Work Text:
It was one of those slow mornings, even too slow for a place like Liyue's Harbor. Gaming had just returned from a quick delivery from Yilong Wharf and he was ready for a session of his daily training.
The young dancer had no idea of the pair of blue eyes watching him.
Gaming moved like there was actual music around him, his steps felt like he was a lion or a martial artist dancing with their opponent.
Childe clicked his tongue, he was back in Liyue when no one (except few trusted names) was supposed to know that he was there at all. Even then, that young man had captivated him with those movements. The young Harbinger was quick to remember Zhongli's tales about the Wushou dance and about a young man reconciling with his father.
The story had piqued Childe's interest, but at that time he was still recovering from his fight with the Narwhal, so he used to just listen to Zhongli's soothing voice, without much questioning.
It was pointless to remain there, just staring. He needed to master that skill, like he mastered the chopsticks!
***
“Mister Childe… You're way too kind! All of this food… I should be allowed to pay.” Gaming’s eyes were big, almost sparkling as he (politely) began to eat. Childe looked at him, thinking back about Teucer. It was easy to make a kid happy with food, even more after all the praise that Childe plated like Xiangling plated all those buns, pork and rice. Even there, he couldn't help but fill the pull of his auto-imposed duty to protect and help the dreams of the innocents. Even if Gaming wasn't family, they both had difficult times with their respective father figures. Connection was inevitable, even if Childe was always careful with every new relationship. Those were thoughts for another time. Now that love was involved, he wanted to find something to surprise his silly retired archon.
“Don't mention it, we are going to send the bill to Mister Zhongli.” He smiled politely yet foxy-like. After all, he wanted to tease Zhongli in his way.
“To be fair… I’m extremely shocked that Childe-gege wants to train with me… I think I should be the one asking you for lessons.”
“Nonsense. The Wushuo dance is something I want to learn from you.” Childe reassured him. He made his choice since the day he saw that kid training. “I need to leave Mister Zhongli speechless, and learn something for myself too.”
As a way of self-challenge, choosing him as a teacher and training buddy was very much pondered. He needed to see the passion and he missed his brother maybe a little too much.
Gaming still looked slightly embarrassed, probably still wondering what was going on with that extremely kind stranger. Enthusiasm came back to him in a moment.
“I can't possibly refuse… What about tomorrow after breakfast?” They decided for an hour and a spot large enough, then the deal was sealed.
***
***
The Wushou dance was like attending a training session of martial arts. Childe felt his whole body buzzing in excitement at the thought of making those movements his. Moving his body and imagining the music of the drums, all while thinking about the movement of a Suanni .
A proud beast, jumping to land a hit on an opponent or to protect whoever asked for its blessing. Childe had very strong legs, jumping and dancing around was supposed to be easy.
The Suanni head (or mask) was made with paper, bamboo and a thick fur. While it was beautiful and encapsulated the talent of the crafter, it wasn’t that easy to move while thinking about it as part of his own body.
The Wushou dance required… strength. The jumps, the rhythm and even the noise. He needed to imagine playing with an imaginary audience, while performing and focusing on his steps.
Elegant, playful, powerful.
“Mister Tartaglia!” Gaming tried to warn him, but Childe had miscalculated his own movements and ended up falling while jumping. He groaned as he slipped on the ground, protecting the Suanni’s head with his body.
“I’m fine!” The Harbinger chuckled, jumping back into his two feet. Without the mask it was certainly easier.
“Are you sure?” While Gaming looked worried, he surely was aware that it was the first step of the Wushou training: Falling, getting up and trying again. “That was really good.”
“Really?! That felt amazing!” Childe laughed, patting the Suanni’s head carefully. “I need to put more strength in my leg work, it’s amazing how I can always feel so close to falling.”
“Do you really think so, gege?” Gaming gave him a shy smile.
“Yes! It’s like I already know I need to control my steps to get to the last part, so I have to believe in my resilience more.” Childe would never underestimate his stamina, but he gladly challenged his limits.
“Again, Gaming!”
***
“Childe-gege did nothing wrong, he was training with me and he got hurt, I'm so sorry!” Gaming bowed in front of Zhongli, while Childe was a little embarrassed but still laughed.
“Yeah, let's just say that… I fell a lot.” The Harbinger had hurt his elbow and knees, but for a warrior like him it was nothing.
Still, Zhongli sighed with fondness.
“It's alright, Gaming. He is a really skilled dancer nonetheless, isn't he?” Zhongli smiled. Technically nobody was allowed to know that Childe was part of the Fatui, for Childe's wish and because it was the best option.
“Really skilled for a toy salesman!” Gaming clapped his own hands, while Zhongli was busy cleaning the bruises that Childe collected.
