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fuwahua · 4 months

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New Traditions

WC: 2.3k

Happy birthday Zhongli! May you enjoy the year of the dragon with your hubby 💕

Established relationship, fluff, (one sided) tickle fights, lots of flirting

“You know, it’s your birthday. We didn’t have to come all the way out here.”

“It is precisely because it is my birthday that I’d like to spend it with the family of the one I love.”

Zhongli chuckles as Ajax’s mouth flaps open and shut, a fish out of water. He’s not the only one to take amusement in the action— Ajax’s siblings giggle at him as well, and his mother partakes in a shared glance of fond amusement. Despite being a guest at this household, they’ve already taken to him with familial warmth.

Then again, perhaps that’s how most families are when their child brings home a lover.

Zhongli takes his time through his birthday dinner, though it is not a particularly luxurious meal. In comparison to the exorbitantly priced dinners at Liuli Pavilion he’d taken Hu Tao to in the past, the rather plainly plated, mildly seasoned platters Ajax’s family had set out before him are simple. Yet there is warmth beneath the spices: time, set out in the early dawn for a father and third eldest son to catch fish together, an evening of marinating lamb with rambunctious children, a night time’s worth of lullabies and whispered promises as the sweet scent of cinnamon and jam wafted from the oven. It is simpler food, yes, prepared by amateur hands that have never studied in crowded kitchens and before renowned chefs.

But it tastes of home, inviting and kind; for that Zhongli swears it is one of the loveliest meals he’s ever had in his life.

“I’m surprised you ate everything,” Ajax tells him well after the plates have been collected and their hands have grown wrinkled from washing. Most of his family has retreated, his mother to retire their youngest and the elder siblings departing to give the couple privacy. Even his father, who Ajax had described their relationship as tenacious at best, had given Zhongli a warm hug in celebration of his birthday. “I thought you hated seafood.”

Zhongli grimaces. Ajax laughs, a delightful ring of joy, and his grimace melts into a smile. “I… harbor a dislike for it, yes. But it is not as though I cannot consume it—and your mother spent so long preparing it, wouldn’t it be rude to leave it uneaten?”

“You say that, but you leave my seafood meals uneaten all the time.”

“I was only saving them for someone who would enjoy them more. Who would I be to deny my lover his favorite meal?”

“You’d be a great con artist, you know that? Slippery bastard.”

Ajax dramatically huffs and Zhongli smiles as he opens his hands in clear invitation. The false anger only lasts a moment before Ajax relents, rolling his eyes, and slides into Zhongli’s hug. “You can’t just offer people hugs every time they point out your flaws.”

“Why not? It’s seemed to have worked awfully well for me so far.”

“Oh? Are you hugging anyone other than your fiancé?”

Zhongli’s cheeks warm despite himself, and this time Ajax is the one to squeeze him with a grin. “You shouldn’t be too mean to your fi-an-cé, you know? Or who knows, I’d bring someone else home…”

“Ajax, I hate to inform you of this, but you have few friends. Fewer who would travel to Snezhnaya.”

“What—hey! I could totally invite the traveler!”

“Ah, so my competition is only one after all.”

The punch against his arm is little more than a playful gesture; Zhongli chuckles as Ajax attempts to wriggle out from his hug. “I jest, I promise. Please don’t go: It would be too cruel to leave your fiancé on his birthday, wouldn’t it?”

“It’s not even your actual birthday!” Correct. Even so, Ajax relents in his escape efforts, sagging against him. The sudden increase in weight means little to an Archon, but it is the trust beneath the shift that has Zhongli faltering, heart loud. “Just you wait, I’ll figure out your real birthday eventually.”

“We’d already told your family today is my birthday. Adding another day would make little sense.”

“You think they care? The more birthdays to celebrate, the better.”

“In that case, why not celebrate everyday?”

“Okay, not that many. It’s like…” Ajax trails off, humming in thought. Zhongli soaks in his concentration with affection, leaning his head against Ajax’s shoulder as he waits. It’s not often he’s allowed to witness the more calculative side of his fiancé despite the many years they’ve now spent together, largely due to the fact that Ajax insists on keeping his work and personal life separate. At home, he can relax and leave most of the decisions to Zhongli: a decision made from both their preferences and comfort.

Still, he savors moments like this, where Ajax is deep in thought. Calm, peaceful, and in the arms of the person he’s come to love the most in the world. Free to do little more than stare at the face of his beloved and take in all the features he so little has time to appreciate.

“… it’s hard to think when you’re staring so hard at me.”

“Forgive me, but between the snow and my love, I’d much prefer looking at my love.”

“You’re just—“ Ajax’s complaint fizzles as soon as it begins, eyes full of fond exasperation. It’s an expression Zhongli would have never thought he’d be the culprit of as Liyue’s Archon, and yet, he’s come to treasure every glance Ajax sends his way. “Does Xiao know you’re actually a little shit? Because I think he should know that.”

“I’ve done nothing to be referred to in such a way.”

“And a liar. You know, in Snezhnaya we used to lock people up for that.”

Impossible. Such a law would be much more suited to Fontaine than Snezhnaya, where falsities and secrets are deeply intertwined with the intricacies of romance. Yet Zhongli hums rather than correct.

“I’ve not lied at all today. Do I lack so terribly in expressing my love for you ordinarily that you think my truthful confessions are lies? Would you rather I kiss you every morning as you set off to work, and take you every night loud enough that there will be no doubt of our—“

“OKAY! Okay, okay, shut up, I get it!” Ajax’s cheeks flame as he interrupts, a warmth that creeps from his neck to his ears. Zhongli laughs, bubbling mirth escaping him, while Ajax pinches his cheeks. “Why do I feel like you’ve been laughing at me all day?”

“I’ve little idea of this accusation.”

“You’re laughing at me right now.” Is he? Zhongli raises a hand to his face, failing to hide his still wide grin of amusement. Ajax’s eyes narrow. “Stop that.”

“I’ve hardly done anything.”

“Really? You want to play this game?”

“Game?” Zhongli huffs, transferring his hand from his face to Ajax’s cheek, patting it playfully. “Is that how you refer to spending time with me?”

“Oh, you’re just asking for it.”

“Asking for what?”

Admittedly, he was probably “pushing it” as Ajax would say, but Zhongli would like to contest that claim with the very cute evidence of Ajax’s slightly irritated gaze sent his way. He could hardly help it!

Though, Ajax wouldn’t accept such reasoning. If anything, the sudden mischief sparking in his eyes…

“Asking for this!”

“A-Ajax! W-waihahaaht!” Zhongli startles with a giggle at the sudden move of fingers against his waist, squirming at the ticklish sensation. Ajax grins down on him as his hands skate along his torso, teasing.

“Wait? You sure didn’t wait to tease me, why should I wait for you?”

“I wasn’t! Ehehe, I was telling thehehe! Ahaha, pause!”

“Excuses, excuses!”

If he weren’t so distracted, Zhongli would scold Ajax for interrupting another in the midst of their sentence. Unfortunately, he’s rather busy with trying to grapple at Ajax’s wandering fingers along his sides, sweeping up to poke at the divots between his ribs. Curses his perfectionism while crafting this human form—he could have simply left out the ribs, couldn’t he?

But he hadn’t evidently and now, he had to suffer the consequences.

Zhongli shakes his head as he laughs, successfully grabbing one of Ajax’s wrists only to lose it a moment later when the other hand jumps into his armpit. His giggles rise in volume and pitch, an unruly mess of jumbled syllables; his cheeks redden at his own laughter as he protests.

“A-Ajahahahaax! No, hehehe, it–it’s rude!”

It’s of little use. Ajax’s fingers continue to wander, prodding all of Zhongli’s weak spots, pressing ever closer even though there’s no space left between their bodies. When Ajax’s hair brushes his nape, he squeaks.

“Rude? You’re calling me rude?”

“Nohohoho! This-I-I—not there!”

Zhongli’s words dissolve into embarrassing noises as Ajax’s hands roam downwards to his hips. The actual act of tickling and of being tickled by his lover isn’t something he particularly dislikes: the familiar exploration of Ajax’s hands and the almost determined, grinning face that peers down upon him, if anything, warms his heart. But it is the principle of the matter—that he is a guest at Ajax’s home, generously welcomed as his lover, and rather than setting the family peacefully to sleep he is instead laughing his head off at the hands of the man he is meant to trust the most, at a surely obscene time of the night.

Succinctly put, it’s incredibly rude to be so loud in someone else’s home. Even more so when his laughter echoes in his own ears, wild and desperate at the way Ajax knowingly digs his thumbs in little circles at the center of his hips.

“Naa—AhahaHAHAHAJAHAHAX!”

“That’s my name, don’t wear it out.”

It’s too much, not enough, the feeling of his lover’s hands mapping out familiar patterns along his body; Zhongli’s heart thrums in his chest, both hungry for more and aching for a rest. His fingers grapple with Ajax’s, pulling at the bullying hands prying desperate giggles from his throat, but they only dig in deeper with every attempt. “EnouGHAHAHAHAA! STAHAHhahahap!”

“Wellll, I don’t know, should I stop~”

“YeheHEHEHEHEHES! NOHOHO MOOHEHEHEHRE!” Laughter leaves him dizzy when the hands crawl downwards teasingly, pinching his hips and then his inner thighs as he squirms; mercy comes at last when his legs give out beneath him, sending them both to the ground. They don’t crash, luckily, Ajax’s arms crossing around his chest protectively and landing them comfortably on the carpet instead. The contact is still enough to have him giggling, shoulders twisting inwards to protect himself from further tickling.

“Waiahait… Ehehe, stahahap!”

“I’m not even tickling you anymore!” Ajax’s hands rise from his torso to his shoulders, tugging Zhongli back until he’s leaning against his chest, Ajax’s knees rising up to form a protective barrier around his own. Blue eyes enter his tired vision, a hand cradling his cheek as Ajax furrows his brows. “You okay?”

He chuckles again, this time quiet and of his own volition. Ajax’s gaze softens, sweet, and he silently thanks the fact that his thrumming heart could be associated with the tickling attack and not the fervent urge to pull the other down into a kiss. “Ahahaha… Rather odd words from the person who’d chosen to render me in such a state.”

“Hey, this was much needed vengeance after what you’ve put me through today!”

“Was it?” One would think that he’d have learned after Ajax’s “vengeance” about prodding a sleeping narwhal for fun, but Zhongli had been honest when he said his teasing only came from sincere adoration. He leans into Ajax’s palm, nuzzling it before pressing a kiss against the bare wrist and smiling as Ajax’s eyes follow the motion. “Is that all the vengeance you wished to enact on me?”

Ajax swallows. His mouth parts, tongue swiping his bottom lip and leaving it glossy. “Well, I—”

“Do you two have any idea what time it is?!”

Ah. Right. They’re still in Ajax’s parent’s house.

“M-mama! I wasn’t—we weren’t—um, well…!” Zhongli blinks upwards as Ajax all but whole-body flinches away, mouth sputtering as Ajax’s mother stares down at them. Her kind smile at the dinner table remains fixed, but her eyes are…

Even an archon has things they know to fear. Celestia, Descenders, mother-in-laws, to name a few.

“Save it,” she sighs, pinching her nose in exasperation before moving her gaze to Zhongli. “Take him to bed, will you?”

“Wha—hey, he’s the guest!”

“And who was causing all that ruckus?”

Both of them, technically, but it’s clear the madame of the house (understandably) has little patience left for any antics. Ajax bites his cheek as Zhongli chuckles; he rises to his feet, steady now after resting in Ajax’s arms, and pulls the pouting ginger up with him. “My sincere apologies for the ruckus. We’ll be in bed shortly, I promise.”

“I’d hope so,” she says, her gaze returning to Ajax. They stare at each other a moment, her eyes shiny, before she nods. “Good night, you two. And,” her eyes return to him. “Happy birthday, Zhongli. I hope we can celebrate it again next year.”

Next year. He returns her kind smile, squeezing Ajax’s hands. “I’ll be sure to return.”

He waits for her footsteps to recede before Zhongli turns to Ajax, triumph flashing in his gaze. “It appears that I’ve left a successful impressi—hm!”

Ajax’s lips leave him far too quickly only to return again, persistent, hands pulling him into another. They’re quick kisses, breathless and giddy, filling each other’s spaces only long enough to leave them longing for more. He chases after Ajax, maybe, or it’s Ajax who chases after him. They meet in the middle regardless and Zhongli smiles into the kisses that follow.

Perhaps Ajax had a point about the second birthday. He’s already looking forward to the next.

#genshin impact #zhongli #childe #zhongchi #chili #tickling #happy birthday Zhongli #fluff #my fic

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fuwahua · 9 months

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Happy birthday nuitaru🎉

#they’re so squishy….

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fuwahua · 9 months

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY

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fuwahua · 10 months

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For the 3 sentence thing ^^

Lee Tighnari with Ler cyno, lower back right above his tail (ticklish backs need more attention I think ^^)

No pressure to write anything tho, have a nice day/night/morning✨

SO SORRY FOR THE LONG WAIT!!!! ヽ(；▽；)ノ Thank you so much for requesting cnnri I love them fluffy bois very much (and your art of said fluffy bois too <3) I hope you enjoy some Cynonari banter !!

