vergeltung | 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭

[ ...Right. The agitation. To be honest, in the weirdness of the moment, she's completely forgotten about it, and yet it's what started this whole thing— Well, started this part of it, anyway. In truth, whatever this mess is has been going on since the moment he walked into this cave.

(Barbatos, if she'd just thought to pick any other cave— She'd be dead by now, sure, but at least she wouldn't be enduring... this.)

A breath, her fingers clenching once more at her Vision. ]

Your irritation... involved me somehow?

[ And yet was not directed at her? That made almost no sense, even to a master of oddly-directed agitation like herself. What makes even less sense is his claim that she may not like what he has to say.

No matter which way she tries to piece it together... No, nothing about it makes any sense at all. ]

...Okay. Let's say I'm curious, then. You already have my promise that whatever I hear will stay between the two of us.

[ Whether or not it adds another black mark against the tally in her mental list, though... there's no promise made either way there, nor even a mention of it.

It's probably obvious, anyway. ]

... let's say this. For a moment, imagine if someone were flirting with me in front of you.

(The awkward pause on his part aside, he's bracing himself quite heavily.)

When I thought of you going into the Angel's Share, the thought of Kaeya flirting with you came up and suddenly my stomach began to twist. The emotions I felt didn't feel like it was over coldness.

(And now comes the part where he's readying himself, praying for once to not have to deal with an enraged Eula Lawrence in the midst of a blizzard in the middle of Dragonspine while trapped in a cave. He's tense because he's not expecting this to go over well with her by how he's staying near his sword in the event she herself rises from their bedroll to attempt to stab him or anything.

His own vision was attempting to make his body's resonance react again at the moment too.

Something else that he knows won't go over well enough even as he wishes Barbatos or rather Venti himself, would actually shine over them with some form of good fortune but he'd likely get more enjoyment out of seeing the two suffering in this way. Especially Diluc since he often times cuts him off fairly quick while reminding him of his ever growing bar tab.

He's hoping this isn't about to be a fight.

Surely something would be kind to him, right?)

Edited 2022-11-07 15:48 (UTC)

[ And once again, Eula is left in silence, her fingers tightening still more around her Vision as if it can somehow put an end to the complete and utter misery of the moment. Surely, surely he didn't mean any of that— Despite anything he may have said earlier about not hating her for her name, there's a stark difference between not hating and... and whatever he's describing.

She has no idea that he's bracing himself, but if she were to know, it wouldn't surprise her. If it were anyone else speaking, after all, she'd be likely to deliver vengeance of the swift and angry kind. But she knows him well enough after even just this evening—

(But does she? A moment ago she was telling herself over and over that they're practically strangers)

—She knows that he wouldn't say something like that unless he didn't mean it.

Her fingers are likely white at the knuckles under the material of her gloves, and if it wasn't for the same, the sharp metal decoration around her Vision might cut into the skin. Her voice, when she speaks, is rougher than she would like: ]

But we— We barely know each other. [ What a fantastic objection, Eula. Yanfei would be proud. Her eyes close, her breath rushing from between her lips in another sigh. ] And I'm a Lawrence. And—

[ The words die. That's it; that's all she's got in the way of defense. Largely because the words with which he started his admission are sitting at the back of her mind, reminding her how much she loathes the women who practically throw themselves at Mondstadt's star bachelor day after day. ]

... does it matter whenever I said already that reputation never mattered to me amongst other things? (He's like Kaeya in that regard anyway. Reputation didn't matter, what mattered most was the person they were interested in; though Kaeya's own interest varies more than Diluc's own.) And can we really keep saying that after tonight, today even?

(Even if he didn't know how she felt toward his many suitors. Women saw him as a prize, men saw him as someone they wanted to be. But the truth is that beneath it all he's only one person. Alone. All held as a revered being whilst left to sink further even as he found himself uncertain on how to feel now that he admits he felt jealousy spark at this thought.

