer around in their pool, giving tips on his form and helping keep time.
With the aim to keep the peace in front of family members, they were amicable and cordial at best. She hands him a plate without a word, he grabs her preferred drink without prompting. She grabs him an extra skewer and puts it on his plate, and he makes sure she gets a generous slice of tiramisu at the end. Those brief interactions let him live in an alternate reality where things hadn’t gone so disastrously wrong. Instead, they’re making plans to go to university together, managing schedules, looking into which organizations they should try to join, and convincing her to apply as a manager for his swim team.
Which brings him back to the present moment as he stretches and looks three lanes over, and stops in his tracks. In a jacket too big to be hers, long hair tied back into a high ponytail, smiling beautifully at the young man next to her that isn’t him, his brain simply thinks, “What the fuck?” Said object of Ajax’s disdain hands over his own jacket to her and she drapes it neatly over her forearm, later patting him on the shoulder for good luck. Lumine then turns away completely, entirely missing him and his eyes boring into the back of her head, and simply focused on getting back to the rest of her team. His gaze follows her until the ends of her ponytail disappear around the corner, then wants to smack himself.
“Focus, you idiot,” he murmurs to himself, going through his routine stretch again. There’s a different adrenaline that begins to flood his system, fueling him more than before to make sure he comes out the victor -- almost as if to show Lumine that she joined the wrong side. Her position is supposed to be next to him, cheering him on, just like the old days.
The large, metaphorical elephant in the room only visible to him doesn’t stop him from sweeping first in his events. However, Xiao, as he sees the name on the board later on, comes in close seconds, and Ajax bristles. To him, the guy looks severely constipated at all times, a tight and slight grimace on his face, guarded and stiff as he shakes out any water from his hair when he takes his cap off in the locker room. He speaks sparingly to anyone, and Ajax wonders if the guy has any friends at all.
Ajax happens to watch them wait outside the arena, Lumine talking rapidly on the phone and looking around, probably for their team bus. The streaks of dyed teal hair on the figure next to her is visible enough to clue in on who’s waiting with her. Other figures in similar university jackets stand nearby, conversing with each other in a lighthearted atmosphere. Ajax would need to be blind not to see how attentive Xiao is towards Lumine. He hovers and follows her every step with half of one of his own, clearly not wanting to be overbearing, but also warning others to think twice about approaching his manager.
The ginger-haired man watches Xiao watching Lumine. But then his back stiffens, and as if he has eyes on the back of his head, golden irises meet his own azure blues.
It’s almost alarming how similar they are to Lumine’s, the shade just a little deeper under the sinking sun. They pierce into his very soul, as if to scrutinize yet challenge his attention, to ask and say, “Why are you looking over here?”
Ajax blinks once before turning away, ambling over to join his own team and ponder on today’s events.
-
A month later, he sees Xiao again at a meet in Fontaine, this time catching him in the locker room. He has so many questions for him, mainly about Lumine and a couple about his training routine because for someone of his…size, his speed is incredibly impressive. Part of him wants to know how Lumine is with the team, if she treats them as well as she treated her high school team (read: himself), if she’s overworked and burdened. But surely at the university level, they have the means and resources to hire more student managers to help out, and yet, Ajax knows that Lumine would push herself to go above and beyond to ensure their health and safety.
Xiao meets his gaze on accident, giving a slight nod of acknowledgement before walking past him. There’s a smell of ocean waves as he pushes by, and a small part of Ajax wonders if there’s anything reminiscent of him in Xiao to Lumine. The sinister, more possessive fraction of his soul cackles in glee, relishing in the idea that Lumine can (potentially) never keep her mind off of him. No matter the fact she’s out there supporting someone who’s so consistent in competing with him, he would always reign and continue to show his swimming prowess.
His rational side knows how silly the thought is.
After the finals, Ajax comes out first again, Xiao another close second. They accept their places on the podium and he keeps an eye out on the audience stand, scrolling and watching to see if he can spot Lumine. It doesn’t take long, that glowing head of blond locks like a beacon in the darkness, and he wishes she was cheering for him instead of her teammate. He misses the confidence and cockiniess he would feel when her jovial screams rang above all others back in high school.
Sure doesn’t feel like winning without her, no? A little voice whispers inside his head.
Not now! He chides himself.
When they go to the locker room to grab their stuff, Ajax sits down for a few moments, head between his knees. A few teammates clap him on the back and shoulders, some wondering if he’s feeling unwell and if he needs help leaving. He’s all fine, he assures them, simply daydreaming in bittersweet solitude about how he’d like to hug Lumine around the waist and spin her in circles, to bask in her excited giggles and protests to put her down.
There are only a few swimmers left getting their things together when Ajax finally looks up, letting out a huge sigh from deep within his chest. He looks to the side to see Xiao about to leave, fitting a wireless earbud into one ear and fingers fiddling with the other.
“Xiao, wait,” he calls out before he can stop himself.
Xiao’s stare can weather even the toughest mountains, Ajax realizes, as part of him wants to wither himself. He can’t help but attempt to relieve himself with a small gulp. Something about Xiao’s stance looks like he could take him down in the blink of an eye.
“What is it?”
Fuck. How is he supposed to phrase this?
“W-what’s your manager like?”
The squint of Xiao’s eyes is almost menacing, as if saying how dare you, and he shoulders his duffel bag like he’s about to just walk out without giving any dignified answer. Fuck, fuck fuck fuck – “L-lumi was my high school team manager,” Ajax confesses in an attempt to save himself. At least he has history with her, and not like some other scumbags who might just be looking to get into her pants.
Xiao seems to soften a bit with the outburst, seemingly less guarded, and checks his smartwatch for the time. “Then surely you would know what she’s like now.”
“We…haven’t kept in touch much.”
Which is a huge understatement, but Ajax isn’t about to spill out their whole life history together.
Xiao looks him over once more before an imaginary lightbulb goes off above his head. Ajax doesn’t know what to expect, but it most certainly isn’t a tilt of the other’s head and a gentle, “You must be him.”
This can mean one of several things: either Lumine has gone and completely besmirched his name (which she’s partially in the right to do), has recounted their story but left out all the gruesome details of their falling out, or simply just referred to him as a childhood friend who competitively swam and went to the same high school as her. Regardless of the correct option, all of them cause a painful twinge in his heart, and it’s his turn to be defensive.
“Walk out with me,” Xiao demands, spinning on his heel and stuffing his hands into his jacket pockets, and leaves Ajax no choice but to follow. With the difference in height, the latter manages to match his pace and keep his steps small.
“She completes her duties and takes care of the freshmen well, since you’re wondering. The coaches appreciate her help and dedication, as well as prior experience from high school. Of course, university coursework is more demanding, and she spends free time during training to catch up. Nevertheless, we all feel grateful to have her,” Xiao provides, speaking more than Ajax has ever heard from him. Even in short interviews and highlight clips on YouTube, his sentences have always been brief and straight to the point, but rarely in such sizable chunks like now.
Something warm, akin to pride almost, blooms in Ajax’s chest at the description. It sounds just like her – helpful and hardworking.
“But she keeps her distance,” the former continues. “Most of them don’t notice it, but it’s not hard to see the wall she’s put up once you think about it.”
“...what do you mean?”
“The team usually eats together after training in the athletics complex, but she rarely joins us. The offer always stands regardless, but how many university students really have important things to do after 7PM? She speaks more on her current uni life, but not much about anything before. In fact, she’s only mentioned you to me once or twice – never by name though. The others are unaware of the connection.”
Ajax does his best to stomp down any jealousy at the implication of Lumine’s vulnerability, yet winces when he realizes how touchy of a subject he might be for her. He thought by now, it would’ve been known by most of her team that the two had some history.
Xiao stops in his tracks. “You should leave before she sees us together. I’d rather not have her needlessly worry.”
“Makes sense,” the ginger nods. “So…she doesn’t stay with anyone after practice?”
His head shakes. “I usually train another hour or two on most days, but unless she’s finishing up errands, she’s usually gone.”
Oh.
Ajax’s brain goes into overdrive at this new fact. Lumine staying after practice with him before their fight could be left to 1) the devices of her not having another way to get home and 2) out of principles of friendship. But what about post-argument? The final two years when he’d course back and forth in the lanes for an extra hour, absolute silence between them as she flitted around? All the times when she’d leave without a word on the back of Aether’s new scooter, just minutes ahead of his mother picking him up? All the moments when he thought, “Jesus Christ, our managers have so much to do every day, what the fuck? And they let Lumine handle it all alone?”
Because why else would she stay behind for so long?
On the bus home, he forces himself to nap, neck stretched back against the headrest, because he doesn’t want to think, to feel and come to the uncanny realization that…
He’s so afraid of the answer.
-
You were wrong, Ajax. You’ve been wrong this whole time.
-
He thinks he must be dreaming.
The liberty of owning a vehicle on campus means he can get away whenever he desires. He’s not confined to the coffee shops that were within walking distance, no doubt the most popular study spots. The music was always too loud in those places and the other students were then unable to control their own volume, which only sprouted the planted seeds of a headache. So with a hellish week of exams coming up, and even with individual study rooms dedicated to athletes in the athletics training building, Ajax itched to just get away from campus.
His maps took him to a small cafe about thirty minutes out, twenty minutes of it spent on the highway and completely out of the college bubble. Ever since seeing Lumine at the swim meet, he had been on edge and weighed down by the endless dreams plaguing his sleep. Sometimes they were nightmares, replaying the most hellish moment of his high school career, and other times they were fantasies he never wanted to wake from. Holding her hand, intertwined fingers in an unmarked flower field, foreheads pressed together as the sun kissed her golden locks. He hated the sound of his alarm playing in the back, loathed the sensation of being pulled away from his subconscious and instinctively fighting against it. Just another minute with her, please.
To whom he was pleading to, he never had any idea. As his eyes would blink open and fight against his leaded eyelids, he would curl into himself and hug a spare pillow to his chest. He would screw them shut and scour his brain for any connection to bring him to those moments of bliss again, and then feel the despair in his heart when he had to accept the reality before him. Almost three years of wishing, pining, and loving from afar, it never got easier.
Which is why he freezes in the doorway with one strap of his backpack over his shoulder, gaze immediately trained on the head of flaxen strands and the hauntingly familiar physique. Her back faces him and he almost stumbles on his way to the barista, shakily ordering a simple latte and fingers fumbling over his credit card. He keeps looking back at her, wondering if his brain is just playing tricks on him, but the white and blue cecilias in her hair are unmistakable.
Can he call it fate? Destiny? The universe finally so sick of his bullshit that they shoved an opportunity in his lap to finally right all the wrongs he had committed against the girl of his dreams?
The few minutes it takes for his latte to be prepared flies too quickly, and he takes a deep breath before walking over to her table, each step leaden with hesitation. He rounds the edge with bated breath, ready to prepare an excuse in case the girl he’s approaching is not Lumine at all.
Amber eyes meet his surprised ones and match his shock.
“A-ajax?”
Her heart wrenches when she sees his dark eye bags, cheeks slightly sunken in, and ginger strands more mussed than usual. There’s a painful swelling of her chest when he sends the smallest, most tired and apologetic smile her way, all tension leaving his system at the sound of her voice.
“Long time no see, Lumi.”
His tone is soft, so full of affection and longing that she momentarily forgets they haven’t properly spoken in three years. She had internally forgiven him by the time graduation rolled around, having seen the positive change in him during training sessions. Everything about her old Ajax had returned and matured, but she wanted to hear him say those two words first.
I’m sorry.
That’s all she’s ever wanted from him.
“It’s been a while,” she chokes around the bubble in her throat. “Please, go ahead.”
As he situates himself in the seat across from her, she rearranges her notes and materials, having spread them out over her time there. “You’re pretty far from campus,” Lumine attempts to fill the silence.
“Everything’s too full and loud over there,” he shrugs while grabbing his own laptop out. “I thought it’d be good to get away.”
“Same here,” she says before taking a nervous sip of her now-cold cappuccino. “You have exams coming up?”
“Three this week. The worst honestly. You?”
“Just one. But we’re only two weeks away from finals, so I thought I’d start making study guides now rather than later.”
“Smart girl,” he chuckles. “You’ve always liked preparing in advance for big exams.”
“It’s a good habit, maybe you should learn,” she teases.
“I probably should.”
No studying gets done for the next hour as they catch up, filling each other in on their majors and classes they’re taking. It’s all small talk laced with intimate details of each other, nods of understanding and moments of unspoken words. There’s only peace and serenity in the atmosphere surrounding them, and Ajax feels like the weight of an elephant has been lifted off his chest, soaking in all her interactions and mannerisms to make up for lost time.
He’s glad to see she’s doing well, for the most part. Well-fed, well-rested, hair shiny and lustrous as ever. Ajax likes the floral designs of her nails and takes it as a sign of her occasionally treating herself, which she should. If it were up to him, he’d take her out every weekend to at least get away from the pressures of university life and just indulge. But most weekends are occupied by swim meets, so maybe that’s her getaway. And speaking of swimming…
“I saw you three months ago,” he blurts out when they reach a lull in the conversation. “At the swim meet in Mondstat.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, uhmm,” he rubs the back of his neck. “You were walking one of your swimmers out – um, Xiao. Yeah. Almost didn’t recognize you with your long hair in the ponytail. ”
She had seen him. In fact, she made very grave efforts to not look his way and focused all her attention on making sure Xiao was okay. Lumine didn’t miss his name at all on the sheet with who the swimmers were in each heat and round. The faint scar on his right tricep had given him away instantly, and that hadn’t stopped her from sitting on the edge of her seat at the screen, watching the rounds with bated breath. Ajax in the pool was a force to be reckoned with, and while Xiao had come as a close second in the finals for several events, she internally rejoiced at Ajax’s victory.