WC: 1.2k

Summary: Tighnari's agreed to help out with some commissions in the desert. Cyno's just being a perfectly concerned friend helping convince him to... reconsider.

“Nahahahaha! CyNOahahaha! Stop!”

“Cyno? Don’t you mean Cy-yes?”

“NO!”

Tighnari gasped out before dissolving back into giggles. Cyno’s hands continued to skitter over Tighnari’s sides, smirking when Tighnari belted out another plea of laughter in response. “Wrong answer again, Nari~ Come on, you know what you need to say to make it stop.”

Tighnari’s ears trembled as he shook his head, flailing in his attempt to push Cyno’s wandering hands away. “I-I told ehehehehe you I CahaahAn’T!”

“If you can’t handle this, how will you be welcomed into the desert?”

“THAHAHAHAT DOESNT MAKEHEHEHE SENSE!”

Oh Archons, what a stupid thing to fight over. Tighnari kicked his feet out as he tried to turn over from Cyno, squirming with giggles when those hands wandered down from his sides to his stomach. His jacket had ridden up in their sparring, leaving his bare flesh unprotected, and he shrieked out a protest as Cyno took advantage.

All this for a commission. It wasn’t even his plan! Traveler needed some guidance deeper into Sumeru regarding an Adventurer’s task and asked him for aid—a completely, utterly normal request between them (and, he’d like to add, something Cyno also asked him for all the time). Admittedly he had accepted before even considering the details, at the time more than a little desperate to get away from the strange reporters turning up in Gandharva Ville digging for information about the former sages, and failed to consider the potential heat risks of taking on two separate desert commissions.

Even so. “AhaHAHA Thiiis is ehehHEHEHE OHOhoveheherboard!”

“Oh, you’ve gone overboard? Well, let me get you back on board!”

Tighnari’s head shakes, arching his back and trying to headbutt Cyno when his fingers dig into his navel. He shouts with laughter, arms quickly huddling together to try to pry those stupid, betraying hands out, protesting all the while.

“I’m telling you, dangerous eremites wander the sand anytime! You’ve got to be prepared, is all.”

“GehehEHEHEHET OFF!”

Cyno yelps as Tighnari manages to shove an elbow beneath him, thrusting upwards with a rush of strength. It’s not enough to dislodge his friend entirely, but there is just barely enough room between them that Tighnari can turn himself around, protecting his stomach.

“T-thehehere! See!” He pants, half-turning to glare at Cyno. “Even compromised, I can still defend myself. You forget that I’m a ranger.”

“And you forget what happened in the Interdarshan Championship,” Cyno tuts. They stare at each other, locked into their own choices partly out of compassion, partly stubbornness, before Cyno smiles. “Fine, fine. I’ll let you go to the desert.”

“I wasn’t waiting for your permission…”

Even though he says that, Tighnari waits for Cyno to get off him. Except, Cyno’s thighs stay tight around his hips, and though he lightly wriggles to remind the other, he doesn’t move at all.

“Uh, Cyno?”

“Yes?”

“I thought you were letting me go,” Tighnari deadpans, sighing. “So, get off me.”

“Welllll… I am going to let you go to the desert. But what kind of friend would I be if I let you go without some training?”

“Cyno, no, I’ve had enou–gehehehhee! CynoAHAHAHA!”

Cyno’s whisper is devious. “Training part one: what should you do if an eremite grabbed your tail from behind juuust like this?”

“THAHAHA’TS CHEEAHAHAHATING!”

“Cheating! How dare you—I’m a TCG man of my word! Come now, you wouldn’t really accuse the Mahamatra of cheating, would you?”

Tighnari shrieks out a wordless reply, hands thumping against the floor as his body is flooded with ticklish sensations originating from Cyno’s nails right on the jut of his tail. He thought he’d been clever by turning around to protect his bare stomach, but the sensation of Cyno’s scribbling hands just over that patch of skin on his lower back on top of the beginnings of his tail were going to drive him insane.

It certainly didn’t help that practically no one ever tickled him on the back, especially not near his tail. The entire ranger unit knew that the area was a no-go in general and any and all attempts to comb their fingers through his fur was a one-way ticket to getting punched. What they didn’t know was that part of the reason Tighnari refused to let anyone near his tail was because he knew just how ticklish he was there and wanted to avoid any accidents at all costs.

Something, of course, Cyno knew all too well.

“Hmm, I don’t know about letting you go to the desert after all~ training doesn’t seem to be going too well?”

“ENOUGHAAHAAAHAHA!”

Archons, he was going to kill Cyno after this. Tighnari’s tail swishes from side to side but it’s impossible to avoid the way Cyno pinches the back of his flesh and spreads out his fingers, making him cackle. Tighnari’s legs kick out, desperate, but besides a few “whoa!” from Cyno, he doesn’t budge.

“I know!” Cyno gasps, leaning over and dragging his nails up up and then down in a long, lazy stroke that has Tighnari arching his back with wheezes, “what if I came with you?”

If he could, he’d smack Cyno helmet-up for putting him through this entire ordeal just to ask to accompany them. Hell, the Traveler would probably jump for joy to have another helper. He could have simply asked instead of tickling Tighnari to pieces.

“Well?”

“FihihiHIHIHAHAHANE! YOU CAHAHAHN COMEHEHEH!”

Tighnari slumps over as Cyno finally comes to a stop, hands moving against his back in slow, soothing circles instead. It still tingles, light ghost tickles that keeps him giggly, but the fau massage does help chasing the last of the sensation away until Cyno hops off him, allowing him to roll over and curl his tail protectively over his back.

“I.. hate you…”

“Aww, you don’t mean that.” Cyno scoots over him, smirk wide on his face. “Come on, it’ll be fun! Two of us S-tier members, we’ll turn the desert into just desserts! Get it?”

Tighnari groans. “Cyno…”

“Desert! Desserts! Two S-tier members.”

Actually, killing Cyno would be letting him off easy. Tighnari glares at the other, tail swishing dangerously. “Cyno.”

“Okay, just think about it, the only difference between a sand dune and a plate of cavities is the addition of an extra s, so adding me, an S-tier member, to you, another S-tier member, is—”

“Yeah, yeah, real funny…”

“Right?! Hm? That’s weird… you never like my puns unless… Eek! N-nahahahri, nooo!”

“You’re coming with us to the desert right? What would you do if those evil eremites found out just how sensitive your ribs are…”

“WahahAHAHHAIT! MERCHIIHIHIHI!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll help you get those just desserts.”

#cynonari #tighnari #cyno #genshin impact #tickling #my fic

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fuwahua · 11 months

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hewwo hewwo! may i please request lee!felix ler!sylveon with hips as the spot for the ask game? thanks <3~

HEWWO thank you for your patience!! This took longer than expected bc I cannot write 3 sentence drabble actually ヽ(；▽；)ノ please take this fic!

WC: 1.7k

Summary: Sylvain stumbles upon Felix training his Saturday away and decided to distract him. Totally doesn’t have any other ulterior motives other than friendly bromance, nope!

“Huh! Hah! H-aaurgh!”

“My, such a hard worker. Say, do you come here often?”

“Shut it. If you’re not here to train, don’t distract me.”

Wow, such hurtful words… if Sylvain were twelve. The redhead crossed his hands over his heart as he dramatically stumbled back, moaning in fake pain. “Felix, you wound me!”

“Good.”

Sheesh. Sylvain rolled his eyes behind his back, knowing full well that Felix would know, and just as expected there was that familiar “tch” noise from his classmate. Even so, Felix didn’t even spare him a glance as he returned to his practice and took up half the practice grounds with his setup alone.

Not that it mattered. It was a Saturday and this side of the Academy wasn’t exactly in high demand when classes were out—why would they be, when students can flock to the marketplace, study away in the library, or do, literally, anything else other than train their already sore muscles? Sylvain himself was raring to go for a hot Saturday night out when he was crossing the training grounds but then he’d seen Felix and. Well.

There was nothing that needed to be said about a lone figure training on a weekend. A little sad, in his (not) professional opinion. What kind of friend would he be if he just left his dearest childhood friend alone?

A bad one, of course. That was it: a desire to be a good friend and help out during Felix’s obviously struggling loneself. Totally nothing other than that. Nope! It wasn’t like Sylvain enjoyed the calm moments that stretched between the two in the classroom, when Felix was less pressed about glaring at everything that moved and stared diligently at Byleth with something that he could almost call respect. He certainly didn’t linger on the moments when they stood back to back together during the Battle of Eagle and Lion, feeling Felix’s warmth from where their arms had pressed together.

Definitely, absolutely, did not enjoy watching Felix’s hair flutter just slightly in the wind or the way his words came out tinged with an edge promising violence.

“Are you going to train or just stare at me forever?”

“Aww, Fe-Fe—”

“Don’t call me that.”

Sylvain’s jaw clicked as he offered Felix a lazy smile instead of replying. Felix’s brow twitched, turning back to his invisible enemy. Strike, strike, strike.

“I’m serious. Pick up a spear or leave.”

“I pick leave! Let’s go out to town together!”

“Don’t make me hit you.”

So rude. Sylvain tutted, though he remained where he was. It wasn’t like Felix would actually toss him out; they’d done this song and dance enough times for him to know what Felix actually looked like when he was furious. Shoulders raised, fist clenching, bloody nails—the whole shebang.

His shoulders were down now, almost relaxed with every practiced motion. Tempered breathing, easy and calm, and a smooth, beautiful series of steps as left crossed right and vice-versa, following a roadmap drilled into them. Felix, as always, executed it beautifully.

It was just too tempting to mess with him.

“Oh? Are you finally ready to—S-Syvlain! Stahahap!”

“Stop what? Didn’t you want some hand-to-hand practice?”

“Ehehe, this ishihin’t practice!”

“Really? News to me…” Sylvain grinned as his hands trailed along Felix’s sides, chuckling at the way his friend’s cackles grew in response. The wooden sword slipped from his fingers as Felix tried to pry his hands off, shaking his head between sputtered protests.

“Nahaha, Sylvahahain!”

Felix’s leg kicked out at him warningly but the threat wasn’t exactly effective coupled with the boyish smile that bloomed on his face and spread from rosy cheek to cheek. His brows were scrunched up as he slapped Sylvain’s arms, head tossed back onto his shoulder. Their height difference was easier to take advantage of this close and Sylvain took full advantage to blow against Felix’s ear just to see him jolt. “You called?”

“I didihiihihiHIN’T! FU–HAHAHACK OFF!”

Talk about loud. Sylvain’s hands tightened around Felix’s sides, earning a squeak, as he quickly ducked his head to glance at both sides. It didn’t look like anyone was running to the training grounds after Felix’s loud laughter: well, it was Saturday. He could, maybe, possibly just mess with Felix all day if he wanted to.

(An evil thought, if he were in Felix’s position. But who could resist turning grumpy Felix’s frown upside-down? The Professor wouldn’t be too mad, surely…)

It’d been years since he last had the chance to mess with Felix like this; not since they were kids. Even so, it was like muscle memory. He knew Felix liked a lighter touch along his sides but threw his head back in full belly laughs when his ribs were kneaded. His tummy was weak, but only in the upper half where it was easy for Sylvain to fold him over and tease the area. His knees were equally weak, though harder to reach, and Felix was a kicker in the true sense of the word.

It was kinda nice to see, despite all his moodiness, Felix was still just as ticklish as he was all those years ago.

“Doesn’t this bring you back?”

“SHUHUHUT IT!”

Sylvain hummed as Felix managed to grab onto one of his hands, prying it away from his side with a triumphant gasp, only to break into shaky giggles when his other hand skirted up to his underarms. Felix gave up immediately with a shriek that only redoubled when the distraction gave Sylvain the chance to grab his other wrist, holding them together with his one hand.

Which left his other hand the chance to explore. It was something they both realized at once, twin smiles on both faces: one nervous, one dangerous.

Felix swallowed. His eyes darted from his captured wrists, Sylvain’s free hand, and then his face in quick succession. “S-Sylvain… this ehehe is… your o-only warning…!”

“I better take that warning seriously, huh?”

“What do you—Ugh, nohohoHOHO! DoHOHON’T—NAHAA!”

Felix shrieked as his flailing redoubled, eyes squeezing shut when giggles escaped from clenched teeth. He lasted about two seconds before buckling, squirming where Sylvain’s right hand was rubbing small circles against the divot of his hips. It’d been a weak point of his since they were kids and it brought Sylvain great pleasure to see that it hadn’t changed.

Especially because weak point here actually meant weak: anywhere else was a threat of a kick or fist to the face. Glenn had favored tackling Felix and bringing him to his knees with giggly tears with his hips and Sylvain evidently had learned to do the same.

Felix had gotten a lot heavier since then though. Sylvain strained to hold him up properly once he leant entirely back, unable to hold himself up between giggles. Clearly Felix’s training had paid off in muscles (Sylvain’s lack of not-so-much) and Sylvain’s grip tightened on his hip as he brought them both slowly to the ground.

“Nahahahaha moore! SylvAHAHAIn!”

“I don’t know, I’m enjoying myself right now…”

“I CahahaHAHAHN’T! PLEAHAHASE!” Felix’s face was entirely red now, flushed from ear to ear, as his protests died into breathless laughter. His whole body shook with it, voice tinged with desperation, and Sylvain took a moment to stare at his face, the bob of his throat between ragged gasps, and acquiesced.