Of Kaeya flirting with her.

He did mean it, he wouldn't say it if he didn't feel as if he meant it as he lays there attempting to remind himself that he's not Kaeya involving how he's approaching this. He's not going to lie to her face about any of it.

... even if he did wonder if their secrecy might as well result in worse by how his tension eases only slightly.

He is in fact worrying more than he ever thought since it causes him to wonder just how much of the tension from their disagreements was really deeper than the two of them had thought.)

Do you hate picturing it too? (He won't press her to answer that if she didn't want to. His eyes thankfully hadn't left the blizzard at the entrance nor had he moved any from his position either facing away from her as he had decided on.)

[ In her mind, at least, there's a quick answer to each of his comments.

Yes, it matters. Maybe not to him, but to her— and certainly to the rest of Mondstadt. And yes, they really can keep saying that.

...Sort of.

It's true that she certainly knows him better than she did 12 hours ago. It's true that he might know her better than almost anyone in Teyvat, including members of her own clan. It's certainly true that he's the first person in years to whom she has revealed parts of her that she usually guards much more closely— and within the space of an evening at that.

If all of that is true... are they really strangers anymore?

Her brows crease deeper, a stubborn mental insistence surfacing that yes, yes they are, that an evening wrapped in each others' arms does not closeness make, and her lips part to tell him as much, a sharpness building in the words that die in her mouth, unspoken, when he continues— when he asks her if she, too, hates the thought of...

Eula's eyes close as she tries to summon back a semblance of calm. She swallows. ]

...I find them vapid. [ It's a strange admission to make, to be sure. ] They chase after you for your status, for your name, knowing even less of you than I do. But... that's hardly—

[ It's hardly comparable to what he's described. And how can it be? The images in her mind are all abstract, after all.

A frown. ]

Tell me about one of them.

... Donna who often times is found around Floral Whisper tends to speak of me and only me. She sits and talks to herself or others about me, eyes me from afar and often times sits outside the Angel's Share from her position watching and waiting for me to go in.

(The thought of all that also did not once sit well with him too. He only didn't ask her to stop because unfortunately she was just far away enough that he tried to pretend he didn't notice her. Obviously he knew she did this given that Diluc had the misfortune of being regaled by Kaeya over it and others; that never once was enjoyable to hear either.

Though there is many others, Donna is the sole person who he can name off that sadly left a very strong impression on him with the way she speaks and talks of him.

This being without him naming off he also saved her as the Darklight Hero only to learn she also had a crush on him there courtesy of the Traveler and Kaeya both. He swears at this rate he might as well be cursed if that happened.

It's why he's certain that he can't say that anymore as much as he wants to stubbornly try to. He can't claim they are as much of strangers now than they were before.)

... she's unfortunately the one I strongly remember because of it. There have been open attempts at flirting with me from others, offers, and even them pushing ahead to look at me when I come to town to start preparing for the evening.

[ As usual, she listens in silence, although the second Diluc mentions Donna's name, she feels her blood turn to ice. She knows the girl in question, and has more than once heard her mention her present companion to anyone who'll listen. Of course, she didn't realize that it was to the point that she would watch him each night, and the thought sends an angry chill down her spine, the fingers of the hand still at her side clenching into a fist. ]

I know who you mean. [ Her voice is cold to the point of perhaps being frightening— she has certainly sent men running with less of it leeching into her words— but hopefully he can tell it's not directed at him. ] Although truthfully she sounds more like a stalker than an admirer.

[ And with that, she falls silent for a moment, uncurling her fingers from her Vision, unclenching the other hand, pressing a hand to her chest and just lying there for a few long moments, trying to calm the sudden wave of ice that is trying to claim her.

(Strangely, unlike the blizzard raging around the cave, this ice doesn't feel cold— although she knows it is. There's a moment, a vague thought flitting across her mind, that wonders if he feels it from her the same way she felt the heat from him; that thought is enough to help her stabilize it, her stubbornness simply not allowing her to kill him with the cold after he's worked so hard to protect her from it.)

