#the traveler and paimon try to get closer but childe growls like '>:( no!! do not touch!!!'

[that-foul-legacy-lover]

*crawls through window* imagine... the entire Liyue arc and Osial plot getting derailed because Foul Legacy refuses to fight. you're a friend of the Traveler, someone who offered to accompany them on their journey around Teyvat to have an adventure and meet new people- despite your lack of a Vision, you're determined and good with a weapon and like helping the Traveler fight, so they and Paimon allow you to come with. you also happen to be acquainted with some of their allies, like Zhongli and Baizhu and particularly Childe, who quietly confesses to the Traveler that he's been trying to win your heart for some time. unfortunately you're wary around the Fatui, like the rest of the Harbor, and try to keep the relationship more formal despite how much you secretly like his company. you take the reveal of his betrayal quite hard. from the outside you look angry and steeled for a fight, but internally your delicate heart is crushed, knowing you were just another pawn for him to play with. he looks almost sad when his gaze lands on you, eyes softening slightly and fingers twitching like he wants to reach out, but soon the battle commences and you're left with Paimon on the other side of the burning hot barrier. bitterly you scold yourself, muttering that you shouldn't have become involved with a Fatuus, much less a Harbinger, in the first place, but your stomach still twists into cold knots when you think about it. it's your fault for staying, for hoping you could actually befriend him, and you despise yourself for it. then the floor gives way and crumbles, leaving you to fall painfully into the belly of the Golden House, hurting you physically as much as you're hurting mentally. you groan in pain and pull yourself to your feet, head sparking with aches. there's no barrier anymore. nothing between you, the Traveler, and Childe, who has transformed into a wretchedly beautiful, otherwordly form, and you know you're probably going to die here- there's no way someone like you can survive lashing lightning and waves. at least you got to see something wonderful before you left. but the battle never starts. when you manage to look up, the Traveler's standing still as stone, watching Childe, unmoving, watching you. the creature he's turned into tilts his horned head, almost like he's curious, piercing you with an intense stare. it's cute, in a way, but you're also terrified to your bones and freeze in your tracks as Childe observes you with a crystalline blue eye until you muster up the courage to speak. "...Childe?" the lilac fur around his neck suddenly poofs, his azure eye lighting up, and Childe swiftly darts across the arena and scoops you into his much-larger arms, pressing you against his chest and making purr-like sounds. you yelp in surprise, hastily clinging to his cloud-soft fluff to keep from falling as Childe spins you around in midair, seemingly overcome with joy. your eyes screwed tightly shut, you only feel him lower and sit on the ground, then an odd sensation, like something pushing into your hands, and when you open your eyes you're greeted to the sight of Childe insistently nudging his head against your raised hands. hesitantly, you settle your palms on his plated cheeks and feel the purring noise rumble throughout his entire body as he melts into your touch, even emitting soft chirps and coos every now and then. this isn't happening- this can't be happening- is all you can think, but Childe confirms reality by leaning his head forward and plonking it on your shoulder, trilling blissfully when your hands start trailing up his horns and under his chin. some tiny, miniscule part of Childe is protesting, reminding him of the Fatui's plan and the false Sigils of Permission and the Overlord of the Vortex waiting, but he dismisses that thought with a hiss, because who cares about the Fatui and the gods and Liyue when he's with you, more precious than mora, battle, and even all of Teyvat?

[windblooms]

childe scenario – foul legacy

childe x gender-neutral reader.  angst and nsfw/smut.  2.4k words.  canon divergence: reader is in place of the traveler plus other plot points. warnings: rough/unprotected sex, choking, biting, overstim. 

when you arrived in liyue harbor, childe didn’t have to ask for your name because he already knew it – the mondstadtian fatui had told him as much.  he only had to ask for your purpose in the city.  “to find somewhere to belong,” you had replied. 

as if either of you thought that you could make a home out of each other.

time had snapped by in an instant despite the weeks you two had spent together.  he couldn’t ever fully drop that harbinger pretense that you knew was a facade, and neither of you could walk the streets of liyue as sincere companions.  that time when you both stood atop mt. tianheng and looked out towards the guyun stone forest in the horizon was a sham; there was no sense of honesty, of trust.  atop that hill, on a bright autumn morning, you were trembling.  

he couldn’t bring himself to admit that it was because of him at the time.

but now, he can’t afford to be considerate of what you two had tried to become.  he doesn’t want to think about it.  it hurts even more when he looks into your eyes –

