A Change of Heart or Mind [Childe x F!Reader]

Chapter 5 - Prove Your Place

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Present

Thirty minutes after her breakdown, y/n finally found the strength to pick herself up and limp to the Palace, still holding her side. She had allowed herself to lose a good amount of blood, which she now regretted as she felt her consciousness fading in and out. As she approached the Palace, fighting her blurring vision, she could barely make out the figure of the one person she didn't want to deal with at the moment. 

"There you are," Childe greeted, arms crossed as he leaned against the stone wall of the Palace.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were meeting with the Tsaritsa?" y/n winced, glancing down at her palm which was painted with fresh blood again. 

"I already did. The Tsaritsa has instructed me to bring you to the throne room. She wishes to speak with us both."

"Now?"

Childe nodded, looking down at y/n's paled complexion before looking even further down at her bloodied sweater. "Nice wound you got there."

"Thanks," y/n answered sourly, taking a deep breath and sucking the pain up. "Let's go."

She straightened her posture the best she could and began heading through the doorway and down the hall to the throne room before Childe grabbed her arm, dragging her the other way. Her foot immediately caught on the entryway rug, almost sprawling to the ground before he caught her, hauling her up again. She hissed as she felt the opening of her wound widen. 

"I thought the Tsaritsa called?"

"I doubt the Tsaritsa would want to see one of her future Harbingers on the verge of bleeding out on her white carpets and collapsing," Childe remarked. "Doubt the Knave would be pleased if she saw you in this condition either."

"Where are we going?"

"To the medical station to fix you up, of course!"

Y/n pulled her arm away. "Fuck no! I'm not facing that crazed doctor at 11 AM in the morning. I did not plan to be injected by weird substances at all today."

"Relax. If I had to make a guess, he's probably in his lab, busy planning his trip to Sumeru. Or busy programming his clones. Fact is, he won't be there. And if he's there, I solemnly swear to protect you from his prying grasps," Childe finished, taking hold of y/n's wrist again. "Trust me."

"Yeah, like the lowest ranked Harbinger can protect me from the insane second of the Harbingers," she grumbled.

They approached the room and Childe threw open the door. "See? Like I said. Empty. Now sit," he commanded.

Normally, y/n would make some rude remark and purposely disobey him, but she was too exhausted and lightheaded to do so. So, she collapsed onto the cot in the corner of the room, fighting the urge to black out. The room smelled like rubbing alcohol and chemicals. She hated it.

"Archons know what substances have gotten on this thing," she mumbled, eyeing the multi-color stains scattered on the fabric. 

Childe finished rummaging through the cabinet in the corner and turned around with a roll of bandages in his right hand and a numbing cream made from cryo slime condensate in his left. 

"Lift up your shirt."

Y/n paused, glaring at him. "No."

Childe stared back. "Y/n. I'm not trying to be creepy. I need to keep you from dying on me. Plus, you know if I did anything as slightly improper to you as taking even a glance at you indecently, the Knave would personally send her gang of kid assassins after my ass."