“Alright, alright. Just because you’re begging, Fe-Fe.”

The moment he let go, Felix’s hands darted away to rub at his hip as though soothing the lingering ghost tingles. He watched with a chuckle, raising his hands up in surrender when Felix’s eyes immediately darted to him at the sound, promising violence. He even scooted away for extra measure!

Felix’s chest heaved to take in proper air now that the tickling had stopped, wiping at the sweat that had gathered on his face in his struggle. The tremble of his body slowed as his shoulders sagged in exhaustion, rubbing at the knot of his hair and pulling at the base of his ponytail, grimacing as his fingers came away sweaty. Even so, the tickling-induced flush of his cheeks hadn’t faded yet and the way he glanced up at Sylvain with the lingering smile on his face was…

It was a little mesmerizing, he could admit.

“You’re staring.”

Sylvain jolted, though the words weren’t any different from the ones preceding it. If anything, they were less rude. Even so, he couldn’t help the tinge of red coloring his cheeks, and worse than that, knew that Felix wouldn’t even notice. “You already said that earlier.”

“Because you were,” Felix huffed. His breathing seemed to have evened out and he pulled himself upright, crossing his arms as he returned Sylvain’s stare with one of his own. “You’ve been staring more than usual.”

“Yeah, well…” Nothing to say to that. He huffed instead, turning his gaze to the flowerbeds decorating the side of the grounds. Pretty things. He just happened to like pretty things.

And if his gaze liked to wander back to Felix, well, it was out of an appreciation for the arts. He was a noble—couldn’t exactly help treasuring rare things. A soft, smiling Felix had to count for both.

Especially when said Felix was smiling at him.

“Come on.”

Sylvain blinked as a hand emerged in front of his face. In the moment of thought, Felix had gotten up and now had a hand outstretched to him. His mouth parted as Felix’s brow twitched. “Come on. Get up.”

“Uh, are we going to train?”

“What are you—stupid? No, don’t answer that.” Felix shook his head, sighing. “Didn’t you say you wanted to go to town together?”

Oh. He did say that, didn’t he? Sylvain hadn’t thought Felix had been paying attention, nor that he’d actually want to, when every attempt to invite Felix out in the past had been shot down with a quick and brutal rejection.

Yet no matter how much he blinked, the Felix waiting for him didn’t flicker. When he took Felix’s hand, the other was sturdy in his stance as he pulled Sylvain up. And when his hand lingered, eyes on the way their fingers joined, well…

Felix’s hand squeezed around his with a chuckle. A real one, something of a rumble that rose from his chest and slipped past parted lips; when he tugged forward, Sylvain followed. “Come on, Sylvie. Let’s go.”

Sylvain stared and resolutely, absolutely, did not acknowledge the way his heart thudded in his chest.

(Fuck.)

#fe3h #sylvix #sylvain jose gautier #felix fraldarius #tickling #my fic #apologies for the delay #i hope you like the fic!!!!#the other 3 sentence prompts will also get 1k fics actually #ill try to finish those within the next month!

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fuwahua · 1 year

Note

Can you please do Lee!Alhaitham and Ler!Kaveh with feet? Thanks!

send no more, thanks!

word count: 1.5k

ahhh hewwo anon! thanks for the request! i'm really bad at writing feet tickles but i hope this turned out alright!

---

"Alhaitham! We're gonna be late, for archon's sake! Alhaitham!!"

Alhaitham groaned sleepily as the knocks to his bedroom door grew louder with each passing sound. He attempted to block out the noise by throwing an extra pillow over his head, but Kaveh's fist hammering away at the door combined with his already grating voice easily pierced through the pillow, violating Alhaitham's ears with an unholy mix of sounds. When there didn't seem to be an end to Kaveh's persistence, Alhaitham threw the pillow off his face with a sigh, allowing his eyes to acclimate to the morning light peering through his bedroom window.

"C'mon, Alhaitham! We're going to miss Nilou's performance!"

Alhaitham didn't believe that one bit, recalling how during a trip to Inazuma, Kaveh fretted all morning about possibly missing their boat at Liyue Harbor, only for the two to reach the pier two hours before the ship was supposed to leave, thus forcing Alhaitham and Kaveh to stand around the harbor to kill time. This wasn't so bad for Kaveh as the blond found entertainment in conversing with the locals, but inefficiency was one of Alhaitham's biggest ticks and idling around while waiting for their boat could not have been a worse offender.

"Alhaitham!"

Clearly this was another case of Kaveh being a worrywart. The clock hanging from the opposite wall of Alhaitham's bed read ten o'clock sharp as the time. It would approximately take five minutes for Alhaitham to prepare himself for the day, as he was a relatively simple person. Normally, a walk to the bazar where Nilou's performance was scheduled to take place would take Alhaitham twenty-five minutes, but since he and Kaveh were attending together, he would need to account for Kaveh's slightly faster walking speed, making the trip twenty minutes instead. Add an additional five minutes to account for potential error or mishaps that might happen along the way and the two would still be reaching the bazar thirty minutes early. This means Kaveh is essentially attempting to rob the scribe of an extra half hour of sleep. Not a particularly ideal morning, if one were to ask Alhaitham.

"You better be awake already, Alhaitham!"

There was also the fact that Alhaitham wasn't particularly interested in Nilou's performance in the first place, only attending because of Kaveh's bickering about how "you need to be more supportive of your friends!" Granted, Alhaitham didn't mind Nilou in the slightest, as the dancer's presence was relatively inoffensive, but meaningful conversation seldom stemmed between the two's brief moments together and Alhaitham would rather spend what little free time he had at home. Maybe if he ignored Kaveh and pretended to continue sleeping, the blond would go alone..

Good thing he made a habit of locking his bedroom door at night.

"Alhaitham!" He couldn't help but smirk at the incessant banging at his door. Why Kaveh was so hellbent on making him go wasn't something he could wrap his head around, but it sure was entertaining listening to the blond basically fistfight the door.

After a few more seconds, the knocking slowly stopped and Kaveh had stopped screeching the other's name, prompting Alhaitham to sigh in relief, content that Kaveh finally got the message-

Click.

Alhaitham's eyes widened.

Oh no-

Did he forget to lock the door last night?

The knob began to turn.

He did.

Without even thinking, Alhaitham quickly flipped over on his stomach, pressing the side of his face to his pillow as he threw the covers over partially over his head and shut his eyes. Maybe with the archons' graces, Kaveh wouldn't notice..

"Why didn't I just do that the first time?" Alhaitham could hear Kaveh mutter under his breath, as he entered the room. "Hey, Alhai-! Oh."

The sound of footsteps could be heard approaching the head of the bed and Alhaitham's breath steadied, rhythmically slowing to one that would hopefully give the impression that he was snoring and still passed out. There was a brief moment of silence, followed by a pensive sigh and the Kaveh's voice. "Fine, fine, catch up on sleep, I suppose."

Alhaitham internally sighed with relied as he listened to Kaveh move away from the head of the bed and head to the door, but an abrupt halt in Kaveh's steps subverted Alhaitham's expectations.

"Hmm."

There was the temptation to sit up and crane his head, but he resisted, not wanting to give up the facade he put in effort to construct. The slight shift and movement at the foot of mattress piqued Alhaitham's curiosity as to Kaveh's whereabouts, but it wasn't until he felt Kaveh's arm wrap around his foot peeking out from under the covers that the alarm bells in his head began to sound off.

"I wonder..."

What is he-?!

A sudden tingle ran up his leg as he felt a singular poke to his bare sole and Alhaitham did his best to keep from instinctively pulling his leg back and out of Kaveh's grasp. Unfortunately for him, the slight twitch of his toes did not go unnoticed by the blond and his toes involuntarily curled again at another poke.

"Interesting." The absolute eccentricity in his voice.. Alhaitham did not like that. It was almost as if Kaveh struck gold and every hair on the back of his neck stood up when Kaveh tightened his grip on Alhaitham's ankle.

Alhaitham barely had any time to prepare for the singular finger swipe from heel to toe and his hands dug into the mattress, curling his fingers around the bedsheets as Kaveh repeated the same action in the opposite direction. His foot flexed in Kaveh's grip as more fingers were added with time and Alhaitham found himself gritting his teeth, struggling to keep the giggles that threatened to spill out at bay. It didn't help that the image of Kaveh's triumphant smirk was at the forefront of his mind, knowing full well how much the architect was most likely enjoying the situation.

"I've still got some time, I think," Kaveh muttered to himself, now leisurely zig-zagging his thumbnail across the length of Alhaitham's sole. It took every ounce of willpower not for Alhaitham to burst out into laughter, unable to hold out much longer. The toes of his other foot pressed into the mattress while hidden under the covers as its twin fought the ticklish sensations that ran up his leg. His cheeks puffed into the pillow with each heavy breath, feeling the resistance in chest slowly crumbling. It wasn't until Kaveh's thumb dug into the underside of his toes that a snort escaped past his lips and his leg involuntarily jerked in Kaveh's grip, toes curling to defend themselves from the invading thumb.

"Oh?"

Kaveh's grip on Alhaitham's leg adjusted and his foot was back on the mattress, with one of Kaveh's hands pressing his toes down, leaving his foot full vulnerable now. Part of Alhaitham knew he should sit up to finally put a stop to this, but the other part of his mind knew full well that Kaveh would still tickle him regardless, yet there was that slight sliver of hope that he could possibly skip out on Nilou's performance if he remained "asleep"..

Those thoughts and hopes were dashed the second he felt Kaveh's fingers dig into the underside of his toes.

"HaAAH!" Alhaitham's body finally jumped, releasing a strangled squeal as his last attempts to fight the tickling crumbled. "Kavehehehe! StahaHAHAhahap!"

"Ah, there you are," Kaveh mused, tickling the digits relentlessly now that Alhaitham was wide "awake". "I was wondering if I should start tickling both feet to speed things up a bit. Don't want to be late to Nilou's performance, after all."

"A-AhAHAHAhahaHA! I-I'm up! LeheHEHeheht gohohoho!" Alhaitham's laughter rang through the tiny bedroom, as his upper-body squirmed under the sheets and his leg fought for freedom, no longer fighting the tingles that shot up his leg. Why did it have to be tickling of all things?

Damn him.

As Kaveh continued to torment his foot, there was a slight change in his grip and Alhaitham saw his opening, using the chance to finally pull his leg back with whatever strength he could muster. Once free, he quickly brought both legs up, curling them out of Kaveh's reach and shooting him a glare was he was safe, to which Kaveh just responded with a smirk.

"Well, glad I could wake you in time," Kaveh said as he finally stood up, mischief still behind his voice. "Hurry up and get dressed. If we leave soon, we might still be able to get good seats."

"Just.. give me a moment," Alhaitham sighed tiredly, recovering from the short bout of tickling. "Can you step out already?"

"Okay, well, no dilly-dallying. This performance is really important to-"

Bang!

Alhaitham smirked to himself as he shut the door behind the blond, using his constant blabbing as a distraction once Kaveh stepped out of the room. This time, he made sure to lock the door as well, before stepping back to his bed, hopping in, and throwing the covers back over himself.

"Hey, Alhaitham?" Kaveh's voice came from the other side, followed by banging at the door and the sounds of the doorknob wiggling. "You can't be serious- ALHAITHAM!!"

There were still five more minutes of sleep for him to enjoy, after all.

#THIS IS SO CUTEEEEE #I LOVE THEM #sir please get up from bed five minutes is not enough time to get ready

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fuwahua · 1 year

Text

To request a ficlet send me:

1) A character to be the lee.

2) A character to be the ler.

3) A tickle spot.

I will write you a three-sentence fic!^^

#pls send some to me!!!#work finally letting up so I’d like to write something #for fandoms #Genshin impact #fire emblem three houses #spy x family #but you can throw me others and if I know them I’ll write it!

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fuwahua · 1 year

Text

“Zhongli? Hah! I can easily take him on in anything, you name it! I would never pass up a challenge from him!”

Childe, final words?..

I did it- idk why I colored it but wehh I got a mood. @ticklystuff ,, please have this snack, don’t starve- I got your back (￣^￣)ゞ

As always, ignore spelling,, I’m dyslexic have mercy on meh

#CUTTEEE #rest in pieces Ajax

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fuwahua · 1 year

Text

HAPPY WHITE DAY!!!!! *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･'(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)'･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

White Day Surprise

Ship: Zhongli/Childe

WC: 6926

Summary: Fluff. Zhongli and Childe both have secret plans for White Day, but what to do when you don't like your partner keeping secrets from you? You might just have to convince them to share~

Collaborated with @ticklystuff for White Day!! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶ Thank you for writing with me!!!

If Childe was asked to choose his favorite spot in Liyue Harbor, he would undoubtedly choose the fish market. The refreshing view of the ocean cleared his mind from the stressors of work and listening to the hustle of Liyue citizens living their daily lives allowed Childe to lose himself amidst their chatter, feeling like he too was just a regular person going about his normal day. Many vendors offered a variety of fish from the morning catch, either raw or cooked, and although Childe preferred the fattier fish Snezhnaya was known for, the sun-dried fish that Liyue Harbor offered encompassed a unique taste that managed to satisfy his palate while away from home. Usually, he would buy the cooked fish sold at one of the stalls for lunch, as bringing a raw catch would upset Zhongli with its smell, so the redhead couldn’t help but feel puzzled at the sight of a familiar funeral consultant standing at the edge of wooden dock by one of the many boats that inhabited the harbor.

