acutabove: (✧ feel the fear in my enemy's eyes)
tartaglia ✧ "childe" ([personal profile] acutabove) wrote in [community profile] gacharolls2021-08-06 12:01 am

>> 005 | I’m a soldier, not a plaything


[ Liyue is burning.

It had only been a few hours since the Snezhnayan army had landed on the city’s shores and in that time the soldiers had wasted no time cutting a swath of destruction and violence throughout the safe harbor. Merchant’s stalls were tipped over, their contents ransacked and pillaged. Temples burned on hilltops, shrines to the gods splattered with blood and viscera of their most devout followers. Ornate, gilded residences once home to nobles and elite politicians crumbled by the wayside and bodies of Liyue’s former citizens bled together in red trickles of blood that flowed like rivers through the streets.

Whatever class system that had been put in place before was inconsequential. There was far too much carnage to pick out the robes of a noble from ones of a commoner, and all parties bled the same.

It was uncertain what had prompted the attack. For all extents and purposes negotiations had been fine, with some trade ships conducting business as usual between the two nations as recently as a week ago.

One of the bodies laying in the street was a small figure garbed in Liyuen clothing, clutching a Snezhnayan matryoshka doll. Childe, better known as Tartaglia to his servants and Ajax to his close family, glanced over the grim sight and murmured a soft prayer before continuing on his way through the city. The bottoms of his boots and trousers were soaked with blood, stained until the fabric changed from a dull grey to a red so deep it was practically black.

He’d been pulled from his chambers by one of his men stumbling in, clothes ripped and tattered, blood flowing from a wound in his side. He’d yelled something about a surprise Millelith ambush and how several of his comrades had already been taken out while they were ransacking the Golden House, and then promptly passed out.

As Childe made his way there he took note of the destruction of the city with something like satisfaction and elation in his dark blue eyes. Perhaps it was because of his status as a Harbinger or maybe because his upbringing was less than conventional, but this was the sort of environment that he thrived in.

Bodies of Liyuen citizens littered the ground underfoot in the walk he took to reach the doors of the Golden House, and before stepping within he noted how they were slightly ajar, small handprints of blood standing out on the wood next to larger ones slimmer than his own.

How strange. He wondered if people had tried to take sanctuary here before the Fatui found them, or if they’d been chased here and sought to make their final stand in one of Liyue’s most well-known landmarks.

He sincerely hoped no blood got on the mora. From the last time he’d visited the mint he remembered that the caretakers tended to just leave it laying around in piles.

As he steps inside Childe finds himself staring at a scene of such carnage and violence he can’t help the catch of his breath, the way his pupils dilate while something warm and hot burns under his skin.

His men lay on the floor, clothes ripped and torn with the press of a blade or a spear. It’s a pole arm, he concludes, when he lifts his eyes and catches sight of a few more of his men surrounding a man with long brown hair dipped in gold.

And gods, he thinks. This man is a vision.

He wields the pole arm effortlessly, as though it’s another part of him. Childe watches as his men go flying with the force used against them, the butt of the shaft used in connection with an open palm to force the Fatui into giving the foreigner a wide berth.

Childe thinks he recognizes the uniform as something of similar make to the Millelith, but he’s not sure. There’s too much blood staining down the man’s front to be able to tell, and Childe hopes not all of it is this beautiful foreigner’s. ]


Enough. [ He calls out, voice ringing authoritatively in the open space. His men on the floor groan in reply. Childe keeps his gaze on the man in front of him, desire thrumming through his veins. ]

You’ve given my men quite the work out, haven’t you? [ It comes out teasingly as though there isn’t a Fatui lying limp with his arm missing. ]

My name is Tartaglia, Eleventh of Her Majesty the Tsaritsa’s Harbingers. But you can call me Childe.

[ And he smiles, the gesture so innocent it’s unfitting for the bloody scene all around them. ]

And what are you called, my lovely?
geocash: (♪And thieve my wisdom)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-12 05:51 pm (UTC)(link)
[After so long, maybe it's impossible not to feel even a pang of concern over all of it. The tardiness, in any case, doesn't go unnoticed, and though Zhongli settles to eat dinner in relative silence, it scatters most, if not all, of the tiredness he'd felt in his normal routine.

