Hi! Just wondering if you're okay, since you haven't been on for awhile. How are you?
oh, im fine, i’ve just been. well, busy wouldn’t be the right word for it- i guess kind of burnt out??? maybe?? idk- i’ve been writing today though so i’ll probably be posting some stuff in the coming days
so uh, today (June 16th) is Venti’s birthday, and it kinda snuck up on me, so i’ve only got this Kinda Rushed Fanfic sdjflkjlsdkfs
anyways, here, take “2 times Venti didn’t realize he was allergic to cats and the one time someone finally told him”
Venti paused mid-walk, and Sir Ragnvindr stopped as well, looking at him in confusion.
"Are you okay?" He asked, "What's wrong-"
"Heh- T'SHh-iew!" Venti sneezed, his whole body moving with the motion, wings flaring out, and blinking bewilderedly after. Sir Ragnvindr, upon seeing his expression, laughed.
"I suppose you've never sneezed before, huh?" He said, and Venti shook his head no. "You at least know what a sneeze is, right."
"I'm not dumb, Sir Ragnvindr." Venti said, rubbing the back of his hand against his nose. Now that he knew what the irritating sensation was, or rather, what it meant, it was somehow harder to ignore than it'd been before. "Hih-..... I just.....wasn't...expecting it- hIH- H'ESHH-iew!"
"You're not getting sick, are you?" Sir Ragnvindr asked.
"I'm not even sure gods can get sick....." Venti mumbled, "It's just....itchy. Hih'EShiew!"
Unseen by both of them, a nearby cat stretched and wandered off.
-
"Morax!" Venti yelled, landing on the grass in front of the aforementioned god.
"Barbatos. What are you doing here?" Zhongli asked, "I don't recall any you saying you were going to come over."
"Well that would ruin the surprise, wouldn't it?" Venti said, pulling a bottle of wine out of... somewhere. In that godly outfit of his, Zhongli truly could not tell how he had managed to hide the bottle. "C'mon, this wine is really good."
"I'm not up for it tonight, Barbatos." Zhongli sighed, turning and starting to walk away, purposefully ignoring the younger god's protests. He could sense Venti start following him, but did nothing to stop it. Maybe if he just ignored him for long enough he'd go away....
He paused as he noticed some rustling in a nearby bush. Continuing to ignore Venti's questions, he knelt down, pushing back the branches-
And finding a young kitten.
"Watcha got there?" Venti asked, floating a little in order to curiously peer over Zhongli's shoulder. Zhongli sighed, scooping the kitten up into his arms.
"It's a cat." Zhongli said, adjusting his hold as the kitten squirmed. "A baby one, a kitten. ...I'll have to find someone for it to stay with..."
"Why? Dontcha want to keep it yourself?" Venti asked, before sniffling a little.
"I doubt I'd be the best at taking care of it.....I'm sure there'll be someone in the town to-"
"Hih- H'NGkT-shiew!" Venti stifled a sneeze into his hands, but it still managed to startle both Zhongli and the kitten, the cat hissing at him a little. "...Ah, sorry, I didn't......heh- H'ESSH-iew! didn't mean to startle you...."
"Are you.....okay?" Zhongli asked, looking Venti up and down. The younger god didn't look sick, but looks could be deceiving.
"I'm fine- hEh...... Just....just suddenly got itchy is all- h'Tt-shiew!" Venti said, turning his head to the side as he sneezed again. "S-sorry...H'ISHH-iew!"
"...Maybe you should go home." Zhongli suggested, watching as Venti struggled through another two sneezes.
"Fine, but...hEH-.....you, you will have a drink with me later- hIH-H'ESH-iew!"
-
"Vennessa~!" Venti called, entering Vennessa's office with his usual amount of fanfare.
"Ah- Venti, what is it today?" Vennessa asked, sighing a little as Venti energetically jumped up and sat on her desk. "You do remember that I have chairs you could sit in?"
"Oh, but those aren't nearly as comfortable." Venti smirked, before noting something moving on Vennessa's lap. "What's that?"
"This little guy?" Vennessa held up a small grey cat. "He snuck in through my window earlier, his owner lost him a few days ago. She's coming to pick him up in about an hour."
She set the cat down on the table, where it immediately went to Venti's side, rubbing up against him as it purred. Venti giggled as he pet it's head.
"He seems to like you." Vennessa said, smiling.
"Yeah, I guess he....does...." Venti paused, bringing a hand to his face to rub at his nose. It didn't do much to help though, as his only warning was a short intake of breath before- "Hih'NGkT-shiew!"
The cat startled at the sudden noise, jumping back onto Vennessa's lap. She ran a soothing hand over it's back, but didn't take her eyes off of Venti, who turned slightly away from her as his breath continued to hitch.
"Heh- H'ESSH-iew! I'm, I'm sorry I don't know what- h'Tt-shiew!!" Venti sneezed again, a few tears starting to form in the edges of his eyes. Vennessa sighed, standing up and setting the cat on the chair. Gently, she took hold of Venti's shoulder, leading him out of the building and back out into the fresh air. Venti sniffled, his nose a little red from how much he'd been rubbing it.
"I didn't know gods could have allergies." Vennessa commented, and Venti glanced at her, a look of confusion on his face.
"....Huh?" He asked, "What do you mean- I don't have allergies."
"Explain to me why you took to sneezing just a few seconds ago then." Vennessa said. Venti just shrugged in response.
"I don't know, it just happens sometimes. My face gets all itchy and then I just. Sneeze." He said, "But like, that doesn't mean I'm allergic."
"I'm pretty sure that it does." Vennessa said, "You're allergic to cats."
"I am not." Venti huffed, crossing his arms. "I'm a god- we don't get allergies."
"Would you like to test that theory?" Vennessa asked, "I've still got some cat hair on me, you know."
As she said this, she picked some cat hairs off of her shirt, holding them in her hand. Venti huffed, crossing his arms as he looked away from her-
Which ended up being his mistake, as Vennessa reached out and easily brushed the cat hairs under Venti's already irritated nose. Venti quickly pushed her hand away, head tilting back-
"Heh- H'NgKt-shiew! H'tT-shiew!" The sneezes were forceful enough to snap Venti forwards, his wings appearing and flaring out. "Hh- hEH- H'ESSH-iew!"
"Believe me now?" Vennessa asked, feeling just the slightest bit bad for sending Venti back into an allergic fit. Venti slowly straightened back up, sniffling again as he rubbed his nose.
"...Okay. I'm allergic to cats, then." Venti muttered, sounding a bit congested. "That....explains a lot."