“Let's take some rest tomorrow and train again the day after!” Gaming bowed again, before quickly leaving after they were done talking.
Zhongli smiled, putting away the disinfectant and the cotton.
“What you're doing for Gaming is really important. Finding someone else to share his passion with is really good for him.” Zhongli helped Childe out of his uniform for more comfortable clothes.
“I just thought I wanted to do it. It seems like this dance is not just a dance, but a lesson of resilience and a demonstration of undying dedication.”
“Seems like something that would fit you.” Zhongli smiled.
Childe chuckled.
“I've learned a lot of things. The Wushou dance is used for blessings and protection, right? It feels like something fitting of a protector of childhood dreams.” Childe beat his fist unto his own chest, chuckling. “And I can learn to move and coordinate myself better. It was worth a shot.”
“I'm glad you think so, Ajax.”
When Childe was a kid, he used to dream about all the heroes that his father met and dream about such a future for himself. A part of him never left that ambition, to travel and challenge himself. He never stopped admiring all those strong men and women, like every kid would do after reading tales about heroism and adventures.
So he understood Gaming’s struggles for his voice to be understood. He wanted for everyone to know about his art, for every single face that gazed upon his moves to light up and find the strength to follow their ambitions as well.
“I look forward to showing you how I can conquer this challenge too.” Childe said to Zhongli, smiling. He felt the former Archon take his hand, kissing his knuckles in silent devotion.
“I can't wait to see you conquer the world, my dear.”
***
Zhongli had discovered that fishing wasn’t universally popular in Snezhnaya. Actually, there were places where seafood wasn’t that memorable at all. Stewed fish or simply salted tyulka seemed vastly spread. Zhongli understood his beloved’s fondness for the Calla Lily soup when the Harbinger explained to him that his mother used to always cook delicious plates, using a very old recipe of a special fish broth.
It also looked like Childe was the one who made fishing that popular, thanks to one specific accessory that Zhongli was studying.
The funeral consultant was fishing all by himself, learning a skill that he technically knew. While Morax learned it from the people and from his friends, the mortal Zhongli was all alone.
Oh, if Guizhong was there, she would probably tell to his face how she could craft the most powerful fishing rod, competing with Cloud Retainer herself. While of course the God of Dust crafting talent was more suited for other tasks, she and the other adepti would certainly enter competition for a new idea if the occasion arose.
What would his old friend think of Rex Lapis fishing all by himself, injuring his hands with the bait and allowing the fishes to escape?
The sea breeze almost seemed to answer him.
The god of Dust would have taken a basket of fishes and created a banquet with Cloud Retainer. Then Rex Lapis would have seen her sneaking away to follow Streetward Rambler to the mountains and maybe come back when the sun was still up.
The memories were distant, but always there, ready to resurface. He had new ones, like Hu Tao stuffing her face with fish or Venti trying to make him fall in the water.
It was all about cherishing them and sometimes find the time for some reminiscing.
“Ah… The fish escaped again.”
Childe was way better than him at that.
***
“It took you four hours to catch… Three fishes.” Hu Tao snickered. “And now you have to clean them!”
“I have no problem cleaning it.” Zhongli said, even as he felt a shudder run down his back as he gutted the fish.
“You look very pale right now…”
“It's just… Very slimy…”
“It's sad to watch. You should have asked Childe.” Hu Tao's helping hand was just in teasing him.
“Nonsense, in fact–”
“You're ruining it.”
“What if that is what I want you to believe?” Zhongli teased her back.
“I'll just go to Wanmin… “
***
The fate of the three fishes that Zhongli managed to catch was easily sealed when the last of them finished in the pot to boil.
The experience wasn’t that miserable, actually Zhongli was quite proud to have purchased at least ten more fishes. After cleaning them, he decided to strung them to a rope, ready to wait an entire month to see if he had learned how to dry a fish the snezhnayan way. It seemed like dehydrating the fish using natural conditions was ideal to give it a special taste.
He just needed to remember that he had fish hanging on a rope in his garden.
Now, it’s been centuries since a snezhnayan person used that outdated way to dry the fish, obviously. The reason for that journey was something that Zhongli the human wanted to make.
Snezhnaya had developed technology superior to Liyue, but in the name for the marriage that existed only in his head, he was content like that.
“ Xiansheng … you could have asked, really.” Childe chuckled. “When you come back to my home, I will teach you about our inventions.”
“You don’t have to talk to me like I’m that old….” Zhongli smiled. If Fatui soldiers had guns and sophisticated machines, he could only imagine.
“Right… I forgot Zhongli isn’t even double digit old.” Childe teased him and the former archon sighed, but still with a hint of fondness.
