♛ A knife in my heart couldn't slow me down ♛

[devouringdeep]

Who: Childe (and the rest of you wildlings)
When: All of October
What: An open Catch-all for the Bastard (bc I feel he's gonna need it this month)
Warnings: Mild self harm (as in, "exclusively just to trigger the dimension shift" kind of mild), brief mentions of gore, suicide mention

Comments

oh totally, he’s fine. can’t you tell??

[devouringdeep]

[The question causes him to pause, dagger held in a slashing grip before he’s spinning it to adjust his hold into one more appropriate for stabbing.]

Not really.

[His tone has a sort of flat quality to it, monotonous and unfeeling. Almost as if he’s listing out a mission report, and not discussing the trip he had formerly been quite excited to go on.

For someone usually so boisterous and loud, the quiet tone is a bit... Different. To say the least.]

How’d things go here?

[silentabyss]

[It's definitely different. Noah looks mildly taken aback, but he's quick to sort of wipe the expression away and focus on what's important.]

Nothing happened, really? I-I mean... no one died, and I went to classes, and Nene and I still hang out a lot...

[Like they are literally sleeping in each other's beds but instead of this being something sneaky and not safe for Yogen it's actually just two trauma-bonded teenagers not being able to leave each other alone.]

...s-sorry you didn't have fun. Do you wanna talk about it...?

[devouringdeep]

[Childe's eyes remain on the grip of his dagger, squeezing it tight enough that his knuckles go white and his fist shakes just a bit. He holds the action for several seconds longer, inhaling and holding the breath trapped in his lungs. Then he exhales, the tension escaping with the air, and releases the dagger, which evaporates into a controlled spray of mist.

It's almost like a switch is flipped, and Childe's reaching out to lightly ruffle Noah's hair. Instantly that cold aura is replaced with a bright warmth, and when he calls for a smile to shoot in the boy's direction this time it comes. It's one of the manufactured ones, the one he's specifically tailored to Noah himself. A little bit sheepish, a dash of affection. That open sincerity that took a lot of trial and error to get just right.

It doesn't reach his eyes, but they rarely ever do.]

Ah, don't trouble yourself with it, kiddo. It's fine, honest! I'd much rather put the whole ordeal behind me, to be frank.

[He withdraws his hand from Noah's head, that grin molding into a more playfully toned smirk.] When are you going to pluck up the courage to ask that girl on a proper date, anyway? From the outside looking in, you two may as well already be a married couple with the way you get on.

[silentabyss]

[Well... if Childe says he doesn't want to talk about it, Noah won't press. He doesn't particularly like to be forced to vent either—

The hair ruffle completely shorts out his brain, which follows with a complete bluescreen when Childe says that.]

I-I don't— I mean— we—!

[Stopppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp!]

There are lots of people better for her than me, a-and I... it's not like she doesn't have every boy at the school at her beck and call anyway. A-and... that weird ghost Hanako...

[Noah is positive that Hanako wants him to drop dead, actually.]

B-besides, there's... I mean, we're not even from the same world, and— and when we get out of here, it's not like it's going to matter that we had a connection or anything given that, and I don't think she really likes me that much anyway, I don't like me that much, I wouldn't date me.

[What a long-winded way to say that Noah might be slightly jealous and also that he hates himself.]

[devouringdeep]

[He has enough affection for Noah to feel a little bit bad about how easy it is to manipulate him, especially given he knows how the boy operates. Noah’s a sweet kid, and Childe doesn’t want him anywhere near the blood on his own hands. Not if he can help it.

He lets Noah talk, the slight and sudden faint glow of his vision the only warning before he’s sticking his now-wet finger into Noah’s ear.]

Gonna stop you there, kiddo. She’s crazy about you. And who cares what the future holds, anyway? Live your life for the days to come, and you’re never going to live. [His tone is bright, a hint of teasing mixed in with that slightly serious tone, and he can feel that icy pit in his chest spread through his veins.

He feels almost feverish, the way he’s swallowed down his loud thoughts like this. But he’s good at acting, as long as he stays focused.]

Noah. You’re young. Now’s the perfect time to make the mistakes that will make you happy. The two of you have been dancing around this thing for months, you’ve got a real solid thing here. [The hand on Noah’s hair is back, a little tight in its grip as Childe ducks his head down a bit and leans forward so they’re eye to eye.]

So quit being a bitch and ask her before someone else beats you to it.

[He’s not... Usually one to swear. Clearly this is a significant moment.]

[silentabyss]

What the f—

[Did Childe just wet willy him?! Noah starts trying to slap that hand away, jerking sharply to the side, and then Childe's crouching to meet his eyes and—

Noah's going to hold onto being called a bitch for the rest of his life.]

I— I've never— I mean, I'll try it but I don't know if it's a great idea?

[Congrats on fully distracting Noah from the Childe Is Upset vibes, now he's too flustered to function.]

What would you know about this kind of stuff anyway? Where's your... your credentials?

[devouringdeep]

[Added to the list of Noah's core memories.

He releases his grip on Noah and pulls back, a light smirk at the boy's response the first genuine hint of amusement yet.] My... Credentials?. [That pulls a huffed chuckle out of him, and he's shaking his head as he folds his arms across his chest.]

Well. In my defense I can't say I've ever had the opportunity to fall in love, personally. I'm not opposed to the idea, it's merely... Never lined up. [He's come dangerously close in the more recent times, though even then his work had needed to come first. And he's not about to get into that can of worms, either.] Besides. I don't need credentials to see what's going on. It's kind of obvious, kiddo.