"Have you seriously gone this long without realizing you were allergic?"
"I didn't think I could be- I just never put it together-"
"I'm teasing you." Vennessa said, laughing at Venti's flustered expression. "At least you know now though, you can avoid the source."
"...That might be a problem." Venti admitted, "Y'see, cats tend to really like me-"
*comes back from the dead* so uh… I wrote a Zhongli fic some months ago and posted it on the blue forum. I would leave it there but I was never a fan of how the forum worked, and after it was down again, I decided to post the fic on Tumblr. Mainly because the Genshin snzblr is so blessed lol and I don’t want to lose the fic if the forum goes down forever. So yeah, enjoy this allergic Zhongli fic!
in the new eula teaser there is a cute sneeze at 1:49 :)
[eng] [jpn] [cn] [kr]
HOLY. SHIT. I just watched it and she’s?? So cute? THANK YOU for telling me about it 😭
The breathy inhale right before and the way she snaps forward into steepled hands... the sniffle and the vocal groan afterwards?? The way she crosses her arms in (slightly embarrassed) dismissal after??? LIKE. I’m actually losing it a little...
also, uh...
Imagining Eula with allergies/a cold... she’s so authoritative and independent and she literally wields a claymore, of all things, a Captain of the Knights... turning aside with one hand raised to sneeze as her eyelashes flutter shut and the stoic, 'I'm always in control' expression leaves her face is...
im sorry if i take a while to post some new fics, im currently experiencing what i like to call “Creative Lag” but is really just. lack of motivation. i’ll probably get an energy burst and write like 3 fics in one day at some point but. until that happens it might be a while
Venti sneezing his wings out is the cutest thing I’ve ever read thank you for that gem
-snee
shkfjlksdhksjflkd im glad you liked it!! to be honest that idea just. struck down upon me out of the blue and i absolutely had to use it.
(i briefly entertained the idea of Venti going a bit see-through as well since his current form is. probably mostly constructed out of anemo energy so i figured being sick would probably effect it, but i scrapped that idea because i couldn’t figure out how to write it shdkjsjlkfg).
anyways. i am always down for Venti content that involves his wings so if people wanna see that again i will oblige
decided that enough was enough, Venti couldn’t just keep showing up in my fics as a Chaotic Caretaker. so. Venti fans, come get yall’s juice-
---
Venti sat at the bar, his head resting on the countertop, seemingly asleep.
For anyone else, this wouldn't really be considered out of the ordinary. Sure, the bard was rather good at holding his liquor, but everyone has their limits, so the other patrons mainly chalked this behavior up to Venti having had one too many.
Diluc, on the other hand, with his inside knowledge of Venti being a god, and the fact that, thus far, the bard had only ordered one glass of wine, found this behavior very out of character.
"...Are you okay?" Diluc asked, quietly, so as to not draw the attention of anyone else. When Venti didn't immediately respond, he picked up the bard's half-drunk glass of wine and lightly nudged him with the bottom of it. Venti finally opened one eye to look at him.
"....'M fine." He mumbled, "Just.... used a bit too much energy today."
"If that's the case, you should go home and rest, rather than continue to sulk around in here." Diluc said, crossing his arms.
"I went to Windrise earlier and rested for a bit." Venti said, sitting up and subtly rubbing his nose with the back of his hand.
"That's not what I- wait. Do you even have a house?" Diluc asked. Venti gave a tired laugh in response.
"Why do you ask? Are you offering for me to live with you?" He asked, a smirk on his face. Diluc sighed.
"I'll take that as a no, you don't have a house then." He said, "And absolutely not. If you think even for a minute I'd let you freeload at Dawn Winery, then you must be well past drunk."
"Can't let people say I didn't try." Venti said, coughing a little before sighing, rubbing his nose again as he sniffled. Diluc narrowed his eyes, looking the bard up and down again, taking in his... unusually messy and unkempt appearance, suspicious.
"...Are you sure you're okay?" He asked, and Venti gave that tired laugh again-
And then suddenly the bard paused, stiffening as he quickly pressed the back of his hand against his nose. Diluc raised an eyebrow in silent question, but Venti was no longer paying attention to him.
The bard abruptly stood up, muttering a quiet curse and stumbling a little. Quickly, ignoring Diluc's protests, he rushed around the counter, ducking down behind the bar to sit on the floor.
"What are you doing?" Diluc asked, and quickly got his answer as Venti's breath audibly hitched, his head tilting back-
"Heh- H'NGKt-shiew! HihH- H'NTCH-iew!" Venti stifled the two sneezes into his hands, the force of them making his body curl up tighter-
And a pair of feathered wings unfurled from his back, flaring out.
Thankfully, the wings didn't go high enough to be seen over the countertop. However, they did end up knocking over various bottles and glasses, sending the crashing to the floor, leaving shards of glass and puddles of spilled wine on the floor, and drawing the attention of quite a few of the patrons in the bar. Diluc quietly waved their attention away.
"I do hope you plan on cleaning this....." He started, only to trail off as he watched how the god tiredly shuddered as he drew his wings back into himself, and let them fade away. The whole process looked.... draining, to say the least. Diluc offered his hand as he helped Venti stand back up. Even through his glove, he could feel the heat coming off of Venti, and now Diluc was officially worried.
"I apologize for the mess I've made..." Venti said, staring down at the glass and wine on the floor. "Get me a mop, I'll help clean it up."
Diluc found he didn't really care about the mess on the floor.
"You're sick." He said, and Venti didn't even try to deny it.
"...Yes, I suppose I am coming down with something or other." The bard said, still not making eye contact with Diluc. "I'm sorry for being such a bother."
"Oh, stop with the rhyming." Diluc said, and he tightened his hold on Venti's hand, stepping out from behind the bar, dragging the bard along behind him. "I'm taking you to Jean."
There was, surprisingly, no resistance to this notion. As Diluc walked out into the cool night air of Mondstadt, he could feel Venti shiver beside him, but he chose not to comment on it, continuing to walk in the direction of the Knights of Favoinus headquarters. He didn't really like going in there, but for tonight it was necessary.
They'd just about made it halfway there when Venti suddenly stopped, tugging on Diluc's hand, attempting to free himself. Diluc looked at him questioningly, only to see a, now recognizable, look of mild panic on the bard's face, his free hand once again pressed against his nose.