“Ah, xian-” he nearly called out to the older man, only to stop himself when he realized Zhongli was already in the middle of a conversation with another man Childe failed to recognize. Not wanting to interrupt the two of them, Childe settled with leaning against a stack of wooden crates, digging into the skewered fish that he had purchased for his lunchtime meal.

Once Zhongli had turned away after giving the other man a short wave, Childe called out for him once more, waving his arm over the crowd of people for the other to see. There was a noticeable pause in Zhongi’s stride when Childe finally managed to grab his attention and as his figure grew closer, Childe noticed the piece of white cloth wrapped over the lower part of Zhongli’s face, presumably to block out the smell of the entire fish market.

“Hey, what are you doing here?” Childe greeted him excitedly as Zhongli managed to make his way to the crates. He stuck out the hand holding the fish skewer and teasingly waved it in front of the other. “Want a bite?” he snickered to himself when Zhongli grimaced at the skewer.

Zhongli spoke but the combination of chatter from the crowd around them and Zhongli’s mask muffled his response and Childe had to lean in a bit closer to hear properly. “Director Hu sent me on an errand!” the older man repeated himself.

Childe blinked in response, perplexed as to why she would send Zhongli of all people to the fish market. “But doesn’t she know you hate the actual harbor? Why not have someone else go, like the ferrylady! I can never remember her name, but y’know the one- the one that always stands by the door!”

“Ah, right, ah-”

“Xiansheng, speak up! I can’t hear you!”

“She, ah, you know how she likes to mess with me sometimes!” Zhongli spoke up once more. “She’s having me pick up some fish from the market for her, as she is unable to make a stop for herself tonight.”

“But xiansheng, the fishermen are that way.” Childe pointed in the direction opposite of where Zhongli came from. “I saw you over by the docks earlier. Who were you talking with anyway?”

Childe just barely caught the way Zhongli’s eyes widened for a brief moment at the mention of the other man. “Ah, yes, he’s an acquaintance of Director Hu and the funeral parlor. I ran into him as I was perusing the stalls and we had a moment to catch up.”

Images of different faces associated with the funeral parlor ran through Childe’s mind, but his memory failed to bring up the specific man Zhongli was speaking with. Granted, the two of them were standing quite a bit away and there was nothing particularly distinct about the man, but nothing about the man seemed familiar at all and with how much time Childe spent at the funeral parlor, he should have been able to at least recognize him.

“He’s an old acquaintance,” Zhongli said suddenly, seemingly having noticed the confusion that crossed Childe’s face. “He has worked with us in the past before you arrived. I highly doubt you’d be able to recognize him.”

“Ah, I see,” Childe said with a nod. “Well, I still have some time left of my break. Since we’re both here, do you want to sit by that hidden dock like we used to do?” He couldn’t help but reminisce of the times he and Zhongli would sit at the edge of their special dock, feet kicking just barely above the edge of the water as the two talked about anything and everything. It was Childe’s favorite pastime, until Zhongli confessed his disdain for the ocean.

“I should actually get going and fulfill the errand that Hu Tao asked of me,” Zhongli shook his head, motioning with his hand to the stalls.

“Oh, okay! Well, I can go with you if you’d like!”

“Ah, that’s quite alright,” Zhongli half-chuckled hesitantly. “I’m sure you’re busy and I may be a while.”

“You sure? I can help pick out the fish and carry it back for you, if you’d like,” Childe tilted his head as he offered.

“No, no, I-I should be the one to do it myself, since she asked me,” Zhongli said hurriedly, before beginning to step away. “Thank you, though! I’ll see you tonight!”

“Oh, okay!” Childe called out, watching as Zhongli hurried to the stalls, soon disappearing into the crowd. He resumed munching on his now lukewarm skewer, leaning back against the wooden crates as he watched the crowd continue to move around him, lost in his own thoughts.

Zhongli was definitely hiding something.

Childe was scheming something.

Hm. Perhaps scheming was not the appropriate choice of words for the situation. The Fatuus didn’t appreciate the word being linked to his otherwise honest character, and Zhongli had little reason to enjoy antagonizing the other besides a few, well-meaning teases.

But, what other word fitted Childe’s peculiar behavior as of late?

“Ah, Zhongli! Say, what do you feel about this tea?”

“You like this ore, right? Do you already have one? Do you want more?”

“Um, you’re not allergic to anything, right? Like, non-Liyue foods. Sakura, borscht, maybechocolateIdontknow.”

Questions. A dramatic uptick in them, and largely confirming information Zhongli had readily and freely given to Childe months ago. He enjoyed all manners of tea and food, and had an unopened box of the ones Childe had perused that day. He saw ore with equal enjoyment, cherishing both the natural formalative process and the careful precision carved into the stone; in fact, he had plenty of the cor lapis Childe had looked at. And despite his former position as Liyue’s Archon, he treasured outside experiences all the same, perhaps more so due to the company he often kept when out of Liyue.

He said so as much to Childe with a reaffirmation of his promise to visit Snezhnaya and shower Childe’s family in proper Liyuen gifts. The other had flushed and batted him away like a cat, laughing all the while.

Yet when he thought Zhongli wasn’t looking, a shadow of uncertainty had crossed his face. A worried lip and furrowed brow that have become commonplace in Childe’s face after his questions—not disappointment, Zhongli thinks, but consideration. Anxious excitement.

For what?

“Hu Tao! Is Hu Tao here?”

Speak of the devil. A familiar pattern knocks into the front door of Wangsheng Parlor almost absent-mindedly, as though knocking after entering. Actually, that’s almost definitely what happened.

“Is something the matter, Childe?”

“Eh, wha—I thought you had chores to do, Zhongli?”

“Chores?”

“Errands? For Hu Tao, by the pier?”

Ah. Right. Zhongli nods in haste, stepping aside to allow Childe in while coughing lightly into his glove. He’d almost forgotten the excuse he offered the other. “Yes, well. I’ve completed them already. Though I may need to confirm our deal another time.” Close enough. He blinks at Childe now, digesting the other’s words. “Did you plan to visit when I was out with errands?”

“Wh—What? Hah, ahaha, no! Of course not!” Childe grins, though his lips pull up a centimeter too far to the right. It’s one of his few tells, one that Zhongli had never pointed out to him before, whenever he grows nervous. He watches that mouth slant as Childe laughs, shaking his head in denial. “Come on, just think about it. Why would I do that?”

Scheming, perhaps. A nefarious plot of the highest level. Though, really, Zhongli doubts it’s something so dramatic. “You’ve been asking many questions recently, particularly in regards to my interests. Could it be that you—?”

“Aiya! Haven’t I told you not to bother our customers? Shoo, shoo!”

Zhongli twitches as he’s hastily shoved to the side by Hu Tao’s grinning face. She beams up at Childe. “There you are! You’re late for our consultation!”

A consultation? Without him?

“Ah, well, you know. Busy day at the Bank!”

“Hmph, you shouldn’t be keeping a lady waiting, you know?”

A lady. Zhongli clears his throat, attempting to step back into his space and frowning when Hu Tao indiscreetly blocks him from doing just that. “If it is a consultation you are looking for, surely I could be of advice here?”

“No.”

“Absolutely not!”

Well. “I’m certain—”

“We’ve dilly-dallied enough here, don’t you think? Shoo, shoo, go be free and consult with others! Away!”

“You heard the boss, xiansheng. But hey, you’ve got some errands to run, right? I’ll see you later!”

“I–that’s—”

Zhongli’s jaws click shut as the two scramble away from him. He’s, hm. Not offended, exactly, by the display of horrendous acting by them both; he’s spent enough time with either to know that if they truly wished to reign terror on his person (or any poor sod to be caught up in their pranks), they would be significantly more discreet.

Perhaps it’d be easier to say he’s affronted? The slightest bit upset at being left out of their play yet grateful by that very exclusion. More than anything, curious. Deadly so.

Director Hu and Childe have always gotten along to an uncanny degree. Their troublemaking personalities attuned them to a level of friendship that would scare housewives on a good day. That they are enjoying each other’s company is not a strange happenstance.

What is strange, what plagues him, is the secrecy around their meetings. Around him, particularly. How Childe tries to sneak into Wangsheng when he believes Zhongli to be out, how Hu Tao has been excessively accommodating his time off requests and peppering between them more breaks than any consultant would know what to do with; more than anything, he can’t quite figure out the secrecy being so close to him. If they wish to prank him, why have Childe blatantly ask him for his preferences? Why choose Wangsheng as a meeting place, where he spends the majority of his time?

Why stuff their consultation room’s gaps with fabric scraps when they know just as well that he could listen in, honing on the vibrations of their voices through the Geo built into Liyue’s floors?

He could. He is truly, sorely tempted to.

He doesn’t. Not out of duty, nor fairness, but because when Zhongli closes his eyes and hums, he thinks of the playful twinkle in Hu Tao’s eyes as she pushes him out the door, the contemplative eagerness of Childe’s smile with every answer he plucks from Zhongli’s lips. It’s a prank, almost definitely, and he’d gamble his weight in gold that their target of gossip was himself.

Thunk!

Hm. Zhongli pauses as he hears shared laughter from their room and a frantic shushing noise. His eyes narrow when a muffled sentence that almost definitely sounds like his name echoes from the doorway.

Scheming. They were definitely scheming.

It’d be wrong to listen in. Luckily for him, there were plenty of other ways to unearth the truth.

“Fish? I never asked him for fish!”

“But he told me he was picking up fish for you, or at least that’s what I think he said.”

“Pfft! As if I’d ever ask Mr. Zhongli of all people to pick up seafood for me!”

“Oh, I thought it might’ve been some cruel joke on your part.”

“I don’t appreciate the implications of me being an abusive employer. Plus, we wouldn’t want to keep raw fish here at the funeral parlor. The smell would mix horribly with the incense and drive customers away!”

“So, if he wasn’t running errands for you.. why was he at the harbor then?”

“Why was he at the harbor?” Childe mumbled to himself with an exasperated sigh, replaying his conversation with Director Hu over and over in his head that only further supported his earlier suspicions. The chances of him being at the harbor were already slim to begin with and if Director Hu didn’t send him, then what could be the reason? Zhongli wasn’t one to pull pranks, but as things stood right now, the possibility of the older man plotting something might actually be a reality.

The flimsy steps to Zhongli’s humble abode creaked under the weight of his boots, accentuating the thoughts that ran through his mind. There was also the unfamiliar man that Zhongli had met with. Under normal circumstances, said man would not be subject to suspicion, but with Zhongli’s little lie from earlier, it wouldn’t come off as a surprise if the man was not what Zhongli made him out to be.

Although the curtains of the tiny home were drawn shut, Zhongli often departed from work earlier than him and Childe was able to make out the faint glow peeping through the curtains. His hand reached to open the door, only to stop himself as he bit his lip in thought. How should he go about the current situation? There was always the very simple solution of just asking like most normal people would, but if Zhongli had avoided being truthful the first time, what was stopping him from doing so once more? It wasn’t like Zhongli to tell outright lies, though. Maybe he’d play coy and tease with riddles till Childe could piece together what Zhongli might be trying to convey to him, but never outright lie. Surely, there must be a reason for his actions, but it was difficult for him to wrack his brain around. Shrugging his thoughts away, Childe finally took the knob in hand and opened the door, giving Zhongli a wave from the entrance.

“Xiansheng! I’m home! … Xiansheng?”

Childe’s hair paused mid-air as he takes in the empty abode. That’s… strange. Another weird tick to add to the increasingly suspicious pile—where was Zhongli now? He hadn’t been at the parlor when Childe had finally left, game plan with Hu Tao finalized for the special day; where else would he be?

The fisherman. Who may or may not be an Adpeti, giving Zhongli’s general company. Childe’s brows furrowed as he sighed, kicking off his shoes and stepping in.

In the past, he might have chased Zhongli all around Liyue. But even gods need to rest, and there’s no better place to catch him by surprise than his own home. Besides, there were much subtler ways he could remind Zhongli how he took being lied to.

It didn’t take long for the distinct salty tang of his signature dish to fill Zhongli’s kitchen. Fresh tomatoes and ripe chilis make for a red base, topped with local calla lilies for that signature taste Zhongli is fond of. Childe removed half the soup from heat to simmer in a separate clay pot as he tossed in diced octopi to his share. He’s not quite mean enough to force Zhongli to eat seafood, but he’s not not mean enough to have Zhongli adhere to social courtesy and have to sit there while he eats it. The Harbinger title Tartaglia didn’t come from nothing!

Petty, he knows. Signora would be proud.

“Childe? Are you cooking?”

“Xiansheng! You’re home,” late, he doesn’t add. Childe cooled the pyro stones beneath the pots, turning to greet Zhongli. He hadn’t heard the other come in, though that’s nothing new. Something about the way Zhongli resonates with Liyue makes his steps near silent.

