𝐃𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐞

35 | Noli videre, Noli dicere, Noli audire

[WARNING: This does get pretty dark towards the end.]

"If you don't know the kind of person I am
and I don't know the kind of person you are
a pattern that others made may prevail in the world and following the wrong god home we may miss our star.

For there is many a small betrayal in the mind,
a shrug that lets the fragile sequence break
sending with shouts the horrible errors of childhood storming out to play through the broken dyke.

And as elephants parade holding each elephant's tail, but if one wanders the circus won't find the park, I call it cruel and maybe the root of all cruelty to know what occurs but not recognize the fact..."

- A Ritual to Read to Each Other, William Stanford

Or...

A lesson in morality.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Even merely fifteen minutes later, my lips still tingled, the ghostly remnant of Zhongli's lips seeming to have been branded on them. It was hard to not touch them as my mind flitted between two differing topics. The warmth that spread through my body at the knowledge that Zhongli had kissed me versus the dread of knowing that Hercules had disappeared. It was hard to focus on the matter at hand when all I could think about was the way my lips tingle every time I opened my mouth. Regardless, we had a situation at hand and I couldn't afford to be so distracted.

    "So, I woke up about an hour after you guys had left, right," Lei-li explained, face pinched as she scratched at her arm. "I figured I'd make breakfast since Ganyu was going to be busy this morning. I hadn't wanted to bother Hercules so I'd finished cooking, cleaned up and went to wake him and he was just...gone."

    Lei-li and Zhongli stood by the door as I looked around the room. The shorter woman was wringing her wrists as if this was somehow her fault. A frown tugged at my lips as I took in the scene. The bed was made, the closet door was closed, and well... it looked almost as if Hercules had never been here in the first place—aside from his clothes that still hung in the closet. Odd. Very odd. I'd been getting odd vibes from him for a while now, but Hercules had always been the type to let me know beforehand that he was going somewhere.

    It wasn't like he knew modern day Teyvat. Hell, I barely knew the place I'd been alive for eight millenia. "This isn't your fault, there's no need to make that face, Lei-li," I sighed as I turned to regard her and Zhongli. The brunet's face was indecipherable, it had been since we'd been interrupted. There were still faint traces of Hercules aura lingering around, most of the people of Prophis had small traces of astro that clung to them, which was even more true for the members of my clergy. "I'll look for him, there's no need for you or Zhongli to get involved. He's my friend."

    This time there was a flicker of emotion on Zhongli's face. "Do you have an idea of where he could've gone?" He questioned, eyes burning into mine as if in search of something.

    I chewed my lip. It was either Prophis, Liyue, or Mondstadt as the entry to Prophis was north of the city of bard. "No. But I'd rather not have either of you get involved. Like I said, he's my friend. You two should stay here, and you should get back to work," I gave him a pointed look. "I don't want to hear any ifs, ands, or buts? Just...act like everything normal because it is. Now shoo, and tell Hu Tao that I wasn't feeling very good."

    The two of them lingered for a moment longer before finally moving to leave.

    Zhongli lagged behind for a moment. "...I hope you know you can come to me with anything that's bothering you, Juno. I was...cruel in the past, but I am not the same man I was," He said softly before turning and striding out, his coattail disappearing around the doorframe. It was funny. He wasn't even in his true form and yet his coat seemed almost like a tail.