Zhongli (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
negeotiation) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
jikan_rpg2021-10-07 06:15 pm
negeotiation) wrote in jikan_rpg2021-10-07 06:15 pm
Entry tags:
[closed]
⌛ Who: Zhongli and Childe
⌛ What: A long awaited bout
⌛ When: Early October
⌛ Where: Somewhere in the northeast of Kyoto, bordering Chubu
⌛ Warnings: Definitely gonna get NSFW between the fighting, blood and the possibly sexy outcomes.
[Childe doesn't get much of an explanation from Zhongli when he requests he join him for an outing towards the northeast of Kyoto: There's something he wants to do there, and 'it's a surprise' might even be uttered if he asks enough.
Not that Zhongli will be silent the entire time between the short ride and the longer walk they need to get wherever he's going. Oh no, never that. Instead he idly chats at length about what he's heard about the region, the plants, the people. The area they're heading to is apparently just at the edge of Chubu, somewhere in the forested areas between Kyoto and the coast.
When they finally arrive, what they find is... well, nothing of great import actually. A small creek, a great deal of trees and fallen logs, lots of rocks. It's just a clearing.]
Hm, yes... this is about right.
[He seems satisfied with... whatever is here?? He sets down the travel pack he's been carrying on a tree stump decisively.]
⌛ What: A long awaited bout
⌛ When: Early October
⌛ Where: Somewhere in the northeast of Kyoto, bordering Chubu
⌛ Warnings: Definitely gonna get NSFW between the fighting, blood and the possibly sexy outcomes.
[Childe doesn't get much of an explanation from Zhongli when he requests he join him for an outing towards the northeast of Kyoto: There's something he wants to do there, and 'it's a surprise' might even be uttered if he asks enough.
Not that Zhongli will be silent the entire time between the short ride and the longer walk they need to get wherever he's going. Oh no, never that. Instead he idly chats at length about what he's heard about the region, the plants, the people. The area they're heading to is apparently just at the edge of Chubu, somewhere in the forested areas between Kyoto and the coast.
When they finally arrive, what they find is... well, nothing of great import actually. A small creek, a great deal of trees and fallen logs, lots of rocks. It's just a clearing.]
Hm, yes... this is about right.
[He seems satisfied with... whatever is here?? He sets down the travel pack he's been carrying on a tree stump decisively.]
no subject
But once the spear materializes in his hand Childe’s expression is quick to change. Not only do his eyes light up, but there’s the faint glimmer of gold flecks in his irises as a result of their kizuna, and the brief, barely there shimmer of something bronze along his cheeks. It’s only visible for an instant before it fades away completely.
Maybe it’s a blush. Who knows, really, but the Harbinger wastes no time in summoning his own weapons. Two Hydro blades form into existence in his hands before he slams the ends together into one long, jagged spear not unlike a harpoon. ]
I guess that explains why you chose somewhere so far away. You’re not going to hold out on me, right? I want you to give me everything.
no subject
The flecks of gold in Childe's eyes only add to the giddy feeling settling in his chest, a feeling so unusual for someone like him. He cannot catch if that is a blush or something else, but it is pleasing all the same, his own smile growing in response.]
I told you, didn't I? I wanted to be sure there was no need for holding back. This was my solution.
[His lips quirk just slightly, expression taking on a challenging tinge. As if in response to his own growing enthusiasm, the rocks and pebbles at their feet tremble.] And I expect you to give me everything in return.
no subject
Even if everything between him and Zhongli is … strange, this he understands. This more than anything, and the fact that Zhongli had finally, finally agreed to fight him spoke volumes.
He wondered how much Zhongli intended to let loose. The Geo Archon… ]
Of course, xiansheng. Don’t think I’ll hold back just because I like you.
[ and without further prompting - he lunges, testing Zhongli’s revolve with a twirl of his spear behind his back before he slams it forward towards the man’s shoulder. ]
no subject
The truth was, he spoke the language of battle just as well as Childe. The truth was, being with Childe often made him feel more like the warrior god he once was.]