“Ah,” Zhongli intoned, breath light as he huffed. His steps grew audible as they breached the kitchen, purposefully loud, and Childe tried (and failed) to swallow down the surge of affection that rose with the other’s actions. “I see you’re making your specialty.”

“What’s with that tone? I’m slaving away in your kitchen and this is the thanks I get?”

“I appreciate you, Ajax.” He bit back his tongue at the sincerity in Zhongli’s tone, suddenly warm, warmer still when Zhongli’s eyes roamed the stove and caught the deliberately separated pots. The smile that bloomed on his face was deadly handsome. “However could I express the level of my gratitude?”

By kissing me, he thinks, before stomping on that thought and slamming it into the Abyss. Childe shook his head, stepping away from the stove and bumping into Zhongli’s outstretched hands. They twitched around his waist and his breath caught. Focus. Focus!

He inhaled, unsteady, and paused as he registered the scent on Zhongli. It’d been hard to tell with the pots boiling away but there’s an unmistakable smell of the sea on that suit. Seafood. Fish.

The harbor. “How about telling me the truth?”

“The truth?”

“Why were you really at the pier?”

Zhongli’s fond smile froze. His eyes glow for just a split second, a betrayal of his surprise, and Childe latched onto the moment of weakness like a fox to fish. “It sure wasn’t for an errand for Hu Tao. Is that fisherman even a fisherman? What is he, secretly Ocean Weaver? Osial’s ex-husband in disguise? Beischt part two?”

“He’s an ordinary mortal,” Zhongli cut in, eyes narrowing. Childe found himself squinting in return; this isn’t a fight, not yet, but the familiar adrenaline of challenging an Archon thrums in his veins. “The only Adepti I’ve recently met with has been with Ganyu, during our tea break. Which I’d invited you to.”

Childe opened his mouth to pry further when Zhongli continued with his own offense. “Speaking of, she asked about you. Particularly your recent behavior—I assured her that you meant no ill will, though Ido wonder about the scope of your most recent prank.”

“Prank?”

“You’re planning something, are you not? Ganyu certainly noticed your recent uptick of questions about me: including when I’m not around to answer them. Care to share?”

“That’s—that’s not really—“ Drat. Warrior God indeed. Childe bit down on the urge to smile; it’s not often he gets to witness a more forward Zhongli. Sparring with words isn’t his favorite pastime but, like with most things, Zhongli gives them a certain appeal.

Too bad he hates to lose.

“What a deflection! What happened to expressing your gratitude?”

“I assure you, if you have a little patience—“

“I’m not a patience person, Xiansheng, and I don’t exactly take surprises well. But hey, if you don’t want to tell me…” Equal parts anticipation and excitement bubble up as he purposefully bumped into Zhongli, grinning.

Zhongli’s eyes flash. His heart rattles. “Yes?”

“I’ll just have to convince you.”

Although the expressionless facade might have suggested otherwise, Childe knew he had Zhongli right where he wanted him, continuously bumping into the other and listening to the sound of his receding footsteps grow staggered as the two shimmied out of the kitchen. “Ajax..” was an attempt at a low growl, but the brief flickers of unease in Zhongli’s voice betrayed him, only fueling Childe’s approach as a result.

“Xiansheng,” Childe mocked back, his voice going comically low to match the audible attempt at dissuading the redhead from trying anything funny, snickering as Zhongli now attempted to shuffle away, yet Childe always managed to mirror his movements and effectively cornered the other against a wall of the humble abode. “You positive you don’t just want to tell me?” His voice feigned naivety, yet the smirk on his face, as well as the hands that approached Zhongli’s body conveyed a different story. “How about we start with the man at the pier, hm?”

“A-Ah, him, yes, our conversation– I don’t seem to recahaHAHH!”

“Really now? Zhongli, the walking encyclopedia and history buff, unable to recall a conversation from this morning? Frankly, I find that hard to believe.” The little ‘snrrks’ that left Zhongli’s body was all Childe needed to give himself that drive to break Zhongli, on top of extracting the information he needed, of course. All that was needed was for his hands to settle on top of Zhongli’s hips to get the former archon trembling under the way his fingers drummed in sync. “Maybe we just need to jog your memory a bit.”

“Th-That’s not nehehecesahaharry!” The dam finally broke once Childe had converted his light fingertips to gentle digs, feeling Zhongli’s hips spasm under his touch and he relished in Zhongli’s little upturned smile. For all his genteel, Zhongli could be a bit stubborn at times, often stringing Childe along with fancy wordplay and riddles, so a more direct approach often came in handy, especially in times like these.

“You were standing by the pier, yes? And then what happened?

“It’s complihihicahated! I cahahahan’t!”

“Aha! So you do remember!” Childe cried triumphantly, ignoring the hands that were now attempting to stop his own, giving Zhongli’s hips a sudden squeeze, before traversing up and down his sides. “C’mon, xiansheng, I wouldn’t mind doing this all day!”

Zhongli shook his head as breathy giggles left his open mouth, eyes creased in a way that only made Childe want to tickle him more. “AjahaHAHAhahax! Plehehease!” slipped out of his mouth as Childe’s hands began to mess with his ribs, teasing and poking the sensitive area. His reactions grew more erratic and Childe couldn’t help but laugh on his own as he watched Zhongli press his back into the wall, seemingly willing himself to try and phase through to escape the pesky touches.

“Please? How about you please tell me what you might be sche—”

One moment, his hands were gliding over Zhongli’s ribs, drawing out the steady flow of profound laughter just as planned, but the next, the hands that were initially pushing away at Childe soon found their place at his own wrists. There was a brief moment of silence, only disturbed by the sound of Zhongli’s soft breathing. Childe smirked, allowing the other a brief period of respite, only for the playful smile on his face to slowly wither away at the realization that he couldn’t detach his wrists from Zhongli’s hands. Although Zhongli was simply holding his wrists like many other times, there was something off about the way he could barely budge this time. Perhaps elemental energy was at play?

“X-Xiansheng,” he hiccuped nervously, attempting to pull back at his arms at the sight of the cold stare being sent away. A sudden yelp slipped past his lips when Zhongli began to tug him forward and Childe did his best to dig his heels into the floor, but the slippery floor offered no resistance at all. “Xiansheng, this is cheating,” he whined with apprehension. Manifesting his archon powers for a spar with Childe? Most exciting. But using godly strength for what Childe was sure could only be a tickly payback? Not particularly ideal.

“Now, now, Ajax,” Zhongli began, releasing one wrist just to catch Childe off-guard by attacking his side. With his other hand still caught, Childe barely had any distance to jump back with and he shook his head as nervous giggles escaped his mouth when Zhongli simply pulled him back. “It’s foolish of you to presume that I haven’t noticed you and Director Hu doing your own scheming. Perhaps you might be the one that needs some convincing, hm?”

Childe shrieked at the feeling of another hand approaching his hand, crumpling to the floor in over-the-top fashion. In doing so, Zhongli followed him, using this as a perfect opportunity to sit atop the giggly redhead, bringing his hands to each side, one settling on top of his jacket, while the other snuck underneath, prodding the unprotected bare skin. “WAIT— wahahahit!” Childe cried out uselessly, throwing his head back against the floor. “I-I cahahahant!”

“Hmm, I believe those were my exact words just a moment ago, no?” Though his voice remained unchanged, the slight bit of tease to his tone added to the tickling, really bringing those sensations to the forefront. “Perhaps I should just ask Director Hu if you’re unable to?”

“NOHOHO! Dohohon’t you dahahare!” Though Director Hu was his partner in crime, the funeral director could be quite the bag of unpredictability. Despite the shared interest in playing tricks on Zhongli, Childe could only assume that Hu Tao would not be dissuaded from messing with him should the opportunity arise. He kicked his legs out in retaliation at the suggestion of bringing her into this and tried using his own hands to defend himself, hoping to catch Zhongli’s in the process.

“Ah, so if I don’t have permission to approach her, then I suppose you’ll just have to tell me of your plans?”

The tilt of his head would normally be seen as innocent enough, but Childe knew better than to believe his intentions were benign. His struggles grew stronger as Zhongli repeated a kneading motion into his sides, drawing out squeals that Childe would be too embarrassed to admit were his own. “AGHAHAHA! Stop! Stahahap!”

He had to fight back. This was more than just trying to get Zhongli to spill his plans now; if he gave up now, not only would he spoil his efforts, but lose something as silly as a tickle fight! This was not something his pride could simply take.

Childe squirmed as the fingers scaled up his ribs, knocking Zhongli’s hands away from their ascent as much as possible. He knew that Zhongli knew that his offensive capabilities would be basically moot the moment the other could get a few dastardly fingers under his arms, and his thrashing doubled with every rib higher that Zhongli climbed.

There was a single benefit to Zhongli’s pinpoint knowledge on his weakest spots: that he would almost always approach them the same way and thus leave himself open to retaliation.

“Z-Zhongli Hehehe! Let’s tahahahahahalk!” Childe’s legs kicked out as he wriggled upwards, barely restraining himself from clamping his arms down entirely. He needed to keep his arms open but his resolve weakened with every giggly gasp and tickling pinch he was subjected to. Close… closer…! “NAHAHA! Come ahahahahhahaan!”

“Of course. Have I convinced you to—Ah! Ehehe, Ajax!”

Zhongli’s fluttering fingers jolted back as Childe lurched forward, outstretched hands catching him around his waist. In the process, Zhongli’s hands jerked upwards in completion of their journey to his armpits and Childe’s shoulders trembled with focus as they dug in. It was a double-edged sword, restraining Zhongli’s hands by keeping them at one of his most ticklish spots, but it was better than guessing where they’d travel to next.

Besides, it gave him the advantage of pressing forward where he could. Childe planned to do just that, fingers catching on the silver clasps of Zhongli’s coat and digging into the curve of his hips.

“W-WAIINAHAHAHAHA! A-Ajaahahahahax!”

“Lehehehet’s taHAHAHAlk! NAHAHA, SLOW DOWN!”

Their laughter mixed as they struggled, trying to chase any sign of weakness they could reach. Zhongli’s fingers wriggled for what little purchase they could have while trapped which might have been bearable if they were anywhere else; the feeling of his thumbs diving into his armpits instead tickled an unbearable amount and made him want to curl up into a ball. Even so, he refused to let go, one hand finally managing to slip under Zhongli’s coat to skirt along his stomach as the other made its way down to his thighs to elicit a startled yelp.

In some ways, a tickle fight was more fair than any other spar he’d get to have with Zhongli. That being said, Childe would much rather grapple with Zhongli weaponless than feel his face grow humiliating red with every hiccuped giggle, protests dissolving into hapless laughter as Zhongli wrenched a hand free from under his arm and mirrored his action to dance along his exposed abs. Childe’s laughter came out in a pleading wheeze as it traced the lines of his muscles.

His only solace was that Zhongli’s face was tinted just as pink, a flush that grew from his high cheeks down to his neck. Seeing it, Childe pulled Zhongli in close to blow a raspberry against that sensitive skin, mouth twitching wider at the fresh peal of laughter that left Zhongli’s flustered state.

Cheating? Maybe. But Childe was playing a risky game and he knew better than to let his guard down against Zhongli. He squeezed Zhongli’s thighs, dipping his hand towards the sensitive inner half with half-circles he knew drove Zhongli wild. “Surrehehehehehender! Don’t mahahahhaake mehehehe do this!”

“Do whahahaHAHAHAt? WAI—AHAHAHAJAX NAHAHAHA!”

Triumph flashed in Childe’s eyes when Zhongli curled up, hands retracting to try to bat away his wandering hands. His fingers mercilessly trailed the sensitive curves of Zhongli’s hips and thighs, paying careful attention to where the guise of human skin faded to the dark ocher of his Adeptal form. Through past experience, he’d come to discover via… intimate means that the change in sensation between the two textures could be rather startling.

“STAHAHAHAP! ThAHAahahaha’s EeHEhehehehHeheh!” Zhongli screeched. Childe slowed his hands just the slightest, anticipating success.

“I’ll stop if you talk!” Zhongli’s head shook, weak, the weight of his secret laying on his mind and leaving him unwilling to fight back.

Childe pressed forward, pressing light, ticklish kisses along Zhongli’s nape as the other’s face scrunched up adorably; his normally deep, warm laughter turned high and breathless in response to the teasing and Childe’s smile softened. “Come ooooon, just confess and it’ll be aaallll over!”

“A DAHAHAHAHATE!”

“A—what?”

“A dahahate!” Zhongli repeated once more, leftover giggles still finding their way past his lips. Although the onslaught of ticklish kisses had come to a halt, Childe kept his hands ready and waiting, poised to strike at his hips at a moment’s notice. “I-I can’t tell you much, though, as I’m still fin— wAIT! WahaHAHAhahit! Ajahahax, nohoHOHOhoho!”

“Xiansheng, you can’t leave out the details just like that!” Childe tutted, hands once more in motion, giving quick little pinches to the sensitive hips that made Zhongli buck in laughter. His curiosity had been piqued and he wasn’t about to let this opportunity go. “Let’s start with the man at the pier. What’s his deal, huh? Unless…. you’re planning a date with him?”

“NOHOHO!” Zhongli shrieked. Despite using the same tactic as before, Childe’s mock pout seemed to evoke a stronger reaction, just as he intended. “OkAY! Okahahay! I’ll tahahahlk!”