Another moment or two of silence, and then she speaks, her voice quiet, bitter: ]

I don't like it.

(He's quiet, listening, and did in fact notice the ice resonating off her whenever she starts to show her own agitation at this string of thoughts and by her tone too. Though he isn't going to press too much on it he did start to wonder how much the two of them were prone to ignoring.

His body says everything really.

Getting him to admit this is another story however that he will not be doing yet. That needed more time to begin with anyway as he finds himself starting to have his mind trail back into things he chalked up as his own loneliness and the cold stirring things he has long since thought he buried.

The cold in the brief time from her resonance did cause his body to shudder just a bit before it settles once more from his own resonance shielding him as if he were in need of protection. Regardless... he's not certain where to go with any of this.

All of it is far too new, far too unusual to him.)

... I didn't like what I pictured from Kaeya either.

(Though his own admission was quiet too. His decision to not move is more for both of their sake due to not wanting to dare cross unnecessary boundaries this suddenly despite what they've found out about themselves.

This really isn't what he expected to happen as his tension starts to ease more; he can relax for now until he thinks he may have to do something she'd hate.)

R— Right.

[ It's rare for Eula to stumble over her words, especially something as simple as a confirmation; right now, however, she's in completely new territory— as if she hasn't been all along. From the moment he found her in this Barbatos-damned cave, she's been on the defensive, and yet somehow even if her worst nightmares she doesn't think that she could have conjured something as complicated and uncomfortable as this.

Even a one-sided attraction would be better than this. Rejection, after all, is something she knows how to deal with. But this... ]

I... [ and she's glad he can't see her face right now; there's heat in her cheeks again, her discomfort written clearly over her expression as she tries to think of how to say what's on her mind ] I suppose I... I'm not entirely sure what I am meant to do with this information.

[ From Eula, it's a big admission, even when compared to the one made mere moments before about her dislike of Donna's advances toward Diluc. Attraction and jealousy are one thing. (And she's still not entirely convinced that the cold isn't helping her toward them.) Weakness, though, is entirely another. And this— not knowing what to do, being unsure of herself— this is a weakness.

For a single, wild moment, she almost wishes the stupid Traveler were here— or even Amber. Both of them always know exactly what to say when she's in a bind like this... and while she may curse them to Celestia and back for it, right now she thinks she could really use the help. ]

(If there's one thing Diluc is mindful of it's also really to know when he has to be careful. As she is now, he's not being the least bit forceful in any of his realizations, his questions, and really the way he's speaking to her. This was new to him too. That was the unsaid part for now as he wonders what exactly could be done in response to their accidental self discoveries.

Obviously he isn't going to pressure her either.

But he somehow just knows that part of his mind was not fueled by freezing cold; it was there right in front of him and as much as he hates it... he isn't the type to dislike someone over their family reputation much less their own unless they were connected to the Fatui. Something which made him sigh.

He's better off being honest with her.)

Ironically it's new to me... funny, right? The uncrowned monarch hasn't done any of this before nor has he admitted to such things before. (Yet he also knows boundaries well. The two of them have some form of set boundaries; something they haven't pushed too far despite their current state.)

... Eula, I'll at least say that I'm not going to force you, contrary to now also with the cold, into situations such as this. I said already I am the type of person who is all-or-nothing, if the line gets crossed I want it to be of your choice and something you won't regret.

(And he is quite serious despite his blushing cheeks in saying this too.)

[ If she were being honest with herself, Eula would probably recognize too that this feeling is not one pushed on by the cold, or by the position in which they find themselves. The problem, of course, is that being honest with herself means being vulnerable, and she's done just about enough of that tonight for a lifetime. While Diluc at least can be honest with himself, and recognize that being honest with her in turn makes more sense, she has the struggle of opening up to herself first and foremost.