“Xianyun would love to see how far your nation has gone with technology.” Zhongli added, thinking about old friends.
Childe nodded, there was a reason why he and that lady managed to get along after quite a rough start. Zhongli had seen it with his own eyes.
Zhongli had taken his own kind of entertainment in letting people assume what kind of person he was. It was funny, when he was really just a consultant, right?
“There isn't much octopus in our cuisine to be fair… But Hu Tao swore to me that you were quite pale after cleaning a certain amount of fish.” Childe poked his cheek with a finger. “What about it?”
Zhongli sighed. “You know I can't stand the… Slimy parts. I can stand blood, of course. Yet the feeling and the smell… Brings me back to where I don't want my mind to go.”
“It's nice that you tried though.” Childe chuckled.
“Seafood isn't that bad in general and it's always worth the effort, if it can get me close to making you something that reminds you of home.”
Childe blinked, his face turning a little red.
“You say such things so easily…”
“It's because it became natural to think about it. When I find myself asking: what makes Ajax happy? It used to make me lose track of time.” Zhongli raised one hand to stroke Childe's freckled cheek. “Now it's just part of my routine. I don't need to stop myself, I find my mind already filled with possible answers. Right or wrong that might be.”
Zhongli smiled, seeing Childe acting shy like that made his heart thumping against his chest. Regaining his trust was mandatory and he wanted to try his best.
“Your mind could be occupied by more serious things… And no, don't you dare something even more romantic or I'm going to leave!” Childe pressed a gloved hand on Zhongli's mouth. He already knew him too well.
***
When Childe gained a new bruise, Zhongli probably was fighting his demons of the past against the slimy obstacles in his mission.
“You could have asked for my help way sooner, Mor–Zhongli.” Venti grinned, using his powers to make fishes fly into Zhongli's direction and possibly into his net. For some reason, the fishes always ended up on Zhongli's face or clothes.
“I didn't ask for your help at all, Barbatos…” Zhongli sighed, who put him in that situation?
“No need to thank me so vehemently, I merely answered the pitiful pleas.” Venti laughed, having the time of his life. “If some old rock deity was here, he would throw boulders at me…”
“Venti…”
“I will be making a new song… Retired emperor and their foreigner lover… and the smell of fishes, sound of drums…” Venti teased his lyre, if only the people staring at them from the distance knew who they used to be…
“Who called you?” Zhongli at that point had shielded himself to avoid getting more smelly fishes on his person. He would never be so impolite to not show gratitude for the help, but it's not like he was fond of getting targeted.
“That's a secret! Get back to the fishing! Do you want to go back to being a pining statue like back then?”
Zhongli sighed.
***
In his days of being a human, being kidnapped by his boss wasn't on his plan.
Hu Tao just slapped a sack on his head, pushing him outside the parlor until they were out of the Harbor.
He was sat on a very small chair and once his vision was free again, all he could see were fireflies and soft lights around him.
Then, the drums.
The music felt immediately familiar to him, the rhythm instantly taking him while the wind howled with the drums.
A Suanni, or actually, a man with the mask of a Suanni jumped in the middle of the stage. The movements or their Wushou dance were perfectly coordinated with the drums. A Suanni preparing to attack, or maybe preparing to protect. Zhongli's golden eyes were glued to the dancer. Their feet moved fast, moved with their arms and body like a martial artist in the middle of a duel. Like a dancer, like a proud Suanni.
It immediately reminded him of a certain someone. A fiery auburn haired warrior whose movements were like hydro, disappearing and creating wonder. A dancer and a fighter.
The masked man jumped, then he got close to him, moving sinuously. Zhongli moved to place a hand on its face almost unconsciously, but they moved away immediately.
The show ended way too soon and the dancer slowly removed his mask, revealing a familiar pair of dull, blue eyes.
“Zhongli Xiansheng! This is nothing like Gaming’s moves, but I think it was pretty cool as well, right?” Childe placed the Suanni head in a safe corner.
“Ajax…” Zhongli was still speechless. It was really rare for him to be at a loss of words. “You–”
“The kidnapping wasn't my idea… I swear. I just didn't want to make a show for anyone else but you.” Childe explained and, finally, Gaming left the bush he was hiding to, bowing in front of them.
“Childe-gege was amazing! A pity that he doesn't want to join my Mighty Mystical Beasts…”
Childe chuckled, ruffling Gaming’s hair like he would do to his little brother. Zhongli got closer to them, staring at another suspicious bush in the distance.
“Fine, fine…” Hu Tao jumped out of the bush, reaching the group with a grin. “Everything went according to plan. Isn't it amazing? Mister Childe you have to keep your part of the deal!”