“Promise to tell me everything?”

“Yehehes!” Zhongli squealed after one last bout of tickling for good measure. Childe allowed him a moment to finally catch his breath, eying him with excited curiosity for what he had to say. “Alright, alright,” he shook his head with a tired scoff, “the man by the pier– he’s an experienced fisherman well known throughout Liyue.”

“But is he better than me?!”

“That is to be.. determined.” Zhongli pushed away at the hands that teasingly poked at his sides, giggling when a few managed to make their mark. Childe laughed alongside him as his hands chased the older man, but ultimately allowed Zhongli to sit up in the end and continue explaining himself. “He happens to know quite a bit about the seas surrounding Liyue and best places to fish.”

Childe blinked twice, a visible look of confusion crossing his face. Why would Zhongli need fishing advice from a random stranger when he could easily just come to Childe himself? Surely, the fishing trips that he’d often decline to go with Childe on would hint that the redhead was knowledgeable of his own hobby, not to mention how much Childe like to reminisce about the fishing stories he had with his family.

“It’s related to the date I had mentioned earlier,” Zhongli continued, catching onto the way Childe bit his lip in baffled thought. “I was hoping to set up a fishing date for the two of us.”

“But you could’ve just asked me if you wanted to go fishing?”

“Well, yes,” he paused for a brief moment, “but I had originally planned to take you out as a surprise for White Day, or however it’s called these days. Obviously, I am not well-versed in fishing, or more opportune areas for the sport, and I am unable to go to you if I wanted to keep it a surprise, so I needed to seek out help for proper information, as well as renting a boot suitable for a fishing date. I hope you understand why I attempted to hide my plans.”

“Oh…” was all that left Childe’s mouth in the moment, unsure how to react in the moment. There was a strange feeling beginning to well up at the back of his throat that could only be described as a cocktail of guilt, embarrassment, and gratitude. A mix of jumbled words and muddled sounds filled the room as he struggled to process his thoughts, let alone string together a coherent sentence. His cheeks began to take on many shades of rosy pinks that were exacerbated further by Zhongli's sudden outburst of giggles.

“Loss of words, I presume,” Zhongli chided him teasingly with a shake of his head, before placing a hand on Childe’s own. “May I remind you that you were the one that so badly wanted to learn what I was up to.”

“I– ehe, yeah,” Childe finally muttered, looking down in shame at Zhongli’s hand that had begun to intertwine with his own. “I, uh, sorry for spoiling your hard work.”

He felt Zhongli’s hand tightly squeeze his own as low chuckles rang through the air. “No need for apologies. I too am not totally innocent, after all. You were planning something with Director Hu, no?”

Childe’s eyes widened and he shook his head. “Uh, well, you see, she was just helping me with something.”

“Yes, I am very aware of all the recent times I have to listen to you both giggling behind closed doors.”

“Well, it’s not– it’s stupid, alright!” Childe chuckled awkwardly, but this didn’t seem to deter Zhongli’s curiosity. The other man inched forward with a look in his eye that he had only moments before and Childe began to slide away on his butt as Zhongli inched forward.

“Ajax, tell me.”

“No, I can’t! It’s dumb!”

“You’re exaggerating like usual.”

“No, I’m not!” Childe laughed nervously as Zhongli grabbed at his leg to gently pull him back. The palms of his hands offered no resistance against the wooden floorboards and the two were back face to face like before. “Xiansheng, I really can’t!”

“And why is that? I gave you mine.”

Childe looked away and gave the other a heavy sigh. Zhongli could be really stubborn at times, but he had a point, unfortunately. “You promise not to laugh?”

“Why would I do that?” he said with a perplexed tilt of his head.

“It’s related to White Day too,” he explained quickly, avoiding Zhongli’s eyes, “but I can’t tell you.”

“Ajax..”

“It’s just not– I guess it’s just not as impressive as yours,” Childe finally admitted, throwing his hands up in the air with a heavy shrug as words sprung out of his mouth a mile a minute. “There’s no cool date idea, or fancy boat, or I don’t know, and I tried my best, I swear!”

Zhongli gave him a stare and snorted out of amusement. “You still haven’t told me what you had–”

“It’s chocolates!” Childe finally admitted, cutting off the other with a sigh. “I made chocolates for you. Make. Was going to make.” Childe grimaced as he felt his ears redden, embarrassment surging to his face as his words lingered. “Cliche, I know. I’m sure that you've had tons of chocolate all through your life as Liyue’s Archon too.”

No doubt about that. Childe was well aware how popular Zhongli was–and continues to be–with Liyue’s population. Forget offerings to Rex Lapis: free meals offered at restaurants, scent samples by perfumers, discounted jade and jewels…

“Forget about the chocolates,” he shrugged. “I’ll try to think of something better instead.”

There’s a moment of silence punctuated just by the squeezing of Zhongli’s hand over his before it’s broken by a rumbling noise. Childe blinked, trying to place it, before yelping at a sudden pull of his arm forward.

“What? H-hey, Zhohahangliii!” He squirmed at the feeling of fingers drumming along his sides again, giggles coming freely after already being tired out. There’s that sound beneath his laughter, growing stronger, but he couldn’t quite place it with his own voice distracting him. “Hold on! Ahahaha, wh-whahahat’s that noisehehehhee stahahhaap that!”

“I wonder,” Zhongli hummed, pulling Childe between his arms and drawing his fingers higher to a squeal. “If I’ve done something to offend you. I think not, however…”

“Whahahahat are you—nahahaha! C’mohahahahan!” Childe cackled as one hand teased along his upper ribs, the other squeezing at his hips to make him shout. He couldn’t focus like this! And the noise was getting louder with every centimeter closer Zhongli pulled him.

“What could I have done to make my boyfriend believe that I wouldn’t treasure his cooking?”

May Celestia smite down this stupid Archon. Childe shook his head, smacking into Zhongli’s shoulder in the process and wincing away, only to finally place the noise. “Ihehehehet’s you!”

“Me? I’ve done something?” There was a teasing edge to Zhongli’s question as his fingers skirted down to Childe’s stomach, causing him to gasp and flail. He tried to curl up only for Zhongli to pull his wrists away with one hand, leaving his bare belly at the mercy of the nails clawing along the skin. “It must have been rather awful to lose my chocolate privileges. Could you kindly enlighten me as to how to improve myself?”

“It’s nahahAHAHAHA! Y-youhahahaha—!” Childe squealed as Zhongli nosed along his neck the way he did to the Archon previously, pressing distractingly ticklish kisses along his nape. His face was definitely as red as his soup by now, and getting worse with every passing second between the tickling and the growing rumbling by his ear.

He couldn’t take much more of this after their prior fight, especially with Zhongli taking advantage of his strength to leave Childe unable to protect himself. The ridiculousness of the situation, Harbinger taken down by Archon-ly tickles, was the final straw. “OhHAHAHAK! OHAHAHAHAKAHAY!”

“Hm?”

“I’ll maHAHAhahke thehehehe chocolates!”

Almost instantly, the hands on his wrists and stomach loosened, though Zhongli’s kisses continued along his collarbone prompting more giggles as he sagged in exhaustion. Childe closed his eyes in exhaustion as the kisses traveled upwards to decidedly less ticklish spots, laughter petering off until it was barely audible over Zhongli. “I can’t believe you’re purring.”

Zhongli blinked at him, pulling away from where he’d been nosing Childe’s cheeks with faint surprise. “I recall you stating that you like the sound of it?”

“No, it’s not—urgh.” Childe groaned, leaning his weight entirely onto Zhongli. The god could handle it, no doubt, and probably 100 more of him. “...Are you sure that chocolates are okay?”

The purring got louder. Childe’s lips twitched despite himself, chuckling lightly as Zhongli returned to peppering his face with kisses. When the other got like this, the best thing to do would be to allow Zhongli to handle him as he wished; Childe already knew that he’d have his arms full of cuddly dragon for the rest of the evening. “I guess that’s my answer.”

The rumbling broke for Zhongli to perch his head on Childe’s, leaning over to press his lips against his forehead. Zhongli’s murmur was buried into his hair. “It’s true that I’ve had many chocolates over the course of my lifetime, having seen the development of the industry. And admittedly, it is, as you say, a rather Cliche choice.”

Childe rolled his eyes. “So it sucks. Ah–hehehey! I’ve hahahad enough!”

Zhongli’s snort of amusement wasn’t lost on him, nor the hands left on his waist. He was, however, awarded with a sweet peck on his nose; Childe watched Zhongli curl over him, lips breaking into a dazzling smile, eyes soft. “I’ve lived my entire life tasting food made by the best throughout Teyvat, Ajax. But I can say, without a flicker of doubt in my heart, that my favorite meals have always been yours.”

Unfair. Unfair, and completely uncalled for, with the way Zhongli’s purr picked back up. He hated him. He loved him way too much.

Zhongli’s smile flickered and Childe kissed him, because he could, because he was right there, and because if he did anything else he was fairly certain the beating of his heart would make him explode.

Childe exhaled as they parted, leaning back against Zhongli’s chest to better hear the purr. He did rather like the sound of it. “Yeah, okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay,” Childe grinned, listening to the rumble pick up. “I’ll make you the best chocolates you’ve ever tasted for White Day, how about that?”

Zhongli’s chuckle was warm. “I look forward to it.”

#THE NUIS ARE SO CUTE #I want to tuck them into bed and give their foreheads kisses #mwah mwah so adorable and full o choco

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fuwahua · 1 year

Text

White Day Surprise

Ship: Zhongli/Childe

WC: 6926

Summary: Fluff. Zhongli and Childe both have secret plans for White Day, but what to do when you don't like your partner keeping secrets from you? You might just have to convince them to share~

Collaborated with @ticklystuff for White Day!! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶ Thank you for writing with me!!!

“Ah, right, ah-”

“Xiansheng, speak up! I can’t hear you!”

“But xiansheng, the fishermen are that way.” Childe pointed in the direction opposite of where Zhongli came from. “I saw you over by the docks earlier. Who were you talking with anyway?”

“I should actually get going and fulfill the errand that Hu Tao asked of me,” Zhongli shook his head, motioning with his hand to the stalls.

“Oh, okay! Well, I can go with you if you’d like!”

“Ah, that’s quite alright,” Zhongli half-chuckled hesitantly. “I’m sure you’re busy and I may be a while.”

“You sure? I can help pick out the fish and carry it back for you, if you’d like,” Childe tilted his head as he offered.

“No, no, I-I should be the one to do it myself, since she asked me,” Zhongli said hurriedly, before beginning to step away. “Thank you, though! I’ll see you tonight!”

Zhongli was definitely hiding something.

Childe was scheming something.

But, what other word fitted Childe’s peculiar behavior as of late?

“Ah, Zhongli! Say, what do you feel about this tea?”

“You like this ore, right? Do you already have one? Do you want more?”

“Um, you’re not allergic to anything, right? Like, non-Liyue foods. Sakura, borscht, maybechocolateIdontknow.”

For what?

“Hu Tao! Is Hu Tao here?”

Speak of the devil. A familiar pattern knocks into the front door of Wangsheng Parlor almost absent-mindedly, as though knocking after entering. Actually, that’s almost definitely what happened.

“Is something the matter, Childe?”

“Eh, wha—I thought you had chores to do, Zhongli?”

“Chores?”

“Errands? For Hu Tao, by the pier?”

“Aiya! Haven’t I told you not to bother our customers? Shoo, shoo!”

Zhongli twitches as he’s hastily shoved to the side by Hu Tao’s grinning face. She beams up at Childe. “There you are! You’re late for our consultation!”

A consultation? Without him?

“Ah, well, you know. Busy day at the Bank!”

“Hmph, you shouldn’t be keeping a lady waiting, you know?”

“No.”

“Absolutely not!”

Well. “I’m certain—”

“We’ve dilly-dallied enough here, don’t you think? Shoo, shoo, go be free and consult with others! Away!”

“You heard the boss, xiansheng. But hey, you’ve got some errands to run, right? I’ll see you later!”

“I–that’s—”

Perhaps it’d be easier to say he’s affronted? The slightest bit upset at being left out of their play yet grateful by that very exclusion. More than anything, curious. Deadly so.

He could. He is truly, sorely tempted to.

Thunk!

Scheming. They were definitely scheming.

It’d be wrong to listen in. Luckily for him, there were plenty of other ways to unearth the truth.

“Fish? I never asked him for fish!”

“But he told me he was picking up fish for you, or at least that’s what I think he said.”

“Pfft! As if I’d ever ask Mr. Zhongli of all people to pick up seafood for me!”

“Oh, I thought it might’ve been some cruel joke on your part.”

“So, if he wasn’t running errands for you.. why was he at the harbor then?”

“Xiansheng! I’m home! … Xiansheng?”

The fisherman. Who may or may not be an Adpeti, giving Zhongli’s general company. Childe’s brows furrowed as he sighed, kicking off his shoes and stepping in.

Petty, he knows. Signora would be proud.

“Childe? Are you cooking?”

“What’s with that tone? I’m slaving away in your kitchen and this is the thanks I get?”