Still, his words make her smile, even if the expression is somewhat strained. ]

If you were anything like Alberich, I'd find it funny. But despite your status... well, we have made it more than clear this evening that we are not our status, haven't we?

[ And while the deeper emotions in her psyche will be much tougher for him to reach with words alone, what he said now does gain an honest response from her, even if it's far from the whole story: ]

...It's probably less of a surprise that it is much the same for me. [ There have been a few encounters, certainly, the outcome of too many ales and angry words with another bar patron turning later into something heated, physical, regretted immediately in the moments after. But there's been nothing like this, nothing warm and almost gentle, nothing she feels like she could trust even without a vow of secrecy keeping their lips sealed.

She sighs. Something she won't regret, hm? ]

I... At least for now, I can't say I'll regret being here with you like this, Ragnvindr.

(Even with earning her honesty at this extent, he doesn't mind that thankfully. With him being something of a gentleman he prefers to truthfully not behave in a certain way; though he's certain that Kaeya might be there saying they made some form of progress in their current encounter. Likely attempting to search for a drink in his pack to go with the 'mood' before being silenced.

He sighs though it sounds more relieved at hearing she doesn't regret it.

He won't force her honesty or her to be completely open with him if she does choose to cross the line. Even Diluc recognizes that he himself is just as difficult on that front to deal with as he lays there, the positive is his vision at least has some form of telltale signs that he's capable however of being upfront with these things when he must.

Being confronted by it always isn't the best of feelings for him and yet...)

... I don't regret it either in the end, despite a lot of this being... foreign I guess we can say. (And he does know how ironic it is from her comment about his status and his own earlier one. Then again it's more a relief neither of them are truly their status no matter how they're looked at in the eyes of the populace.)

And... if you do desire to step further as I said, it's our own privacy to begin with.

(Vow of secrecy or not, he is a very private person after all with these things. Betraying trust like that never sat well with him either; it's why he would prefer her own comfort in these decisions. Not spurred on due to things.

That and really he thinks despite their reputations that people don't have to know unless she wants them to know, unless he wants them to know no less. Something else Kaeya would likely be 'proud' of that Diluc is doing... though Diluc feels a migraine a little imagining him saying that he's glad the knight turned vigilante is growing up.

... he'll just the next time he sees him cut him off early.)

[ Once again, he's met with silence, the moment stretching as her brain works slowly through the words he's spoken, and she's glad that they're not facing each other because once again a flush of heat works its way up her cheeks. Her mouth feels dry, and she swallows against it, her arms folding protectively over her chest.

If she desires... but what about him? He said he wouldn't push anything on her, but at the same time, that tells her absolutely nothing of what he wants.

And part of her wants to know... even if the other part hesitates at making her vulnerable. He said "all or nothing". If they cross any kind of line here, there's no coming back from that. No backing out when it gets too ~~scary~~ ~~real~~

"irritating" is the world she settles on in her own mind, even as an uncomfortable feeling in her stomach tells her the truth of it.

But in the end, the curiosity wins out, even as her arms fold tighter into themselves, as her throat catches over the words. ]

What about you? [ There's both relief and regret once the question is out— (only it's not regret, it's that same anxious fear that keeps her from speaking out most of the time)— but she presses forward: ] You talk about what I want, and yet you've said nothing of what you do.

[ If she were anyone else, perhaps one of his many admirers, she'd have picked up on the clues he's giving her through his words alone. But she's not someone else— she's Eula. And she has a feeling even as she asks that Amber would be slapping her head in frustration... but still, she needs to know for sure. ]

... Eula, I was saying that I desire for you to do this at your own pace and adding that I have no desire to push or make you move faster than you want to.

(Really he's not certain how else he can spell this out, in words anyway. If he had let himself act on his feelings that were screaming at him he'd have honestly kissed her at this rate. Something which he's reluctant to admit. She might not enjoy this coming out his mouth so bluntly but there didn't seem to be much choice.