"Really? Again?" Diluc asked, and Venti nodded frantically, not responding verbally, probably holding his breath in an attempt to keep himself from sneezing. Diluc looked around, there weren't many people out and about at this hour, but there were some people standing around, and so he quickly dragged Venti into the first alleyway he saw. He let go of the bard's hand just in time, as Venti was snapped forwards by a sneeze, his wings appearing and flaring out (causing Diluc to jump away to avoid being hit) as the god fell into a small fit of sneezes.
"Bless you." Diluc said, as Venti sniffled miserably, wiping his nose on the back of his sleeve.
"You can't bless me, I'm a god, I'm already blessed." Venti said, laughing a little, which only caused him to start coughing. Diluc rolled his eyes as he gently patted the space in between Venti's wings in the hopes of it helping a little.
"You done?" Diluc asked, once Venti had stopped coughing. "Okay. Lets hurry up and get you to Jean."
"Wait." Venti said, his voice cracking a little from how hoarse it'd become. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Wait. We...kinda have a problem."
"What's wrong?"
"I...don't have enough energy to hide my wings." Venti said, quietly. "I've been doing this all day and I-"
"You don't need to explain it." Diluc said, sighing as he shrugged off his coat, before placing it over Venti's shoulders, effectively hiding the snow white wings from sight. "There. That should do until we get to Jean."
Venti reached up to pull the coat tighter around himself, looking almost swamped in it, considering how much shorter than Diluc he was. He clearly appreciated the warmth it brought to him though.
-
"Diluc, Venti!" Jean exclaimed, standing up from her desk as the two of them finally entered her office. "What are the both of you doing here so late at night?"
"Our little bard here need a..... secretive but warm place to stay the night." Diluc said, closing the door to the office behind him as he walked in.
"Why? What's wrong?" Jean asked, and almost as if on cue-
"Hih'NGKT-shiew!" Venti stifled a sneeze, his wings flaring out, knocking Diluc's coat off of him. Jean startled a little, but quickly recovered.
"Oh." She said, "I see."
"....'M sorry to bother you." Venti said, sniffling, gratefully accepting the tissues Jean proceeded to hand him in response. "I'd usually just stay in Windrise, but Mr. Diluc here decided I'd be better off with you."
"And you will be better off." Diluc said, "Seriously. You'll get better faster if you stay someplace warm."
"The tavern is warm." Venti protested, for the first time that night. "You could've just let me stay in the tavern."
"Absolutely not. Even sick, you probably would've drunken over half of my supplies." Diluc said, "Speaking of which. I still have a mess to clean up, so Jean, I trust I can leave the rest of this to you?"
"Of course." Jean confirmed, "I only had just a bit of paperwork left to do anyways, I've got time. You can go now."
Diluc gave her a nod, and turned to leave, picking up his coat from where it had fallen to the floor as he did so. He paused before opening the door, thinking for a moment, before laying his coat down on a nearby chair, in case Venti needed to use it again, before finally leaving the room. Once he'd left, Jean pulled off one of her gloves, placing the back of her hand against Venti's cheek before he could pull away.
"Hmm. You've got a fever." She said, "I've got some medicine in my desk but.... does medicine even work on you?"
"...It's only healing magic that doesn't work." Venti muttered, "Medicine is fine."
Jean quickly got the medicine out of her desk, setting up the right dosage, before handing it over to Venti. He took it quickly, grimacing in response to the flavor. Jean lightly put her hands on Venti's shoulders, just barely brushing up against his wings as she gently guided him out of the room, Venti picking up Diluc's coat and holding it tight against his chest as they left. Jean led him up the stairs towards one of the makeshift bedrooms, specifically made for people who had to spend the night at the headquarters. Luckily, Jean seemed to be the only one working late tonight, as they encountered no other guards as they walked through the halls.
Jean took his advice, letting go of his shoulders and ducking down just in time to avoid receiving a wing to the face.
"Snf....Sorry..." Venti muttered, tired, as Jean stood back up, leading him the rest of the way to the bedroom.
"It's not your fault." She said, kindly. "You can't exactly control it."
Venti didn't respond, too tired to speak again after the amount of elemental energy he'd used up during the day. He slowly climbed into the bed, curling up around Diluc's coat, holding it like one would hold a stuffed animal or a baby blanket. Jean gave a soft laugh as she pulled the covers over top of him.
"Am I to presume Sir Diluc won't be getting that coat back anytime soon?" She asked, a note of light humor in her voice. The response she received was a light hum, which she took for a yes. She supposed she'd have to find some means of getting Diluc another, identical, coat then...
Jean turned to leave the room.
"Shout if you need something, okay?" She said, received another hum in response, and then quietly shut the door, leaving the god to sleep in peace.
Diluc wakes up, looking sick/allergic, sniffling, once he starts sneezing, he knows this day will be an annoyance, but gets up to continue and power through anyways
Ok, so, i know this isnt my best art, but, i wanted to absolutely do something small for Dil/uc’s birthday xD
But alas with finals/final projects of college kicking my butt this week, i cannot put as much effort into it as I wouldve liked to
So please accept this extra fluffy Dil/uc hair >.<
Also when i reference new poses, i tend to adapt to a kind of different style?? I swear i dont mean to...
it is currently *(checks clock)* midnight in my time zone, which means its technically april 30th, which just so happens to be a certain Mr. Diluc’s birthday-
so, of course, ive got a fic for him
---
Aether entered the tavern, Paimon fluttering behind him as he walked up to the counter with a smile on his face, before pausing, looking Diluc up and down.
"...Are you okay?" He asked, and Diluc sighed.
"I'm fine." He said, and was Aether hearing things, or was that a bit of congestion in his voice? "Is there something you need?"
"Oh! Um, two apple ciders please." Aether said. Diluc quietly prepared the drinks, sliding them across the counter when he was done. Aether put some mora on the table, picked up the two glasses, handing one to Paimon, and with one last suspicious glance at Diluc, walked up the stairs to the second floor. Diluc watched until the two of them were out of sight- and then his breath hitched, and he quickly stifled a sneeze into his arm.
"Heh- Hi'NGKT-uu!" He sniffled as he absentmindedly rubbed his nose on his sleeve, turning back around to face the front of the tavern.
Only to find Venti sitting at the counter, staring at him with an incredibly disapproving look on his face.
Diluc startled a little at his sudden appearance, but quickly pulled himself back together.
"...What?" Diluc asked, "Do you need something?"
"You're sick." Venti said, and the tone of voice he used made Diluc wince, feeling like he'd just been caught doing something bad. "You should go home and rest, y'know."
"I'm fine." Diluc insisted, turning away so that he wouldn't have to keep seeing Venti's disappointed expression. "Besides, there's work to be done here."
