mania! ➺ tartaglia

eight.

There you were, your arms wrapped around the Fatui boy's neck as he carried you out of the frosted region one step at a time. You were annoyed that he was doing all of this—going through all of the trouble when you were fine— but a part of you was relieved.

You'd used up a lot of your energy, which eventually caused you to feel weak inside. Alongside that, it had been a while since your other side had taken over; the side that was power hungry, and restless whenever it came to a battle. You knew that the other side wanted to inflict pain upon others, but you kept your double vision, regardless. It made you feel safe.

"Recently, you've been constantly getting injured, but that seems unlike you. You aren't weak, Y/n, so what's going on?"

The fact that Childe had only known you for a few weeks, yet confirmed that you were not weak after a single fight made you almost smile. You were happy that you gave off that impression, as you really weren't weak, especially with that delusion of yours. Even before that, however, you'd been one of the strongest fighters back in your homeland. You didn't need this extra power, but you kept it. You cherished it, but it consistently manipulated you by playing out by itself.

"My mind has been in other places," You simply replied, actually looking up into his eyes for a second. Usually, you avoided eye contact with Childe due to whatever trance he put you in every time you wanted to speak to him like a normal person. This time, you weren't so afraid.

Your words made him slightly stop in his tracks, just so that he could look over at your face. It was almost as if he was trying to read your expressions, because he didn't want to say the wrong thing and throw you off. He cleared his throat.

"Is that why you like to be in constant battle? To get your mind off of things?"

You furrowed your eyebrows as you thought about this. Fighting; it was fun, and you guessed that it really did distract you from your inner worries. You felt lighter after defeating absolutely anything, and it made you feel more powerful, even if you were tattered at the end of it all. Your lips pursed before you stared up at him blankly.

"I guess so.."

He smiled at this, the reason being that he had not met anybody who shared the thrill and love of battle like you showed you did. He was happy that he wasn't alone.

"Y/n?"

"Mhm?"

"Would you be able to make another promise?"

Childe's words from the first promise still hadn't left your mind, as the two of you had not come across to it, yet. Something told you that he still took his promises quite seriously, which is why you waited for him every day. You thought you were ready, since he didn't exactly seem like a cunning opponent. His fighting tactics were too obvious, in your opinion.

"Is this another fighting promise? Because I don't think I can make another without fulfilling the first,"

His soft laughter filled your ears, in contrast to his tight grip beneath your thighs. You blinked up at him, unwavering.

"Not another fighting promise, but a different kind of promise.."

"Okay. Let's hear it."

Your response caused him to hesitate on what he wanted to say for a minute, and that's when he decided that the second promise could wait. The man shook his head, now averting his eyes from your own.

"Now that I think about it, it can wait.. Let's just get back to Liyue, shall we?" He said, following the route that he had memorized oh so perfectly. Childe knew where the most enemies were, where the least were, and where his recruits were set up, completing their duties. Going past them with an unrecognizable female in his arms was perhaps, not the greatest idea.