Dead Dove (Do Not Eat) [ZhongChi]

Goodbye Fatui

"How are you feeling?" Zhongli moved Childe's hair out of his face. 

"A bit better..." 

"Ready to let go of me now?" 

"Never," Childe clung to him. Zhongli nodded and stood up with Childe still hugging him like a koala. He supported Childe with one arm and walked out of Dottore's lab with a highly flammable liquid trailing behind him. 

"What's that for?" Childe asked, watching the liquid pollute the floor. 

"Time to say goodbye to the Fatui." 

"You're burning this place to the ground?" 

"Mm." 

"What does that mean for me?" 

"What would you like it to mean for you?" 

"I guess I'm not a Fatui member anymore if there is no Fatui." 

Zhongli lit a match in his teeth and threw it down on the ground after walking outside. It caught the liquid and flew inside the building, catching everything on fire in its wake. In no time at all the building itself was visibly aflame. Explosions took place once it reached Dottore's lab. 

"It's so bright..." Childe winced, closing his eyes. He wasn't even looking at the building directly. 

"Let's go," Zhongli said, covering Childe's eyes before he turned. 

"Does this make me your pet again?" 

"Would you like to be?" 

"Hm..." Childe didn't answer. "Should I take the collar off?" 

"Heh, you won't be needing that anymore." 

...

"Where are we going?" Dottore asked. 

"Anywhere but with the Fatui. Morax is going to destroy the place...I think...he told me to grab you and leave." 

"Why me?" 

"Because, well..." Baizhu adjusted his grip on Qiqi. "Because why not you?" 

"You can't go back to your original place." 

"I know that." 

"So where are you going?" 

"To  join Morax, I guess?" 

"I thought you were neutral," Dottore raised an eyebrow behind his mask, not that anyone would see. 

"What do you want me to do?!" Baizhu snapped, turning his head. "I can't stay with the Fatui, Morax is destroying the place! I can't go home! You destroyed the place! I can't be neutral, because people are after me, so where am I going to go?!" 

"You could leave the city." 

Baizhu stopped walking and turned around completely. "I'm not leaving you here." His eyebrows furrowed together. 

"That's nice of you and all but I'm not going to live much longer anyway," Dottore shrugged, scratching his neck. 

"What are you talking about?" 

"Think about it, I'm a harbinger. No organization is going to pick me up. They'd all put a target on my back first or torture me for Fatui secrets. You're unaffiliated so you'd get a better chance at survival if you stayed."

"You could come with me." 

"Heh," Dottore shook his head. "The stuff I've done ain't the kind leaving a city can fix." 

"We'll just have to go back to my place for now then," Baizhu grabbed Dottore's hand and kept walking. 

"Do you have someplace you can drop off the kid?" Dottore asked but then changed his mind. "No, forget about it, it's probably safer to keep her where you can see her." 

"You're not going to disappear if I stop looking at you, right?" 

Dottore didn't answer. 

"Right?" Baizhu repeated. 

"I'll help you fix up the damage I did at your place." 

"Dottore," Baizhu frowned. "Fine, I'll just make sure Changsheng bites you before you try to leave." Baizhu pet the snake wrapped around his neck. "We wouldn't want Daddy to disappear after we just found him, right?" 

Qiqi raised her head and looked over Baizhu's shoulder at Dottore. "Why does Baizhu call you 'Daddy'?" 

"How about we stop talking for a little while?"