Perhaps that's why with him bracing himself again he came to a decision on that part of it.)

If it wasn't for me wanting your comfort over my own, if we were both different people perhaps than we were currently I can admit that I'd have honestly kissed you by now if that says anything.

(By his tone this was by no means easy to admit either. Kaeya would be thrilled, pushing these answers out of Diluc is always entertaining to him much to the scarlet haired 'monarchs' dismay toward his brothers attitude on these things.

He's redder than he'd like to be about it, his temperature rises once more only to be pushed downward for her sake as it attempts to react to his embarrassment and more at the thought of it. He's certain that he may be heading toward her wrath which is why he's attempting to always prepare for these things to backfire.

After his fight with Kaeya... he's certain that he doesn't want to cause another incident like that by clashing with her whether it be intentional or not.)

[ For a single moment, her brain tries to do its normal thing: take the words he's just said and try to twist them, turn them into something that gives her permission to push him away, to declare vengeance, to put a sharp and sudden stop to all of this before it can go further.

And for a moment, it's almost easy— if we were both different people, he says, and she starts to bristle, the indignant words already finding purchase in her brain—

But his tone stops her flat, as does the way that his temperature soars momentarily at her back, even as she feels the chill of ice-cold fear take a grip of her stomach. His tone, his temperature, both make his meaning all too clear even if her brain tries to twist the words, tries to make her think he's wishing she were someone else despite all evidence to the contrary.

Her breathing is short, all of a sudden, and her heart feels like it's going a thousand miles a minute— and this time there's no point in trying to tell herself it's from the physical needs of her body; she knows why it's happening even before she can try to convince herself otherwise. ]

I. [ She gets as far as the pronoun before she snaps her lips shut, her eyes closing in mortification. A breath, a few breaths, and she summons the courage back to continue: ] I've been thinking about the same thing. For... for a while.

(That... was not what he expected. The tension once more fading though he's not moving yet; he did tell her himself that he would not do so unless she wills it. It's why he waits since this is suppose to be done at a pace she wishes for instead of a complete rush. His eyes are trying not to leave staring off straight ahead to take chance to look back at her to make sure she was okay.

He doesn't want her to feel need to rush as he's said.

That's why he dare thinks that Kaeya would be encouraging him further to speak onward, to stop holding it all in if he's sworn to secrecy in the end. Though secrecy from Diluc is as a good as assured knowing just how he is.

His own heart is pounding too, thundering just about as he attempts to make himself calm down. If he over does it... it'd be as good as hurting them both in the end which is another reason why he was not certain if he should have said it.

He can consider this as a fortunate moment by the grace of some other Archon knowing Barbatos or rather Venti, would be too amused by their antics.)

... even now it's still hitting.

(Yet he will not let himself do anything she does not want unless she says something first. He told her that after all when he went to warm her.)

[ He's met with another sharp inhale, Eula's eyes snapping shut again in response to his further admission even as they start to creep open in the wake of hers. Honestly... honestly, it's still hitting her too. As much as she might try to tell herself it's the cold, or the unusual closeness, or any of those things, even lying back to back with him like this she can't ignore the insistence of it. ]

...Yes. Me too.

[ Her voice is quiet, as shaky as her breath feels as it whistles between her lips in soft clouds of heat against the cold night. Her arms tighten against her chest, the pressure there now feeling like she's wearing a corset or something similar, constricting her already-too-short breath still further.

Perhaps unhealthy, but the only way she feels like she can stay grounded right now between the bitter, insistence of her icy thoughts and the desperation in her heart to let herself be washed away in the water of her feelings.

She's silent for a little longer. ]

Perhaps... it would make for a reasonable test, I think.

[ She cringes the moment the words escape her, but the truth of them remains in the air, floating on the other side of him, staring her in the face; her brain and heart alike pushing a last-ditch effort at her to convince her one way or the other. Whether it's just the cold, or something realer than that... ]

...