“I saw you, too,” she confesses, blush rising to her cheeks. “I just couldn’t find a chance to say hi.”
“You couldn’t, or you wouldn’t?”
Lumine flinches, but also not quite appreciating the sharpness of his tone.
“I-- I didn’t mean that,” he immediately backtracks, guilt gnawing at him. “That wasn’t fair to you.”
“No, it wasn’t.”
They both can’t bear to look at each other, gazes staring off to the side as they find their next words to dispel the awkward air.
“Lumine, I-- I’m sorry.”
The incredulous look she gives him is to be expected, he supposes. His apology is so severely overdue, and it hadn’t exactly been the moment he thought of when coming up with ways to do so while in the shower.
“I’m so sorry for everything. The name calling, my shitty attitude freshman and sophomore year, for not listening to you about Dottore and them when I should’ve, for never apologizing until now because I’m a coward and have issues with pride, I just – I really am…sorry.”
Her silence is terrifying, tearing and tugging at his heartstrings. The last time he felt so nervous was before his first, big swim meet back in middle school – and yet, this somehow feels a hundred times worse. For an apology that had been so deeply buried inside, finally unearthed, raw and genuine, he can only hope for the best. There’s a drop in his stomach when Lumine begins to nibble on her bottom lip, perhaps subconsciously picking at some chapped skin, but then she reaches over for his hands that are tight around his empty mug.
Her hands are warm, but he can feel the trembling in her fingers.
“Thank you, Ajax,” her eyes just the slightest bit teary as she smiles at him. And he knows, he just knows, that they’re going to be okay.
-
[the reparations]
At first, Lumine wonders if she was too lenient in her forgiveness – that as soon as Ajax received permission to close that terrible chapter in his life, he would revert back to old tendencies, or find something else to criticize her for. She worries that Ajax will be up to no good again and slowly destroy his body from inside out. But she is elated to realize that no, Ajax is back to his old self again. His ambition and drive is quite healthy, to say the least, and he does his best to support her in any way possible.
For Ajax, every interaction with Lumine afterwards is bittersweet, to some degree.
He bemoans all the lost time in high school, ruminating on how different their life would have been had he just listened to her. Would they have created new memories on the night of graduation? Would he have taken her to a house party? How many nights could he have had to wake up next to her? Could he have heard her voice during swim meets, cheering him on despite the cacophony surrounding them?
They make time for each other, switching between meeting at each others’ apartments or respective university libraries, occasionally the cafe. The number of times they’ve fallen asleep over a video call while getting some studying done increases exponentially, neither of them willing to end the call and instead just muting themselves until they absolutely have to go. Ajax goes through a cycle of nicknames for Lumine, ranging from Lumi to Lulu (to which she crinkles her nose at because it sounds too close to lululemon and now he does it on purpose sometimes) to love bug to girlie to moya zvezda, the last always causing an eruption of butterflies in her stomach.
But somehow, one of her favorites is when he just says, “Hey you,” and holds his arms out for a hug, a grin stretching across his face from ear to ear. His hugs engulf her completely, smooshing her face to his chest while he breathes her in, and she does the same. The serenity that washes over them is palpable and she feels a little less empty – sure she has friends and the swim team to fill up her social meter, but with Aether gone on an academic scholarship in Sumeru for university, she couldn’t help but feel just a bit lonely. Quiet nights in her studio apartment, faint Chillhop beats playing through a Bluetooth speaker, the occasional booming bass of vehicles out on the road – alone. It had hit her the first few nights just how little she’s spent her life by herself, always somewhere with someone; parents, Aether, Ajax, Ajax’s family.
And now Ajax was becoming her new piece of home again.
Yet each playful shove, each whimsical peck against her temple, each wink sent towards her at different swim arenas, each little gift that appears unexpectedly on her doorstep, she becomes more and more frustrated. Sure, Lumine can be the one to stomp into his apartment, grab him by the collar of his shirt, yank him down, and kiss him silly while releasing all her pent up energy. She’d have to be knocked unconscious to not see that Ajax’s feelings for her are way past anything platonic, and probably have been for some time now, so why can’t he just say it?
Is it too much to ask for? To want Ajax to pick her up and pin her against the wall, trap her between his firm body and the grey wall of his apartment hallway? Is it really just her hormones and years of restrained love threatening to beat out her chest?
“You should come to this party with me,” he suggests offhandedly one late night, ripping Lumine out of her reverie. She’s been dazed and spaced out for the last few minutes, though he’s not sure why. Has she been overworking herself? “It won’t be big, and most of the people there are pretty chill. A couple notches down from a frat party for sure.”
“When is it?” she asks as she pulls out her planner. Her fingers run down the tabs until they hit March and flips open to the monthly preview. Ajax takes a moment to sit in awe and admire her scheduling abilities, everything neatly color-coded and arranged in each individual square.
“Think it’s the Saturday before spring break.”
“Oh, makes sense. Yeah, I’ll be free,” Lumine agrees with a shrug of her shoulders. Despite the cool, calm nature she’s attempting to exude, her heart pounds in overdrive and nausea threatens to infiltrate her system. A party? With Ajax? With alcohol and dancing and weed and ample opportunities to accidentally end up in a young adult romance trope with him? And drinking games?
Ajax takes a long sip from his to-go latte, courtesy of the coffee shop within this library on Lumine’s campus. Past the glass windows, the sky is dark with stars peeking through wisps of clouds, signaling it was rather late. Regardless, he’d rather be here sitting mere inches away from Lumine and attempting to get some work done than back in his bed, alone, with only her on his laptop screen to fill the void.
This party would be the first time they’d get to hang out without ever worrying about time constraints – they would be free to do fuck all (within some malleable legal limits), and just be with each other. Have a sleepover, shoot the shit, watch some movies – anything, anything, to just have more time.
“Does that mean you’ll pick me up?”
“For sure. But they live pretty close to my apartment, so I was thinking of picking you up and then walking over there. Maybe 15 minutes at most.”
“Sounds good to me. It’ll be nice to let loose after midterms.”
“Fuck, I forgot about midterms,” Ajax whines, shoving his shoulder against hers. “Why’d you have to remind me??”
“So you can start studying now, dipshit. Be proactive.”
“You should help me study.” Lumine finds it horrifying that she’s actually falling for his miserable attempt at puppy-dog eyes coupled with an overdrawn pout. She beats it down with all her strength and looks back to her planner.
“If you think I’d touch anything from your intermediate Excel class, then you don’t know me at all.”
“Come on, you know that’s my worst class!”
-
Ajax does the best he’s ever done on midterms, and Lumine, naturally, passes with flying colors. Before they know it, he’s dancing around the room, trying to get his black skinny jeans over his thighs and ass while searching for his phone. His phone awakens as he peers over it, greeted by his home screen background of a selfie of him and Lumine. Sure, his teammates gave him a little grief over it, but as long as they realized that she was untouchable, he'd take their shit.
About twenty-five minutes away, Lumine double checks her outfit in the full-length mirror, needlessly smoothing over non-existent wrinkles. She worries if it’s too much or too little. How chill was chill?
If Ajax reacts negatively in any way, she has a backup outfit ready to go. The last thing she wants is for him to feel embarrassed or burdened by her in front of his friends.
“No, you look good,” she tries to hype herself up. “It’s Mona and Kokomi approved.”
“If he doesn’t kiss you by the end of the night,” said astronomy professor in-the-making warned last night. “I’m going to drown him.”
“And the last thing we want is for you to be charged with conspiracy to murder,” Kokomi chimes in. “But seriously Lumine – you look wonderful! Stay close to him, too. He’s clearly head over heels for you, so this should be enough to push him in the right direction.”
“You really think so?”
“Trust me, I know so. The stars can back me up on it, too.”
Lumine is threading thin rose-gold chain earrings through her piercings when there are three raps against her door. Her heart kicks into overdrive as the anxiety creeps into her veins – this is it: the moment she’s been half-dreading and half-waiting for this whole week.
“The door’s unlocked!” She yells from her bedroom, finishing last touches on her makeup and hair as Ajax lets himself in. The sound of his footsteps draws closer to her location as he announces himself and she’s scrambling.
“Sorry I’m not fully ready, but I’m just about done,” Lumine apologizes profusely. Ajax leans against the frame of her bedroom doorway, relaxed and trying to alleviate her worries.
“Don’t worry about it, I was…early…”
Oh gods. Oh Archons above.
She will truly be the death of him.
Lumine looks radiant, the epitome of peace and comfort yet so confident and alluring. Her golden tresses are tied back into a high ponytail, perfect curls cascading down with stray bangs at the sides. Dainty and sophisticated chain rose-gold earrings paired with some light makeup and a faint sheen of lip gloss shine back at him. A long sleeve, ivory white blouse with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows is loosely tucked into dark-wash jean shorts that may be too short for his sanity. Her legs stretch for miles in the confines of a pair of black tights despite her actual height, and he has to exert all mental effort to will away any excitement below his belly button.
“Wow,” he exhales, dreamy and in disbelief at the luck in his life. “You – you look amazing, Lumi.”
She can hear the reverence in his tone and lets out a huge sigh of relief. “It’s not too much? Or I’m not underdressed?”
He still can’t tear his gaze away from her outfit, even as he shakes his head. “No, not at all. It’s perfect.”
You’re perfect.
The beam of joy Lumine sends him soothes his soul. She gives one last cursory look in the mirror before grabbing a small purse just big enough to fit her phone and a few other small items. “Let’s go then.”
Okay, so maybe he let her walk ahead of him initially with bad intentions. Yes, he has looked at her butt one too many times, but he has a really hard time controlling himself! And in those shorts…
Ajax has to shake his head, fighting for some clarity. Lumine takes the cake when she toes on a pair of black low-top Converse, completing her look. He hasn’t said a word this whole time, even as she waves him out of the apartment so she can lock the door behind them. But again, Ajax knows his manners. He offers her his arm and she happily loops her hand into the crook of his elbow.
“What a gentleman,” she teases. “Your mother would be proud.”
Sweet, sweet Lumine. If only you knew.
“Well, with four sons, she’s had time to figure out what’s important to teach us. You know she used to give me mini-lectures on how to compliment girls? And all the details of the menstrual cycle?”
“All important things to know. It came in handy though – I’ve had my fair share of getting emergency pads from you back then.”
“Pads are expensive, too. You should pay me back,” Ajax teases.
“I’m sorry, and just who said homemade cookies were enough payment? Hm?”
Their bickering goes on for the entire walk to the house, laughter wracking through their system as they keep trying to one-up each other. Ajax was fair in his assessment of the atmosphere of the party – it was fairly chill. Music played through speakers at a comfortable volume, nothing too bass heavy, too fast, or too slow. A random movie played on the flatscreen in the living room, drinks set up in the kitchen and other options to make cocktails, everyone simply mingling together and catching up. A few smoked weed on the deck in the backyard, their figures barely illuminated by the fairy lights strung up above them.
Lumine blends in beautifully with the crowd, chiming in and chuckling when appropriate. Given the little space available, she remains curled into Ajax’s side most of the night, his arm around her shoulders and fingers mindlessly combing through her loose bangs. In return, once her cup is empty and she no longer wants anything to drink, her own arm stretches across his waist, and Ajax tries very, very hard to not think about how close it is to his crotch. One way he attempts to divert his thoughts is by pressing chaste kisses into her hair at random, but then he just gets drunker on the scent of her shampoo, and it’s just a slippery slope all around.
She feels warm, intimate, and content. A perfect way to wind down from the stress of exams, truly.
There are a few rounds of Rage Cage, one of which Lumine ends up being the unlucky soul to down most of the drinks in the center. Ajax swoops in as a dark knight to help her drink the center cup with the most alcohol in it, the others ooh-ing softly at the grand gesture. It’s been a while since Lumine partook in a drinking game, and he quickly fills the cup with some water for her. Afterwards, the host changes up the music and everybody gathers back in the living room to dance and sing along.
“‘So testosterone boys and harlequin girls’,” both she and Ajax belt out to each other, little care in the world for how poorly they may be dancing. Their heads nod along to the beat as the lyrics spill off their tongues from the deep recesses of their nostalgic memories. At some point, she throws her head back and can’t stop laughing and Ajax simply follows, unable to stop himself from looping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. It’s almost second nature for Lumine to cross her arms behind his neck, and their proximity doesn’t seem to faze them much.
Whether it be fate, an algorithm, or a poorly-made party playlist, the beginning guitar strums of I’ll Follow You Into the Dark come through the speakers. A few groan and demand for the song to be skipped, but Lumine and Ajax pay no mind to them. Ajax is too tall for her limbs to rest on his shoulders comfortably for longer than a few minutes, and she opts to hug him around his waist. In turn, he shifts his embrace to her upper back, and they sway comfortably in their imaginary world. She keeps her head tucked beneath his chin, eyes closed shut as she feels his heartbeat against her cheek. It’s steady and strong, a reminder of how lucky she is to be alive and on this plane of existence, to be loved and cherished by someone like Ajax.
“You’re the best, y’know that?” She mumbles quietly but with a slight drawl. There’s still some effects of alcohol lingering around.
“If I were the best, I wouldn’t have said those things to you back then,” he can’t help but reply, bitter and unforgiving towards himself. “I’ve gotta spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”
“I just really wanted you to say sorry, and I got it. You’re forgiven, and you’re here with me now, and I wouldn’t want anyone else, okay?”
“Maybe,” he replies and kisses her head gently. “You deserve the world, Lumi.”
“Jax–”
“I lied, you deserve the entire universe,” Ajax interrupts. “Like – like stars. Who gives a shit about the other stuff out there, it’s always about the stars anyways.”
