Too many flowers (Genshin Impact, Zhongli)

[Guest]

Hello! I finally got around to write a Zhongli fic we discussed over at Monochrome's wonderful Diluc fic. In this fic, Zhongli is allergic to strong scents such as flowers, which was an interesting idea to use when they were offering perfumes in the Liyue story arc, and I also love allergies so lol even better. Also, even though I chose Lumine in the game, I used Aether in this story since he's supposed to be the canon protagonist, but I definitely want to add Lumine in other stories I write in the future! (I already have an idea for Albedo...)

Without further ado, I hope you enjoy allergic Zhongli 😄. Beware for spoilers involving the entirety of Liyue's story arc.

...

"Hmm... Is there anyone around that knows how to make perfume?" Paimon asked, floating around in search for clues, despite attracting a lot of attention instead.

"Uh... Let's ask some people. There must be someone, right? Someone that smells good, maybe?" Asked Aether.

"Smells good? I think we're the ones who smell good with the flowers we're carrying around."

 Aether started asking some girls who, based on appearance and smell, seemed like the type to use perfume. They didn't have time to slack off, they had to meet with Zhongli in about half an hour in front of the geo statue to offer the perfumes to Rex Lapis. Aether just hoped they could finish in time...

...

"Oh, I think that perfume came out a little strong, darling," Ying'er, the girl they finally found that knew how to make perfume, winced a little when the traveler finished the third perfume. Paimon also grimaced.

"I think we ended up using too many flowers for this one," she scratched her neck, a little embarrassed. "Should we... still offer it?"

"Hmm, don't worry about it, it's just a beginner's mistake. As for using it in Rex Lapis' funeral... Maybe it will add a cool touch, perhaps a little spicy or passionate," Ying'er winked at Aether and he looked down at the strong perfume.

"Are 'spicy' and 'passionate' emotions you should be feeling in a funeral...?" Paimon asked.

"Well, we still have the other two perfumes, right?" Aether peeked at the clock behind them and his brow furrowed. "We should get going."

"Oh crap, Mr. Zhongli must be waiting already! T-Thank you Ying'er, see you soon!"

 Just like that, they ran out of the restaurant they borrowed to make the perfumes and went to the closest Statue of the Seven, being extra careful with everything they were carrying around. The strong scent of the failed perfume was leaving a trail and it wouldn't go away no matter what, Aether was worried it might lead the monsters to their location. Paimon couldn't help but look at the bottle every ten seconds, the smell was getting tiring.

"Ugh, we should have let Ying'er handle this one... The smell will make my head spin."

"Even if it gets approved by Rex Lapis, we should use only a little if we don't want the funeral to be a disaster..."

"Hey, perhaps Rex Lapis likes the more passionate perfumes? That would be fun," Paimon snickered before looking over at the statue a little far away; Zhongli was already there, standing with his arms crossed, staring at the statue. "Ah, Mr. Zhongli!"

 Zhongli looked at them and shot a warm smile as they hurried over.

"Sorry for making you wait," Paimon apologized with both arms behind her back.

"Don't worry, I didn't wait for long. Did you have problems making the perfumes?"

"Not really, but..." The traveler and Paimon shared stares, to which Zhongli raised an eyebrow. "D-Don't worry, we have two perfumes that turned out great!"

"Oh?" Zhongli rubbed the tip of his nose with a finger, a little dubious. There was a very strong scent coming from the traveler that didn't seem to make his nose happy, it had been a while since he last felt an itch so strong. He could handle a couple of flowers like the ones in the store earlier, but this was different. "Well, thank you both. Let us offer them up."

 He tried to refrain from sniffling as his nose started feeling irritated; at least it seemed like the traveler and his flying friend didn't notice a thing. Zhongli blinked a few times, trying to ignore the itch in his eyes, as Aether took out the first perfume from his bag.

"This is the first one we made. It's got an elegant smell, and Ying'er says the daughters of high society love it!" Paimon explains with a smile, apparently proud of herself for remembering every detail. Zhongli nodded in approval, but before he could say anything, his breath started to hitch.

 That feeling brought him back a lot of memories, although he didn't get time to reminiscence about the past when his nose suddenly twitched, and he put a knuckle under his nostrils as he turned away and pitched forward with a restrained "Hh'gKT!" that barely seemed satisfactory. Zhongli let out a small sigh, trying to compose himself despite the persistent itch at the back of his nose, and noticed that Aether and Paimon had gone silence.

"Ah, excuse me," he rubbed the tip of his nose as if nothing had happened.

"Bless you," they both said at unison, and Zhongli gave a nod of acknowledgement. Aether looked a little weary, as if something was bothering him, and looked at Paimon. They shared stares just like before.

"Is something the matter?"

"Uh... N-Nothing, let's offer the next one," Paimon was very easy to read, but Zhongli decided to wait and see what happened.

 The traveler took out the strong perfume from his bag, and Zhongli grimaced a little. He thought the condensed smell of three perfumes was the cause for his itchiness, but turns out only one perfume was causing all the trouble; he was beginning to understand the faces they were making a moment ago. Upon seeing the pink color of the bottle, his nostrils gave a small flare; he even forgot his nostrils could flare at all, which wasn't a good sign.

"Well, uh... I think we used too many flowers on this one," Paimon explained with a hand behind her head. "We wanted to try again, but we were out of flowers and time and-"

"We spent a long time making it," Aether sighed. Zhongli looked at the bottle of perfume, his eyes tearing up a bit.

"I-It's fine," he stammered. He wasn't the type to doubt his words like that, so Paimon and the traveler blinked at him. "You already made it, so might as well offer it to the statue so the flowers don't go to waste."