(He's considering it. She isn't wrong about it even as he tries to pretend that he's not in need of these things usually whilst driving himself to the brink of being unable to think or quite honestly stop himself from collapsing in some form from how much he pushes himself. It's why he doesn't do anything to take the chance by force even as he hesitated a little in shifting around for her.

The hesitation came from his mind arguing once more with him even as he for now just lays there this time again facing her. Even if it's her back. His cheeks were reddened enough that to others this would be quite the surprise to see from someone like Diluc.

He might be silent but it's what he told her he'd do. Though his intentions are to be gentle about it instead of haphazardly rushing forward into these things with her being uncertain herself.

That and... he does have the feeling the thoughts won't stop either way.)

I did say that I won't do anything unless you want me to...

(So the choice is up to her since it's clear by his tone and the fact he turned to face her that he's willing to do this. Even if he thinks this won't stop the thoughts or really what this may perhaps be turning into.)

[ Once again she's met with a strange combination of feelings. For one, there's the mixed anticipation and fear that comes with the movement behind her, the movement of the shared bedroll as Diluc turns to face her back.

For the other, of course, there's the irritation.

At him, again, rather than herself. (Which is something of a relief in its own way.)

Yes, he did say that— but didn't her words just now make her own feelings on the matter clear? He says he doesn't want to push anything, and yet at this rate he's going to force her to say it directly—

Now, he's deserving of the most serious vengeance she can possibly dream up.

It's for that reason that Eula is scowling when she turns to face him once more, the expression so intensely unimpressed that it's no doubt the first thing he'll notice about her— although a marked second is the heightened color of her cheeks, the way her eyes refuse to quite meet his. ]

Surely I've already made my wants on the matter quite clear...

[ Her tone starts sharp, attempting anger— by the end of it, she just sounds vulnerable, weak.

Ugh. ]

(An apologetic glance was given in response to her tone and irritation. Though he sighs about it, were this Kaeya he'd definitely have forced her to say more than just that though he's not necessarily as focused on it. He by no means has experience and if she looked closely he also wasn't trying to look her in the eye either despite himself. Really, the picture of a man who many held up so high was deteriorating into simply someone who forced himself into this state too.

But that is at least him attempting to ease the tension even if he realizes it was a poor attempt at it by how he's trying to pull himself together enough. All of which isn't easy for him to do currently; he told himself he's prepared for it yet now he thinks he overstepped his boundaries by making her irritated unintentionally.

At the very least she's not attempting to slay him where he lays at, so that's a considerable improvement to his thoughts earlier.

He just has to pull himself together enough for this... which is easier said than done.)

... right, my apologies.

(Though he did manage to finally make himself look at her, the tensions back, Kaeya's voice in the back of his mind is telling him that there's an art to this too though Diluc himself would rather experience it without being given long-winded and poetic explanations on how to go about kissing a woman.

Gods above he feels as if he's going to either die after this or be fine after this only to wake up somewhere that is not the winery later on in the week surrounded by whopperflowers without a weapon and in his night clothes.)

[ For as much as she can't bring herself to look properly at him, she can sense that he's not looking at her either; she's sure that if he were, she'd feel it, the way she feels it when eyes are on her as she walks through Mondstadt's cobbled streets. Between that, and the tension in his voice, she feels herself tense a little, her breath stuttered and short.

Gods, if Amber was here, she'd laugh right now. She's reasonably confident that only she could make kissing an attractive man look like the hardest thing in the known universe. And despite herself, she feels the color start to creep up her cheeks once more, especially once she feels his eyes actually on her—

(surely, she tells herself, that's ridiculous; one cannot truly feel a gaze, it's just that in the case of the Mondstadters, she knows it's there)

—Her own gaze shifts, a forced movement up into his face, and her stomach knots to find the scarlet of his eyes looking right back at her.

There's a sudden, strange urge to greet him. She bites it back. ]

You don't have to apologize.