“...don’t let Mona hear you say that.”
“I’m just saying – you deserve all the stars. Actually, no. You are the stars, Lumi. All the stars in the night sky, shining so brightly and so full of wonder,” he rambles and Lumine can’t help but giggle.
“Now I know you’re really drunk. I don’t think sober Ajax would say this.”
“I know sober Ajax definitely thinks it,” he resorts under his breath.
Lumine pulls back to take a good look at him. She expects to see a glaze over his eyes, signs of inebriation and pupils unfocused. But she instead sees an intensity she hasn’t seen before, boring into her soul, and she’s trapped. She’s frozen as he lifts a hand to trail his fingertips reverently against her right cheekbone, his thumb later following suit with an affectionate stroke. Suddenly, Ajax looks nervous, maybe a bit excited, and her eyes follow the bob of his Adam’s apple as he swallows around nothing.
“It’s getting late,” he whispers. “Do you…do you wanna go back to my place and drink some coffee? Sober up a little and watch a movie or something?”
If it were any other person, she would have turned them down and called an Uber home. But it was Ajax, her Ajax, and she wants this so bad.
“...yes, I’d like that.”
-
Ajax wonders if he’s actually thirty years old, coming up with the excuse of coffee so that Lumine would come over and hang out after the party. In fact, he later realizes halfway home just how insinuating the suggestion is, and while sure, they were plenty flirty with each other just minutes ago, this was about to be a big jump. Long-harbored feelings haven’t exactly been explicitly established, though it can be argued that for them, there really is no need because they most likely know how the other feels about them by now.
Just thirty minutes later, they’re giggling and reminiscing on middle and high school memories – the joyful ones, at least. Lumine mentions offhandedly about a past fling and another blind date she got set up on by Mona, recounting how the mechanical engineering major junior spent twenty straight minutes discussing his senior thesis project that his family was apparently helping fund for, something to do with a racecar that he got to ride in along – and Lumine hadn’t even asked about it.
“I learned that being inside has its perks,” she concludes, chuckles soft as her body melts into the couch cushions. “This,” her finger gestures at the space between them, “is much more fun, in my opinion.”
Ajax turns towards her with an elbow perched on top of the backrest, empty cup in his lap. The golden glow of the living room lamp accentuates her features and he’s just so in love with her – to the point where maybe he was much more jealous than the average man at a mere mention of a date that clearly went nowhere. She scooches closer to him, the ankle of her bent leg nearly touching his, hair out of its bind and cascading over her shoulders, drowning in his swim team jacket that she hasn’t bothered taking off since being handed it in his car. To him, Lumine looks more ethereal now than when he went to pick her up.
A true angel descended from the stars and heavens, and he will happily worship her for the rest of his mortal existence.
“You’re beautiful, Lumi,” he says in a gentle tone, words tumbling off his tongue before his brain can stop them. A furious blush blooms over cheeks and he takes her cup without a word, placing both it and his on the coffee table before facing her once more. Adorable.
Whoever leans forward first, nobody knows.
And they’ll never know. With the rush of blood and hormones, the pounding in their hearts and ears, fingers reaching out with a mind of their own, Ajax can’t think about anything but how sweet Lumine’s lips taste, how soft they feel between his own, how easy it’d be to cradle her chin and kiss her harder so that she would open up her pretty little mouth for him. And when she would let out an adorable, breathy gasp that’d shoot straight to his crotch, he’d take the opportunity to catch her bottom lip between his teeth, sucking gently before giving a nibble, then letting go.
Even though they’ve never been so intimate with each other (to his knowledge), this feels familiar. There’s something nostalgic about tangling Lumine’s sun-kissed strands between his fingers, really hoping he’d never have to go another moment without kissing her. A drug shot straight through his veins, he feels himself getting so deliriously drunk on her, the scent of her body wash further ruining him to smithereens.
Though she pulls back to catch her breath, he dives without much urgency to plant butterfly kisses against the smooth, untouched column of her neck. The jealous claws of possessiveness urge him to paint artistic shades of purple and blue, his own personal canvas that no one could even dream of touching. Initially, he wants to practice some patience, but the thought that someone else had marked her before him unleashes a sinister rage. Teeth begin to nip and bruise at the skin just above her collarbone, and he drinks in every whimper that leaves her lips. Her nails dig deeper and deeper into his shoulder blades as she clambers into his lap, causing him to smirk on the inside.
Lumine would have to be incredibly drunk to not feel the stiffness digging into the bottom of her thigh. There’s little to no space between their torsos, especially with how Ajax keeps tugging her forward, desperate hands and arms wandering around her back and waist. Him doing so creates a slight rocking motion, and just the tiniest bits of friction set her nerves on total overdrive. He has to have more, more, more, because if he doesn’t, he might just combust and make a mess of this night.
The fabric of her shorts rides up, and Ajax manages to register just how painfully hard he is, even more so when his hands slide up her thighs and his thumbs push into the clothed center between her legs and she gasps, his name slipping off her tongue with so much pleasure that he nearly cums right then and there. Only Lumine has the ability to unravel him so quickly, his pent up desires and dreams finally coming to fruition after so many years. As his thumb pads more forcefully, searching for her clit and mouthing at her neck, Ajax refuses to hold back and bites down on her neck when she lets out a breathy moan, her hips bucking into him once more.
“J-jax, please–” she mewls, mind fogging more and more with hazy lust. He wants to take her apart piece by piece, have her cum on his tongue, then his fingers, then at least twice on his cock. If allowed, he wants to wake her up in the morning by treating her as his personal breakfast, to ensnare her dreams so that she could understand even a sliver of how crazy she drives him at all times. Ajax can only imagine how addicting she’ll taste, that maybe he can’t hold himself back after just one taste of her sweet release, and that he’d die happily between her thighs.
He kisses her hard again, her tongue meeting his and so, so eager. His conscience falls deeper into the depths of hell, imagining this tight heat around his cock. Perhaps she’d struggle to take all of him in while the pink muscle dances around the tip, and he could train her to open her throat up and–
Hold back, slow down. “Use your words, Lumi,” he half-growls into her lips, unwilling to stop kissing her for longer than necessary. “Be good and tell me what you need.”
“You know what I need,” the starlight whines as her fingers drift down toward the button of his pants, digging in but waiting, as if needing his permission to move forward. Such a good girl, the voice in his brain purrs. Mine mine mine, all mine.
“Maybe,” Ajax murmurs before giving a punishing bite into her shoulder. Lumine didn’t realize her underwear could get any wetter, but perhaps she enjoys proving herself wrong. “But I need to hear the words from you. Are you sure you want to do this?”
He pulls back to look into her eyes, searching for any hesitancy. But all he sees are blown pupils, slightly parted lips, a heaving chest, and disheveled golden strands, and almost loses it. They haven’t done too too much past kissing, yet how does she looks so close to being fucked out already? He can’t imagine how he looks right now, perhaps half-crazed and thrumming.
Her lithe fingers curl deeper into the fabric of his shirt, and professes in a pant, “Please fuck me.”
Fucking hell.
Who is he to deny his goddess’ wishes?
Without another word, he picks her up, palms splayed beneath her thighs as an invitation to keep her legs crossed tightly at the base of his spine. The tiny squeal that leaves her when she does the same with her arms is delightful to him, followed by disbelieving giggles as he speedwalks to his bedroom. She scatters pecks on his neck, even working on a few marks of her own. Knowing she won’t drop, he lifts a hand to teasingly swat the round of her ass. “Be careful, girlie,” his voice a dark murmur in her ear.
“Or what?” she retorts, hints of a grin on her lips. Even when he sits on the edge of his mattress, she keeps her face buried in his neck. Ajax struggles to keep himself tethered, so tempted to act on primal desires and needs.
“Listen carefully,” he softly demands. “I don’t think you need to be reminded of this because I think you always knew – but you…you have always, always been mine. No matter what you think, you were never anyone else’s.”
His teeth nip the shell of her ear before they drift downward to catch the flesh of her earlobe. Just the tiniest exhale sends her back arching into him, her nails digging deeper into his shoulder blades.
“And I have every intention of teaching you just how much you belong to me.”
Oh.
Lumine has little time to catch her breath before Ajax pulls away to kiss her again, his palms scorching and weighted as they pull at her blouse from where it was tucked into her shorts, desperate to grasp at her waist. The feeling of her skin beneath his is soothing– after so long of admiring from a certain distance and just bearing with the emptiness in his soul, to finally have her in the most personal way possible, he is warm again. He can move forward and feel fulfilled, take on the world because with Lumine by his side, no one can stop him.
For every ounce that she is his, he is hers and more.
Regardless, he has no patience to grapple with the buttons of her blouse, instead shimmying it upward and over her head, sliding the material down her arms so she could hold onto him again. He loves how perfectly she fits against him and always has, that his upper torso completely envelops her petite frame. His hands wander and leave goosebumps in their paths, shivers passing through her system. It’s too cold and too hot all at once, a burning flame in her sternum as she pleads and pleads – for what, Ajax can’t quite figure out, but he does his best to keep the heat at bay.
Her pitiful whine sounds foreign in her own ears when she’s shifted off his lap – but he makes up for it by getting her shorts and tights off. The thought that she should’ve worn a skirt instead is somehow the only logical thing she processes, her hands fumbling with his to slide the material down as fast as possible. She craves, no, needs him touching her again, the warmth and security he provides her. Lumine couldn’t care less that Ajax is less than delicate with her three-dollar tights, his nails creating crescent tears and digging into the flesh of her legs. On another day, he’d like to humor a fantasy of his where he could just rip them apart at the crotch, hook her underwear to the side, and press his face into her weeping–
“Get this off.” The pouty command makes him chuckle, alongside the fact that Lumine is practically clawing at his undershirt and somehow also gripping the ends of his flannel’s sleeves.
Seeing his sculpted and toned torso during swim meets only maddened her further, and she often spent half the meets a little dazed and horny because it was really nice watching the muscles in his back stretch and shift, how his arms come around from underneath the water during the butterfly, and she is digressing – you think after so many years, she’d get used to it. But Ajax has a wonderful body with nearly perfect form at this point, and she can’t not appreciate it.
In enough time, her naked body wraps around him once more, her dripping core grinding softly against his very apparent erection, with nothing but a thin cotton barrier between them. He hisses against her lips when he feels just how wet she is, wanting nothing more than to shift his cock past the hem of his boxer briefs and fit himself inside her. It takes all of his willpower and more to reel back and focus on wanting to taste her, but Lumine counters that by leaving the bed and forcing him to stand by the edge.
She wastes little time dropping to her knees, buttocks planted neatly on top of her ankles and Ajax curses, “Fucking hell – no wait, Lumi, you don’t–”
He’s never been so painfully hard in his life, all the blood filling his cock making it more sensitive to the chilled air. A hand cards through her hair before tracing her jawline, his thumb resting on her bottom lip so they part just slightly. The hazy, wild lust in her golden gaze causes his brain to short circuit, before it completely fries when she – “Can I please have your cock?”
Soft, yet confident, exigent under the guise of pleading – she could ask him to jump in front of a moving train and he would without a second thought.
“Such a good girl for me,” he purrs, pushing his thumb deeper past her lips and applying pressure onto her tongue. It’s not enough to stop her from giving it a light suckle, from weaving it around the digit and he needs her mouth on him now.
He removes the drool-covered digit from her sweet temptation to tuck it with the other into the band of his underwear, dropping it down with no fuss and no regard for how the tip catches and snaps back against his abdomen. His balls feel so heavy as he strokes himself, pace slow and languid. He watches her gaze zone in on the drop of precum leaking from the top.
Lumine can feel her mouth pooling at his length, so hard and thick, long enough that her abdomen and pussy clench at the mere thought of how deep he could be in her. She has half a mind to completely forgo sucking him off in favor of pushing him back onto the bed, straddling his hips, and sinking down onto him. But she knows better – she needs prep and time, and would like this night to last as long as possible.
“Shit.” His voice breaks when she repositions herself to be closer, his cock resting against her cheek. How Ajax doesn’t cum when she licks away his pre and latches softly onto the tip is a fucking miracle.
He can’t think about anything past the tight, wet heat worshiping him, her eyes slipped shut as she bobs her head up and down. At times, she tilts her head to the side and lets it dig into her cheek, a visible bulge protruding beneath the skin. Ajax catches the glisten of spit trailing further and further down his length as he pats her cheek. So filthy, how debauched and earnest she looks and sounds, drawing open her mouth as much as possible to take him in.
The guttural choke when he slips a little too far down her throat sends both his hands into her hair, fingers digging into her scalp. On instinct for her comfort, he pries himself away to give her room to breathe and catch her breath. But to his surprise (and pleasure), she follows his motions, determined to keep herself latched onto his length. Her moan is protesting, as if asking him, “How dare you deny me?”
And he loses himself.
Whatever hand she had to grasp the rest of his dick falls to hold onto his thigh when he bucks his hips into her face, surrendering to his basal desires. She just feels so fucking good, pliant and obedient, receptive to everything he’s giving her. Ajax wants nothing more than to spill his cum down her throat and see it overflow past her lips, to see it drip down her chin as she attempts to down it all. He’d swipe up any remaining and feed it to her, and he knows, he just knows, that she would accept it, probably make a lascivious show out of it just to rile him up.
“L-lumi – shit – do you know how many nights I’ve dreamt of doing this? To fuck your mouth and train you to take all of me?” A garbled mewl follows more enthusiasm, more suction as she leans forward and her throat fits more of his cock, a snug fit that drives him past the point of no return. “Look at you girlie, so fucking good for me. You were made for me, I know you were,” Ajax growls as he feels the tension grow in his gut. “God damn.”