– and down at your neck, clutched in his fingers, and your hands that hopelessly rake at his wrist.

don’t give me that look, he wants to say, but his mouth doesn’t move.  you knew it would come to this.

your breaths are ragged under his grasp.  suspended in the air, you don’t have the energy to kick at him, exhausted from your earlier duel.  your sword had been shattered in the brutal exchange, and its remains lay discarded underneath the rubble of the golden house.

he can feel your pulse underneath his claws.  it’s erratic, pounding in time with your gasps.  your experiences in teyvat had taught you much and honed you into a warrior – an honorary knight.  but the pitiful state you’re in now betrays your fragility.

your nails do nothing against the skin of his foul legacy. you choke out his name, as if beseeching – “childe,” – begging for any sense of sympathy.  but you shouldn’t rely on his sentimentality: the monster you’re pleading to has always had the insatiable craving to bring his opponents to their knees, and you cannot be the exception. 

but, oh so badly, he wishes you were.

“you shouldn’t be thinking like that,” he chides, withered at your misplaced determination.  his voice isn’t quite his own; memories of better days are bitter on his tongue.  “you’re wasting what you have left.”

sentencing himself to further oblivion, he hurls you to the floor with the flick of his wrist, and your back arches as you hit the pavement.  he sees the breath leave your lungs, and as you convulse on the ground, his daggers have already materialized in his claws.

you do what you can to get away from his approaching form, practically crawling to put any semblance of distance between yourself and your doom.  but you’re weaponless, weak, and out of options; you can only last like this for so long.

your mouth opens, but he’s on you before you can get a sound out.  childe pins your body underneath his, settling himself on your torso with his thighs on either side of your hips.  a hydro dagger embeds itself on the tile besides your head, and as he leans over your spent body, all you see staring down at you is a pearl of ice.

“g–get off,” your plea is even weaker under the shadow of his figure.  he feels your hands shoving – no, pressing – against his shoulders, but they fall as soon as he sinks more of his weight onto your stomach.

“you can’t win,” childe’s voice should be triumphant; he has you, his adversary, his prize, in absolute submission.  but remorse bleeds from his words and into your ears.  “stop acting like you even had a chance.”

your head shakes back and forth.  the pressure of childe on top of you makes it difficult to think straight, your body screaming at the torture.  but you know that you can’t afford to lose here, or even think about giving up.  not when paimon, not when the knights, or keqing or ningguang or – 

“ – but zhongli.” your wheeze comes out like a sob, but there aren’t any tears in your eyes.  the harbinger above you regards your broken state in silence, his cape of stars distorting the walls of the golden house.  the chill of his armor burns as it digs into your exposed skin, but it’s grief that consumes you whole.

behind his mask, childe’s eyebrows furrow.  what does zhongli have anything to do with this?  he’s not even in the city right now, much less relevant to the life-and-death scenario you’re in.  is it really him that you’re weeping for, and not your own safety?  

childe moves his spare hand to the side of your face, testing.  your body shudders violently underneath his, anticipating what might come, with eyes wide and mouth in the middle of another gasp.  a claw taps at the rise of your cheek, and skims down your flesh until it hovers down to the plump of your lips. 

“it’s his name,” the harbinger exhales, voice now devoid of sentiment.  and all at once, you freeze.  “that you call to now?”

another beat of silence – bemusement is clear in your eyes.  he continues, and with each word, he lowers himself closer to your face.  you remember how to move, and as desperately as you can, put your hands on his mask in another attempt to delay the closing distance, all while trying to deny his twisted assertion.  

his mask vibrates as his voice flows.  you feel it thrum under the bruised skin of your palms.  “there are more important things to think about right now.  like the dead god you couldn’t protect.”  

childe doesn’t stop until his face is mere centimeters from yours.  between your fingers, you can see yourself in the clouded orb of his mask. 

“or, you know, yourself,” he finishes, aggrieved.  “you’ve never been the selfish type.  but i didn’t think that you’d be one to think of someone else in a situation like this.”

“no,” you start, still attempting vainly to push him back.  “no, listen to m– ”

“you held back before,” childe resumes his monologue, referencing your duel.  you never aimed for his neck, his chest, or a fatal blow – always at his arms or legs.  “worried about hurting me when nearly crushed you with a whale.”  

