Who Is Staring Back At Me? (Zhongli x male reader)

Cracks in the Seal

I'm alive! Also I got summer break now :)

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Looking around I was met with a very familiar scenery, well if you can even call it that. Surrounding me were familiar frozen waves that acted as walls, limiting my sight. Analysing my surrounding I noticed one major difference from my last visit here.

 The once endless void above was now filled with tiny stars, as if i was watching the night sky. The walls too allowed some lights to penetrate them, showing that beyond them was nothing as well.

Remembering that the last thing I saw before coming here was my sister being attacked and hurt by Childe made me uneasy, panicked and impatient seeing as there was someone here last time. Someone who seems to take their sweet time getting here. I mean if they want to kill me might as well call for them to hurry this along, not like it'll make a difference.

Y/n: "Look uhh whoever you are! I don't know why you keep bringing me here but I need you to stop anyway, my sister is in danger and I'd like for that to stop, even if I'd like to poke her with a sword myself but that's beside the point!" Waiting for a few seconds I was met with the same silence that seemed to always fill the space.

???: "Now why would I do that? I didn't make a contract with them just for you to be this stubborn, but I take what I get you know? It's not every day you get bonded with a still living person." A contract? With who or better yet about what? No that isn't important right now.

Y/n: "Well that didn't really answer my question did it?"

???: "Well I guess not but-" This guy I swear...

Y/n: "Then you better start telling me everything before I figure out a way to exorcise you stupid ghost thing." He better tell me now or I'm gonna commit liven't myself!

???: "I was just trying to lighten the mood, be mysterious and all, no need to be so mean to me. I've taken momentary controll over your body and am beating up Fatui as we speak, there happy now? I couldn't just sit back and watch when I knew I could safe her and you." Both of us?

Y/n: "I don't understand...both of us? Are you implying that-"

???: "Yes I am! I've been with you since you knew how to crawl around, I've seen your life. Its ups and downs and everything in between. So trust me when I say you would not have been able to safe her. Now it's about time i return the controll no? Also don't get scared but there may be slight changes to your appearence." He's been watching over me for all my life? Kind of creepy.

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POV: Zhongli

I watched in relieve as the clouds started to disappear, yet I also feel sad knowing that Liyue is ready to defend itself. Knowing the Jade Chamber was sacreficed because of my plan left a rather uncomfortable feeling in my heart. Despite all that I'll have to make my way to the Northland Bank now, I just hope Y/n wasn't hurt while doing whatever he did during this crisis.

Walking through the harbour however gave me another picture, a 'reality check' as some might call it. Wherever I looked I could see collapsed shops, flooded paths and injured citizen everywhere. It made me question several things.

Is the time of the Archons really over? Am I doing the right thing right now? What do I want to do? Who do I want to be in the future? With my mind debating I decided to watch the calming waters, thinking about everything that led up to this made me remember something, a contract. Thinking back I realise that I've never thought to search for an answer to Y/n's question.