There was some rustling behind him, and then a thump, and Diluc cautiously looked over his shoulder- barely keeping himself from jumping in surprise to see that Venti was now standing right beside him. He must've jumped over the counter.
"What are you doing- hEY!" Diluc yelped, voice cracking a little as Venti effortlessly picked him up, throwing him over his shoulder to carry him. There were some cheers from the other patrons in the bar, somehow, they'd attracted an audience without Diluc noticing. He struggled, squirming and kicking a little as he tried to free himself from the bard's grip, only to find himself unable to. Venti must've been using some of his godly strength.
Ignoring Diluc's struggling, Venti walked out of Angel's Share, waving to the other patrons as he left.
Did. Did he plan to carry Diluc the whole way back to Dawn Winery?
Apparently not, as Venti paused for a moment, looked around to make sure there wasn't any witnesses-
And teleported the two of them to the statue closest to the winery.
"Apologies, I only have enough power to teleport to statues nowadays." Venti said, starting to walk towards the winery. "We'll have to walk the rest of the way."
"I can walk by myself." Diluc said, sniffling. "Put me down."
"Nu-uh. No way. I'm genuinely certain that, should I let you go, you shall attempt to go back to work, and that is something I simply cannot allow."
"Aren't you supposed to support me in having the freedom to do what I want?" Diluc asked.
"Not if said 'freedom' is detrimental to your health." Venti said, "You do have limits, y'know?"
Diluc, in fact, did know his limits. And sure, he had been feeling a bit light headed earlier, but that didn't mean he was just going to let Venti carry him all the way to Dawn Winery.
Especially since-
"Ven....Venti, put me..hih.....put me down- hEH-" Diluc squirmed as his breath hitched, the faint tickle he'd been feeling all day suddenly growing a lot more intense. "Hih- Hi'ESCHI-uu! Heh- H'TSSCH-iew!"
"Please at the very least try not to dirty my cloak." Venti said, his stride not hesitating at all as he continued to walk, seemingly, for the most part, unbothered.
Now, what Diluc did next was, admittedly, very petty and childish. But, to be fair, he'd had a long day, so maybe a little bit of pettiness was understandable.
He rubbed his nose on Venti's cloak.
Venti gasped in offense, but Diluc barely payed attention to it, as he suddenly realized exactly why the tickle in his nose had suddenly grown worse.
Venti was covered in pollen.
"HehH-Hi'TSSCH! H'ESSCHI-uu! Hih-" Diluc struggled more in an attempt to distance himself from the allergen, but unless Venti put him down... "Hi'ETTCH-iew!"
"Geez...Are you okay? Those sounded rough." Venti asked, oblivious to the fact that he was the reason for Diluc's increased suffering.
"It's.....hIH....the, the pollen- hEH- H'ESSCHI-iew!" Diluc struggled to say in between hitching breaths.
"The pollen? I don't- oh!" Venti said, the realization striking him. "Oh, I'm sorry!"
He finally, finally, put Diluc down, not that Diluc actually was in a proper state to appreciate it. He continued to muffle sneeze after sneeze in his hands, the force of some of them snapping him in half. Venti winced as another sneeze sounded like it tore at Diluc's throat.
"Sorry." Venti said, again. "I... I forgot about your allergies."
"It's....okay." Diluc said, sniffling wetly, the congestion in his voice now significantly worse than before. "I....hih...I try not to make it- H'TSCH-uu!..... make it obvious."
"Still though. I should've remembered." Venti said, and upon seeing that the redhead's sneeze fit was starting to die down, pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket. "Here, take this."
Diluc, still using his hands to cover his nose and mouth, eyed the piece of cloth dubiously.
"I promise it's pollen free this time." Venti said, and Diluc, not seeing any trace of lying or mischief on Venti's face, finally took the handkerchief, using it to both wipe and blow his nose. While he did so, Venti took the time to carefully use his anemo to blow any pollen residue off of himself.
"Dawn Winery is still about ten minutes away." He said, once he was sure he was pollen free. "Are you sure you can walk that far?"
"I'll be fine." Diluc sniffed, pocketing the handkerchief, already planning to wash it and give it back later. "You don't need to come along."
"Hmm. I better make sure you actually go home, instead of wandering off to fight or something." Venti said, smiling a little. "Just to be sure."
"...Whatever."
-
Night fell over Dawn Winery, and Diluc's body ached in protest as he slowly, and silently, walked down the stairs towards the front door, his claymore strapped to his back. He felt congested, and his head was pounding with a headache that had developed shortly after Venti had dropped him off, and had not gone away despite the small nap he'd taken. But still, despite this, he still had his duties as the "Darknight Hero". Unlike running the bar, which another member of the staff could take over, there wasn't exactly someone who could fill in for his vigilante duties. Which meant that, despite the fact he'd rather just go back to bed, he had to go out and patrol Mondstadt.
"Ahem. Where do you think you're going?"
Diluc froze mid-step, turning his head to find-
Venti, sitting on the window sill, his bow leaning against the wall beside him.
"Were you really planning on going out again while in this condition?" He asked, clicking his tongue in disappointment. "I expected that you'd know better."
"There isn't exactly someone else who can take over this job." Diluc whispered, both out of a desire to not accidentally wake any of the staff that was sleeping in the winery, but also because he'd discovered earlier that his voice was nearly shot.
"I'm sorry? Who do you think I am?" Venti said, sounding offended, picking up his bow and giving it a little twirl. "I've already done the nighttime patrol for you. There was nothing but one or two petty thieves, which I dealt with rather quickly."
"...You did that for me?"
"Mhm. It was kinda fun actually. Gives me something to do, since I don't really sleep anyways..." Venti said, sentence trailing off as he seemed to remember... something. "Anyways, speaking of sleep, you should be getting back to bed."
He jumped down from the window sill, placing his bow to lean against the wall again, walking over to where Diluc stood. Carefully, Venti took the claymore off of Diluc's back, and Diluc couldn't resist his body slumping with relief at the loss of the weight.
He must've been more tired than he thought he was, because he didn't protest as Venti held his hand and led him back up the stairs and into his bedroom. Diluc stumbled a little as he took off his boots, not even bothering with the rest of his clothes as he climbed into the bed. He could deal with the consequences of not changing into pyjama's when he woke up in the morning.
His nose suddenly twitched, and he curled up a little, stifling a sneeze.
"Hih- H'NGXt-uu!" He sighed tiredly after wards, closing his eyes, and Venti laughed as he placed some blankets down on top of him.