[ They're both woefully out of their depth, after all. ]

(His eyes weren't filled with scorn, irritation, or really the mean spirited attitude that others in Mondstadt hold toward her. They only burned as harsh scarlet flames with a hint of it easing just enough; Diluc isn't certain how this will go truly.

He can still hear Kaeya nagging him despite his not being there saying that Eula is a fine choice for someone like him while attempting to push him into moving finally. His voice saying really this isn't as difficult as they're making it.

Woefully out of depth or not, one of them has to make the first move.

Were this one of those romance novels he can vaguely remember seeing Jean read in his younger years the scene would likely be different for the two of them. Words likely exchanged in a heated attempt of hiding themselves until they could no longer do so even as he takes a deep breath and eases his nerves first.

Since he doubts she would want to move first...)

... at the very least nobody will know.

(He makes it instead for her, leaning forward into a gentle yet likely warmer than expected kiss from his part. It's... not what he expected, on terms of his first, yet it all fell silent.

His thoughts, his tension, every part of him yelling prior to this to turn back due to not wanting to experience more heartbreak in his life.)

[ She has no idea what he's thinking in the moments leading up to the one where he leans in to kiss her, but he's almost correct in his thinking.

It's not so much that she doesn't want to make the first move— in fact, later on she'll berate herself for it, mock herself internally for freezing up like an embarrassed maiden— no pun intended. The truth of it is that she simply can't; rather, she finds herself just staring at him, looking at the burning red of his eyes and the tension in his jaw until he makes the move for both of them, his lips touching hers, gentle and warm.

There's a soft, surprised sound despite herself, her eyes sink shut, and in the next moment is silence, blessed and calm. For the first time in a long time, the thoughts and worries that cage her heart off like ice are gone, silenced by the warmth of his flame.

(She barely even hears the whistling cold winds of the blizzard outside, anymore.)

It's hardly something she recognizes right away; rather, she finds herself melting into him without a second thought, her body seeking naturally to close the gap between them, her hands lifting to his arms, her lips parting to his as she returns the kiss.

She's been kissed before, but it's never felt like this. ]

(It's more difficult to remind himself to not do anything more than this with the feeling washing over them.

He holds her again, melting himself as he wonders idly to himself if she's always felt this soft in his arms but that's a thought he is going to thankfully avoid voicing. He'd prefer to not have his earlier one of waking up without a weapon come true given circumstances at the moment.

It's not easy to pull away.

He can barely think beyond this moment; a feeling that his stomach near knotted over in creeping realization that the feelings were very real. Diluc can feel his heart tightening, burning, screaming as if it does not want to be broken once more to pieces in this moment.

He near forgets to breathe when he pulls away just enough though he's still near her lips, to let them recover for the time being. Any further and this evening would have more than secrets but now that the lines been crossed by them both...

He only hopes she does not have regrets even if part of him wants to kiss her again like that. The thought being of course ignored, for now, even if he's not certain she'd want to do it again so suddenly.)

[ It's over practically as soon as it starts; it lasts long enough only for her to feel his arms move to hold her, only for cold air to fill the space between their lips in the next moment, even as he hovers close. Her eyes blink back open, pupils blown wider than normal, something confused and unsure in her expression for a moment—

It's just like that that all the insecurities come rushing back in, flooding her with discomfort, and it's all she can do not to pull away further, put space between them once more like a shield of ice.

This whole thing may have just been a colossal mistake.

It would be one thing if he were someone she met after hours in one of the bars, both a little too drunk, both passionate with anger. Moments like those are made for regret, practically shimmering with it before they even start; feelings are given a wide berth, and at the end of the day what she gets from it is exactly what she expects.

No one has to get hurt.

But right now, the painful squeeze of her heart says otherwise. Whatever stupid, unfair sway he has over the women of Mondstadt, it's somehow caught her too. And that— that can't end well, no matter which way she looks at it.

Her eyes train onto the space just under the set of his jaw as she tries to keep her breathing steady. ]

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