He inhaled, unsteady, and paused as he registered the scent on Zhongli. It’d been hard to tell with the pots boiling away but there’s an unmistakable smell of the sea on that suit. Seafood. Fish.

The harbor. “How about telling me the truth?”

“The truth?”

“Why were you really at the pier?”

“Prank?”

“You’re planning something, are you not? Ganyu certainly noticed your recent uptick of questions about me: including when I’m not around to answer them. Care to share?”

Too bad he hates to lose.

“What a deflection! What happened to expressing your gratitude?”

“I assure you, if you have a little patience—“

Zhongli’s eyes flash. His heart rattles. “Yes?”

“I’ll just have to convince you.”

“A-Ah, him, yes, our conversation– I don’t seem to recahaHAHH!”

“You were standing by the pier, yes? And then what happened?

“It’s complihihicahated! I cahahahan’t!”

“Please? How about you please tell me what you might be sche—”

“Ah, so if I don’t have permission to approach her, then I suppose you’ll just have to tell me of your plans?”

There was a single benefit to Zhongli’s pinpoint knowledge on his weakest spots: that he would almost always approach them the same way and thus leave himself open to retaliation.

“Of course. Have I convinced you to—Ah! Ehehe, Ajax!”

“W-WAIINAHAHAHAHA! A-Ajaahahahahax!”

“Lehehehet’s taHAHAHAlk! NAHAHA, SLOW DOWN!”

“Do whahahaHAHAHAt? WAI—AHAHAHAJAX NAHAHAHA!”

“STAHAHAHAP! ThAHAahahaha’s EeHEhehehehHeheh!” Zhongli screeched. Childe slowed his hands just the slightest, anticipating success.

“I’ll stop if you talk!” Zhongli’s head shook, weak, the weight of his secret laying on his mind and leaving him unwilling to fight back.

“A DAHAHAHAHATE!”

“A—what?”

“NOHOHO!” Zhongli shrieked. Despite using the same tactic as before, Childe’s mock pout seemed to evoke a stronger reaction, just as he intended. “OkAY! Okahahay! I’ll tahahahlk!”

“Promise to tell me everything?”

“But is he better than me?!”

“But you could’ve just asked me if you wanted to go fishing?”

“I– ehe, yeah,” Childe finally muttered, looking down in shame at Zhongli’s hand that had begun to intertwine with his own. “I, uh, sorry for spoiling your hard work.”

Childe’s eyes widened and he shook his head. “Uh, well, you see, she was just helping me with something.”

“Yes, I am very aware of all the recent times I have to listen to you both giggling behind closed doors.”

“Ajax, tell me.”

“No, I can’t! It’s dumb!”

“You’re exaggerating like usual.”

“And why is that? I gave you mine.”

Childe looked away and gave the other a heavy sigh. Zhongli could be really stubborn at times, but he had a point, unfortunately. “You promise not to laugh?”

“Why would I do that?” he said with a perplexed tilt of his head.

“It’s related to White Day too,” he explained quickly, avoiding Zhongli’s eyes, “but I can’t tell you.”

“Ajax..”

Zhongli gave him a stare and snorted out of amusement. “You still haven’t told me what you had–”

“Forget about the chocolates,” he shrugged. “I’ll try to think of something better instead.”

“I wonder,” Zhongli hummed, pulling Childe between his arms and drawing his fingers higher to a squeal. “If I’ve done something to offend you. I think not, however…”

“What could I have done to make my boyfriend believe that I wouldn’t treasure his cooking?”

May Celestia smite down this stupid Archon. Childe shook his head, smacking into Zhongli’s shoulder in the process and wincing away, only to finally place the noise. “Ihehehehet’s you!”

“Hm?”

“I’ll maHAHAhahke thehehehe chocolates!”

Zhongli blinked at him, pulling away from where he’d been nosing Childe’s cheeks with faint surprise. “I recall you stating that you like the sound of it?”

“No, it’s not—urgh.” Childe groaned, leaning his weight entirely onto Zhongli. The god could handle it, no doubt, and probably 100 more of him. “...Are you sure that chocolates are okay?”

Childe rolled his eyes. “So it sucks. Ah–hehehey! I’ve hahahad enough!”

Unfair. Unfair, and completely uncalled for, with the way Zhongli’s purr picked back up. He hated him. He loved him way too much.

Childe exhaled as they parted, leaning back against Zhongli’s chest to better hear the purr. He did rather like the sound of it. “Yeah, okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay,” Childe grinned, listening to the rumble pick up. “I’ll make you the best chocolates you’ve ever tasted for White Day, how about that?”

Zhongli’s chuckle was warm. “I look forward to it.”

#zhongchi #chili #childe #zhongli #genshin impact #tickling #my fic #happy white day!!#have some smooches

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fuwahua · 1 year

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hewwos hehe ty for tag!!

relationship status: ;)

favorite color: if kokomi wears it, yes

last song listened to: songs 2 work out to

last movie watched: (clips of) The Menu

top 3 shows: phineas and ferb lmao (new seasons wahoo!!), PMMM, and arcane

top 3 characters: hydro chars also claude fremblem, nico nico niii, and jericho (DC comics)

what i’m currently reading: Banned book club!

tagging: anyone!!

Get To Know Me Tag Game

tagged by @keru0

tyty kerukeru for the tag! starting a new post so it doesn’t get too long

relationship status: i’m kinda seeing someone i met at work hehehe

favorite color: all shades of blue, preferably blue-grey

last song listened to: this song is gay af and y’all should get into it

last movie watched: i watched white chicks and house of wax on saturday.. tbh can’t remember which one was first/last

top 3 shows: bojack horseman, fleabag, and lady parts

top 3 characters: gonna avoid genshin characters since they’d dominate but loid forger from spy x family, claude from fire emblem three houses, and raihan from pokemon

what i’m currently reading: not currently reading anything right now (unless you count work stuff) but i recently finished “i’m glad my mom died” by jennette mccurdy

tagging: @fuwahua and @xsezzie i summon thee (and anyone else can join as well)

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fuwahua · 1 year

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i cant believe im only just noticing but omg ur the one who wrote the childe bday fic? i love ur writing so much muah hope you have a good day!!

Waaaa thank you so much for reading!! o(^▽^)o I’m so happy to see people enjoy the fic, I hope to write more cute and fluffy fics in the future!

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fuwahua · 1 year

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Familiar Faces

Ship: Zhongli/Childe

WC: 3677

Summary: Fluff. Zhongli picks up a doll that resembles his hubby in more ways than one!

Much Belated present for @ticklystuff for 300 followers!! Thank you for your glorious fics I love them ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶

The first time Zhongli sees the doll, it hardly seems of any importance.

Granny Shan does an excellent job of filling her toy store for every child’s whimsy and merriment: her shop is always well-stocked with broad, colorful kites for the summer and hand-carved shovels and buckets for the winter snow. A collection of painted fans, glassy charms, and knitted dolls are a common sight at her stand.

It’s not that the doll is ugly, rather, it’s simple color scheme and small shape had it blending in with the bright bursts of colors and textures offered by the rest of her wares. His eyes had roamed over it as Granny Shan greeted him, gesturing to her more expensive display of clay figures and expensive shells woven into wind chimes, and it had simply faded from his mind.

The second time, however, he realized that this particular doll is quite different from the rest.

“Isn’t that one cute?” Childe’s voice warbled in his ear, bright and cheery, as hands pinched at his waistline teasingly. Zhongli flinched away from the attack, eye twitching, though he obliged to look.

A small doll, little bigger than the palm of his hand, with exaggeratedly rounded features. A large, almost comically oversized head complete with orange felt hair and dull blue eyes embroidered onto the fabric greeted him. On closer inspection, Zhongli noticed that the doll’s chubby body was decorated with gray fabric.

His eyes trailed from the doll to Childe for a moment before he chuckled. “Ah, I see why you like it.”

“Right? Tonia would love it!”

Much to his surprise, Childe reached out not for the grey doll but instead a far more intricate one sitting besides it, with long black yarn locks and a simply fashioned silk hanfu dress. Childe grinned as he ran his hands over it, feeling the fabric. “She really liked the ones last time, and this one looks like it can handle some wear and tear.”

“That one is rather charming,” Zhongli admitted, though his eyes return to the doll he’d been staring at before. “However, wouldn’t you say this one is just as pleasing?”

His fingers closed around the dolls body to pick it up, curiously following Childe’s previous movements of pressing down on the fabric body to ascertain its quality. It felt plush, well-stuffed, and gave under his fingers with ease.

“A-Ah! W-whaha?”

“Childe?”

Zhongli nearly dropped the doll in surprise at his partners sudden shout. Childe’s shoulders scrunched up to his ears, visibly red, with one hand clamped around his mouth. Zhongli abandoned the toy to approach him, laying the back of his hand against Childe’s cheek. Warm.

“Are you alright? Perhaps we should retire to some shade,” Zhongli said. Childe took a moment before his hand dropped, though he still looked bewildered. As though somehow, within the mere two seconds Zhongli looked away, he’d been spooked by something.

Yet he felt nothing in the air. No Adeptal powers nor Abyssal presence. Zhongli frowned, then tempted to draw onto his geo power to check through the land but Childe recovered before he could.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re right. Probably just been under the heat too long,” Childe said. He put the doll back down. “I’ll be back for that, Granny Shan! Keep it safe for me!”

She laughed at him, waving them both away. “Of course! I’ll see you both soon!”

It didn’t take long for them to retire to Wanmin for shade and food. Between an exaggerated story of Childe’s making about a debt collection gone wrong (“A hilichurls stole his mora, can you believe it!? I thought he was making it up but then I chased them down to a camp and they were just stockpiling these bags of mora in crates for some reason!”) and his own tales brought forth by the rich scent of Xiangling’s Adepti Temptation (“Have I ever told you about the origin of this soup?” “Yeah, but I’d like to hear it again.” “Of course, well…”), Zhongli found himself quickly preoccupied with other things.

Yet he finds himself at Granny Shan’s store the very next day. There, still standing in the same spot, is the familiar felt friend.

“Oh? Alone today, Zhongli?” Granny Shan greets. He hums, noncommittal; he’s long grown used to the merchant's gentle probing whenever he arrives at their stores alone. This time, however, he’d triple checked his wallet before arriving.

His hands close around the doll again as his chest squeezes tight. How could he simply dismiss the toy the first time? Indeed, the stitching of the hair and clothing is minimal, one may even say slightly childlike in its unevenness, but the colors and the detail work is charming. Cheerful and familiar.

It looks a remarkable lot like Childe.

Zhongli feels a smile pull at his lips as he affectionately pats the doll’s head. Childe seldom allows him to do so, often pulling away while whining that he’s not a child. Yet, within minutes, he’d always find his arms occupied once more with a clingy Harbinger looking for affection.

His fingers skate down the doll's body, curious. The gray top is sewn to the dolls head, meaning it cannot be removed entirely, but, similarly to Childe’s shirt, it can be opened nearly entirely to reveal flesh colored felt beneath. He pokes at the small blue heart embroidered onto the doll’s stomach. The fabric gives away easily under his finger, almost bouncing back once he retreats, and he pokes it thrice more before tucking the doll’s shirt back down.

“Oh?”

A curious noise escapes him as he stares at the doll’s face. He could have sworn that the eyes that stared up at him before were merely blank, the doll’s mouth a thin line (it had no nose, but he would not spurn Granny Shan for forgoing a simple detail on such a small piece). Now, however, the eyes appeared to almost crinkle at the ends, the mouth curved in a tiny smile.

He must have remembered wrong even if it’s hard for him to believe. How could he forget such an adorable expression?

Zhongli smiles back at the doll, completely won over by its charm. What a delightful toy.

“Granny Shan, I’ll take this one.”

There were few things that could sneak up on Tartaglia, eleventh of the eleven Harbingers, Her Majesty The Tsarita’s Vanguard, part-time Abyssal Herald. Those who could amounted to pretty much the other Harbingers, Her Majesty herself, and perhaps the other Archons.

But somehow, he must have been ambushed and poisoned. There was no other explanation for—

“W-waihahahahat! No, nohahahahaha not there!”

The sudden tickling sensations that would crawl up his body.

Childe slammed his hands over his mouth again as he bent over feebly to protect himself from the invisible perpetrator. Nearly an entire day in his office, forced to do paperwork by Ekaterina after she’d lectured him for half an hour straight on the overdue documentation due to the Qixing, most of which he’d been distracted.

Not even of his own doing! He could cry if not for the laughter freely flowing from his lips, yelping when the sensation drew in closer to his navel again.

“Eeek, coohohohome ohahahahahan!”

Whoever had ambushed him clearly knew him well. Childe’s eyes scrunched up as he barely bit back a shriek as the fingers dipped into his belly button, mercilessly wriggling around despite how he clawed at his stomach to dislodge them. It was, of course, pretty much useless.

Yes, that’s right. No matter how he thrashed or protested, the feeling didn’t go away. Mostly because despite him swearing that it felt like long fingers making their way up and down his torso, every time he opened his eyes he’d find nothing. No hands, no floating fingers, and no marks on his body where nails would be.

What was the strangest possible thing, however, is that the moment he’d begin to feel overwhelmed, the tickling would stop. And it wouldn’t start up again, despite how paranoid he was about it, until he was back to being bored to death doing paperwork.