"Bless you." He said, and suddenly Diluc felt a lot more comfortable, and relaxed than before.
He felt suspiciously comfortable and relaxed, actually.
Summoning up a bit more energy, he opened one eye to glance at Venti.
"Did you just actually bless me?" He muttered, "Like. In the whole 'godly gift' kinda way?"
"...Maybe. Yes." Venti gave a sheepish chuckle that clearly said that it hadn't been intentional. "Don't worry. You'll just feel more relaxed and free for a day or two. It'll wear off."
Diluc, mildly reassured by that, hummed in response, body fully relaxing as he finally fell asleep with no worries.
different anon here but omg im so happy you made a kaeya/albedo drabble.. could you write up a pt 2 where kaeya catches his cold? doesnt have to be long, anything would do if youd be so kind
😭 anon... please, have mercy. Reversed roles are my absolute ~weakness~, so just this once, I am here to deliver a fic that I didn’t spend like 300 years writing. (Thanks for the excuse to write these two!!)
[part 1]
—
A few days pass before he sees Kaeya again.
Albedo is only at the headquarters to ask Lisa if she has any books on the medicinal uses of Liyue specialties. The meeting is a coincidence, all things considered. Kaeya is leading a group of Knights—new recruits, Albedo thinks, because he’s pretty sure those are new faces—back into the main hall.
“Captain,” one of the recruits is saying. “I’m sorry about today. I’ll do better next time.”
“Struggling with training?” Kaeya asks. “I hope you weren’t hurt.”
“I wasn’t. I just… I should have been able to dodge. Back up in Starfell Valley, when that hilichurl fired. It wasn’t hidden or anything, I just… didn’t notice.”
Kaeya shakes his head. “It’s a lot to think about, right? That’s one of the tricky things about fighting with a close-range weapon. It’s not a bad thing to pay attention to whomever you’re clashing swords with. Just don’t forget to keep an eye out for enemies that are further out.”
“Got it,” the recruit says, solemn.
“Your swordsmanship has improved, though.” Kaeya adds, “I can tell you practiced. The new sword suits you.”
The recruit brightens visibly. “Thanks a lot, Captain.”
It’s not surprising, really—Kaeya has a strange talent for saying the right thing at the right time. He’s patient, too, and good at strategizing; all things considered, Albedo can’t think of someone more qualified to be training the Knights.
Albedo isn’t watching, really. It looks like their group is about to adjourn, and he figures he should really thank Kaeya for his help a few days ago—Kaeya is a fast learner, and an even better conversation partner. Had it not been for him, Albedo knows he would’ve been up on Dragonspine for much longer.
Currently, Kaeya is turning to address the entire group. He still hasn’t noticed Albedo’s presence, it seems.
“Great work today,” He says, then launches into a speech about strategy. It’s not notable—or, it shouldn’t be—except the more he talks, the more Albedo can tell how tired he is. It’s subtle. It’s Kaeya—of course it’s subtle. But his posture looks deceptively casual—really, it looks like it’s taking all of his energy to keep himself presentable—and mid-speech, he’s actually stifling a yawn. His voice sounds slightly off, too, perhaps from overuse.
They’re all busy, Albedo knows. But he feels guilty nonetheless. He knows it had been Kaeya’s decision to help him, but still—perhaps it hadn’t been the best choice, seeing how much he still has to do.
“Captain Kaeya,” one of the other recruits interjects, after Kaeya finishes his speech. Most of the other Knights have already started to leave. “If you are free later, could I stay late to train with you today?”
And Kaeya—
—Kaeya, for some reason, hesitates. He shuts his eyes for just a second, as if he’s at war with himself, before he opens them again. This time, his smile is a little less effortless, a little more transparently tired. “Of course. I need to get some paperwork filled out first, but I’ll meet you after.”
“Alright, thanks! I’ll wait for you outside?”
“Sure. I won’t be long.”
The recruit—oblivious to the fact that something’s wrong—turns to head towards the exit. Kaeya sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose, his eyebrows furrowed. He really looks exhausted.
Albedo wants to call out to him. He’ll say thanks, and then he’ll get out of Kaeya’s way. But then Kaeya heads towards Jean’s office—to pick up paperwork, presumably—and stops halfway down the hall, tensing, one hand hovering over his face—
“hiiH… hiiH’ESSCH’ew!”
It sounds… rough, and tired, as if he’s been doing that all day. He sniffles, shivering, and continues walking, and Albedo knows.
He feels bad immediately. Kaeya had been kind enough to help out—of course he had, he’s selfless like that—even though he must have been busy. Meanwhile, Albedo hadn’t thought to tell him to sit further away, hadn’t been careful enough about not touching what he’d touched, hadn’t stepped away when Kaeya had insisted on walking back with him, hadn’t protested when Kaeya had lent him his scarf for the walk back through Dragonspine’s freezing weather…
...All things considered, this is most certainly Albedo’s fault.
—
“I got it, Jean,” Kaeya says, taking the pile of paperwork from her desk.
“Take it easy,” she says. “You’re going straight home after this. This is not up for debate.”
Kaeya smiles tiredly at her. “Oh? I thought you didn’t want me slacking off. I can do more, really.”
Jean rolls her eyes. “You look like you’re about to fall asleep where you’re standing. Please, for the love of Barbatos, get some rest.”
Kaeya can’t say he feels very differently than Jean says he looks. Still, even if Jean won’t ask him to stick around, the new recruits will—he likes them, but they’re still new to combat, which makes things harder on him. In between scouting domains, looking out for the younger knights, and trying to cover for the mistakes they make, perhaps he’s pushed himself just a bit.
“It’s just a cold,” he says, turning as far away from her as possible to cough into his elbow. “No one’s ever taken off work for a cold.”
“For now it is,” Jean says. “I don’t want it to turn into something worse because you won’t rest.”
“It won’t. It’s just paperwork, right? I could do that in my sleep.” And one-on-one training with a recruit. And after that, another meeting with the Knights, and a domain East of here to scout out on his own, but Jean can find out about that later when she’s reading his reports.
It’s very unfortunate that he has to sneeze.
He takes another step away from her, lifting his hand to cover.
“hiIH’EESCH’-ew!” he winces. The sneeze is loud, and it sounds almost as miserable as he feels, which means it feels far too transparent. “Hiih… hIIH… snf… hiiih’IiDDZScsh’ew! hIIIH’EZSCHh’-iu! ugh… snf…”
“Bless you,” Jean says, sighing as she passes him the tissue box on her desk. He takes a generous handful of them and before handing it back. “You sound awful.”