“Yes, of course…” Childe sighed, making Zhongli raise an eyebrow. He decided to keep the questioning to himself, wanting for them to have their mischief without him sticking his nose in their business too much.
Zhongli had a really, clear revenge plan that was going to be natural to execute.
“The dance was amazing.” Zhongli smiled. “You learned so much in such a short amount of time… I can't find the words to praise you.”
Zhongli took one of Childe's hands, holding it.
“It's nice to see such dedication to learn this art. It really speaks volume about the kind of person you are. You put yourself into so many new tasks. and you never fail to deliver.” Zhongli took a small pause.
“Zhongli–”
“The dance was executed in harmony with the drums. Your movements were like watching a real Sunni. The strength of your legs, the footwork–”
“Enough is enough!” Hu Tao was paling as bad as Zhongli was with the gutted fishes. “Let's go back to the Harbor!”
Childe looked like he wanted a hole to open under his feet. Gaming was very confused and Zhongli's smile was close to a smirk.
“Yes, a feast is awaiting us.”
Childe almost stumbled. “A what?”
***
A huge serving of stewed fish awaited them. Venti and Zhongli had gathered so many that such a banquet looked fitting for an entire army. The bard was nowhere to be seen, even if Childe was the one to hire him after talking to Cloud Retainer. All that yapping about old friends had made him think about sending one to his nostalgic retired archon. Even if Zhongli looked pretty much adjusted to his new life, Childe had the self-imposed duty to act a little bit like a troublemaker even when he didn't mean to. He, Hu Tao and Venti all had the same goal of making the Consultant’s life more… Interesting.
He still had no clue how he ended up in such a silent alliance.
“Just for…us?” Childe was speechless. The amount of food was comparable to those boring banquets that Dottore always attended with the Regrator.
“Is this my mama’s recipe?” The auburn haired Harbinger sniffed the air. The scent was so nostalgic and he could recognize that it was his mother's recipe just by that. She used to make it so rich, using all kinds of available vegetables. Since his father used to be an adventurer, his mother was a step ahead of all of her friends and used even more spices imported from other nations.
“Yes. she was eager to share this with me, even if I wasn’t allowed to know the secret recipe of the broth…” The Consultant offered a free chair to the younger man, like a true gentleman.
Childe chuckled.
“I feel like we will pass out before being able to eat all of this… but thank you, Zhongli…” The young man sat politely and the others followed his example.
The first bite of the stew was… very, very salty. Childe had to keep a straight face to not react as the taste completely assaulted his senses. He looked at Zhongli and he was smiling so proud of himself or just genuinely happy.
Childe's eyes turned into daggers as he stared at the young man and woman sharing the table with them.
Pretend, please.
Childe didn't like lying or faking anything. Yet in that moment he decided to make an exception. Like Zhongli allowed himself to be kidnapped before his usual dinner time, he will just appreciate the effort.
Zhongli ate in silence with them, not giving any hint about his thoughts.
“It's so good, Mister Zhongli…” Gaming tried, keeping an embarrassing smile on his face.
“It is… Really interesting…” Hu Tao didn't add anything else. Childe silently thanked them, not wanting for Zhongli's smile to fade.
In the end, the taste wasn't even that important. Childe felt warm and nostalgic, it almost looked like he was back in Morepesok with his family. His legs were tired, but he was happy and satisfied.
***
Childe was filling his uncountable glass of water that night, a dragon tail wrapped tightly around his waist.
“Childe, what made you so thirsty?” Zhongli asked, concerned about feeling his beloved so restless that night.
“Nothing, nothing, really…” Childe reassured him, kissing the retired archon on the lips. “Don't worry, I'm fine.”
Zhongli smiled, reassured by his words. Childe wondered if he truly believed them, but the consultant only stroked his hair, looking at him with eyes full of love.
“You're so precious, Ajax.”
***
“Father, there's a letter for you from Tartaglia.” Lyney had rushed to Arlecchino's side as soon as the Eleventh entrusted the letter to him.
The Knave raised an eyebrow, taking the paper from the magician’s hands. Surely she didn't expect to receive a letter from her coworker, or to receive any message from any Harbinger at all.
She could recognize his writing, but the ink wasn't the usual scented one from Snezhnaya.
I don't mean to bother, but I have a friend that could want to discuss being a business partner with you. Her name is Hu Tao from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. I promised to put a good word in her favor, would you agree to meet her?
Arlecchino was confused, but an amused smile soon reached her face. She had no reason to look into Liyue's funeral parlors for her activities, of course. It seemed like the Eleventh had made some new friends.
“Thank you, Lyney.”
She didn't know what Tartaglia was up to, but it looked fun enough to check what was going on.