It was almost as though the weird thing harassing him knew how he felt at any given time. Only, instead of giving him a fight to distract him, it opted to tickle him instead.

“Haha… ahh… what is happening?”

Childe collapses with a groan as the sensation faded, rubbing at his stomach and, again, sees absolutely no sign of anything on his skin.

He had to have gone stir crazy. He stares at the remaining paperwork on his desk, a tower high enough to scare most men, and sighs.

Maybe Ekaterina would let him bring it home.

“I’m back!”

“You’re home early.”

“What, you didn’t miss me?”

“I ached every moment we were apart,” Zhongli chuckles as Childe flushes charmingly at his words. Despite the others fondness for teasing him with such quips, he’d never quite been able to handle Zhongli returning his affection in kind. Surely he’d simply have to continue spoiling Childe until he would. “Of course I missed you.”

“You tease,” Childe accuses with no heat. He kicks off his shoes before stumbling into Zhongli’s arms, sighing happily.

“I’ve hardly done anything.”

“That’s why you’re a tease.”

“I highly doubt—A-Ajax!” Zhongli trembles as fingers begin to prod at his side, a now familiar sensation. Childe so often loved his tickle fights and his most frequent target these days was his lover. “Stahahap!”

“I don’t know,” Childe groans, drawing out the word as though painful despite how his fingers quicken their way downward. Zhongli’s giggles kick up a pitch as he squirms, hands catching Childe’s wrists before they can descend onto his hips. “It’s been a long day and I could really use some relaxing.”

“B-by tihahahahcklihihng mehehehe?”

“Yep!”

Incorrigible. Zhongli shakes his head as Childe presses forward. Truthfully, he could simply pry off Ajax’s hands with his superior strength, but playing like this always leaves Childe in a better mood. He does hunch however as the fingers nearly make it to his hip, only to bump into something.

Childe’s fingers still, surprise written all over his face before he grins. Cute, Zhongli thinks, staring as Childe pulls half away with a raised brow.

“Huh? Are you that happy to see me or something?”

“Wha… oh! Yes, well, I am, but no. I’d almost forgotten.”

Zhongli’s tickling-induced smile melts into something softer as he removes the doll from his pocket. Its rounded face is as sweet as before and he barely resists the urge to pinch its cheek.

“I saw this doll yesterday at Granny Shan’s store and was simply enamored by it. Don’t you think Nuitaru is adorable?”

“Nu-what?” Childe echoes. He squints at the doll. “You wanted this one? Not, like, something covered in lace or embroidered with five hundred year old threads? Or, oh, the felt is imported from Fontaine and the threads from Mondstadt, right?”

Were he a lesser man, Zhongli would roll his eyes hard enough to split Liyue. Instead he accepts Childe’s poorly disguised criticism with grace while cupping his hands around the doll almost protectively. “Nuitaru. He looks like you, does he not?”

Childe does not look convinced. He sighs, angling the doll this way and that, until he swivels its face back into his view.

“Ah, I have yet to show you the magic of this toy. There is a hidden charm, you see.” Though still skeptic, Childe’s expression smoothes out in curiosity as Zhongli cradles the toy. How could he have forgotten?

Matching dull blue eyes stare up at him, one pair Childe’s and one pair Nuitaru. He lifts the shirt of the doll, ignoring Childe’s mock gasp of how scandalous, to point at the small blue heart embroidered.

“This doll has a special function to change its expression! It already is lovely,” Zhongli huffs as Childe rolls his eyes, “but it will smile if you touch this heart repeatedly. Like so.”

He brushes his finger against the blue heart, gently swiveling around the shape, just as Childe screeches in his ear.

“WahAHAHAIT! Nahahahahaha ahahahgahahain!“

“Ajax!”

Zhongli stares, dumbfounded, as Childe’s arms snap to his stomach, curling over in laughter. His love’s face is squeezed tight as he guffaws, shaking his head slightly. He nearly drops Nuitaru in surprise only to catch the doll quickly, squeezing its torso tight and securely, and Childe’s knees buckle as he collapses to the floor in his giggles.

“What is so funny? Is everything alright?”

“Ehehehehe, it just ahahaha!” Childe’s words dissolve into laughter as Zhongli joins him on the floor, tugging him close to lay his head against his shoulder. Childe doesn’t feel warm and he certainly displayed no signs of illness when he first walked into the door. His giggling only lasts a few more seconds before it peters out.

“Ajax?” Zhongli asks again. Worry lingers in his voice. “Are you alright? Why were you laughing?”

Childe’s cheeks color attractively as his eyes turn away from Zhongli. But between the two of them, Zhongli has always had infinite more patience and it doesn’t take long for Childe to begin fidgeting in place of the silence.

“Okay, okay,” he grumbles. “Promise me you won’t laugh though.”

“Why would I?” Zhongli replies. A frown makes its way to his face, tense. “Is someone making a mockery of you? Who are they? What do they dare say—“

“No, no! Nothing so serious, jeez.” Childe interrupts, rolling his eyes. He relaxes after a moment, sighing. “It feels really silly now that you jumped straight into public harassment.”

With the hand not holding Nuitaru, Zhongli reaches up to squeeze Childe’s other hand. “Your troubles will never seem silly to me.”

There’s that familiar flustering of Childe’s face at his words. Zhongli smiles, biting back the urge to chuckle affectionately; Childe didn’t want him to laugh, after all.

“Well, okay, it just, well, it.” How odd for Childe to stumble over his words like this. He watches his love’s face grow redder with every passing second until Childe groans miserably and covers his face entirely with both hands. “This whole day, I couldn’t focus at work.”

“Hardly surprising.”

“It wasn’t my fault today!“ Childe protests. “I tried to focus, okay, but I couldn’t because-because—“

“Because?”

Another groan, longer and most exaggerated than the last. A singular blue eye peeks out from behind his fingers to Zhongli.

“This whole day, it felt like someone was t-tickling me. Like,” Childe shakes his head, turning away. His ears are stained red with embarrassment. “I couldn’t focus at work because all of a sudden, it was like someone snuck up and just started tickling me. Like a ghost? And it was random! You never knew when it would start so I waited to find the culprit but it always stopped really quickly, okay, maybe a little too quickly, just like now, and—“

“Just like now?” Zhongli repeats. Only he and Childe were in his room and the only tickling done was at his expense at Childe’s hands.

“Yeah,” Childe says. “When you were showing your new toy, it just, I don’t know, started up again.”

His new toy… oh! In the commotion, he’d quickly forgotten Nuitaru. Well, in fairness, he’d gotten the doll mostly due to how it resembled Childe, and now that Childe was right here, he could hardly be blamed for being distracted by his love instead.

Zhongli raises Nuitaru from the floor, smoothing out its fabric, when he stills.

Thus far, he’d seen the doll share two faces. One of neutrality, with dull eyes and a thin, straight lip, and the other of joy, with crinkled eyes and a charming smile.

Right now, however, the doll’s face, previously simply a beige felt, appears almost pink. Its eyes are squeezed tight as though embarrassed and its mouth tilted in a mimicked pout.

It almost certainly resembles…

How curious.

“Zhongli? What’re you thinking about?”

He hums. “Ajax, do you feel anything right now? Any tickling?”

Childe averts his eyes again but he does pause to consider it. After a moment, he hums. “Nope. Nothing right now.”

“Then,” Zhongli probes, “what about now?”

With the same hand holding the doll, he nudges the grey fabric back up and thumbs the blue heart. Instantaneously Childe shrieks as his face scrunches up in surprised laughter.

“Whahaehehehehe!?”

A smile splits Zhongli’s face as he watches Childe collapse against him, arms holding tight around his waist as he laughs. “What does it feel like?”

“I-it ehehehehhe tihIhihHICKLEHEHEHEES!”

He moves his fingers away from the blue heart, opting to squeeze the doll’s plush body instead. “Hmm, I suppose it does.”

“Whahahahat do you ehehehe mehehaahahahan!?”

Interestingly, Childe’s laughter softens once he moves away from the heart, though he continues squirming and giggling regardless of where Zhongli prods Nuitaru. A swipe on the doll’s sides earns him a sweet smattering of giggles, a poke on its underarms grants him a snorting protest, and back down to its tiny, stubby feet leads to an absolutely adorable sight of Childe kicking out his legs as he curls up against Zhongli in an attempt to muffle his laughter against his shirt.

He’s so close, fitting comfortably in his arms, that Zhongli can hardly resist the patch of exposed skin lingering so close to his hands. He places Nuitaru on the floor gently, eyes sparkling when he catches the doll’s smiling face once more, before curling his fingers against Childe’s sides.

“Forgive me for my curiosity—tell me, does this feel the same?”

“W-waaHahahait! ZHOHOHAHAHANGLIHIHIHI!“

Childe redoubles his squirming with effort now, pushing away at Zhongli’s probing hands; yet, much to his delight, the famed Tartaglia is truly not trying all that hard to get away. If anything, Childe begins to sag in his giggling after hardly a minute of protest, surrendering sweetly to the tickling and giggling into his ear.

“Do I resemble your ghost now?” Zhongli asks.

“N-nahahahahaha! Nahahahahat at all ehehehHahahaha!“

He stills, surprised. Not at all? Thus far it appeared perfectly that every touch on Nuitaru’s body resulted in one on Childe’s, and likewise Childe’s expressions would appear, though simplified, on Nuitaru’s.

“Why not?” Zhongli prods, almost upset with the revelation. “What’s different between us?”

Childe squints at him through his giggles, debating, before a hand grasps at his wrist and tugs it lower. Zhongli watches himself be dragged from Childe’s exposed side to his stomach until Childe lets go, face red.

“Ahaha… the ghost always got me… here.”

Zhongli blinks, freezing entirely at the unspoken question lingering in Childe’s eyes. He’d always assumed based off Childe’s tendency to scream and protest every time he so much as retaliated during their tickle fights that Childe wasn’t the fondest of the activity. Yet now, watching Childe almost eagerly scoot closer, he was certain that he was wrong.

Childe had complained that the ghost tended to stop a little too quickly. Who was he to disappoint his lover?

“Here?” Zhongli pokes at his stomach, dragging his fingers upwards in slow, lazy circles. Childe bursts into giggles once more, high and panicked, as he instinctively tries to curl up. “Is this where the ghost tickled you?”

“Y-yehehehEhEHEHE! Sloahahahaaw down!”

“I can, if you really wish for me to.” His fingers slow to a lingering scratch, just lightly crawling along Childe’s skin, until he digs in at the curve of Childe’s waist to a shaky howl. “But I don’t think that would be very accurate to your ghost, now would it?”

Childe shakes his head, gasping and laughing. Zhongli hums as his hands wander. While Nuitaru was delightfully soft and small, there was so much more to Childe—hard-won muscles and a thin waist, the perfect amount of lower belly pudge and a, as he’s quickly discovering, particularly sensitive belly button.

The moment he hits it, Childe screeches in protest.

“OkAHAHAHAHAY! OKAHAHAHYNOKAHAHAHY!”

“Okay? Okay what?”

“ZhonhahahahaHEHEHEH! Too muHAHAHAHAHA!”

He hums as he scratches the rim of Childe’s navel a second longer, indulging in his frantic laughter, before coming to a stop. A teasing smile plays out on his face, charming, as Zhongli presses a kiss to the side of Childe’s red cheeks. “How was that? An accurate replication of the ghost?”

“Ehehehevil ghost.” Childe’s giggles slow as he takes in some much needed air, sagging against Zhongli. There’s a crinkle to his eyes, the same that he’d been admiring from Nuitaru all day, and Zhongli finds his heart squeezing tight.

“Did I go too far?” Zhongli kisses Childe again in apology, chuckling himself when Childe still laughs against his lips. An interesting sensation made no less sweet by the way their arms loops around each other.

“No,” Childe admits. “Though I sure hope you weren’t kissing your doll after torturing them.”

“That was hardly torture,” Zhongli says. He does, however, make a show of reaching over Childe to pick up Nuitaru and deliver a wet kiss to its cheeks. Much to his disappointment, unlike with the doll’s body, Childe doesn’t react to the kiss. “You don’t feel this?”

“Uh, should I?”

“It just resembles you so much. And you felt the tickling.”

“It doesn’t even look that much like me! My head is not that big.” Childe argues, faking upset. He watches Zhongli kiss the doll two more times before he ever so rudely knocks Nuitaru from his hands. Zhongli startles as Childe places his lips over his own, insistent.

When he pulls away, there’s a pout on his lips.

“Don’t kiss the doll when I’m right here.”

Ah. Zhongli feels himself grow red, cheeks hot, as Childe’s pout changes to a mischievous grin and a hand comes up to pinch his cheek. “Really? You’re getting embarrassed over that?”

He opens his mouth to retort (what could he say? That he’s so infatuated that every smile Childe sends his way has his cheeks warming, his heart squeezing?) only for Childe to kiss him again. And again, and again.

He’s so distracted he doesn’t even notice Nuitaru’s face has changed once more—to an expression smiling, pink, and so undoubtedly in love.

#chili #Zhongchi #childe #zhongli #genshin impact #tickling #my fic #sorry for long delay i hope u like!!!!#i still dont know how to post on tumblr so please let me know if format is weird

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