“you know why.” your cry falls on deaf ears.  for some reason the misery in your words doesn’t stir him.  “because i didn't want to.  just yesterday we ate together at wanmin, and the day before that, nantianmen – ”

“not as friends,” he interrupts, and you become quiet at the harshness in his voice.  “as a formality.  you knew it would come to this.  neither of us could afford to believe otherwise.” 

for the second time, your hands fall back to your sides.  you can’t speak.  you don’t want to.  not when you agree with what he’s saying.  but you know – you know he wants it to be different.  

does he?

you avert your eyes from his face.  his body no longer weighs on your own, but he still traps you underneath.  your next words are a mere whisper. 

“can you blame me for wanting to?”

childe doesn’t respond.  you hear his hydro dagger evaporate.  your hair moves as a clawed hand settles on the back of your head, cushioning it from the floor.  

“yes.”  he exhales, but the bottom half of his mask disintegrates and his lips descend onto yours. 

you feel like crying as his body grinds against you, thrusting your form further into the tile.  as he sucks on your bottom lip, tugging at it with his teeth, your hands find purchase in his hair, feebly grabbing onto strands as you try to keep up with his brutal pace.  lips, tongue, lips, tongue – you can’t keep track of how long you’re wedged underneath him like this, or how many times you’ve come close to moaning his name as he’s pulled on your hair, trying to provoke as much of a reaction out of you as he can.

if you’re fragile, then childe’s already broken.  his kisses tell you just as much: he tries to feel as much of you as he possibly can, pressing his mouth to your cheeks, the veins on your neck and the flesh above your heart.  but i can’t help indulging in you, his ministrations say in contradiction to his spiteful words from before. i can’t stop.

childe’s skin is rough against yours – hardened from his delusion – but he feels like the rush of a high tide at noon.  you clutch onto his shoulders, whimpering as the kisses just don’t stop, noises spilling from your mouth as he lifts you from the ground, hands on the backs of your thighs.  he carries you away from the wreckage, still biting into the convergence of your neck and shoulder, dragging the flesh under his teeth, and tugs until there are tears in your eyes.  you cry out again, with only pleas for him, and that’s when he realizes that there’s something beautiful about how ruined you look. 

he’s grateful that he has a mask: underneath it, he’s just as anguished as you are. 

“m-more.” you gasp next to his ear, practically clawing at his shoulders.  across the length of your collarbones, bite marks from his teeth are embellished onto your skin.  “archons, childe . . . ”

he doesn’t waste any more time, pushing your back against a column while supporting your body with his hands underneath your thighs.  he squeezes them harshly as he situates his crotch between your legs – and when he starts to rut into your body, nearly growling, he makes sure to cover your mouth with his own so he can feel you even further lose yourself to him.

“is this what you want?”  he jeers against your lips, yet for some reason, it’s as if he isn’t talking to you.  a gasp is wrung from your mouth as he thrusts up into the juncture of your legs; this feels like bliss.  “tell me this is what you want, and i’ll give it to you, y/n.  just tell me.”

another shove.  the heat between your legs is unbearable, and all too quickly, you’re complying, “y-yes, you, ple – ”

he tears off your undergarments and rams himself into you before you can finish.

the force of his entry is enough to jolt your spine into the column behind you, and once more, you’re winded by his brutality; there was no preparation, and for his first thrusts, it’s painful, yet the relief you feel with him inside you is undeniable.  you find yourself not only clinging onto his shoulders for leverage, but even tightening around his length as you adjust to his size and pace, eyes squeezed shut and teeth biting into your lower lip.

“fuck,” childe groans, and buries his face into the litter of hickeys he marked you with before.  he rocks you back and forth on his hips.  “you feel too good.  fuck, fuck, fuck.”

you think you’re bleeding where he clutches your thighs, but you can’t think clearly enough to be sure.  all you know is more, more, please, more, let me drown in you more.  

you both know this isn’t right, but neither of you can stop.  neither of you want to stop. 

your gasps fill the ambiance of the golden house.  childe makes sure to pull out of you completely, leaving you pitifully empty and clenched around nothing, before pounding back in. 

“you’re so filthy,” he finally speaks after what feels like an eternity.  the shock of his voice does nothing to quell the building climax in your stomach, and instead, spurs on your want even further.  “getting off to me just after being tossed around.  aren’t you just cute.”

his teeth sink into your neck once more, and you muffle a scream.  the flat of his tongue lathers his bites from before, coating them in saliva.  you don’t know what to do, what to say, and can only admit to his words in the drug of hedonism. 

your body lurches as he hastens his pace.  he doesn’t relent for a second, and your insides feel like absolute mush. “tell me to go harder and i will,” childe goads, the squelching of liquid between your legs becoming more prominent as he continues.  “moan louder.  cry harder.  tell me who’s breaking you right now.”