Kaeya laughs, pocketing the tissues. “You never fail to flatter me, Acting Grandmaster.”
“Forgive me for being worried,” Jean says flatly. “At least tell me you’ll take care of yourself.”
“Of course. When do I not?”
She gives him a significant look, which is fair.
He takes the chance to leave her office. His head hurts, more than it would if he’d just had a bit too much to drink, and it’s the kind of headache that he knows is going to get much, much worse if he doesn’t take it easy. Maybe if he rushes, he can get the paperwork done before then.
The recruit he’d spoken to is waiting for him outside, he recalls. He rubs his nose, shivering, and heads for the door.
Someone is waiting for him, but it’s not the person he expects.
Kaeya musters the energy to smile. “Albedo! Did you need something?” He probably shouldn’t be taking on additional responsibilities after Jean’s already told him to take him easy, but then again, this is Albedo—whatever he needs, it must be worth staying late for.
“I just happened to be stopping by,” Albedo starts. “I, err, wanted to ask Lisa about my research.”
“I take it that you didn’t find what you needed?”
“I did.”
“Is that so?” Kaeya says, faltering—if that’s the case, he’s not sure why Albedo is still here. “Were you waiting for me, then?”
It’s supposed to be a joke, except Albedo hesitates, and Kaeya feels bad for mentioning it.
“Actually, I was,” Albedo says.
Kaeya’s breath has gone unsteady again, and he rubs his nose, sniffling. Albedo, who seems not to have noticed, keeps talking.
“I wanted to tell you—”
Kaeya doesn’t want to interrupt, but colds tend to make his sneezes so jarringly unavoidable. He turns away, lifting up a hand to shield his face. “Hiiih… hiih’EESCHh’ew!” He gasps, and with a muffled sniffle, presses his hand closer to his face. “HIIH… hiiIH’IIZSCHH-uu! hIIIH’NGKT-Sshew! snf…!”
—His shoulders untense as he finally lowers his hand, fishing through his pocket for tissues. How embarrassing, he thinks, blowing his nose as softly as he can. He doesn’t exactly want to look over to Albedo to see the expression on his face—disgust, probably, or worse, pity—
“I’m sorry,” Albedo says instead.
Kaeya’s glance snaps upwards in surprise. “What?”
“I was hoping you wouldn’t catch this,” he frowns, looking away. “I wasn’t careful enough. I did not intend for you to feel miserable because of me.”
What is that supposed to mean? “This isn’t because of you.”
“Captain,” Albedo starts, completely serious. “Whose cold do you think you have?”
Kaeya blinks. It’s true—he’s probably caught this from Albedo, given that he can’t think of anyone else who’s been sick lately—but that doesn’t mean that Albedo should feel guilty over it. “Colds spread. It happens, it’s not your fault.”
“I should have been more careful,” Albedo shakes his head dejectedly. “Or perhaps I should not have accepted your help at all when you offered to stay. I knew you must have had a lot of work. It was selfish of me.”
“I told you, I wanted to help,” Kaeya insists.
Albedo sighs. “You are selfless to the extent that it is detrimental sometimes.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I sent the recruit home, by the way. Really, you couldn’t have told him to wait a couple days?”
“He asked for my help.” Kaeya holds a hand up, veering away again. “I wasn’t going to deny him just because of… a… hiIH… c-cold… HIIih’EESSCHh’ew! HIIIH’GKTt!-shew!” His head throbs in protest, and he sniffles, tilting his head upwards, a fresh tissue in hand, in ticklish anticipation. “hiIIH… hiIIH’IIIZZSCH’ew!”
It takes everything in him not to slump against the wall.
“Bless you,” Albedo says. “You sound—”
“—awful?” He lowers the tissue with a laugh. “I know. Jean informed me.”
“I was going to say tired,” Albedo says, shifting forward to feel Kaeya’s forehead. His hand shifts to Kaeya’s cheek, studying him with a look of such intense concentration, Kaeya tries not to smile. “I don’t think you have a fever, but you’re warm. Allow me to walk you home?”
As enticing as the offer sounds, he shouldn’t. Everyone else is working hard—he knows if he does less work than usual, it will be Jean and Amber picking up the slack, which is the last thing he wants. “I still have lots to do.”
“It can wait until you’re well. The Knights will survive if you take a day off.” Albedo drops his hand, but he’s still looking at Kaeya with the same intensity. “I will talk to Jean, if it’s an issue.”
“Please don’t talk to Jean,” Kaeya says sheepishly. He’s sure she wouldn’t exactly be thrilled to find out about his plans to stay and work late.
Albedo raises an eyebrow. “Will you listen to me, then?”
Maybe it’s not such a bad idea, after all—he can head home, sleep this headache away, and come back in the evening. “Well,” he starts. “If… hiIIH… hiiIH’ESSCH’ew! snf-! If you insist…”
“I do.”
“...I guess I could head home early.”
It’s worth it, for the way Albedo smiles softly in response. He looks... relieved, Kaeya realizes, which is strange, too—he hadn’t expected Albedo to be so worried about him.
Kaeya starts off in the direction of his house. It’s not a long walk from the headquarters—certainly closer than the manor was, back when he’d lived there. Admittedly, it’s lonelier sometimes, living on his own.
Unexpectedly, Albedo follows him.
“You’re really walking me back,” Kaeya says, slightly disbelieving.
“Yes,” Albedo says. “Would you prefer if I didn’t?”
“It’s nice.” Kaeya sniffles, stifling a cough into a raised hand. “I hope you’re not just doing this because you feel bad about this.”
Albedo hums. “I’m not. I am quite free this afternoon, thanks to your help. I do feel bad, though.”
“Doing alchemy with you was the most exciting part of my week,” Kaeya says honestly, flashing him a grin. “I’d say it was worth catching a cold over.”
Albedo stares back at him. Then he smiles back, so brightly that Kaeya feels warmer, just looking at him. “You could come visit more often, then. I enjoy having company if it’s you.”
even the tiniest drabble with kaeya and albedo where one of them has a cold would make me super happy. i don't even care which one is sick, really, but if you want something more specific i feel like albedo being the sick one could be cute? and albedo has a canon liking for dessert/sweet things so maybe kaeya brings him some hot chocolate????
Hi anon!! First, the mention of sweets is so cute?? I live for Kaeya knowing that and specifically bringing Albedo hot chocolate 😭 (Also to the one other anon who asked for Albedo sjfhajfsh), I’ve always wanted to try my hand at writing Kaebedo, so I hope you enjoy! <3
—
Albedo is in a hurry.