The denial of his own orgasm aches like nothing else – as much as he wants to see her struggle to swallow all his cum, he wants to savor it. He’d rather see it leak out of her tiny slit – Archons, he can picture it right now. Globs and globs of viscous ivory mixed with her own cum, red and swollen, puffy clit peeking above at him, and he’d fuck it back in her, either with his fingers or his cock, he can’t decide and –
He yanks her up from underneath her forearms, frantic to feel her lips against his again. Ajax could care less that she was just blowing him, their tongues tangling together in a crass dance. But no matter how sweet her mouth is, he knows that there’s only one other place where it’d be even more decadent.
He pushes her back against his pillows, slotting himself between her legs. As they widen to bring him in, he can hear the squelch of her sticky cunt and thighs, and his mouth begins to water. He would have teased her and made her beg any other day, but he has to find out, to know what he’s been missing out on all these years. Ajax wastes no time laying prostrate on the sheets, nose just millimeters from her swollen clit that’s begging for attention. Her heady scent clouds his brain even further and her plush thighs position over his shoulders. His heart thrums when her hands readily grasp onto his ginger strands, combing through them, nails scraping lightly against the nape of his neck and his scalp.
Ajax gives her no warning, only sticks out his tongue to lave against the length of her sex, and groans immediately as his taste buds assimilate. There’s a slight saltiness to it, something unexpectedly addicting but he knew this would be the case – that he would have a hard time eventually stopping himself. Now that he knows exactly how she tastes, he could eat her out for hours, hooked on her scent and the tremble of her thighs.
He sucks on her clit before bringing it between his teeth, the gentlest nibble he can manage, but his hands push down as she bucks her hips, the most licentious moan he’s heard yet from her. It only fuels him further, tongue zealous in its duty to break her until she thinks of nothing but his mouth on her dripping pussy.
“Oh my god,” she gasps and whimpers, back arching as her eyes screw shut. Part of her is embarrassed by how quickly she’s going to cum, the stirring in her gut already brewing into something more intense than she knows how to handle. “Ajax, please, slow down–”
“Already close?” The swimmer sounds smug and she wants to knock him down a peg so badly, but he slips his tongue inside her entrance with determination. “Good, you’re right where I want you.”
“I don’t – ah – too fast, want – want, want –”
“Tell me what you want, zvezda,” he teases. Her arousal is blinding and she’s so close, but she doesn’t want to be, and there’s a tinge of fear by just how high she’s climbing, how wound up her insides are – the pleasure is too mind-numbing.
“Want – want you!” Lumine finally cries out. His face just isn’t close enough and she pulls him in as much as physically possible. Ajax enjoys being trapped between her plush thighs. All for him to squeeze and mark – he further denies her by sucking bruises into the sensitive flesh, relishing in her moans and gasps, her pleads and oblivion. His thumb rubs circles into her clit, so slick and hardened beneath his touch. As he admires his work, she tenses.
“Oh the Seven, fuck – Jax, please please please, I’m close,” she wails. “Jaxie, please, ‘m gonna cum –”
His mouth replaces his thumb as he pulls her closer.
“ – cumming, I’m cumming, cummingcummingcumming–!”
The snap of the spring in her system is visceral, the moan ripped from her throat close to a scream, and Ajax growls into her core, eyes fixated on her expressions of bliss and parted lips, drunk on the taste of her cum with his tongue now inside her. He refuses to let up, drinking in everything she has to offer and more and it’s not enough for him – he wants to hear the shrieks of overstimulation, to send her over the edge again and again – the dry sobs from her so, so addicting, the shuddering of her entire body, the fight it brings to remove itself from his clutches.
But he wants to see it all over again on his cock this time.
Lumine does her best to catch her breath when Ajax eventually lets up, crossing her legs up and over so he can sit up. She shivers and sniffles, coughs when she realizes how dry her throat is, and leans into Ajax’s touch when he cups her cheek, fingers swiping away some stray tears.
“You did so well,” he murmurs. “Was that okay?”
It was more than okay, she’d like to say, but she simply nods instead.
“Stay right here, ‘m gonna go wash my hands.”
The smallest yet cutest pout appears as her fingers loop around his wrist before he can leave. “Do you have to leave?”
“Solnyshko,” he sighs. “You really think you can take my cock without any prep?”
Her cheeks turn a deep rouge. “Maybe,” rolls off her tongue before she can stop it, and immediately clamps up afterwards.
Something dangerous flashes across his eyes – they drift towards her flushed pussy, and it clenches around nothing beneath his gaze.
“Definitely not for our first time, but someday,” he promises her. “Sit tight, love.”
The water runs and Ajax puts his weight on his palms, clutching the counter top. It’s close to 3AM and his eyes are bleary with adrenaline and lust. He pumps some soap into his hand and washes his hands thoroughly, later wiping away the remnants of Lumine’s climax off his face. When he returns, she’s still laid out all pretty for him, soft and beautiful and all his.
“I should’ve asked you this earlier, but…” and she hesitates, chewing on her bottom lip. Ajax waits patiently while sitting on the edge of the bed, slightly perpendicular so one of her legs can be stretched across his thighs. The hickeys and bruises scattered across her skin are exquisite, in his humble opinion. His personal canvas, all for him to mark up and paint to his desires. “...are you clean?”
“I am,” he reassures. “You?”
“Yeah,” her voice demure but with eyes lit up, and not just from the moonlight coming through his window. “I’m on birth control, too...”
“So you’re saying…since we’re both clean and everything..”
Lumine’s gaze follows his to his nightstand drawer where, no doubt, the condoms are located. Her teeth sink deeper into her bottom lip as she shakes her head.
“One thing at a time, Lumi,” his hand smoothing down some of her wild baby hairs. “I should’ve let you know as well, but in case you can’t tell already, I have a hard time controlling myself around you.”
Her little giggle warms him to the core, later dying off when his finger flicks over her right nipple, another joining to pinch and roll at the pink bud. It dissolves into a tiny squeak as he pinches harder, pulling at it before letting it bounce back to sit perky and tall on the peak of her breasts. He senses the impatience in her labored breathing, as well as the subconscious rolling of her hips, and he’s pleasantly surprised to see how wet she is again – the slick shines back at him and he wonders if he could get away with devouring her once more.
It’s his duty to quench her thirst though, to trace the tip of his middle finger over her entrance and lather what he can in her precum. Ajax watches her face with full attention, how it morphs as her eyes roll back when he slides the digit into her weeping cunt, and he curses under his breath because holy fuck, even around one finger, it already feels snug. What she might feel like around his shaft – it twitches and bobs on its own as he curls inside her, trying to find the spot that’d make her preen.
“You’re so wet,” he says with so much awe, soon following with his ring finger. It feels even tighter now – as the pads curl and tap against her g-spot, he mimics her sharp inhale. They’re gentle at first in their ministrations, basking in the slight upturn of her lips as she falls prey to the pleasure. “So tight, too.”
Her breathy chuckle has tones of joy and embarrassment. A free hand flounders until she can take hold of his dick, stroking it lightly and bringing it back to full attention in no time at all. As he switches up and slowly scissors his fingers, she hits him with, “Well…I do enjoy being stretched open…”
Deep breath in, Ajax. You can’t lose it now.
“You’re playing a dangerous game.”
“And I intend to win,” she sings.
“Oh Lumi,” he sighs, fitting his index finger in and savoring the moan that leaves her with her eyes rolling back. “There’s no way you’re leaving my apartment in the morning after I’m done with you.”
Ajax pushes through her whine and focuses on the vice of her pussy, imagination running wild. “Do you want this?”
“Ajax, my hand is literally on your dick right now, please.”
He leans forward to kiss her sweet. “What can I say, consent is sexy,” murmured against the apple of her cheek. Ajax shushes her when she whines at the loss of his fingers, her eyes wide and pleading as he replaces her hand with his soiled one, spreading her fluids on his cock. He pumps it a few times, standing by the bed now, and smirks when Lumine wets her lips with anticipation. “You seem eager, princess.”
She should not feel like crying so many times in one night – yet it wells up once more because she is empty, denied her most carnal want by the person she loves the most. Why won’t Ajax just fuck her?
Perhaps he’s finally reading her thoughts because he grabs her waist, adjusting her so her pulsing core lines up to his length. His hands push on the backs of her thighs to keep her spread open for him, though she helps out by hooking her forearms beneath her knees. He kisses a hovering ankle, fixated on how spread open her lower lips already are just by the tip. The sticky warmth reminds him of the control he’ll need to exercise, to take deep breaths in so he doesn’t immediately cum inside her.
The first couple of inches is exhilarating – Lumine wasn’t lying earlier, her core tight at the intrusion. “Breathe,” she hears him reminding her, one of his hands rubbing circles into her clit and the other into her stomach. “You’re doing so well, Lumi.”
“So big,” Lumine whimpers. “Fuck, more, gimme more–”
“Patience, girlie,” he pushes in a couple more inches, now almost half his length buried into her cunt, thrusting languidly and shallowly. “Still okay?”
“I shouldn’t have to beg this much to be fucked –ah!” He plants both hands on her hips and slides all the way to the hilt, surrendering to the suction that pulls him in, and now so, so close, to losing his mind.
Ajax wants to spend forever in her tight heat, bullying past her gummy walls as they clench around him. To spend eternity working her open and molding her pussy to the shape of his cock. He looks forward to the days when she will cockwarm him while they’re studying, to have a hand splayed wide against her waist, a bulge evident in her belly. her eyes glassy and hazy as she absorbs nothing from her textbooks – or in the mornings when they’re half awake…
“You can move,” her whisper brings him back to reality.
And so he does.
The full drag along her pussy sends her reeling, barely any time to regain herself before he thrusts in again. And he keeps it slow, methodical, searching for any signs of discomfort in her.
Instead, he’s greeted with her happy sighs, a dreamy smile gracing her lips, soft, delirious praises of, “Feels so good, Ajax…love you–”
She becomes wetter than he thought she ever could, his pace quickening as a creamy ring begins to form at the base of his cock. The sighs dissolve into whimpers and moans, her legs trembling in the air. Ajax is powerless and spanks her once, twice, thrice, moaning when her cunt somehow tightens even more. “Perfect, so perfect, personal little fucktoy of mine…”
“Fuck, yes–”
“You like that?” He pants and fucks her harder, balls slapping against the round of her ass. “You belong to me, Lumi – your pussy was made to perfectly fit my cock, my own cocksleeve. No one else can fuck you like I do, to keep you so full, shit, look at me.”
Lumine doesn’t even realize her eyes are closed, so deep in her pleasure that her eyes have to adjust.
“Wha–”
“Look down, you can see my cock right here,” he hisses, a hand now pressing down onto her stomach. The extra pressure has her wailing, all cares of keeping somewhat quiet as to not disturb his neighbors now abandoned. She manages to keep her eyes peeled open to see the distension in her belly and feels euphoric – Lumine swears she can feel his dick in the back of her throat, mewls and cries wracking through her system.
His fingers swipe fervently across her clit, ripping another moan of pleasure from her. Ajax can’t believe they’re here now, that he’s finally taking all of her for himself. After years of dreaming and fantasizing, he can finally deposit all his cum into her, to fill and breed her, to stake his claim. He yanks her forward so her ass hangs just slightly over the edge, supported by his grip and pelvis as he continues to fuck into her. Changing the angle is what kills her, a spot deep inside her that only Ajax could ever reach with his massive length – her cervix? – and she all but screams before white-hot pleasure causes tears to form.
Is it too much? Not enough? Her brain no longer functions for her own good and only focuses on cock, Ajax, the need to be plugged up with his cum swimming in her womb–
“Cum for me, I know you want to,” authority laced in his voice. “You’re so fucking tight, want you to lose it on my cock and take my cum–
“Yes, wan’ your cum so bad, please give it to me,” her boneless limbs flailing as she makes grabby hands, all but sobbing. His balls tighten – everything he’s ever wanted and more, right here in the palms of his hands – no, he has to service her first, so she can become just as addicted to him as he is to her, to become familiar with the future that her fingers alone will never be able to fully satisfy her, just like how jerking off will never be the same for him now.
She’s climbing, climbing, climbing, so much higher than when he was eating her out earlier. He keeps her stuck between his hips and the bed as he presses forward to kiss her, lips messy and jolting from the force of his thrusts. But it’s exactly what she needs, and before she can register it all, Lumine tips over and her orgasm absolutely rips through her.
Her scream is muffled against his mouth, as well as disguised by his growl of approval as he fucks her through her climax, prolonging it as much as possible with the additional help of his continued ministrations on her clit. Ajax believes this is the wettest and tightest she’s been all night, nearly flooding his cock and making it so easy to fuck her silly.
“Good girl,” and he truly sounds so proud of her. She’s still mewling and whimpering, now twitching from overstimulation, confessions of love spilling off her tongue as they turn into incoherent babbling. That empty look in her eyes, yet somehow full of adoration, her body and mind seemingly broken from his shaft splitting her open. “Wanna fill you up, have you take all my cum – can I, Lumi?”
Somehow, she’s able to nod.
Another day, he’ll have her beg for it, to render her the point of basal desperation.
“Gonna cum, zvezda, keep it all inside okay? Shit, such a perfect little cum slut for me, fuckfuckfuck–!”
He slams all the way inside her, deep, guttural growl unearthing from within him as thick ropes of cum paint her walls and crash against the entrance of her womb. Ajax can’t remember the last time he came so much because it never seems to end, always just a little bit more to fill her up with. He blacks out and comes back to reality maybe a minute or so later, still buried in her heavenly heat and seeing his excess cum begin to escape where they’re joined.
The sound it makes when he pulls out is downright filthy, coupled with a lascivious protest from his fallen angel, and it’s definitely worth not cumming down her throat earlier – to see his cum trail out of her in globs, staining his bedsheets and painting a white mess on all over her labia.