More still, he can't ask the men bringing him things anything, at they seem adamant about not talking to him at all. He supposes he can't blame them, after the work they'd had to put in to get him here... and maybe they just don't know any common tongue, but that seems unlikely.

So, he waits. It's long after the cart is taken care of, when he's settled in to pass the time one way or another, that another sound rises. Rhythmic, purposeful, exceptionally loud - and they herald quite the sight, a strange and monstrous form that makes its way into the room.

He's long gotten used to the gleam of the Vanguards' eyes in the dim, but this one is... a fair bit more unsettling, for obvious reason. That's before the spine-chilling smell, and his lips part as of questioning whether to announce his presence or not. It's an insane thought, he thinks. But... the creature hisses and heads perfectly purposefully toward the bath.

There aren't many conclusions to be drawn, in the end. Whatever it is, it has to be related to Childe - and it's damned well not related to the Tsaritsa in form, because no matter how she's hardened herself, he can recognise the taint of the Abyss. Even she can't afford that yet.

... so, a little reluctantly, he rises to follow that form to the bathroom. His feet pad nearly silently along the cold stone, and he pauses to stand in the doorway once he's reached it, as though just observing will answer his questions.]
geocash: (♪A tapestry of us)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-13 12:54 pm (UTC)(link)
[Mildly, Zhongli avoids the ichorous pools on his path, quietly glad that they seem only momentary compared to the rest. The number of possibilities dwindles with each step, every moment spent watching the monster as it walks, all gangly limbs and abyssal blackness, to its destination.

Is it pity that he feels, in the heavy, oppressive spell of the smell? He doesn't think so. A seed of concern, perhaps, borne of time spent and the realisation that honestly... there is only one answer. There's no one and nothing else this could be, no matter how nonsensical the reality.

Water threatens his feet for a moment, as the creature climbs into the tub. As it recedes, it's scent mixing with that of death and blood as though it has any hope of overcoming it, he watches.

There's only one answer. It's even clearer in the sound of its voice, ringing multiplicatively in his ears. Had there ever really been any other possibility?]


One does become accustomed to one's routine.

[There's not nearly as much vitriol in it as there could be, and it's ever typical for Zhongli's favor of wordiness.]

Shall I wait elsewhere, or will you have further... requests of me?

[Perhaps it's strange, but he feels a little more generous just at the moment. Whatever happened must have been quite the ordeal, he thinks, to force Childe to not only arrive so late but in such a state. Does this count as him developing any sort of feelings? It hardly matters in the moment.]
geocash: (♫I'm your chain reaction)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-14 12:16 am (UTC)(link)
[Zhongli, at least, doesn't sigh. Nor does he really seem that surprised, and in the wake of the utter exhaustion wracking Childe's form, he supposes a little kindness is in order.

After all, for all the trouble he's caused and the force he's used, there could be... somewhat worse situations for him to find himself in. Even still, he takes a moment to pull off his clothing. There's no sense in risking the freeze when, most likely, he won't have fresh clothing until the morning. The sheer fabric does little against the chill, but it's something.]


Of course. I'm surprised you've the strength to think of requests, is all.

[He isn't, really, but it matters not at all. Zhongli climbs into the tub with more delicacy than the harbinger, and if his eyes sweep critically over any injuries... can he really be blamed?]
geocash: (♪One without a name)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-14 06:44 am (UTC)(link)
Perhaps.

[It's all the response he has to give to that, and it seems fitting enough for the moment.

There's a little pause when Childe pulls him close, almost childlike in his possessiveness, and it's less of a flinch than normal. He'll pass it off as surprise, of course, for how unlike Childe is.

He doesn't even pull away for once, letting arms wrap around his body and the faintly hair-raising brush of skin against skin.]


... I suppose I can acquiesce. It's warmer in here than the bed right now.

[Of course, it wouldn't be like him if he just accepted it with no quip at all. Childe may have regained a point of concern, but Zhongli still isn't over... everything else. At least his expression is hidden at this angle.]
geocash: (♪If I hang your scars in a gallery)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-14 12:00 pm (UTC)(link)
In spite of your insistence that I am able to do just that, I think I would lose my mind.

[It's almost an earnest response, even knowing it's at least partly amusement. The warrior finds himself staring at the far wall, considering everything. He has yet to cease being sensitive in any way that could help him, and his lips part just faintly at the press of fingers working along his spine. Really, he's impossible...

