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He opens the door to find her standing there, crying. ‘Forgive me, please.’ She gasps out, tears streaming down her face.
'Come inside,' Childe urges as he steps out of the way. 'You're going to catch a cold in this rain.
She doesn't reply, instead staring up at him with those beautifully forlorn eyes of hers. 'I'm so sorry.’
He shakes his head. 'Now is not the time. Come inside.'
She takes a shuddering breath and steps inside his house. 'I’m so sorry,’ she whispers again, but Childe doesn't listen to her words as he holds her hand and brings her away from the howling swirls of wind and rain outside.
'How did you find this place?'
'I-' she coughs out a few drops of blood. 'I asked around.'
'You're bleeding,' he says automatically, reaching up to hold her face in his hands. She's so cold, he notices as his thumb flicks away any remnants of rain.
'Who did this to you?'
'I don't know,' She whispers. 'I was too tired to notice.'
Childe doesn't reply as he suddenly pulls her into him, his arms wrapping around her exhausted body.
She cries as she drops her head onto his chest. He can feel a wet patch growing on his shirt, and his heart bleeds out along with the wounds on her scalp and neck, but he doesn’t know what to do.
'Why?' She croaks out. 'Why did you leave me?'
Childe doesn't answer, letting his hands cup her face as he rests his forehead against hers.
'Was it something I did?' She breathes, her eyelashes wet with tears. 'If so-'
Childe doesn't let her continue, pressing his lips against hers in order to shut her up.
It works, but they’re both too upset to enjoy anything.
He pulls away after a few seconds. 'Don't blame yourself. It was my fault, you know that.'
'Was I not enough?' She asks again, her fingers loosening their grip on his shoulders.
‘No.’ He says fiercely. ‘Never say that again. It was never your fault.’
‘Then- why?’
‘I didn't want to put you in danger. But now, I need you to trust me. Can you do that?’ Childe pleads, searching her face for any signs of doubt.
After a moment of hesitation, she nods slowly. ‘I trust you,’ she says softly.
Oh, my poor love, he mumbles into her hair. 'Why did you look for me?'
She takes a second to tuck his coppery hair behind his ear before she answers. 'I missed you.'
'I missed you too. But you can't stay here. You have to go.'
She shakes her head. 'I'm not leaving you again.'
'You don't have an option!’ He says urgently, reaching up to brush her hair off her forehead. 'They're coming for me. The other Harbingers. You're not safe here!'
'I don't care.'
'You need to g-'
'I would rather die than be separated from you again.' She says firmly, her eyes filling up with tears again. 'Please, let me stay with you.'
'My love-' His voice cracks, and he quickly clears his throat before she can sense that he's starting to break. 'Please. I promise I'll be alright.'
'You're lying!’ She cries out. 'You always promise that, but you still come back with broken bones and bruises all over your body!’
He doesn't have an answer to that. He can’t tell her that this time, he may not even come back at all. What can he say? She's right.
She's always been right. And she’s always known that.
And yet, that damned righteousness never stops her from cleaning his cuts and bandaging his wounds whenever he comes home from using his Foul Legacy form, even when he returns in the middle of the night from a mission gone awry.
'This time will be different.' He lies, hoping that she doesn't catch on. 'It's just going to be for a few days, then I'll come back to you for good.'
'Promise?’ She asks hesitantly, her eyes glimmering with the faint assurance of hope.
'Promise.' He chokes out, desperate for her not to catch on. 'I promise.'
'Okay,' She murmurs, pressing her lips to his cheeks in response. 'I'll be waiting.'
He doesn’t have the heart to tell her not to.
Instead, he tilts her face up and kisses his beloved with an unmatched passion, knowing it will be the last time he does that.