“you.”  it’s another one of your uneven breaths, another to be added to the plethora of defeated exhales.  “you, childe.  y-you’re . . . ”

you can’t bring yourself to finish.  the awareness of your vulnerably creeps into your conscious, and for a moment, your eyes roll down to where the two of you are connected. 

before they snap back up, just to see the orb on his mask stare you down. 

“tell me,” childe repeats, and you go absolutely still.  “who’s breaking you right now.”

and once more, he pulls out, length dripping in your juices, before hilting himself until there’s no more space between your bodies.

“you!”  this time, you do scream.  he’s too much, his size stretching you as he re-enters.  “ – you’re the one wh-who’s breaking me.”

in, out, in out.  “yes, good.  say it again.”

“you, childe.  you’re breaking me . . . “ 

and when your voice cracks, he feels like he’s shattered too.

you come before he does.  suddenly, abruptly, crumpling against his larger form as if you’ve been completely spent.  he still moves inside you, not at his point of release yet, and at the excessive stimulation your body jerks.  your eyes have glazed over, but the faint grip you have on his arms tells him that you’re still with him.  

he mutters your name, as if in reassurance, before slotting his lips over yours once more, tasting your tears as they fall from your eyes.

“good kitten,” his praise ghosts over your lips.  as he cums, childe presses himself as far into you as he can.  you sigh into his mouth as he does so, shoulders falling, and eyes closing.

he’s not sure whether to embrace you like a lover or cry like a monster. 

[wesimpforxiao]

Say My Name and I’ll Be There: 5.3

"Oh? I didn't realize I would have visitors today," a mysterious blonde entered the cave, and you tensed despite the pain shooting through your shoulder.

"Oh, hey Albedo!" Paimon greeted in a cheerful voice.

"Aether, may I inquire to the reasons you've stopped by?  I don't recall sending for you recently."  Albedo set his bag on the table and unloaded it's contents haphazardly. He handled his drawings with care, unlike the rest of the vials and glasses of unknown substances.

"We were running from the Fatui," he scratched his head and avoided the alchemist's knowing smirk.

"I'm not even surprised at this point.  Why, you seem to have a honing instinct when it comes to--" His eyes landed on your bloody shoulder.  "--them.  Are you alright, Miss?"

"Me?"  It was a stupid response considering you were the only girl in the room, but his sudden shift in attention threw you off.  "U-uh, yeah.  Bennett patched me up."

"Hi, Albedo!"  Bennett waved excitedly at the familiar Mondstatian.

Albedo returned with a nod, and walked towards you.  "If you don't mind, I would like to take a look at your injury."

"Oka--Ow!"  You bit your tongue when he quickly placed a hand against your injured arm without exercising much caution.  Xiao took a step toward him in response.  

"Apologies." Albedo removed his hand and caught the sudden amber glow that enveloped your eyes, and leaned forward to inspect them.  His supposed guilt for agitating your wound was instantly transformed into curiosity.

H-he's really close, you found yourself leaning backwards to ensure a safe distance from his face.

"That's peculiar," he commented, seemingly more interested in your glowing eyes than your injury now.  "I haven't seen anything like this before.  May I run some tests?"

"What kind of tests?"  Xiao's protectiveness took over and he hid you behind him.  First the Fatui, and now this stranger?  Just how many people were after the two of you?

"Don't worry, he's safe," Paimon teased the concerned yaksha and immediately earned a glare from him.

"For the most part," Bennett and Aether finished under their breaths and made nervous eye contact.

"A simple experiment for the sake of science," Albedo stood and gathered a few cotton swabs from one of the cabinets, then a small needle.  He carefully sanitized it before returning to you.  "Are you also like Aether?"  He only referred to the otherworldliness of the traveler.

"No, I'm from Teyvat."  You watched him as he placed swiped a cotton swab against the drying blood on your shoulder.  He in turn watched for a reaction in your eyes, but found nothing.  He repeated the same procedure, this time closer to your pulsating stitches.  Your muscles tensed at the faint dull pain.  A faint glow emanated in your irises and even though it was barely noticeable he still managed to catch it.