... doubly so, asking that. How does he even manage to have the strength to be horny after all that???]


... mm. I hope you don't mean in the bath. I haven't yet throttled you for using me to get off on, why would I bite you?

I'm aware of my place, here - you make it quite clear.

[He's more tired than angry, talking about it. Even now with his body mostly healed, he hasn't exactly fought hard to stop Childe from taking what he wants. Even he has to admit that much - it's just been easier to give a token resistance and let it be, though perhaps he'd expected the spoiled brat to get bored by now. ]
geocash: (♪A tapestry of us)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-14 11:09 pm (UTC)(link)
[Of course. He really shouldn't have expected anything less...]

... Are you planning on perching on the side of the tub, then? I don't really relish the idea of holding my breath just for you.

[Again, there's no snap to the statement - it's simple fact. And as Childe starts to peel fabric off of his shoulders, Zhongli sighs.]

Stop that. Let me.

[It's the least he can do, he tells himself, as fingers move to deal with fastenings and wet fabric. Whatever happened, it must have been quite the battle...

He has to admit, after all this, that he does feel a little bad that it was so. Childe seems at least as exhausted as he had been, when they dragged him to the boat... and maybe he deserves it, but maybe not so much with Zhongli's vitriol added on right now.]


You really should let yourself rest... or is that what you're considering it, asking me to use my mouth?
geocash: (♪Until I drown)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-14 11:55 pm (UTC)(link)
[It's not as bad as it could be, at least. That fact shouldn't give him the soft pang of relief that it does, and he ignores the fact that it did altogether. Removing his clothes is certainly easier than letting the Harbinger do it himself right now, and he lets the fabric slop to the floor to drain water down with the rest.

He doesn't let himself pay too much attention as Childe removes his pants and flops them off with the rest, sitting back on his haunches in the tub. At least it's big enough that he has plenty of room to maneuver...

Ah. This will be the first he's willingly given, won't it? A dangerous precedence.]


Then you are a fool. [Exasperated, and maybe the tiniest bit of embarrassment sinks into the words. Really, he barely knows Zhongli in the first place...]

No, I don't have any plans to change how I act. I want you to rest so that I don't have to worry about whether or not I'm going to be used again, for a time.

[Long fingers curl over Childe's thighs and he looks up from there, gaze sharp as ever.]

Don't make me regret this. You don't have to control everything, do you?
geocash: (♪If you keep my thoughts)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-15 12:34 am (UTC)(link)
No, I should expect not. I believe I've called you worse in the past.

[Of course, Liyue itself won't disappear in a day. Even its imports can still be found - though the harbinger will assuredly have to fight to find someone willing to share them with a Snezhnayan.]

How many times have I asked you to stop? You took what you wanted, regardless of my own. Whether my body felt relief or not is a shallow salve for the use. A tyrant scarcely thinks their actions unjust, you know.

[He does slide a bit closer as Childe's legs spread, fingers moving further up his thighs.]

Is it such a surprise that I don't want that? And... it... has been a long time since I even considered it. I had more important things to do than chase partners, and I have ever been picky.

[That's the bulk of his hesitation, he tells himself. Never mind that it's partly just the fear that he might enjoy it, that that enjoyment means something more - indeed, as Childe had initially suggested - and relinquishes some measure of bodily agency in its wake. Ridiculous, but worries are worries nonetheless.

He doesn't think, either, about the fact that when he speaks, he sometimes talks like he's much older than he looks. It's unimportant, and his hand curls around Childe's cock to gently hold it in place, hot and throbbing against his fingers. Now... how did he...

Zhongli doesn't wait for a response before pressing his mouth to the underside of it, dragging his tongue upward for an admittedly curious taste.]
geocash: (♪This is me for forever)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-15 01:22 am (UTC)(link)
[In another situation, things certainly may have been different. Perhaps they would have shared meals, learned enough about one another to not go through this painstaking process. Alas, such is life.

Fingers grasp his hair and he allows it, eyelids lilting half-closed as the man speaks.]


Of course you can be blamed. I still blame you, every single time. [It's a savage thing to say so clearly, and perhaps it does make one wonder if Zhongli wouldn't prefer some pitiful jail cell. He wouldn't, but he's headstrong.

Childe starts speaking, and he can't decide if he likes how easily he's made to moan. It's not unpleasant, and there's not a small amount of satisfaction in making it happen.