“Be right back, lemme clean you up,” he whispers into her ear, pushing past the ache in his thighs to quickly return with a warm washcloth. “Sorry, lyubimaya,” for when the material brushes against her sensitive clit. Eventually, she’s as clean as she can get, and Ajax gathers her in his arms to bring her to the toilet. It’s important for her to pee now, no matter how much she just wants to sleep.
“I’m right here. Mouth rinse is right there.”
A few minutes later, Ajax has the sheets changed and Lumine in his embrace, arms wound securely around her while petting her slowly. His fingers take out stray tangles as he murmurs sweet words to her, telling her how good she was for him, how much he absolutely adores her, how happy he is to be with her.
“You know,” he starts, then continuing when she hums to signal that she’s still awake and listening. “That was a great first kiss and everything.”
“We’ve kissed before, you dummy.”
“...what?!”
“You were drunk and made out with me after you had your first kiss with a girl at one of Dottore’s parties.”
“...and I don’t remember this.”
“And you don’t remember this.”
“Shit, is that why you pushed me onto the ice all those years ago?”
She shrugs in his arms and snuggles further into his chest. “You broke your pinky promise, so it was warranted.”
“What did I–:
“ – you asked to be my first kiss, then promised you wouldn’t forget anything, and absolutely did so the next morning. I never brought it up.”
Ajax groans into her hair, a mix of embarrassment and shame and regret all melted together in his chest. “I’m never drinking that much again. We could have been together years ago!”
“Well…we have each other now to make up for lost time. G’night Ajax, I’m so tired…”
And they’re both out like a light.
-
When Lumine wakes up, she nearly panics.
Because the last time she woke up in Ajax’s arms was back in high school before everything disastrously fell apart. Though this time, she’s naked save for a pair of clean boxers from Ajax, very much the little spoon in his hold, and a hand of his has surreptitiously cupped one of her breasts. His even breaths ground her to reality as she blinks awake, taking in all the decorations and personal tidbits that went unnoticed last night.
Staring straight at her is a picture frame on the nightstand, and in it is an old, old photo. In fact, given the length of her hair, it was probably taken back in high school. The quality is just a bit grainy, another sign of the passage of time, but very clear that it was her. It’s a shot of her back, arms crossed behind her, looking over her shoulder mid-laugh into the camera lens. It’s one of the purest, most candid expressions she’s ever seen on herself, sidebangs drifting with the wind, peeks of the ocean visible past her figure. She hadn’t expected her picture to be taken, but clearly Ajax has treasured it. There’s wear and tear on the frame, and she wonders when he had it developed.
Lumine notices a tiny hand drawn heart in the corner, clearly done by an amateur with a permanent marker. To think Ajax would draw something so cheesy makes her laugh quietly, but it’s comforting in its own way. It’s so clear, clearer than day, just how much he loves her; how much he regrets what he said and did, how much he thinks of her on a daily basis.
And she can’t wait to experience it all.
[fin]
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By My Side
Chapter IX
Tartaglia
Sitting in front of the fire is calming. Something about the flickering flames, and the steady warmth. I build one every night, and usually fall asleep in front of it, rather than sleeping in a tent. But tonight I'm not alone. Lumine is here too.
"I think fires are great," I say, quietly.
"Same here."
"You know, before I even knew who you were, I remember seeing the silhouette of a girl, just sitting by a fire, from far away. Somewhere in Liyue, when I was looking for a good training area. I wonder if that was you."
"It could've been," she whispers.
Lumi looks so calm and content right now. Her eyes struggle to stay open, and a happy smile covers her face. I lean down to kiss it. She kisses me back, her hands wrapping around my neck, then suddenly pulls away. "Ajax! Not with Paimon here. She'll kill you."
"Fine, fine." I wrap an arm around her, and in the span of a few minutes, she falls asleep on my shoulder. I relax for awhile, content to simply have Lumine with me, sitting by my side.
END
Guys, thanks so much for supporting this fic and reading all the way through! As this is my first fanfic, every like is so appreciated and makes me happy that people enjoy my work. I did write this for myself, but I realized how hard it can be to find clean, wholesome things to read, and I wanted to share that with other people
#tartaglia#tartaglia genshin impact#tartaglia genshin#childe#genshin impact tartaglia#genshin impact childe#childe genshin impact#genshin tartaglia#genshin childe#childe genshin#lumine genshin impact#lumine genshin#childe x lumine#tartaglia x lumine#chilumi fic#chilumi fanfic
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“keep your enemies close” (pt. 2) (chilumi fic)
Lumine wants to join The Fatui Harbingers. Childe does not like this, but he may have no other option.
[part 1]
[Fic Masterlist] // [AO3 Link]
“keep your enemies close” (pt. 2)
Lumine truly didn’t know why Childe had requested to meet today. Ever since he so adamantly denied her desire to join the Harbingers, she hadn’t seen or heard from him in weeks—which was odd, considering he always found ways to weasel into her life.
Obviously at first, Lumine was less than thrilled about him constantly nagging her for fights, or inviting her out to eat, or disrupting her daily commissions and quests; but after not having him around for the past few weeks, she seemed to actually miss the sound of his voice. (Not that she would ever tell him that—then he would never shut up.)
When she had received his letter asking to meet, there was a rush of something—shock? Excitement? Relief?—that made her practically jump out of bed this morning and rush over to the teahouse to await his arrival.
“Why are we here so early?” Paimon asked, rubbing tiredly at her eyes. “Paimon thinks we should’ve slept in.”
“Well, you could always go back into your void and sleep,” Lumine suggested.
“And miss out on free food from Mr. Moneybags? No way!”
Lumine smiled. “Is there anything else on your mind other than food and money?”
Paimon put her hand up to her chin, thinking. “Hmm….” She then snapped her fingers, coming to an idea. “You!”
“I would hope so: we are always together.”
“You should be honored! Being up there with food and money on Paimon’s list is a great deal!”
Lumine gave her a laugh and a shrug of “I guess,” before leaning back, and laying down on the floor. She was exhausted after not sleeping well the night before. Maybe we really should have slept in…
“Hey Lumine?” Paimon piped up.
“Hm?”
Paimon floating above her, looking her right in the eyes. The little fairy’s face was scrunched up in worry. “Are you going to ask to be a Harbinger again?”
Lumine sighed. “Well, Childe gave me a very firm ‘no’ last time, so I think that route’s gone. But maybe we can find another way in.”
“Paimon doesn’t think that’s a good idea,” the guide said with a frown. “You’ve seen how evil they are! How could we be like that?”
“Paimon, we’ve talked about this: it’s only for convenience; you know how much information they have—could have—about my brother.” Lumine rolled onto her side, looking at her hands. “And the Tsaritsa…she seems like she may hold the key to this ‘truth’ Aether was talking about. So, I need to speak to her.”
There was a beat of silence as the despairing thought of Lumine’s twin hung in the air.
“Is there no other way? We have to join the bad guys?” Paimon asked quietly.
“I don’t know…,” Lumine responded, equally as quiet, as somber. “The Tsaritsa is so hidden away. I can’t think of any other way to get to her.”
SHH! The door to the room slid open.
Lumine shot up from the ground to see Childe walking in, a large white box under his arm.
“Childe!” she said breathlessly.
“Well, someone is happy to see me,” he responded, a stupid grin plastered on his face. Such a difference from his grim demeanor last time…
“I—You—It’s just been a while since I last saw you.” Lumine found herself oddly flustered, seeing him now, in person.
He continued smiling. “Good to see you too, comrade.” He sat down, placing his box on the table. “You haven’t ordered anything yet? Waiting for me to eat—I’m flattered.”
“You’re our wallet, so no, we haven’t ordered anything,” Lumine grumbled, sitting down opposite Childe.
“You better watch out, Moneybags! Paimon is going to order the most expensive thing for making us get up so early!” Paimon chimed, floating over to Childe’s box. “Ooo, what’s this? A gift for Paimon?”
“A gift for Lumine,” Childe corrected, putting a hand on the present, and sliding it across the table. “Go on, open it,” he continued, his eyes focused on hers.
“Oh, uhm, thanks,” she said, that flustered feeling returning to her chest. What could this gift possibly be?
She grabbed the top of the box, carefully opening it up to reveal—
“A coat?” Paimon questioned.
Lumine grabbed said coat, pulling it out of its case to reveal it fully.
It was long and heavy—floor length—and white with black and silver accents. The neckline was lined with thick, black fur; the lapels were also black, a faint flower-like pattern embellishing the fabric; silver pins and chains hung off the sides—a large white crystal was attached on the right.
“It’s beautiful,” Lumine found herself whispering. There was a sort of…chilling darkness emitting from it, but it was elegant and stunning all the same.
Paimon rubbed the crystal in her small hands. “So pretty…”
“I don’t know if I can wear this,” Lumine continued.
“Oh? Why’s that?” Childe asked.
The coat felt very expensive: and with the amount of traveling and fighting she did on a daily basis—she would definitely ruin it in no time. In addition, Inazuma’s climate was quite humid, the promise of thunderstorms always looming—not the right place to wear such a heavy garment. Maybe I could wear it if I visit Dragonspine?
“I think I would sweat to death in it here,” Lumine answered. “And I’m heading to Sumeru which is all rainforest and desert so—”
“You’re not going to Sumeru.”
She looked over the coat at Childe. He was smiling still, but now there was an air of falseness around it—more strained; there was some hint of sadness in his eyes.
Her brows furrowed. “What are you talking about?”
“Yea! You can’t tell us what to do!” Paimon added, crossing her arms.
Childe took a deep breath in. “You got your wish, girlie. You’re coming with me—to Snezhnaya.”
… What?
Lumine’s eyes slowly widened. “You mean—”
“Yes. You are coming to Snezhnaya to prove yourself to the Tsaritsa—that you are worthy of being one of her loyal Harbingers,” Childe explained. “Which I’m sure you will have no trouble with.”
Her jaw dropped. “A-Already?! I didn’t expect to meet the Tsaritsa so soon!”
“Well, consider yourself…lucky,” Childe said, eyes finding the window.
“I—,” Lumine started. She cleared her throat, looking down at the gift—Childe’s present. Warmness filled her chest. “Thank you, Childe. Really.”
He was silent, as if he didn’t even register her. Lumine looked up at him. “Childe?”
Paimon floated over to him, waving her hands erratically in his face. “Hey! Anybody home?”
Finally, Childe slowly turned his head towards Lumine. “You’re welcome,” he said, monotonously, rehearsed. Then, he turned back to the window.
A small wave of fear rippled through Lumine’s gut. She knew how he despised the lies and deception his fellow Harbingers committed, and that hatred made Childe a horrible liar himself.
He was lying to her right now. Or hiding something—something major. And it made her sick to her stomach. I thought we were past all that.
She would find out, but for now, she needed to take this offer, before anyone was able to change their minds.
Lumine swallowed down the ever-growing lump in her throat. “When do we leave?”
* * *
From all she had heard about Snezhnaya, Lumine knew it would be cold. What she didn’t expect was to have her teeth chattering the second the wind grazed her face. It was absolutely freezing; Lumine could feel the cold piercing straight through her, right down to her bones. She was glad to have the coat from Childe. Without it, she would have been a frozen ice statue by now.
Despite the cold, the land was beautiful, in an almost eerie sort of way. The sky was perpetually a hazy gray—snow always flurrying down from the clouds—and the ground was covered in thick blankets of pure white snow. There were spindly trees scattered throughout, branches barren of all leaves. The air was quiet, with only the crunching of frost under boots and a few whistles of wind breaking the silence. It could have been considered quite peaceful, save for the feeling of something…ominous waiting—lying dormant until the right moment came.
She and Childe were currently traveling through the countryside of Snezhnaya, having yet to reach any towns or cities. Lumine had made the excruciating decision to leave Paimon in Mondstadt with Venti; where she was headed was too dark a place for someone like Paimon—she wouldn’t be happy here, and Lumine knew that. She promised Paimon she would be back as soon as possible. But when that would be—Lumine didn’t know.
“Lumine,” Childe said, stepping in front of her. “Here.” He unraveled his scarf, wrapping it around her.
“Wait! What about you?” Lumine exclaimed. Heat crawled up her face unexpectedly. Now I definitely don’t need a scarf.
He chuckled. “I’ve lived here all my life—I’m used to it.” He leaned in a little closer. “You on the other hand were shaking.”
“Well, I’m fine now,” she grumbled. She nestled her face into the scarf more, her nose filling with Childe’s scent. “Why are we wearing the same coat anyway?”
Childe reached out again pulling the coat’s fur closer around Lumine’s neck. “Well, this is more of a Harbinger thing. A uniform of sorts.”
More heat gathered throughout Lumine’s body at Childe’s proximity. “Oh,” she said. She turned, walking away. What is happening to me?
She heard Childe walking up quickly behind her. “‘Oh?’” he repeated, merrily. “Why? Were you expecting it to be a unique gift just for you?”
“No, why would I care about that?” Lumine retorted quickly, picking up her pace. Truth be told, maybe she was sad that Childe hadn’t specifically picked out this gift to her; maybe that meant he didn’t think of her in any other way than some new coworker—a friend at most.
Wait. But why do I care if he thinks of me that way?
Suddenly, Lumine was pulled back, air rushing out of her lungs as Childe wrapped his arms around her from behind.
“Childe! What are you—!”
After a second, he released her from his hold, still keeping a hand on her shoulder. With the other, he pointed at the ground in front of her—well, where it was supposed to be.
Running through the snow covered ground was a colossal fissure, a crack in the earth that seemingly bore down to no end; it was a bottomless pit—a dark abyssal black void of any light.
