Work Text:
a ginger haired man wearing a fatui uniform walked somberly along a small path, surrounded by the looming mountains of huaguang stone forest.
the man was tightly gripping a bouquet in his hands, which was full of beautiful, delicate glaze lilies. he swallowed the lump in his throat as he approached the gravestone up ahead.
the grave was carefully tucked away, hidden away from the path. the ginger knelt down and carefully set the glaze lilies on top of the grave, next to the dragon-and-pheonix chopsticks, blinking misty amber eyes. tears dripped onto the grave.
memories flashed through his mind.
(childe waved, grinning at zhongli.
"hey, mister zhongli, over here!"
the dark haired man chuckled, walking over to the fatui member.)
("childe. i'd like to treat you to dinner, before you return to shneznaya."
"you, treat me? you always forget your mora, mister zhongli! it'd be more like me treating myself!" childe teased the funeral consultant, chuckling with a wide grin on his face.
zhongli smiled softly at the harbinger's antics.
"i may as well teach you how to properly use chopsticks, while we're there."
childe groaned dramatically, grinning all the while.)
(zhongli gently handed childe the pair of dragon-and-pheonix chopsticks.
"a gift, before you return to shneznaya. hopefully, it will also encourage you to learn how to properly wield chopsticks."
"aw, thank you mister zhongli! i'll cherish these for as long as i can!" the fatui smiled warmly, looking into zhongli's warm, amber eyes.)
(childe's- ajax's- face fell into something serious, his blue eyes sharp as he looked into zhongli's, leaning forward ever so slightly.
"zhongli, i'm going to need you to promise me something."
"of course, childe. what is it?"
"promise me, zhongli, that if, or rather when, i die, you will protect my family and keep them safe."
the dark haired male blinked in surprise, his amber eyes clouded with mild confusion at the sudden shift into a serious topic.
"i promise, your family will remain unharmed."
childe grinned, (although zhongli swore he saw the smallest flash of warmth, of a soft, genuine smile before it became the mischevious, cheeky thing it is now.) leaning back. "of course, mister zhongli, i won't be dying anytime soon! every day is a day i spend training and getting stronger!" the ginger's eyes regained their small spark, the spark that was unique to childe and only childe.)
(not even a week later, the lively ginger was shallowly breathing in zhongli's arms, his usually vibrant (blue- zhongli's memory reminded him. the eyes he would never be able to replicate, forever stuck looking into his own amber eyes every time he glances at his reflection.) eyes dulling. the funeral consultant's arms were soaked with blood, (it was red- the little skin zhongli kept visible had smears of the bright, violent color painted on) hardly visible on his sleeves.
"d–don't forget to-" childe's sentence was abrubtly cut off as he coughed up a dark, crimson glob of blood, "-keep your p–promise, mister zhongli," the harbinger weakly chuckled and lifted his gloved hand towards the archon's despaired face, gently wiping away his tears, smearing a small amount of crimson on his face.
childe's hand dropped as the rise and fall of his chest stilled, his body going completely limp and his eyes vacant. zhongli stared for a few seconds (that truly felt like hours) before letting out a heart-wrenching wail, weeping at his loss.)
(the traveler helped carry the corpse back, somewhere safe. zhongli's eyes were blank the entire time, still suffering through the shcok of childe's death, while the traveler's were misty. they blinked frequently to get rid of their building tears. the amber eyed man requested time alone to mourn the loss of someone so close to him.
later, after the cause of the harbinger's death was determined, (blood loss, internal organ damage. a freak accident involving a ruin grader.) a funeral was set up. there was a spot in huaguang stone forest that childe could be layed to rest. it wasn't shneznaya, childe's homeland, but they did not have enough time to travel that far. the traveler stood with zhongli, their hand resting on his back, grounding him. the funeral consultant and traveler shared a sad look, mourning the loss of childe together. (zhongli should've saved him. he could've prevented this. he was right there, he should've saved him, he should've defeated the ruin grader before it even had a chance to get to childe- but no. that's illogical. the funeral consultant knows this, knows that realistically, he couldn't have prevented this, but he can't help but feel so guilty.))
zhongli's mind flashed to the promise he made. the promise he kept. he looked at the gravestone, (the first line read "here lies childe". the geo archon couldn't bear to read the rest.) amber eyes (in the wrong body. they were not childe's eyes, they should be childe's eyes-) withholding tears.
"i kept your promise, ajax."