And the same goes for me, Childe.
[It's said with warm fondness, but his gaze sharpens the moment Childe lunges. It's almost too easy for him to flip his spear upward, blocking Childe's blow with an ease that is odds with the sheer strength behind it.
A block that is instantly followed by a single foot shooting forward to slam into Childe's gut with a precise pivot, his spear shoving Childe's to the side in the same motion.]
no subject
But he knows better than anyone not to underestimate the Geo Archon in anything, mental prowess least among them. Why should his physical capabilities also go without scrutiny? And it's not like Childe isn't familiar with Zhongli's strength, it's not like he doesn't remember bits and pieces of what went on in his soul in Takamagahara. Perhaps that above anything else is why he was looking forward to their bout even more since coming to Nippon.
Like this, with his gaze sharp and his reflexes sharper, Childe feels that the telltale signs of his love and rush for battle come to the front of his mind. His heart skips when Zhongli blocks the testing blow, fluttering in his chest when the former Archon lifts a leg and kicks to get some distance between them.
But he's spent more than enough time around Zhongli, has honed his Vision abilities through years of practice.
The shield that shimmers into existence at the last second very closely resembles Zhongli's, sans the extra bits looping around its surface. Because it was last minute it's faint and shatters almost immediately upon contact, but it softens the blow enough that Childe is pushed backwards only a few feet, skidding across the ground as Zhongli shoves his spear away. That's fine, he thinks, because he has two hands, and he hunches over while spinning the javelin in the same motion around his arm, then around his back and then forward, not so much stabbing with it as he is throwing the spear right at Zhongli's head in one long, graceful shot that has trails of Hydro arcing along behind it. ]
no subject
Zhongli meets Childe's eyes as that shield shimmers into existence, something almost pleased about the gleam in them, gaze heavy with appreciation and heat. Even if it shatters instantly, it does dull the blow enough that it does it's job.]
Very clever.
[It's both praise and appreciation both: some say imitation is the best form of flattery, after all. And when Childe throws his spear towards Zhongli, a clench of his fist causes bright amber and gold to alight around him, ancient symbols dancing across the surface of his own shield as the spear hits it.
...Not that Childe will have time to pay much attention to that, given the pillar of Geo thrusting itself up from under his feet in the same second. Zhongli takes advantage of the distraction to dart in with a thrust of his spear, movements quick and smooth.]
no subject
But it doesn't aggravate him, no. Instead - instead Childe's face breaks out into a smile, boisterous and exuberant and exhilarated all at once. This is perhaps the happiest Zhongli has seen him, and if there were any doubts about how much Childe was enjoying himself the short laugh that follows after Zhongli's shield flickering between them does well to dispel them.
The ground rumbling and shifting underfoot is the only warning he'll get - and even then, it's a fraction of a second - before he's thrown off balance by the sudden pillar that erupts into existence underfoot, catching Childe on the leg and making him stumble off to the side in response. He scarcely has time to catch a blur of brown and gold and black, his breath catching in his throat because like this, Zhongli looks like he might actually kill him even though he knows he won't ---
-- but there's a reason for the Hydro trailing after his javelin, a reason for the fact that most if not all of Childe's melee weapons are composed of pure elemental energy. A clench of his fist has the javelin suddenly sailing back into his hands with a sharp snap, quick enough that he can raise it to try and deflect Zhongli's own attack even as warmth floods his gaze, eyes brimming with unspoken fondness and affection.
The Vision at his hip glows brighter, if anything, and the telltale ripples of Hydro begin to form underfoot in rapidly growing circles. ]
no subject
It's invigorating, to be facing such enthusiasm, such delight. If he'd had any doubts about going all out in this fight, seeing Childe's happiness on full display has utterly quashed them.
And so when he feels those ripples forming beneath his feet, he knows something is coming. How far will Childe go...?