"I see," he nodded to your answer and placed the swabs in separate vials.  Then, while you were still focused on his face, grabbed the small needle.  He turned to face you again.  "How long have your eyes been doing that?"

"Not that long," you caught Xiao's silent warning of 'do not speak of this' out of the corner of your eye.  "Er, I don't know."

Albedo also glanced in the direction of the man that was so obviously overprotective of you and realized the two of you had the exact same eye color.  He didn't say anything about that, though.  "I see."  He quickly pricked your shoulder with the needle when you had your guard down, and you almost backhanded him out of pure instinct.

"Ow!"  You glared at him, and annoyance bubbled inside you when he smiled back in both satisfaction and awe.  

"Experiment one is complete."  He stood and made his way to the table with the three vials of cotton swabs.  Then he proceeded to pour separate liquids into each, shake them gently, and place them back down on the table.  He watched the mixtures settle.

"What do you mean, 'complete?'" You growled and dabbed the miniscule blood off of your skin.

"Your eyes glow in response to pain," he stated simply as he eyed the vials.  "A strange reaction that is tied to a human's fight-or-flight response.  I wonder what else they react to."  Once the mixtures settled, he inspected them with the utmost attention.  He wrote his notes down on a sheet of paper.

"Well?"  Aether joined him at the table.

"May I take a sample from you as well?"  Albedo immediately turned to Xiao, who stood to your left.

"No."  I don't like this at all.  His eyes downcast to you, conflicted.

"Alright, then.  Do your eyes also glow?"

"No."

Albedo looked to you for confirmation, and you shook your head.  Hm, perhaps it is just a coincidence that they have the same eyes, then.  He returned his gaze to the samples.  "What strange results," he murmured to himself.  "You say you are human, yet your blood..."  It isn't like mine or Aether's DNA, either.  What biological component resides within you, I wonder?  "I cannot say for certain what is within you without conducting more experiments, but seeing as though you are running from Fatui, I suppose I'll have to wait for a more opportune time.  Please, return while you have a spare moment."

......................................................

"Your cover was blown?"  Signora raised a brow at her fellow harbinger.  "How did you manage that, Childe?"

"The target managed to convince the others that I'm being dishonest with my intentions.  I can't continue with them further," he lied through his teeth.  While it didn't play out as he had intended, it most definitely resulted in the rest of the adventure team's knowledge of the Fatui's plans if they hadn't known already.

"The Tsaritsa approved my plans," the woman peered down over the balcony.  "Your failure to keep our operation a secret will not impact them, but be aware they'll come back to bite you later."

"There's one other thing.  She received a vision."

"A vision?"  This brought her gaze back to Childe.  "From who?"

"The Tsaritsa.  Was that part of the plan?"

"Not at all," her eyes narrowed in the direction of Snezhnaya.  "What was she--No, no matter.  The plan shall proceed.  A little birdie told me the target and her little posse will be staying here for the time being.  We'll strike tonight," Signora surveyed the City of Mondstat beneath her.

......................................

The adventure team entered Angel's share as the sun set behind the hills.  Bennett had gone to check on all his dads at the adventure guild.  The tavern was teeming with the chatter of loud drunkards, melodies of a lone bard near the entrance, and the clinking of glasses.  Oh, and the hiccups of an incredibly drunk young boy that sat at the bar.

"Ah, the delicious--hic-- wine of Mondstat never ceases to amaze me!"  The boy raised his glass in the air, nearly spilling it over the rim.  His red cheeks provided a striking contrast to his green clothing choice.

Diluc stood on the other end of the barrier with an unamused yet slightly impressed expression.  He noticed your team's entering, and let out an exasperated sigh.  "This is glass fifty-two.  It's been less than half an hour since he started."

"H-How is that possible?!"  You stammered in concern.  "And why is he allowed to drink? He's practically Bennett's age!"

"U-Uh, well you see,"  Paimon fidgeted.  "He has a very high alcohol tolerance!"

Noticing your still-confused expression, Aether leaned in to whisper in your ear, "I'll explain later."  The noise that floated around the room concealed his words from Venti.

"Need anything to drink? Non-alcoholic of course," Diluc's eyes scanned the group until they landed on Xiao.

"I don't drink."  The yaksha left the group to sit at a table in a secluded corner.

"Not very sociable today," Paimon mused.  

"You received a vision," Diluc caught the glint of the pendant hanging from your belt loop.  "Congratulations."

"Thank you!"  You watched as he excused himself to pour a customer another drink.