It's nothing like his own situation, of course. This is what Childe actually wants, after all. He stays steady as fingers clench and hips buck, his own shifting to press firmly against a thigh.]


Sit still, or I will stop. Behave, and maybe you'll see a difference between this and what has been prior.

[He thinks he can get away with it, for now. Childe could still try and force him, but their situations are largely reversed, aren't they? Zhongli is no longer the exhausted fish-out-of-water foreigner, easily bullied by his captor. He still is much of that, granted, but that's not the point.]

And, most people don't like being scolded the way you apparently do.

[Zhongli's breath ghosts along the harbinger's cock, and he slips the tip between his lips, tongue swirling around it before his head bobs forward just an inch or so.]
geocash: (♪As a work of artistry)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-15 08:08 am (UTC)(link)
[Zhongli gives him alittle thoughtful hum, the roll of his eyes telling as anything. Of course his tongue is that good, or there would be a lot less pleasure to be had...

But this, all of it, has little to do with that. He just... feels bad for the other, regardless of how his body likes the press of his tongue, his fingers, his cock. And honestly, there's a lot he takes from those times, holding firm on Childe's hips so they can't go anywhere.

He's not nearly as heavy on teasing, or so he thinks, and is just glad he doesn't really mind the way the harbinger tastes. His gaze slips upward, to watch the other's expression - just to figure out what's best to do, he tells himself. He's certainly not worried about how that face looks over him.

The tip of his cock presses against his cheek, bulging it a little as he takes in what feels comfortable to start. After a moment of that, he pulls back to breathe.]


My tongue is doubtless not as adept as yours, in any case.

[Words murmured, he swallows Childe's cock back down and hollows his cheeks in swallowing more of his length down.]
geocash: (♪Oh how I wish for soothing rain)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-16 08:46 am (UTC)(link)
Mmn-

[Zhongli closes his eyes as Childe shifts his hips, the tipjust brushing his throat. A little more and it'll slip in, he's sure...

But he pushes himself back, squeezing firmly at Childe's cock even as he speaks. His gaze is almost disappointed, tongue sliding across his lips.]


I'm certain I told you to stay still or I would stop.

[It's a different feeling, like this. This is at Zhongli's wishes, after all, rather than in spite of them. He's not entirely sure that will end up meaning anything to Childe... but he has to try, right?

Leaving his aching cock to the open air, with only the firm grip of fingers at the base, is probably cruel. He'll just have to deal with it.]
geocash: (♪This is me for forever)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-16 12:19 pm (UTC)(link)
[Zhongli has the audacity to smile as Childe speaks, waiting patiently for him to decide if he's going to behave. After all, he doesn't have to be good at giving head to enjoy the little bit of control.]

On the contrary, that's the point - I'm going to enjoy this, because I'm giving it willingly. I'm hoping you understand the difference between enjoyment and forced pleasure, by the end.

[It's a shallow hope, though. The likely reaction is that nothing changes, maybe Childe demands his mouth more, but hey. No one can say he didn't try.

When Childe gives his promise, Zhongli arches a brow as if to make sure he's certain, before he's returning to his work. Beneath him, his cock twitches, neglected but hard. That's new, at least for Childe, and a sign that Zhongli is indeed enjoying himself. His teeth nip carefully along the side of Childe's dick before he swallows it back down, eyes closing as he takes it just as deep as the harbinger's motions had prior. It's a little harder to do on his own, but now he's at least sure he can.]
geocash: (♪May I clear your slate)

[personal profile] geocash 2021-08-16 06:05 pm (UTC)(link)
[It's a small thing, really. A little bit of control he's been in desperate need of. Even if he's giving Childe what he wants, it's more or less on his own terms.

He'll just trust that he has enough strength to stop anything that happens for a little bit. Surely, even Childe has to deal with the effects of exhaustion for a time.]


Mmn. It would be a novelty. I'd prefer if you wholesale stopped treating me like some kind of convenient toy...

[Wishful thinking, but he says it anyway. And, at least, he's not teasing too much. Maybe if they weren't in the bath, settled on the edge and the hard floor of the tub... or maybe not, because teasing sort of implies a deeper relationship than they have, at least on Zhongli's side.

So, he's trying to learn from mistakes or at least bring Childe to completion fairly quickly. And, if he's honest, it's not an unpleasant act, aching knees aside.]

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