Expecting nothing less than something spectacular, he reinforces his shield, pushing his advance to shove Childe back. Maybe he'll gain some distance between himself and the attack, but if not--]
no subject
A look of pure heat mingle with the last vestiges of delight in his eyes, further disproving any theories on whether or not he might be enjoying their bout. In the face of Zhongli's shields there's absolutely no fear at all, not because of the notion that the man might go easy on him, but because Childe has enough experience tucked under his belt not to be concerned over a little barrier or two.
As such, when he's pushed back with the shove he goes easily, hopping back several feet in rapid succession like he'd intended to all along. The javelin comes with him, spun between dexterous fingers before swinging off to the side and out of the way. It's a gesture that leaves Childe terribly opened, terribly exposed.
Instead of concern, however, there's only a warm, playful smile.
Zhongli will recognize the tusk of the narwhal as it breaches the ground from his souldive last month, along with the haunting, ethereal cry that seems to float on the air in one long, mournful note. The great Hydro beast rises higher, higher, taller than any building in Liyue, threatening the height of Zhongli's smallest mountains. Its flippers open wide as though it means to the skies but it doesn't, of course, and begins its controlled but no less devastating fall onto the ground and the Geo Archon himself. ]
no subject
But he is too seasoned a warrior to lose his focus so easily, and when that tusk breaches the ground, he knows what is to come. He watches the narwhal rise into the sky with a cry that flows on the wind, taking in the sight of it as it falls.
Truly, impressive. There's a smile on his lips that Childe might or might not see as the whale falls to the ground, seemingly engulfing Zhongli beneath the the sheer force of water slamming into him, but there's a flicker of light--bright gold--that can barely be seen through the crash of waves.
As the water begins to settle, Childe will find Zhongli still standing: damp but protected by a wavebreak of stone that juts from the earth, jagged but solid as bedrock, flecks of gold fading in the air from a spent shield. He won't be given long to realize this, however, as the water won't even be fully settled before he's darting forward with a lunge of his spear, one that turns into a barrage of spears that slam into the ground as he charges, lightning fast. Act quickly, Childe.]
no subject
It's an odd desire to suddenly feel in the middle of a fight, but when your sparring partner is also your bed partner it's probably to be expected. Especially if they're someone as beautiful as Zhongli is, and with the remnants of his shield shimmering gold all around him there really isn't much that can compare with the sight.
Childe knows that as long as he can still draw breath, as long as he can still stand there's always a chance that a battle will turn in his favor no matter how insurmountable the odds. Even if he were to face off against a god he knows that he has a fighting chance, because why throw himself into heretical teachings of the Abyss if not to utilize it against the divine?
He scarcely has time to admire the view of Zhongli standing there, pillar erected and throbbing between them, before the man is lunging at him. One spear turns into two, then three, and Childe forgoes counting the rest in favor of hopping back, immediately re-forming the long, bladed harpoon into his hands in a last-ditch attempt to defend against any encroaching spear attacks. His eyes follow the path every weapon makes as it plunges into the ground, and he thinks he can surmise the trajectory enough that he could knock the blades away from him before they end up impaling him against the earth.
He knows Zhongli wouldn't ever want to hurt him, but what if, tho? ]
no subject
Maybe it was the look in his eyes, the warmth and affection, the delight. Maybe it was the fluidity with which Childe moved, the breathtaking way he reacted without pause to every attack, facing everything Zhongli threw at him with eagerness.
Even as Childe hops back and dodges the incoming spears, Zhongli closes the distance between them in a flash, the spear in his hand slamming into Childe's harpoon with bone-rattling force... and this close it is easy to see the tiny grin on his lips, warmth bright in those cor lapis eyes.]
no subject
Water curls at his bidding, hooking against Zhongli's own as he gives a sharp yank. Not to pull it out of the god's hands, no, but to dislodge it enough he can surge forward with a quick step, ducking down to avoid any overhanging blows and pushing up against Zhongli in the few breathless seconds he's won for himself.
Lips press against the Archon's cheek, over his jaw, then at the corners of his mouth - and then suddenly Childe is jerking back as a torrent of Hydro explodes between them to push them both apart. ]