Lumine’s eyes widened. “What is that?”
“Entrance to the Abyss,” Childe said, his eyes glazing over, as if remembering something. “They run all over here in Snezhnaya.”
“That sounds quite dangerous. Don’t people fall in?”
His grip on Lumine’s shoulder tightened, just a bit. “They do. Most of the time they are easy to spot. Sometimes not so much. Or, if you’re not paying attention.”
“Do…Do people ever get out?”
Childe looked at Lumine for a second, then gave her a small smile. “Almost never. Unless you’re lucky,” he said, winking at her. He let go of her shoulder, and continued on, around the crevice.
Lumine blinked. “You fell in, didn’t you?” she stated, piecing it together. “And you got out, somehow.” That would explain…a lot.
A pause. “Yes. But that was a long time ago.”
“A long time ago? What, like when you were a kid?” Lumine persisted, running up to Childe.
“Mhm.”
“Archons, Childe…” Her heart broke imagining some small kid all alone in that darkness. “What was even down there? How did you even make it out?”
Childe stopped in his tracks, holding a hand up to her in a ‘stop’ gesture. “We should pick up our pace; we don’t want to be caught out here during the night—that’s when it gets really cold.” With that, he started walking again, away from Lumine.
He really doesn’t want to talk about it. Frowning, she followed him.
The rest of the way to the capital city was done in silence, with Lumine traveling a few strides behind Childe, her eyes always on his back, waiting for him to speak.
As the peaks of rooftops started emerging on the horizon, Lumine was surprised to hear little life outside—only the churning of machines and whirring of technologies.
Well, no one in their right mind would want to be out in this cold for longer than they need to be.
Buildings drew closer, and walkways appeared, and before she knew it, she was walking through the city gates with Childe.
The Snezhnayan buildings were all stone, gray and smooth, but elaborate, no matter how small. There were carved pillars and spires, domes and archways, and multicolored banners with the Fatui insignia adorning all the architecture. Ice gathered around the corners, making all the buildings glisten like gemstones.
The only signs of life were the few citizens and Fatui walking briskly through the streets, and the amber glow of flames from windows; giant plumes of hazy smoke arose out chimneys from everyone trying to stay warm inside.
Lumine didn’t get much of a chance to look around—Childe was still keeping up his quick pace in front of her. As they continued through the cobblestone streets, the people would acknowledge Childe with a slight bow, with some utterances of “Lord Harbinger.”
“Wow,” Lumine found herself saying, “You’re like royalty here.”
Childe shrugged. “You know I don’t really care for all that.”
Lumine nodded. “Speaking of royalty…what’s the Tsaritsa like?” She was about to face perhaps the most feared out of all The Seven, and she knew virtually nothing about the Cryo Archon.
Childe gave her a soft smile, maybe the softest she had ever seen. “You’ll see soon enough.”
She had never seen that kind of expression on his face before. And something about it stirred up a pang in her heart.
Was that gentleness only reserved for the Tsaritsa? Did the queen of Snezhnaya really have such an effect on her subjects?
A feeling Lumine couldn’t place her finger on crawled up her throat, and she found herself dreading this meeting with the Cryo Archon now. Perhaps it was uneasiness—uneasiness at the fact that someone could have that much influence to sway even Childe of all people.
He’s so…loyal to her. Another pang in Lumine’s heart. She clutched at her coat. What is this anxiety I’m feeling?
She looked up the path, at Childe, then past him, to the giant looming structure rising up in the distance. Zapolyarny Palace: home to the Fatui, the Harbingers, and the ever powerful Tsaritsa—all who, up until now, Lumine considered her enemies. Now, she would have to be their ally.
The wind picked up, the snow fell down harder, and Lumine wondered if the Tsaritsa had sensed her thoughts.
Is this a mistake?
* * *
[part 3 coming soon]
note: hello all! thank you so much for all the feedback in the last part!! love you all <3
i really wish i could make these parts longer and get them out quicker to you guys but my schedule right now is just so busy. im hoping to open up my schedule some more soon though, so hopefully that means more time for writing :p
thank you for reading! see you in the next part! <3
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the torture when you like a ship and you want to read fanfiction about that ship but you like the ship in a specific way and that way isn't the popular one:')
#imma be doing whole searchparties on ao3#i will never give up#wolfstar#fugio#harry potter#inotan#haino#cytham#ayaitto#xuexiao#beiguang#harlivy#liushen#chilumi#jojo#only hualian doesn't belong here because i love every and all flavours of hualian fics#fanfiction#fic#ao3#radiostatic#durgetash#heavily on durgetash#i just want to read more about the default big lizard durge subbing for gortash#am I alone in this misery?#jiuyuan
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"When I see pictures of couples with different heights kissing while standing, I sometimes feel a sense of discomfort. 25~30cm, you can't reach it by standing. For reference if you like…"
#important chilumi reference#there are also the scarf-pulling scenes of course#every long enough fic has one and some fanarts do too#chilumi
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A Draw - ChiLumi
you guys like jazz? and by jazz i mean me finally writing something. i wrote this for my buddy that deserves 1000 of these nastyass fics.
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AO3 LINK
ChiLumi / ChildexLumine
2892 Words - NSFW
(Size kink, thigh riding, foul legacy form)
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Time, distance, circumstance; All keep Childe from truly reaching out with both hands to sink his fingers into Lumine. It’s not as if she’s uninterested - Childe sometimes plays the role of an oblivious nice guy, but he’s not a moron. The trailing of her eyes against the flash of skin revealed by his uniform, the way her cheeks flush when they’re nearly nose-to-nose in one of their occasional bouts, the reluctance to part ways when they have no further business with each other.
No, Childe is convinced Lumine wants him, nearly as much as he wants her.
But there’s a time and place for ruminating on his unwise feelings for the woman that is slowly but surely becoming a thorn in the Tsaritsa’s side that is too sharp to ignore. For now, she stands across from him in the secluded copse of trees that they’ve claimed for their spar, sword brandished and the silence surrounding them comfortably.
Truthfully, they don’t need to exchange words. The typical rules of combat between Childe and Lumine never really change, but something itches beneath his skin and he calls out a greeting, followed with, “Girlie, I need a favor from you!”
“A favor?” Lumine responds, voice a bit flat and less musical than he remembers. From this distance, he can just make out the sight of dark circles beneath her eyes - she must be tired.
But an advantage is an advantage, and it’s been a few too many fights since he last claimed victory. Especially with what he asks of her this time, a smile on his face like that would convince her. “I’d like to use my Foul Legacy transformation, if you’re up for it.”
“If you’re up for it.” Lumine responds, and Childe doesn’t miss the way her shoulders stiffen, her hand grips her sword a little tighter, and the shadows of her collarbone growing a little more prominent as she blushes. Huh… that’s new.
But he waves a hand with a smile, “And that’s the favor - a kind Traveler helping me back to civilization so I don’t have to lay in the dirt out here recovering.” And maybe he gets to savor the feeling of leaning on her, his arm hitched around Lumine’s shoulders for support as he hobbles back to town. That’s a perk she doesn’t need to know about, though.
Lumine’s cheek shifts with how she chews on it, and it takes a little too long for her to finally nod, then add on, “Just don’t go too far. Don’t hurt yourself.”
As if they both wouldn’t be leaving the area without injuries from one another. Nothing lethal, of course, but bruises, sprains, maybe a gash or two. And this time, his debilitating exhaustion whether he won or not.
So, it begins. With the knowledge he’ll be growing even more powerful, Lumine doesn’t dare go all out. The casual nature of each fight’s beginning gives her time to be a little distracted, and Childe wouldn’t dare deny her something so simple as shifting just right, widening that window of skin until it’s from hip bone to belly button.
Lumine’s pupils expand, Childe’s blood sings and it can’t be attributed to the battle.
It would be so easy, he thinks, to just take her. Or to let her take him. Before Lumine, the total sum of people he’d ever thought about willingly debasing himself for was a resounding zero. Either lack of respect, lack of trust, lack of power. She has two out of three, but he’s sure with enough time the trust would happen.
One, two, three heartbeats before the familiar stinging floods his muscle fibers, his veins, every strand of nerves. The world doesn’t change, but it feels different at such a new vantage point as he looks down at Lumine. And she looks up at him with those same exact eyes, wide open and filled with hunger that is no longer as subtle.
Things in his mind change a little when he lets the Abyss co-pilot his body. Nothing so overt, but certain inhibitions are lowered, specific emotions are amplified to the point of being impossible to resist. Temptation lingers in front of Childe, and he’s a little rougher than necessary when he pins her to the ground with clawed hands.
The sound of her grunt of pain sounds warbled and is nearly lost against the rushing of blood in his ears. Lumine is so small now, growing fragile in the few moments it took him to shed one form and slip into another. There’s no fear in her eyes as she stares at the single-eyed mask that hides the twisted visage beneath, her legs shifting together in an unmistakable sign of his victory.
“Submit.”
Words don’t come easy. Childe resolves to only spout the ones that matter; phrases meant to direct and demand. His palms press to her shoulders, sharp-tipped fingers digging into the dirt to avoid the easy slicing of skin and sinew. Lumine’s throat bobs, the movement painfully obvious before she nods mutely.
Demureness doesn’t feel right when she wears it like this, but Childe supposes it comes with the territory of this kind of victory. The pressure of his hold lessens, a silent invitation for her to make some sort of move to leave if she wasn’t exactly where she wanted to be.
And Lumine doesn’t move from beneath him, only spreads her thighs a little wider as if to invite him exactly where he wants to be.
Hands like these can’t necessarily touch her how he wants to, and he’s forced to make do with what he can. A little shift of his knee, careful of sharp bits and pointy things, until she’s pressed against the thin fabric covering Childe’s thigh. And he can feel the heat; the warmth seeping through the layers from her to him.
After a moment of stillness - because he’s exercising impossible levels of restraint and every moment is met with the instinct to hurt, harm, leave lasting marks that might never go away - Lumine’s wariness slips just enough for her to roll her hips a single time. That’s all she needs to realize that if Childe won’t be a little more swift with providing what she needs, then at the very least she can take it for herself.
A thousand words want to escape, but with his jaw clamped tightly shut, all he can do is purr through grit teeth, “Good.”
It could be that it feels good for him. Or that he’s impressed with her willingness to use him for what she wants. It could even be some sort of reassurance that despite the last time she saw him in this way, things are so very different this time around.
Truthfully, it’s all of the above.
Lumine freezes, golden eyelashes fluttering at the sensation she gives herself using Childe so easily. Her breath shakes with arousal, Childe’s rumbles quietly with anticipation - he doesn’t have to wait long. Palms pressed flat against the ground below, Lumine uses it as leverage to rock against his thigh once, twice, three more times until her trepidation has all but vanished. The sounds that leave the back of her throat are shameless in their volume.
If he were more like himself - or less like himself, sometimes he isn’t sure anymore - he’d be grinning wildly and prodding her for answers to questions like, “Does that feel good?” or, “Are you enjoying yourself?”
Instead, Childe watches with a single blue, gem-like eye as Lumine’s cheeks run pink and her eyelids fall halfway with each languid grind of her cunt against him. And each press put it in stark relief that the warmth through the layers is accompanied by a wetness telling of Lumine’s arousal, the depravity she’s indulging in by showing attraction rather than fear.
Little puffs of air leave her parted lips, and he leans closer and examines the exact shade of pink, wondering if she’s just as pink elsewhere. Lifting one hand, relieving enough pressure that she could escape if she truly wanted to, Childe tugs and tugs at the straps of her halter top until she grows irritated enough to pull it open herself, her chest spilling free and confirming the sick little suspicions in Childe’s head.
What he wouldn’t give to reach out and squeeze, pinch, roll until she’s breathless and whining beneath him, begging for more or pleading him to quit teasing. The best he can do to sate himself is press the heel of his palm to her breast and zero in on the sensation of her nipple hardening from just his touch alone.
Lumine, suddenly so receptive and willing, arches into him and stammers out the single-syllable of his name in some form of elation before it melts into a quiet moan signaling her release. It’s nothing groundbreaking or earth-shattering, not with how dull the stimulation must have been through so many layers, but Childe could give her so much more if she wanted it.
Surely she must - that can’t have been enough for her. The lack of exertion makes it so that he can stay like this longer, and if Lumine were willing enough to continue just… using him…
Childe pushes off of her, falling onto his backside and giving her a pleading expression that he knows full well she can’t see under the mask of his transformation. Perhaps it’s better that she can’t - it would likely only serve to scare her away, if the prominent bulge of his cock straining beneath the fabric of his belt wasn’t intimidating enough.
Lumine props on her elbows. She watches him, bare chest rising and falling as she looks first at his mask, then his chest, then to his lap which he has made so very inviting. Sitting up more, she hesitates as if to make sure she isn’t misreading a situation that is so very obvious, then crawls closer. Childe thinks she looks rather pretty on her hands and knees, dirt staining her dress, her boots, the palms of her hands and pads of her fingers that reach beneath her skirt to pull away shorts and underwear that have been soaked through.
Childe can be merciful, when he wants to be. And he desperately wants, right now. Hooking clawed thumbs into hidden fastenings, he tugs himself free of constraining fabric until Lumine pauses, eyes widening with a sudden hesitation at what she was so sure she could handle.
“Come here.” The two words grate from his throat as he reaches out for her, part encouragement and part impatience. Bravery has always been a hallmark of hers, so what use is it for her to balk now when this battle is far easier than any she’s taken on so far?
Lumine ignores his hand, swallowing hard before crawling forward further. Her dirtied hands curl around his shins, then hook around the sharp protrusions of his boots as she crawls into his lap. Those same small hands lay against his chest as she steadies herself, hovering over his cock but not quite touching. As before, it would be so easy to just grab her and pull her down, to impale her on his length and take what he’s been unable to stop yearning for.
