Kill Me Slowly || Tartaglia/Childe

Chapter 07

Currently waiting for Xiangling to prepare their dinner, Xingqiu decided to read a book that he borrowed from Chang the Ninth during his trip to Liyue. He was walking around the hallway, book in his hands as his eyes skim through the semi-tattered pages. Halfway through the hallway, he could hear two people conversing.

"A-Ah! S-Stop! It hurts."

"Can't say I'll go gentle on your first time, Princess."

Closing his book, Xingqiu pondered on what could General Tartaglia be doing with the princess at this hour. Despite being uninterested, his curious nature made him lean in by the door to eavesdrop.

"P-Please don't be so rough..."

"Rough? Hah, I'm barely using any strength."

"H-Hey! Y-You'll leave a mark."

Xingqiu's face was as red as a tomato upon hearing several moans that came after that. He didn't expect that the general would be so bold to do that in the camp. Xingqiu tries to retreat, slowly backing away by making his footsteps light but the sliding door opens, revealing Tartaglia with a huge grin on his face. "I suppose you'd like to join us, Xingqiu?"

"N-No!" He frantically waves his hands, dropping the book on the ground. Tartaglia came closer to him and Xingqiu closes his eyes, awaiting his punishment. "Why are you red? Do you have flu?" Tartaglia places a hand on his forehead. Xingqiu opens his eyes that soon travels to the general. Behind him, he could see you dressed in a black hanfu with a red sash tied around your waist-- a training outfit for soldiers.

"N-No I don't!" Xingqiu replies, brushing away the general's hand to pick up his book. "That's great! Why don't you show Princess (First Name) some of Guhua's martial arts." Tartaglia's eyes brims with happiness. Whenever anything related to combat comes to mind, he couldn't help but feel the passion and joy in fighting, his pleasure in engaging in combat increasing in every fight. After all, his name was feared on the battlefield.

Before Xingqiu could say anything, a soldier runs towards them and tells them that dinner has been prepared. Xingqiu breathes a sigh of relief, mentally thanking the soldier for saving him. Tartaglia frowns for a split second before parting his lips to release a sigh. "Until next time then." He gives Xingqiu a pat on the back before turning to you. He extends his hand out for you to take. "Shall we? I believe it's a reward for a job well done."

You playfully roll your eyes at him, gently slapping away his hand. "I can still walk!" Tartaglia laughs at your statement and said, "We'll see about that tomorrow." Then he winks before following the soldier, who escorted you three to a room not too far. When the soldier slides it open, Ningguang appears by the door. "Just in time."

"Ah, a feast indeed!" Beidou almost waters at the sight of the dishes aligned in front of her. "I miss this!" She adds, taking a huge whiff of the Cured Pork Dry Hotpot. Ningguang chuckles, placing an arm over your shoulder before telling you to excuse Beidou's behavior again, then guides you along to your designated seat. Tartaglia follows along, taking the empty seat beside yours.

Seeing one empty seat in front of him, he asks, "The field marshall isn't here today?" Ganyu shook her head then replies, "I have informed him about tonight. It seems like he won't attend today's gathering."

"Ah, is that so? I'll have a word with him about it next time. For now, let's enjoy this evening." Tartaglia brushes the topic aside, taking the small cup of rice wine in front of him. "A small toast to the princess!" He raises it towards you, and the others follow suit. You nervously pick up your cup then raise it in the air. "Hurrah!" Beidou puts her cup before taking the bottle of wine and chugging it down.

"Is it delicious?" Qiqi asks. "O-Oh my..." You pause, eyes widening at the fact Qiqi had raised her cup earlier, "Did Qiqi drink... wine?" Qiqi shakes her head no and shows you her cup. "Qiqi's drinking cocogoat milk!" You take a look into her cup before breathing out a sigh of relief. She laughs and says, "Qiqi's not old enough to drink wine yet... just like Brother Chongyun and Brother Xingqiu."

Not too long after, everyone but you, Ganyu, and Qiqi had gotten drunk. Ganyu had taken Qiqi back to her room and never came back, leaving you with two wine-intoxicated people: Tartaglia and Beidou. Xingqiu and Chongyun were long gone, probably escaping from the vegetables on their plates that have now gone cold and Ningguang had other matters to attend to.

"C-Come now, princess!" Beidou gets up from her seat and walks towards you with half-lidded eyes. She swings her arms around your shoulders, handing you the half-empty bottled wine. "T-Take this! I-I'm... uh, going to get more..." She struggles to walk straight, occasionally bumping the chairs on her way out.

You decided to leave Ningguang who was slumped on the table and Tartaglia who was laying on the floor on one side with his mouth slightly open, and walk towards an open space, basking yourself in the light that the full moon provided. Somehow it reminded you of your home, where you could see the moon from the balcony of your room, but mostly reminded you more of your father.

How is he doing? Is he eating well? Is the kingdom still in turmoil with Mondstadt's? Several questions popped into your mind all at once until you heard a small thud, snapping you out of your trance. You quickly hid behind a statue, registering the sound as a warning for incoming danger but when a minute has passed, there were no signs of the sound again.

You cautiously exit from your hiding spot, making your footsteps lighter as you walk closer to the source of the sound. With the light coming from the moon, the object becomes clear to sight. It's a small greenish yellow canary with an injured wing. "Oh, you poor thing..."

You gently pick up the injured animal and rush straight back to your room. Taking out the medicine kit from the cabinet, you tended to the bird's wing. For some unknown reason, you had kept a stick from the ice cream popsickle that Chongyun ate earlier and use it to support the bird's wing. After taking care of it, it chirps at you, nipping at the skin of your finger before flying over to the window.

It taps on the window several times and when you notice the bird wanted to leave, you push the window open and it flies away. "I hope it heals..." Praying for the bird's recovery, you watch it fly away until you couldn't see it in the distance anymore. You close the window back, locking it before returning back to the room where you had your dinner.

You see Xiangling forcing Beidou to drink a certain liquid but Beidou keeps pushing Xiangling away, begging for more wine. "S-Stop! It's poison!" Beidou struggles from Xiangling's grip, almost winning until she was pinned down again by her arm. "Come on! This tastes like chamomile tea!"

"Bleh! J-Just give me the wine and I'll be fine!" Despite being patient for a while now, Xiangling has gotten an idea and spilled the drink into an empty bottle. "Here's your wine!" She hands the drink to Beidou who downs it in seconds, assuming that it was wine. "T-That's... urgh, why does it taste weird?"

"Don't worry, it's not poison." Xiangling laughs then aids her by letting Beidou lean onto her, "Come now. You have to work to get to next morning." Xiangling then turns to you and tells you to help Tartaglia back to his room. Soon, they both exit the room, leaving you alone with Tartaglia. You gently nudge him, hoping he would wake up but he didn't budge. This time, you nudge him a bit harder and he jolts awake, squinting his eyes at you.

"Stop it... Lumine. J-Just let me sleep a little bit longer..."

"Lumine? I'm not Lumine."

"Whatever you say..."

Just like Xiangling, you helped Tartaglia back to his room, laying him down onto the bed and putting the blanket over him. Before you could leave, you could feel a grip on your wrist. You turn around and see Tartaglia's face, his eyes staring at your (Eye Color) orbs. For a man so adept at killing, his eyes were remarkably soft. "S-Stay... Lumine." He pleads.

"If I stay, will you go to sleep?"

"Yes..." He breathes out, closing his eyes. He eventually lets go of your wrist, a sign that he was already asleep. You quietly exit his room, closing the door behind you. You slowly make your way back to your room, your mind up in the clouds, thinking of that one name he called you.

"Who's Lumine?"