Chapter Text
Flowers always responded well to your care.
You never particularly cared for plants. It was something that came from your homeland, you supposed. It was instinctual, much like how the citizens of Mondstat were drawn to gliding through the air.
You checked over the leaves of one of your Cecelia flowers, careful to not damage the petals with your probing. They were quite popular with the citizens of Liyue, and ruining one of them would cost you potential revenue. These days, you needed all the Mora you could get.
"Hello, Miss," you paused in your search for aphids to look up at the voice. It was your assistant, Bao. She closed the shop door behind her, the bell jingling softly. "Is it time to open yet?"
"I thought you would have known by now, Bao," you teased gently. Her dark hair was braided over her shoulder. "Help me look over these flowers first." She nodded dutifully and shuffled over to help you inspect the flowers.
You had quite the popular shop here in Liyue. It was a small establishment, but it made a decent amount of revenue. Whether it be perfume makers looking for Sweet Flowers and Wind-Wheel Asters for their scents or up and coming chefs looking for Horsetail and Snapdragon for new recipes, you had it. Many shops supplied flowers, but none of them could restock or sell in bulk like you could.
You adjusted the ring on your finger carefully.
"Oh, this one is damaged," said Bao, pulling you out of your thoughts. "The bugs have gotten to it." You looked over her shoulder at the damaged Cecilia. One of the petals had been slightly eaten away overnight, it seems.
"What a shame," you muttered, mostly to yourself. No one would buy a damaged flower, even if the damage was slight. Without a word, you plucked the flower from its stem and added it to the end of Bao's thick, braided hair. She smiled up at you. "Move this pot to the back. I'll start opening."
"Yes ma'am!" She said, doing a miniature salute before picking up the now empty pot. You hummed to yourself happily and began to shift the blinds open, sunlight spilling into the small shop and over the many flowers. The sight made you feel a twinge of accomplishment.
You opened the door and immediately felt your good spirits drop.
"Hey there," The all-too familiar redhead smiled jovially. "Finally you're open! Felt like I was waiting forever."
"Yes, I suppose we did end up opening a little later than usual," you muttered. You put the jam in the door and retreated into the shop. He followed.
"You always have such beautiful displays," he remarked, studying one of the Glaze Lillies you had grown.
"Let's skip the small talk, Childe." You sighed tiredly. Immediately, the chipper attitude melted away. Childe stood up straight, the flower display forgotten. Over his shoulder, you saw Bao coming through the door from the back room, and her face paled when she saw the Harbinger.
"Bao, why don't you keep an eye on the outside display?" You suggested, smiling in order to reassure her. The young girl took the message and fled the store.
"I didn't know you came to collect debts," you sighed. You subtly turned your ring around your finger. Childe's blue eyes glanced at your hand movements quickly before returning to your face. "Couldn't get one of your henchmen to do it?"
"And miss out on visiting your shop? No thanks." He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes.
It never did.
You didn't know Childe personally, of course. You had crossed paths occasionally at the Northland Bank, and once or twice he had come personally to hound you for Mora. You knew enough about him to be warily annoyed by his presence, and enough to read some of the subtle changes in expression.
For instance, at your silence, his smile began to fall, suggesting he was far from happy with you. "Maybe if you didn't manage to avoid my 'henchmen'," he continued coolly, "I wouldn't have to come personally."
You grimaced slightly. "Sorry about that," you chuckled. Both of you knew that was an empty statement. "Can’t exactly pay back a debt with Mora I don't have."
You had taken loans from the bank periodically throughout your time in Liyue - three, to be exact. You were currently working on paying off your third loan, and for the past week, Fatui agents had been appearing at your door reminding you of your lack of payments. You'd promise them that you'd talk to them after your work day was over, and then promptly disappear.
No wonder they sent Childe.
Your eyes flickered to the bow slung over his shoulder. "I'll talk to you after work," you sighed. Childe raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "I mean it this time. I'll have enough to pay you back by the end of the day, I promise." When he still didn't look convinced, you let out an annoyed breath of air. "If you want to stay here and watch me all day to make sure I don't bolt, you're welcome to," you snapped sarcastically.
"Sounds like a plan," he chirped.
"Wh- I was joking," you sputtered.
"Yes, I'm aware of that," Chile said. His voice sounded eerily casual, but the subtle glint in his eye put you on edge. "But seeing as how you always evade payment, watching you is probably the best plan."
"You don't have anything better to do?" You asked, exasperated.
"Nope."