But he doesn’t. Transformed or not, Childe isn’t nearly so callous as to go faster than Lumine can handle. Though, she certainly can handle him when he’s this way, it simply needs to be at her pace - or he’ll never find himself in this sort of situation ever again.
With one hand - it’s shaking - Lumine reaches down to wrap her fingers around him, giving a single experimental stroke as if to remind her of the inhuman size. As if she needed some sort of refresher when she needs to crane her neck to look up at his masked face. Then, holding him steady at the base, she lines up and lowers just a little, just enough to take his tip inside of a cunt not quite meant to take someone of his size.
Lumine pauses, a whimper falling from her lips that mingles with the quiet relieved groan of his own. Even if this is all she could handle, it would be something he’d be appreciative of - she’s so warm, impossibly tight around him as she works a little more inside, bit by bit.
Childe’s head cocks to the side, a silent question, and Lumine answers with fervent enthusiasm, “I’m taking it all. Be patient.”
As if he were the one starting to move faster, be louder, breathe so quickly that it borders on hysteria. Childe is as a statue, not even trembling despite the monumental effort it takes to keep from just gripping her hips and pulling her the rest of the way. It’s her own determination that keeps him in check - one way or another, she’ll get there.
And she does. It’s agonizingly slow, but Lumine settles firm in his lap, forehead pressed against his chest. If she were to simply stay like this - stuffed full of his cock and keeping it warm - Childe would chalk that up to a victory and be able to die a happy man. But then she moves, leaning back a little, the walls of her pussy shifting against his length with a vice-like tension, and Childe greedily wants more.
But his voice won’t form words - only a low rumble and a wheezing sigh. Careful of sharp-tipped fingers, he lifts his hand to rest his palm against one of her bare thighs, so small beneath his hand as he curls sharp fingers around it. Lumine makes her first real movement; a lift up before a tentative lowering. Childe’s vision swims, and the only coherent thought he can grasp in that split-second is the sensation of her thigh muscles trembling in his hand.
He thought her stillness would have been enough, but the line has been pushed back a little more. Surely this would be enough, this tentative motion of riding his cock in centimeter segments that grow longer and longer in distance.
Through a single blue eye, Lumine looks beautiful as she falls apart.
Any poise she’s held in the light of day is long gone in the murky dim light as she braces her hands on his knees that help hold her upright, fingertips bleeding bone-white as she grasps at him in a mixture of pleasure and pain with unclear ratios. But if it’s not enough for her to want to stop, then who is he to decide which amounts are best?
All Childe can do is watch as Lumine grows feverish and desperate, moving faster, fucking herself with his cock until she cries out in a way that’s eerily similar to what she sounds like when she’s in a short burst of agony. As she tenses to the point of shivering around him, Childe digs through his memories for any time he’s heard that sound in battle, then files them away to be repurposed in the event that Lumine has no further interest in taking him again.
The line moves again. It’s enough that she cums, that she soaks his lap with her arousal as she gets what she swore she wanted. Childe stares and stares, committing it to memory even as the world shifts, as Lumine isn’t quite as small as she’d been moments before. His vision goes double before he realizes that one eye has become two, that Lumine’s breathless whines sound relieved as he gets a little smaller in turn.
It’s easier to slide his arms around her, to cradle her in his lap as he kisses her with little care for the dazed expression she gives him. Lumine’s passivity lasts for but a moment, before she shows surprising strength in the grip she establishes on his sweaty hair.
In the span of that single kiss, Childe almost forgets entirely that his entire body is screaming in agony. Lumine is like a balm, and only when she pulls away do his hands start to tremble and he struggles to extend an arm behind himself to simply stay upright.
“I could kill you right now.” Lumine teases, and to most that would have horrifying connotations, but Childe thinks it’s the most romantic thing he’s ever heard.
His head lazily rolls to the side in a mockery of curious expression, “What’s stopping you?”
“Sore.” Lumine says shortly, but amends it with a clarification of why she bothered to establish such a power dynamic after nearly fucking herself to pieces with his body. Is it some kind of sacrilege to have sex when he’s more abyss than man? Maybe something to bring up when he sees Skirk next, he thinks. His thoughts are interrupted by Lumine asking, “Technically that means I win. Because I could kill you. Checkmate and all that.”
“I could have killed you while you were busy-”
“But you didn’t say it, you didn’t claim it, so that can’t be counted.”
“That’s not-” Childe pauses for a moment. His cock is still inside her, her hair is matted with sweat, her cheeks flushed. Somewhere behind her, her underwear lays forgotten in the grass. There’s dirt under her nails. “Fine. You can have this one.”
Despite her victorious smile, the squeeze of her hands on his knees, Childe’s pretty sure this is, at best, a draw.
#mind the a/n for content tags#chilumi#childe x lumine#tartaglia x lumine#childe/lumine#tartaglia/lumine#genshin impact#fic#fanfic#fanfiction#one shot#nsft#childe#tartaglia#lumine#childe genshin#tartaglia genshin#lumine genshin#genshin
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the chilumi brainrot is starting to consume me
#chilumi artists are so talented too#and i just read some good fics#this is where it’s at!!!!#love that man#chilumi#childe#good soup
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Pls comrade
Chilumi: (I don’t give a damn about my) Reputation
(Now that song is stuck in my head)
Mixed Bag of One Word Prompts
"Losing this -" and Childe pushes her in a deft move that leaves her against the wall - "is gonna ruin your reputation, Traveler."
Lumine lunges back, drawing her sword and pulling it to his neck. "I think I'll be fine, comrade."
He smirks, putting his hands up in mock surrender before moving the sword away slowly with his right hand. "I give up, you got me."
She sighs, sheathing her sword and glaring at him. "This was supposed to be a sparring match, you gave up too easily."
Childe puts his hands down and walks towards her until he's almost too close. "It's kinda hard to commit to mortal combat when your opponent is in a black…top…thing."
"An undertop, for Archon's sake. If you can't handle that then -"
"Oh, I can handle it," his voice low and dangerous, ducking his head to reach her mouth. She deftly dodges him, turning away and smiling to herself at the loud groan Childe lets out.
"Gotta think of my reputation, comrade."
#fic meme#genshin impact#chilumi#lumine#childe#tartaglia#i just want them to be canon your honor#i mean it basically is
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CHILUMI: # a chasmic mistake.
CHAPTER V: notion.
chapter summary. in which, inevitably, the darkness fights back. in which the hunters locate their bounty.
wc. 2.5k. genre. enemies to lovers, action/adventure.
warnings. lowkey psychological manipulation!! dddne!!
table of contents / final chapter
Lumine was sure he really had fallen into slumber, after what must have been hours of her narration. She whispered, “Sleep tight… Ajax,” before lying back on the wooden floor of the mining construct.
He was really pretty, she thought. Cursed or not, she found herself fascinated with the curve of his lips, the length of his lashes, the shape of his jaw. She thought about when she had first met him all that time ago.
He hadn’t necessarily saved her life, then, because she would have been fine defending herself from the soldiers in Liyue. But he had protected her. How much of what he had done for her had been purely for Fatui purposes? How much of what he said to her was to be considered a lie? How many of the perceived sacrifices were underhanded violations of her trust?
Lumine was aware that he fancied her in some way; he’d never really hidden that from her with his needless flirting and charming. Despite her attraction to him—which was growing more undeniable—she could not allow herself to admit anything further than it to herself. But she wanted to. She wanted to act upon the feelings she had for him without feeling like a traitor to all things good and decent.
Lumine had only planned to rest her voice and her body, which was growing sore from sitting. She hadn’t meant to fall asleep, thinking about what she might do if she edified her moral standards for Childe’s sake.
She regained consciousness to the sight of Childe’s face, still, only a foot away from hers, but he was very much awake.
For a moment they held eye contact. Childe studied her face with a growing smile on lips and Lumine tried to differentiate dream from reality. Again, she thought… He had such a nice face. Had he always had so many freckles?
He looked kissable. Lumine’s ears caught fire at the thought.
“Morning, Lumine” he said, baring his teeth in a grin.
It would be nice to hear him say that every day, she thought.
Damn it.
Lumine rolled to her back and pushed herself up into a sitting position. She stretched, praying that her face hadn’t gone too red. This Chasm curse was going too far. “Did—did you sleep at all?”
He sat up and shrugged. Lumine noticed the chain under his collar shift. For a moment, the charm, a translucent gold-red diamond like his earring, dangled within view for just a second before he absently adjusted his shirt. It disappeared beneath the burgundy of his button-up but her gaze lingered, feeling overwhelmingly curious about it.
Was it a gift from his family? His father? Or a Fatui charm?
Had it been given to him when his name was changed to Tartaglia?
What was it made of? How long had he had it?
“Let’s get going, shall we?” he recommended, breaking her out of her trance. He sounded far too cheery to have just woken up, she thought.
Lumine frowned, getting to her feet. Her neck and back were still aching from the wooden floor and she stretched her arms across her body to get her blood circulating. “Down that tunnel? How?”
The method Childe had in mind was one she would not have guessed, but should have. Knowing Childe to be relatively reckless should have prepared her for his straightforward and simple plan.
That plan was jumping.
With only a charged shot or two of his arrow to find a ridge to land on before each jump, they stepped off of the edge and plunged into darkness. At first Lumine went to use her glider, but since they jumped at the same time, she realized landing after him would make her look bad. Pride was what she had to blame for her equal recklessness as the air swept past her face and her dress fluttered and her eyes threatened to close—as they threw themselves further and deeper down.
As they landed the first time, she landed steadily but began to shake immediately after. Childe put a supporting arm around her as she braced herself. Then, they went on.
The last jump was the hardest because she hadn’t known it would be the last. Though Lumine might not admit it aloud, this was the most fun she had had since the last time she had dueled Childe. The exhilaration was almost too much for her to handle and yet she didn’t want it to end. Those smiles exchanged with No. 11 of the Fatui Harbingers, the landings making her appreciate the solidity of rock beneath her feet, those shouts of, “And… jump!” each contributed to her elation. It did end, however, and it ended just in time. She felt like fainting.
They landed in a small pool in a strange, dimly lit cavern. Lumine’s legs were shaking too severely for her to pay any more attention to her surroundings, and so she tread to the edge of the pool to sit down and catch her breath. Tartaglia, landing next to her with a small splash, looked ahead in the cove.
“Oh,” he whispered. “Lumine?”
He kept his back to her. She followed the implication of his gaze.
An enormous figure of a faintly blue creature too man-like to be an animal but too cruel to be a man crept in the shadows of the other end of the pool. From its masked head two spikes like sharp, cornered devil horns shot, a third creating a fiendish crown in the center. Its limbs were long, and at the end of each finger were blue vile talons. No face was visible, but its intentions were clear: to kill.
It was, undoubtedly, an Abyss Herald.
Lumine had seen one before in the ruins she had explored with Dainslief. Fending off such a demon had been ghastly. She had hoped she would not have to repeat the experience.
And yet now there seemed to be no choice. She drew her sword.
“Lumine,” Childe whispered again, “don’t move.”
She stood, her feet steadying, but remained still behind the Harbinger. “My sword follows yours.”
He hesitated, and finally looked back at her over his shoulder. He looked… almost afraid, but more so worried for her. Then, he grit his teeth in a reassuring half-smile, nodded at her, turned back to the Abyss Herald, and drew his bow.
The Abyss Herald did not make a sound, but its high head twitched and turned in their direction. They had been noticed.
“Ah… A surrogate of the Abyss,” it growled. “Winter hails you.”
Childe held his ground in front of Lumine. “I am no friend of the Abyss.”
She stared at the back of his head, confused. What was he doing? Didn’t he spend months there?
“Darkness has no friends,” it said, creeping towards them. The distorted voice pierced Lumine’s ears. Her head would start hurting soon. “But there is no escape once you become one with it.”
Childe drew his Hydro blades, stepping forward so that he again blocked Lumine’s view of it. “I won’t let you hurt her. Prepare to feel pain.”
The Abyss Herald laughed. It was an atrocious, screeching, panging sound, one that Lumine thought should never be heard by a mortal’s ears. “She is the mortal. She will feel pain.”
Lumine charged forward with her blade raised, but Childe stopped her with his arm. “Easy, now.”
She ignored him, running past and swirling the water around them into an Anemo blast. The Abyss Herald was only mildly knocked back, and began chanting Abyssal curses at her, readying the blade in his talons. Her blade did not rest, striking rapidly as she tried to find the demon’s weak spots.
The Abyss Herald attacked once, and she dodged it. The second attack, however, struck her coldly and she fell against the wall, momentarily drained of any stamina for recovery. This was when Childe swept in, bombarding the creature with attack after attack. It bore the attacks all too well, laughing again, and ignored him to lunge at Lumine. She managed to dodge this by a hair.
“You cannot evade the darkness!” it shrieked.
She could certainly try. Ducking under another attack, she grasped Anemo into another vortex, battering it consecutively with swirling Hydro. Childe struck it with an aimed bow shot from behind, finally managing to stagger it.
It was finally beginning to look like they could win this fight. Lumine took the opportunity to gust it with a tornado, and Childe hit it with a signature melee strike. The Abyss Herald’s vitality seemed to be declining quickly. Lumine wouldn’t even have to break a sweat.
She wouldn’t need to, because an attack from above them both managed to catch them off guard and douse them in ice. They were knocked back harshly, and the Abyss Herald received an icier glow than before. It was an indication of a shield. Lumine could not get up in time as it surged at her again, and so instead she braced herself for a second painful impact.
It came again, and again. Her vision went black as the pain overcame her. She could hear Childe shouting and panting and trying to fend the Abyss Herald off of her. And failing.