“Good morning,” he says, when Kaeya runs into him just outside Jean’s office. “Forgive me. I can’t stay to talk.”
“Good morning to you too,” Kaeya says. “Busier than usual?”
Up close, Albedo looks slightly off—he’s paler than usual, save for a flush high in his cheeks. Closer inspection reveals that he’s shivering, too, if only slightly.
“Much to get done,” Albedo says back. “I have another shipment I need to attend to.” Before Kaeya can find a chance to respond, he’s already turning, heading for the exit.
Kaeya sighs. “Albedo.”
Albedo turns on his heels, sniffing softly. “What?”
“Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” Kaeya asks, as nonchalantly as he can. Albedo looks surprised for a moment, as if he’s been caught doing something he shouldn’t have been doing. Then he nods.
“I am fine, I promise. I think I’ve...” he trails off, his gaze going distant and indistinct, and ducks into his shoulder. “...hiih’TSCHh!... caught a cold, snf.” Albedo clears his throat; Kaeya almost misses the grimace that follows, the discomfort that catches in his eyeline for a split second, there and then gone. “I should be back to normal in three to five days. Until then, I suggest you keep your distance.”
“Should you be working if you’re ill?” Kaeya asks, skeptical. “If you’re just running deliveries, I can help you with that.”
“It’s only a cold. No fever, and no symptoms that would warrant any additional concern…” Albedo rubs his nose, sniffling into a raised fist. His breath catches again, sharply, without a release. He sighs. “...I’m sorry. I should really go. I would have liked to stay to chat..”
Then he’s slipping out the door to the Knights’ headquarters, and Kaeya—who still has a day of work ahead of him—doesn’t follow.
Still, it bothers him as he goes out with the Knights. It’s been a winter colder than most, and it can’t be much better on Dragonspine, which is cold enough already without taking into consideration the variations of the seasons.
Albedo is honest when it comes to things like this. Kaeya knows that if he says it’s really nothing, he will be fine.
But he’s well-enough acquainted with illnesses to know how simple colds can still be fairly miserable. Albedo had seemed well enough, but appearances can be deceptive, and a cold is a cold. The weather in Dragonspine can’t possibly be conducive to his recovery; Kaeya can’t imagine the stress from running errands is helping, either.
—
Days like this aren’t frequent, but they’re tiring. Albedo gets caught in a frenetic back-and-forth between the camp at the base of Dragonspine, his own laboratory campsite up in the mountains, and the Knights of Favonius Headquarters in Mondstadt, transporting materials from outpost to outpost, double-checking the packaging, informing Sucrose and Timaeus about how the more fragile—or perishable—items should be handled.
By the time he’s back at his campsite, the exhaustion is starting to catch up with him. There are torches, set up around the periphery of the campsite, and usually they do a fair job of keeping the campsite area warm. Today—maybe owing to the fact that it’s particularly windy, or maybe only because it’s a colder winter than usual—he finds that it’s not exactly the most comfortable place to work.
Albedo takes a seat on one of the crates. He’s certainly well enough to be here—the cold he’s caught is an annoyance, but he’s certainly worked through worse. His throat hurts when he swallows, and every few minutes he has to pause to sniffle, wipe his nose briefly into the handkerchief Lisa had insisted that he take, crane his head over his shoulder to cough in an effort to avoid contamination of the materials he’s been using in his alchemy.
It’s disruptive, in the most inconvenient of ways, and he’s not getting any better out here, but he has so many new orders to sort through. He has a new shipment of Fontaine’s specialties to investigate. Rest can wait.
His nose is running, though. It’s not long before he’s raising the handkerchief to his face—he suspects it will stop being useful soon, for how much he’s used it—in ticklish, agonizing anticipation.
“Hiih... hiIH’izZZSch!!”
He winces, sniffling. The sneeze is just wrenching enough to send pain lancing through his throat.
“HiiiH’GZSChh!” Now his nose is running, which is even worse. Still, he can’t bear to open his eyes; the anticipation is still there, persistent. “Hheh… heEHh… hehh’NGKT’shh! snf, snf...” He thinks the smoke might be getting to him. Perhaps it would do to try to sneeze this cold out—to expel all of the pathogens first, before his cold has the chance to worsen. Judging by how things are looking, it might happen even if he doesn’t do anything to encourage it.
“heh… hehH’iiSSSCh! HEHH’GKTschh!”
“Woah, bless you,” says a familiar voice.
Albedo’s eyes snap open. “Kaeya…?” He winces, still sniffling, and lowers the handkerchief from his face. Something must be wrong, he thinks—it must be urgent, too, if Jean had thought to send Kaeya up here on such a short notice. “Don’t tell me I mixed up the delivery shipments, snf, rest assured, I’ll… h-have it sorted as soon as I… hiih… can... hiih’GZZSchh!”
“Bless you again,” Kaeya says, sounding unbothered. “Relax, nothing’s wrong. Just thought I’d check up on you.”
It’s a puzzling response, to say the least. Albedo frowns. “Did you need something?”
“No, but I brought hot chocolate,” Kaeya says. When Albedo looks up, he sees that Kaeya is holding two mugs, one in each hand—both of which are miraculously still steaming. He holds one out in Albedo’s direction. “Sucrose tells me you have a taste for sweets.”
“I… am indeed fond of them,” Albedo says, taking the drink from him.
Kaeya brightens visibly. “Oh? It’s an old recipe. You’ll have to tell me if it’s any good.”
Albedo takes a sip. The taste of it is slightly dulled under his worsening congestion, but it’s warm, fragrant and light, just sweet enough to not be overwhelming. “It’s exceptional,” he says earnestly, curling both hands around the mug to relish its warmth. “I would appoint you Captain of Drinks, if I could.”
Kaeya laughs. “You flatter me. I’m glad it was to your taste~ So,” he starts, smiling in that familiar, unreadable way, “is there anything I can help with?”
“Not off the top of my head... hiiH’DSCHhH!” Unprepared, uncovered—Albedo looks away, suspecting that his face must be red. “...Apologies. I’ve done this...”—he gestures vaguely to the workspace in front of him—“...many times before. I assure you, I can handle it. Did Jean send you?”
“Jean? No, I sent myself. I’m off work for today, and you said there was lots to get done, and you’re not feeling well, so...” Kaeya says all of this simply, as if his presence here is really only natural. As if he’s made the trip here—in the freezing cold, unpressured by the Acting Grandmaster, unaccompanied—just to stand here now, smiling, as if none of that is a big deal. He says, “Let me help?”