"Ah, Trav--hic--eler!  It's so good to see you again!"  The boy noticed Aether's presence and waved you all over.  

"Hey Venti," Aether greeted with a slightly nervous grin.  "Long time no see."

"Yes!  Are you old enough to try the--hic-- wine yet? Oh?" His eyes looked to you.  "Hello! Are you a friend of Aether's?  Why don't we all share a drink together?"

"Oh, I'm not twenty-one just yet," you declined, eyes flitting to Xiao.  "Excuse me."

You sat across from Xiao and struggled to come up with small talk. He had been quieter than usual ever since you showed your vision to the group.  "What's on your mind?"

It took several minutes of prodding for him to finally respond to you.  "What were you doing in the moments that led to you receiving the vision?"

"What was I doing?" You were taken aback, but not surprised that he was still cynical of the circumstances.  "Well..." I was trying to protect you.  You wanted to convey those words but were still embarrassed of your actions.  Maybe you didn't deserve a god's recognition for barging into danger like it was normal.  A glum expression took over your face as you slumped in your seat.  You glanced up at him, only to find his cheeks slightly tinged red and that he was avoiding your eyes.  "What?"

"You really are one of the incompetent ones," he grumbled loud enough for you to hear.  

That's when you remembered he could hear every single prayer and wish about him.  It was your turn to blush now.  "U-Uh...um.  I didn't mean any of that!"  

Xiao's eyes flicked to yours, completely unconvinced of your lie.  "Of course."  You hung your head in embarrassment.

"I--Uh," you stood from your seat.  "I'm going to get some air!"  You climbed the stairs to the balcony on the second floor and shut the door behind you.

The cool air of the early night seemed to wipe away the stench of alcohol that had already begun to cling to your clothes.  It was a peaceful evening, what with the bright stars that shone in the sky and the occasional drunk laughter that leaked from the balcony door into the open air.  You admired the constellations for awhile until you felt the air get colder and heard the creaking of a floorboard to your right.  

"Sh--You scared me!"  You let out a nervous laughter when you saw the woman rise from her balcony seat.  "Sorry, I thought I was the only one up here."

"It's easy to be caught off-guard when you're distracted," the woman's lips curled upward slightly.  She made her way toward you, and you could finally make out the details of her figure.

She's dressed a little too formal for a tavern, you noted, yet you still admired how pretty she was.  White hair tied into an updo, a flowing gown that showed off her bust, she was downright gorgeous.  Still, you couldn't help but shiver.  Why was the air so chilly all of a sudden?

"You're not from around here," the woman observed.  "What brings you to Mondstat?"

"I," you started feeling uncomfortable in this dark setting, but didn't want to be rude. "I'm just passing through.  And you?  You don't look like you're from Mondstat."  You crossed your arms to trap the remaining warmth from the tavern around your body.  This woman showed more skin than you, but she didn't appear bothered in the slightest.

"An excellent observation on your part."  She stopped once she was maybe two feet from you.  "We were also passing through.  Isn't that right, Childe?"

Your blood ran cold in an instant, and Signora watched your face pale with satisfaction.

"I think I like it better in Liyue if I'm being honest," the voice you didn't want to hear greeted from behind your ear.  When did he get so close?  "Ambition over freedom.  But nothing compares to the beauty of our homeland."

You spun on your heel and simultaneously began to manifest a polearm in your nondominant hand.  You weren't quick enough, and Childe caught your arm.  Your heartbeat rushed in your ears as time appeared to slow down.

"You're still injured," Childe flashed a proud smile at the sight of the wound he had given you.  "You can't fight."

"Xia--!"  You opened your mouth to scream, but a feminine hand covered your mouth and restrained you.  It all happened too quick for your mind to comprehend, and the next thing you knew, she opened a portal in midair and was dragging you towards it.  Xiao!  Help!

"Prepare yourself, Childe," Signora warned.

"It'd be my pleasure," he conjured his blades and faced the door right as it was kicked down with a powerful force.  Xiao and Aether burst through.

"Let her go!"  Aether charged at Childe, giving Xiao the chance to aim for Signora's head.

"Xiao!" You managed to pull Signora's hand off your mouth and stretched your arm out to him.

He pushed off the balcony towards you, and was instead greeted by the hollow night air.  He crashed into the ground and sprung to his feet again.  The portal had closed.  Childe was gone.

You were gone.

.......................

Up Next:  Darkness, a meeting with an archon, and a quartet of harbingers.