You stared at him. He started back, as if daring you to challenge him. He then shifted, the blue Vision on his hip clunking quietly. You narrowed your eyes and the subtle threat, but Childe kept his eyes on you. "Fine, but you can do it from the back room. I don't want you to scare off my customers," you added when his eyebrows tilted upwards suspiciously. "With you here, it feels like you're buying flowers for your own funeral."
He snorted, but you couldn't tell if it was genuine or not.
His eyes never seemed to waver.
You could see his figure just beyond the cracked door leading to the back area of the shop, staring at you intently. It was somewhat nerve wracking to do your job under the eye of someone like him, if you were being entirely honest. You might have a sharp tongue, but you were a coward through and through. Someone with Childe's fighting prowess was not someone you intended to piss off.
Not intentionally, anyways.
Bao had peeked back in the shop, checking to see if the Fatui had left. "He's still here," you had told her. forcing your voice to sound bored as you jabbed a thumb in the direction of the back room. "He wants to make sure I actually pay up this time. Annoying, isn't it?" Bao laughed nervously, and for the day, she stayed out of the shop as much as she could.
You didn't blame her. Bao's mother, a woman named Sying, was an... entertainer of sorts. While brothels weren't illegal in Liyue, they were looked down upon by outlanders. If it wasn't for the revenue the business has made, you were sure the Northland Bank would have managed to force them into bankruptcy.
Bao hated conflict.
That was why, when the sun had set and the customers slowly stopped trickling in, you intended to discuss matters with Childe away from the store. Bao retreated up to the small loft above the shop while you took inventory and counted Mora you had made carefully.
"I wasn't lying when I said you had beautiful flowers," came Childe's murmur, far too close for comfort. You bristled slightly and glared at the man who had leaned against your front desk while you had been focused on counting your money. He reached out to touch a petal of a Calla Lily and, without thinking, you slapped his hand away.
For a second, the both of you stayed still. You began to busy yourself with the Mora again - "Don't touch the flowers, please, you could damage them," you squeaked, unable to meet the Harbringer's eyes, too scared - and when you finally regained your composure, you straightened up and cleared your throat. "I have the rest back at my apartment."
"You didn't take all the money from the register," Childe noted. It sounded vaguely like a question.
"I don't need to," you responded. You waited for him to exit the shop before you closed the door, locking it for the night. "I've been taking half of the Mora my shop provides and saving it so I could pay you back."
"So you did have the money." Childe asked, but this time, it didn't sound like a question at all. You risked a glance at him.
His face was carefully neutral, but his eyes had been on you with a cold, calculating expression. With a jolt, you realized he was sizing you up.
The ring seemed heavy on your finger.
"Yes," you began carefully. There was no fucking way you could run from Childe if he decided to attack, and there was even less of a chance of you beating him. "I could have paid you off sooner. But I have mouths to feed, rent to pay. This was the only way I could manage to repay my debt without having to take another loan."
His expression didn't change, but the coldness in his eyes seemed to be less deadly. You let out a breath you didn't know you were holding.
The streets of Liyue were quieter than they were in the day, and you longed for the noise. You and Childe had been walking silently through the city, and you had the strange urge to fill the silence with chatter. Something told you the redhead wasn't fond of small talk, so you kept your mouth shut.
You focused on the crisscrossing red bridges above you, the yellow glow of lanterns, the sound of two pairs of boots hitting the pavement. There was a drunk man slumped over the stool of a closed food stand. Two women were talking quietly outside of a jewelry shop, laughing quietly to themselves.
"You have family here in Liyue?" Childe asked. You stopped in your tracks and stared at him. He stared back, an eyebrow lifted quizzically.
"What?"
"I asked if you had family here in Liyue," he repeated slowly, annoyance creeping at the edges of his voice. "You said you 'had mouths to feed'. Plural."
"Right," you cleared your throat awkwardly, continuing your walk back to your home. "I don't have any family here, but I take care of Bao - my assistant."
You weren't that far from your apartment now, thankfully. The sooner you could stop talking to Childe, the better. He had fallen silent after that, another thing you were thankful for, because talking to him was terrifying and-
"So no children?"
"Wh- No!" You turned again to face him. "Why would you think-"
"Relax," he smiled, seemingly amused by your indignation. "I was teasing."
"Teasing," you repeated slowly. "Childe, the Eleventh Fatui Harbinger, teasing me-"
To your surprise, he laughed.
The rest of the walk was quick and silent. You unlocked the front door to your small apartment and stepped aside to let Childe through. "Inviting me in for a drink this late at night? At least buy me dinner first."
"Oh my god," you said under your breath, massaging the bridge of your nose. "Are you coming inside or not?"