Albedo gapes at him.
“I would like to help,” Kaeya says, sensing Albedo’s hesitation. He takes a seat on one of the crates opposite to Albedo—too close, really, to guarantee that he won’t contract this, which Albedo wants to comment on too. “That is, if you’d let me. I have no doubt you’d be able to handle this by yourself, but I can’t imagine it would be much fun. I’m better at alchemy than you might expect.”
“How chivalrous…” Albedo starts. He turns away to cough softly into his shoulder. “Captain Kaeya, you always manage to exceed my expectations.” It’s illogical, how he feels better already. There should be no reason why Kaeya’s presence would affect his illness in the least. And yet...
Kaeya smirks. “Since you are so intent on working hard, I figured I would lend a hand. So, what is it? Where should we start?”
Could you possibly write a Chilli fic where Zhongli has come down with a particularly messy cold and Childe is taking care of him?
i most certainly could possibly write that.
-
Childe stood on Zhongli's doorstep, carrying a basket with one arm, while he used the other to knock on Zhongli's front door. There was a bit of rustling inside the house, and then the door slowly swung open, and Childe suppressed a wince at the other man's appearance. He looked like he hadn't been sleeping well, his hair was out of it's usual neat and collected ponytail and was slightly messed up, and his outfit was wrinkled in ways that implied he hadn't bothered to change clothes before going to bed the night before.
"Ah, Childe." Zhongli said, quietly, sounding congested. "I'm sorry I....I'm not exactly in the best condition to go out with you today-"
"Oh I already know, your little prankster boss told me all about it." Childe said, smiling lightly as he held up the basket. "So I brought some supplies!"
"That's really not necessary... hIH-" Zhongli hurriedly turned away so that he wasn't facing Childe. "H'ESSHhu!"
Childe used the momentary distraction to breeze past Zhongli and into the house, closing the door behind him. He set the basket down on the kitchen table and starting to take stuff out of it, setting them down in a neat little row. Zhongli sniffled, rubbing his nose as he gave Childe a slight glare for entering his house without permission. Childe only gave a little laugh when he noticed.
"Do you not trust me?" He asked, "I take care of my siblings all the time, it's not like this will be any different."
Zhongli had to concede that Childe did have a point on that, and so resolved himself to having to put up with whatever the Harbinger had in mind. Warily, he eyed the objects on the table, but they all seemed to be things one would typically bring when planning to take care of someone. Ingredients for soup, a batch of medicine from Bubu Pharmacy, a few boxes of tissues, all expected things. Well, that is, except for-
"What's the shampoo for?" Zhongli asked, picking up the small bottle and reading it over, trying to see if it was somehow related to some unknown herbal remedy.
"Oh, that's for when I wash your hair." Childe said, casually, as though it was normal. He raised an eyebrow upon seeing the expression on Zhongli's face. "....What's that look for? The combination of the steam and the hair washing is really good at relieving congestion and headaches, trust me."
"You. Are going to wash my hair." Zhongli said, almost in disbelief.
"Well I mean, we'll have to brush the tangles out first but, yes, that's the plan." Childe said, starting to walk over to Zhongli's bathroom. "C'mon."
"Now?"
"Unless you'd rather wait about two hours for soup first."
-
Turned out, Childe had been 100% right on all accounts.
Zhongli let out a soft sigh as he relaxed into the water, the warmth of the bath soothing the dull ache in his body that he hadn't even known was there until it was gone. Childe gently filled a cup with the warm water, and used it to wet Zhongli's hair, cupping his hand around the bangs so that the water wouldn't drip down into Zhongli's face. He put a bit of shampoo in his hands, and started to softly massage it onto Zhongli's head, occasionally combing down to the edges of his hair as well, and Zhongli nearly melted into the sensation.
The combination of the steam and the massaging from Childe really was starting to lighten some of the pressure in Zhongli's sinuses, but this, of course, had side effects.
Zhongli sniffled as his nose started running, rubbing at his nose with his hand, only to find it didn't help at all, his hand being covered in water just added to the dampness on his face. He tried to ignore it, to just focus on the sensation of Childe's hands in his hair-
His breath suddenly hitched, and Childe quickly removed his hands from Zhongli's hair so that he wouldn't accidentally pull on it as Zhongli pitched forwards to catch two sneezes into his hands.
"Heh...hIH- H'ASCH-uu! HehH-H'ESSHu!" Zhongli groaned a little, and Childe winced sympathetically, the sneezes had sounded a lot more... desperate and forceful than usual. Zhongli sniffled wetly, starting to bring his hands down, before freezing and putting them back where they'd been. Childe gave a soft laugh.
"Need a tissue?" He asked, and Zhongli gave a hesitant nod. There weren't actually any tissues in the bathroom, so Childe simply pulled a soft hand towel out of one of the nearby cabinets, handing it to Zhongli, and politely looking away as Zhongli cleaned himself up. He winced as he heard him sniffle again, before starting to cough. "...You good? I still need to wash the shampoo out of your hair y'know."
"S-sorry, just...heh......just a second- H'ESCH-uu!" Zhongli blew his nose into the hand towel, before he carefully set it on the side of the tub, slowly, in case another sneeze snuck up on him. "...Okay."
Childe filled the cup up with water again, starting the slow process of getting the shampoo out of Zhongli's hair. He ran his fingers through Zhongli's hair as he did so, and Zhongli found himself starting to relax again.
The rinsing process ended far too soon, Childe's hands pulling away from Zhongli's hair.
"Do you want to get out now, or just soak for a few minutes?" Childe asked, standing up. "Either way, once you're done, I'll brush and braid your hair for you, then you can take a nap, alright?"
Zhongli gave a hum of consent, and Childe left the room.
-
Sitting on his bed, Zhongli came to the conclusion that having Childe braid his hair was almost just as nice as having him wash it.
"...You're quite good at this." Zhongli said, softly, not really trusting his voice to speak loudly.
"My sister likes having her hair braided, so I've got lots of practice." Childe said, taking the elastic he'd had around his wrist and using it to tie off the braid. "There. Now your hair won't come loose and get all messy while you nap."
"...Thank you." Zhongli said, as Childe stood up, letting Zhongli slowly move to huddle under the blankets. "Is there something you want in return-"
"We can discuss that when you're feeling a bit better." Childe said, "As of right now....Go to sleep, I'll wake you up when the soup is ready."
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