“Lumine! Lumine! Get out from under him!”
“You cannot defeat us,” the Abyss Herald snarled, grabbing Lumine by the neck in its razor-edged talons. It turned its head towards Childe eerily. “This will only end when we kill her. You may die too, unless you choose to end her by yourself. Hark, cold shall claim all!”
Childe hesitated in his next attack. He looked at Lumine, who was choking and wrestling under its terrible grasp. He did not speak.
“Make your choice, Youngling. The mortal will die, but by whose hand?”
Lumine struggled wildly, eyes fixed on him.
Wasn’t she supposed to be able to trust him here? Why was he hesitating? He would do something, right? After all this time, they had grown to protect to each other—to depend on each other—to keep an eye out—to—
“Will you really relinquish your own life… in a sad attempt to protect this bounty?”
Both Childe and Lumine’s eyes widened.
Bounty?
“The prophecy will prevail. Death is calling from the darkness.”
Lumine would not wait for him to decide. The strength that was pinning her down was unearthly, but so was she. Bracing her hands against the metallic nails at her throat, she conjured a vortex of Anemo. It would hurt her, using it this close to her body with shaking hands, but she hoped it would hurt the Abyss Herald too.
A sound akin to windmill rotor blades striking an object repeatedly came, and after that, the scrape of sharp talons against her neck overwhelmed her as she fell back. The Abyss Herald was knocked back from her with a shrill cry, and Childe swept in to finish it off. Lumine pushed herself with trembling arms into a sitting position, her neck ablaze. She watched the Fatuu deal the final blow with a Hydro blade.
Neither of them spoke as they watched the Abyss Herald crumble to the ground and disappear back to wherever it belonged.
At last Childe walked over to her and knelt by her side. She still had not gotten to her feet, only able to wince and groan as he put a few gloved fingers to her neck to gauge the severity of the wound. He withdrew his hand and stared for some time at the blood on it, a crazed look on his face. Lumine watched.
His mouth slowly opened and he wet his lips, glancing up at Lumine. “Are you in much pain?”
She tried to shake her head “no,” but gasped in pain as turning her neck ever so slightly managed to strain the wound.
He curled his lips at her apologetically. “Careful,” he whispered. “It looks bad.”
Lumine only stared back at him, something screaming in the back of her mind. Childe took the scarf attached to his jacket and wrapped it gently around her neck. He was saying something about how she had better keep it covered.
She remembered, then, what was bothering her, and struck his hand away from her neck.
He frowned. “Am I hurting you?”
Lumine struggled a bit, and stood. He followed suit, eyes falling to her hand on the hilt of her blade.
“Lumine?”
“What did it mean?” she spat, ignoring the pain in her neck.
“What are you talking about?” Childe replied. He sounded half-confused, half-defensive.
Lumine drew her sword and sliced it towards his chest.
He blocked it with a Hydro blade, giving her a curious look. “You know, Lumine,” he said, voice strained, “I’m always more than down for a duel, but I must ask you to explain the suddenness.”
She said nothing, swinging her sword at him again. He blocked each with one blade, standing far too calmly for her liking.
Childe seemed to notice that something was different. During each of their duels, she had only ever been going for victory. She had only ever wanted him beneath her heel, to force him into defeat. By her relentless attacks now, however, it became clear to both of them that she was going for more. She was going for blood; for her blade through his heart.
If he even has one, she thought.
“My, my, girlie. Your attacks are sloppy. Won’t you tell me what’s bothering you?”
Lumine flashed her sword to his side, cutting a bit of fabric off of his shoulder. “Didn’t think you ever needed a reason to kill.”
His eyes widened. Quickly his expression changed. Childe’s expression turned dark, a strange grin spreading across his face. “I see.” The charm had left his voice, giving way for malevolent jeer. “Well, alright then!”
It was as if he had caught aflame from the fire she wielded. His haunting blue swords disappeared, ones of purple lightning taking its place. His mask appeared on his face. Childe was playing the part of someone who was going to try to kill her, too.
And yet she still felt that he was holding back, and it infuriated her.
The whole thing made sense to her now. The chasing—he’d known she’d chase him, somehow, and he had lured her into the trap of this accursed cave. The Chasm’s psychedelic effects had been known to him, too. He had weakened her and beckoned her into a place she could never escape, into feelings of love that were false but overpowering. He was sick. He was sadistic, crooked, and Fatui. She should have known.
She had known. How could she have made such a mistake?
But it was clear now. For whatever sick or perverted reason, the bounty was on her. He had been hunting her. Luring her into his despicable nest with his childish quips and puppy eyes. And now he was holding back while fighting her. Was she wanted alive… and docile?
She refused.
“Kill me, Ajax,” she snarled. “Kill your precious bounty, before it kills you.”
author’s note. goodness gracious, somebody is mad! madly in love, perhaps? (i don't condone manipulation/lying but also like. this is childe, he lied to us on a huge scale the day we met him, let's not be shocked)
all will be explained in the final chapter ....
— table of contents / final chapter
➳ GENSHIN MASTERLIST
#a chasmic mistake.#favoniuslibrary#chilumi#genshin fanfic#tartaglia x lumine#chilumi fic#childe x lumine#ajax x lumine#genshin x traveler#genshin x reader#genshin angst#genshin enemies to lovers#genshin impact imagine#tartaglia x traveler#childe angst#childe fluff#manipulation tw#mind control tw
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Lumine knew breaking into the Fortress of Meropide was a poor idea long before she had set out to investigate its security, but she wanted in that prison. Her hands shook with it.
If breaking in wasn't an option, then she was forced to get creative.
#cystali writes#genshin impact#chilumi#chilumi fic#fanfic#genshin fanfic#it's done!#done!!!!!!#with some angst and longing and fun#and the weapon(fist) to throat scene
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New fic dropped!! It is Chilumi this time!! Check it out if you're interested :D
#chilumi#genshin impact childe#childe tartagalia#lumine#lumine genshin impact#genshin impact#genshin fic#mintea fics
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By My Side Ch. 6
Chapter VI
Lumine
We've been lying on the grass for some time, and the warm sun soothes me into a light sleep. I think Childe assumes I'm sleeping. He's moving closer, making sure I'm ok. Which is sweet of him. Suddenly, I feel the warmth of his hand in mine. Instinct tells me to pull away, but my heart tells me to let it be. It's not like anyone can see us. I open my eyes, only to get lost in the blue ocean of his.
"Childe, what are you doing?"
"Well, you see, I kinda held your hand. Just for a second."
I burst into laughter. "I don't mind. No need to be embarrassed."
As I say this, he gets up. "We should get going, Lumi."
"Okay. Just make sure we come back here again. Oh, and can you mark this place on my map?"
"But then you'll bring other people..."
I cut him off. "No, I won't. Not even Paimon. This can be our spot, okay?"
He smiles. "Well then, guess I won't have to spend hours finding you."
"You'll know where to find me if you need."
"Okay, but seriously, we should get going. There's a lot of stuff I want to do today."
"No sparring, though, right?"
His eyes twinkle, but he says,"No sparring. I promise. Not today."
"Good. Now where did you want to go next?"
"I was thinking...what if we went to Mondstat?
"What? Childe that's really not a good idea."
"Lumi, what're you hiding?"
"Well, you're Fatui...and some of my acquaintances...Let's just say they aren't too fond of Fatui."
"Then we'll avoid them."
"Mondstat's not as big of a city as Liyue, Childe. But I guess, if you really want to. Just don't draw attention to yourself."
"I make no promises," he smirks.
I sigh. "Follow me. The nearest waypoint's a fifteen minute walk."
* * *
Tartaglia
I have this feeling that the person Lumi doesn't want me to meet is a guy. Why else would she be so hesitant? I can't help thinking that maybe I'm not the only guy who's important to her, if she even thinks of me that way. But I don't care. Just enjoy your time with her, Ajax. "So, Lumi. Show me around the land of freedom. What is there to do here?"
"Well, I know this bard named Venti. He's usually drunk, but when he's not, his songs are really something else. Occasionally I'll join him for an apple cider. You might like him."
Okay, this Venti guy definitely isn't the person, if she wants me to meet him. "Sure, I could go for a drink. What's good?"
"Well, I like the Dandelion wine. I mean, Venti likes it. He keeps telling me to try some."
I feel anger boiling inside. This bard gave Lumine wine, even though she's underage?
"Ajax, I know what you're thinking. Don't worry, I didn't get drunk. I'm not stupid."
"Fine," I grumble. "But I'm still watching you today."
"It's not like you're technically of drinking age, either. You can just pass because you're tall."
Lumine opens a door, and I find myself in a large bar.
"Hi, Charles," Lumine addresses the bartender.
"Hello, Honorary Knight. What can I do for you today?"
"I'll have a Wolfhook juice, thanks."
"And your friend?"
Lumine turns to me. "Oh. What do you want?"
I think for a minute, then decide on some of that Dandelion wine. Lumi and I take our drinks upstairs, where it's not so noisy.
"You seemed to know the bartender well, Lumine. Does he own the place?"
Lumine looks up from her drink. "No, I don't actually know him well. Charles is just the usual bartender. But I do know the owner."
"Oh? Really."
"Yes. Master Diluc. I've helped him out with the winery a few times, and he, the Acting Grand Master, and I worked together with Venti awhile ago."
"Interesting. Is he the Fatui-hater you spoke of?" Lumine's eyes narrow. "Yes. And don't you go picking fights with him, you here me? I'm not the only one around here who can get the best of you."
Lumi's eyes have that sparkle in them when she's excited or angry, and I can tell she's not kidding about this Diluc guy. But I'll worry about fighting him another day. All of a sudden, I hear a loud, high-pitched voice echo against the walls. "A glass of Dandelion wine for the bard, please." A more husky voice responds, "Do you have mora to pay for it, Venti?" Ah. So the bard is here. And the bartender's shift must be over. That other voice isn't familiar.
"Master Diluc and Venti...what odd timing," Lumine mutters.
"Well, Lumi, I'd like to meet this 'Master Diluc'. And the loud bard, you know him too?
"Sure do." Lumine shoots down the rest of her drink, then pushes away from the table. I follow her as she starts down the stairs.
"Traveler! Fancy seeing you here. Who's your friend?," says a short girl in green.
"Venti, Diluc, this is Childe. Childe, Venti and Diluc." She points in turn to the green bard, (who apparently isn't a girl) and a tall, scowling man with fiery red hair. I give my hand to the bard, who shakes it heartily. I then extend my hand to Diluc, who refuses to take it.
"Who's he, Lumine?"
"Really, Diluc? Just a friend I brought along from Liyue."
Diluc responds with a cold glare in my direction. "Venti, can I talk to you about that commission real quick?," Lumine interjects.
"No problem, Traveler. What is it you need?"
Lumine flips her head around. "I'll be back in five minutes. No messing around, Childe."
"I'll be fine, Lumine."
"I mean it."
Lumine and Venti go outside, and I look back at Diluc.
"What do you want with Miss Lumine, Fatui scum?"
I play it cool, although I must admit, this guy's good. "Nothing at all. Isn't it normal for a guy to treat his girlfriend to a drink?"
That was a risky move, Ajax. But this guy needs to take a hint. His eyes twitch, but other than that, he appears perfectly calm. I must say, I'm impressed. "And your know, I really don't like when people mess with what's mine." I return his glare.
"You better not put a scratch on her, Fatui. If anything happens to Miss Lumine, you're as good as dead."
So that's how it is. He's certainly protective, but more so like an older brother. I suppose that makes sense. Nothing to worry about. But that doesn't mean I can't have a good spar with him. "I think she's capable of handling herself. But I'll make sure she stays safe." I think I've said the right thing, because his face softens slightly and he says, "Try as hard as you might, I don't think anyone can accomplish that."
Lumine and Venti open the door. "How about a glass on the house, Diluc?," Venti pleads.
"Absolutely not, Venti." Diluc looks unfazed, as if our conversation never happened.
"Here." I drop a small bag of coins down in front of the bard. "My treat. Just do me a favor and write me a song." The bard winks at me, somehow knowing what I want the song to be about without even asking. "Should we get going, Lumine?" She nods, and gives Venti a hug, promising him some apples the next time they meet. She and Diluc shake hands, and I thank him for the wine, which was quite excellent. Once we're outside, Lumine asks, "So, did you and Diluc find anything to talk about, Ajax?"
Damn, I never should've told her my name. It makes my heart flutter every time she says it. "Nothing much. He asked me why you dropped by."
"Oh, well I'm glad you didn't get into a fight. I thought for sure one of you would get hurt."
"So you care about him that much, eh?"
"I...It's complicated."
"And me? How much do you care about me, Lumine?"
#genshin tartagalia#tartaglia x lumine#tartaglia#childe x lumine#gi childe#genshin impact childe#childe genshin impact#genshin childe#childe#lumine genshin impact#lumine#lumi#lumine genshin#genshin impact lumine#chilumi#chilumi fanfic#chilumi fic#gi lumine#genshin#childe genshin#ajax#genshin ajax#ajax x lumine#tartaglia genshin#genshin impact tartaglia#tartaglia genshin impact#genshin tartaglia#venti genshin#venti genshin impact#venti
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Curious about something
Would anyone be interested in seeing a Childe x Lumine AU based on Anastasia?
I saw a fanart based on this idea and the brainrot won't die. Lumine as Anastasia and Childe as Dimitri obviously. Paimon as Pooka and the Tsaritsa as the Duchess. I'm having fun trying to think of people to replace Vladimir with (So far my top contenders are Zhongli and Singora) .
I haven't been able to think of who to put as Rasputin yet though. Just wanted to see if this would be a welcome idea.
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