"I am," he said easily. You closed the door after him and led him down the small hall to your equally small main room. Childe made himself comfortable on your sofa.
"Go ahead, make yourself at home," you murmured to yourself, and then louder as you made your way to your kitchen: "Would you like some tea?"
"Sure." You had expected him to say no. The offer was merely formality, but you began boiling the water anyways.
This was definitely a weird situation. There was no question that Childe was an attractive man, and perhaps if he was someone else you would have been elated to have him in your home. But he was dangerous, and instead of the nervous butterflies that would have fluttered in your stomach in the presence of a handsome man, you instead had anxiety coursing through your veins as you pushed down the urge to flee.
Him being in your home aside, he had been teasing you. Like he was familiar with you. While the two of you weren’t strangers, you were far from friends, either. You had chalked up his behavior to Childe being Childe. He probably just wanted to fuck with you.
Probably.
The tea kettle began to scream. You poured the water into two teacups.
The sooner you could get Childe out of your hair, the better.
While the tea steeped, you shifted your attention to more business matters. You hauled the chest you kept under the sink up and onto the counter. With a small, unnoticeable flick of your wrist, the chest opened. Inside was glittering piles of Mora. You poured today's earnings inside.
You brought the chest out into the main room and set it on the table.
"That's an interesting looking chest," Childe remarked.
"Yes, it is," you responded curtly, leaving no room for questions. "Do you take sugar in your tea?"
"Two cubes."
You added the sugar. Something about Childe wanting sugar in his tea was amusing to you, and it slightly settled your stomach as you brought the cups of tea from the kitchen.
You sipped your tea twice before you set it down and clasped your hands together in your lap. "Let's get straight to business, shall we?"
"Won't even let me savor my tea," Childe sighed. "Well, get on with it. You can count."
You began counting out the Mora, forcing yourself to count slowly. As much as you wanted him gone as soon as possible, if you counted wrong, he would come back with a much less forgiving attitude.
Everyone in Liyue had seen Childe fight, and everyone knew Childe was cold and commanding when it came to Mora. He always carried his weapon on his back, and his Vision never left his belt. Most of the time he didn’t even need to use them, instead using his overwhelming agility and strength to collect debts. Many merchants had left the Northland Bank bloody and bruised, pockets empty.
You'd rather not share that fate.
"There," you said finally, piles of Mora on the table and counted perfectly. "That's everything I owe you."
"Mmm," Childe set down his empty tea cup. "You forgot the interest rates."
"Interest rates?" You squeaked.
"Yes," Childe hummed. He had an easy smile on his face, but his eyes looked predatory. "You knew about them when you took the loan. Even the Mora left in there wouldn't be able to cover it," he gestured to the small amount of coin left in your chest. "But maybe if you give me that chest, we can-"
"No."
Childe turned his gaze to you. "No?" he repeated slowly.
The coldness returned to his eyes, and you immediately felt the urge to flee - but for once in your life, you stood your ground. "I will not give you the chest. You're welcome to take the Mora that's left, and come collect the rest from me tomorrow, but the chest isn't negotiable."
Both of you stared at each other - a silent battle of wills - before Childe chuckled to himself. "There's that backbone they told me about," he sighed, sounding satisfied. Before you could question him about who "they" were, he reached out a hand. "Alright, I accept."
Perhaps it was the constant curveballs Childe had thrown your way, or the nerves and anxiety making it harder to think that caused you to shake his hand.
You forgot about it completely.
"I should be going, then," Childe said, standing and stretching. You gathered all of the Mora into a leather pouch for him to carry and, as any good host would, walked him to the door. "Thank you for the tea. I'll have to come back for more."
"Of course." You responded out of politeness. You hoped he never came back.
As soon as the door closed after him, you slumped down against the back of the door. Relief flooded through your veins. You would be seeing him tomorrow, but after that, you'd finally be free. You would never have to do official business with the Fatui again. Now you and Bao didn't need to worry about anything.
You were free.
Suddenly your chest was searing with pain, burning , and your throat began to close and constrict. Your hands flew to your throat, but you knew you'd find nothing there. Your body was on fire, legs twitching on the floor.
It was only when you realized it had stopped that you began to panic.
On instinct, you threw your body to the side, no longer leaning against the door. A split second later, a lance made of water pierced through your door, right where your head was mere moments before. Another lance rolled through the wood, slicing your cheek, but missing any vital organs.
You tried to get on your feet, but the door crashed open. Water slapped you backwards and you hit the wall - then, before you could get the wind back into your lungs, and hand was around your throat, crushing, pinning you to the wall.
" What the fuck ," Childe seethed, his voice ragged, " did you do to me ?"