"That's true... Perhaps Rex Lapis is into this kind of scent," Zhongli would have chuckled at Paimon's remark if it weren't for the fact his breath had started to hitch again. He tried to hold it back so he didn't interrupt her. "Well, Ying'er described this perfume as spicy and passionate, so it's a cool touch for people who—"

"Huh'kGT! Hh'ikgGT'shuh!" Zhongli let out a restrained double that looked difficult to contain, then gave a small sniffle. He looked at the traveler with an apologetic smile. "Excuse me. I guess this perfume isn't a cool touch for people like me."

"Bless you," Paimon scratched her head and looked at Aether. "Uh, maybe it is way too strong. The statue isn't reacting to it either."

"I would be surprised if it did," Zhongli rubbed his nose, which was starting to get reddish, as Aether gave a small apology and put the perfume in his bag. "Now, I suppose there's one last perfume lehh... Huhh'kGT'shhuh!"

"Bless you," Zhongli sighed a little; now that his nose wasn't giving him a rest, rubbing it with his finger wouldn't make a difference. He took out a handkerchief from his pocket and gently massaged his nostrils in an attempt to calm down the allergic itch taking control of his nasal passages.

"I have the perfume in my bag but the smell still lingers around," Aether said, looking a little guilty as Zhongli stifled yet another soft sneeze into the fabric.

"It would've been a disaster if we made everyone sneeze at the rite of parting. We're sorry, Mr. Zhongli."

"Sorry..."

"No, it's fine. I wouldn't ask for any professionalism from a practice as rare as perfume making," he put down the handkerchief and gave a slight rub to the tip of his nose. "Well then, let us offer the last perfume."

"Oh! Right," Paimon thought for a moment, trying to remember what Ying'er told her, while Aether grabbed the last bottle of perfume. "This one was described as elegant, kinda like dusk mist, so older ladies like it!"

 The statue lit up the moment the perfume was offered, signaling it was the right one. Paimon and the traveler smiled with relief.

"Rex Lapis seems to really like this one," Aether said.

"But that's the one older ladies like, right?" Paimon thought for a moment, confused.

"Does that mean... Rex Lapis is actually an older lady?"

 Zhongli chuckled, despite his throat feeling a little scratchy. "Perhaps, perhaps. Rex Lapis has taken over countless forms, perhaps that was one of thehh... Huhh... Hh'kGT'sh! Hahh'ikGgt! Snf, pardon me."

"Bless you. Are you okay, Mr. Zhongli?" Both Paimon and Aether looked concerned.

"Yes, I... seem to have trouble when it comes to strong scents," he massaged his irritated nose with the handkerchief again. Stifling his sneezes wasn't helping, either. "The good part is, we are done with the perfumes, despite the small setback."

"Yeah, that's a relief. Hmm, it's too bad we only got to see Rex Lapis' dragon form," the girl looked a little sad. "Let's hope the Qixing can catch the real killer."

"We can leave that to the authorities. Let us focus on the fond farewell for Rex Lapis," Zhongli gave a wet sniffle.

"So, we've finished another step in our preparations. What's next?" Paimon asked.

"Next, I would like the two of you to borrow the..." The man's eyelids fluttered in anticipation as he quickly turned away, putting the handkerchief under his nostrils. "Huh'kGTshuh! Sorry— I meant to say the Cleansing Bell."

"I think it's better if we get rid of this awful perfume before going there, we don't want to be remembered as the crazy guys carrying a strong scent everywhere," Paimon put her arms behind her back while Aether nodded. "Oh, I know! We can give it to some hilichurls."

 Zhongli gave a chuckle. "That would be an interesting event for the hilichurls."

"So, where is this Cleansing Bell you mentioned?"

"At present, a friend of mine named Madame Ping is the guardian of the Cleansing Bell. She lives near Yujing Terrace. If you ask her, she will know what to do," Zhongli was surprised he could explain everything without yet again being interrupted by an abrupt sneeze. Even so, he definitely had to breath some fresh air to get rid of his allergies before trying to do anything else. "I apologize, but I can't accompany you this time. I have various reasons, but I also need to wait until I stop sneezing."

"We're sorry, we'll get rid of the perfume as quick as possible. You can go cool off while we look for Madame Ping," Paimon and Aether showed a little embarrassment in their expressions, after all, they were the cause for Zhongli's allergies. Despite that, he didn't look mad at all, or even exasperated.

"Thank you. I'll go now, I trust you won't face any troubles."

 Zhongli gave a curt nod and proceeded to go. Both Paimon and the traveler stared at his back until he was a little far away before the flying girl broke the silence.

"He remembers to bring his handkerchief but not any mora?"

"I guess he has his priorities straight," Aether joked, but Paimon only crossed her arms.

"He has some weird priorities. Well, we should—"

"Huhh'dSCHh'uh! Hhh-hihh... Hah'dSSCHh!"

 They got startled by two sudden, soft sneezes coming from far away and looked over at Zhongli, who, according to his posture, was in the middle of massaging his nose with his handkerchief. If he didn't stifle them, then he probably thought the travelers wouldn't be able to hear him from that distance; he had good manners, after all. They decided to pretend they didn't hear a thing.

"We should get going now. Let's find some hilichurls and give them a surprise," Aether grinned before running off to find a camp they hadn't cleared before.

"Hey! Wait for Paimon!"

 Zhongli heard her screams and looked behind him to see them getting ready to surprise some hilichurls that had the misfortune of being close to them. Despite his itchy eyes and runny nose, he couldn't help but smile; they were close to finishing the preparations, and the traveler seemed like a very reliable person. To his dismay, he only wished he was less sensitive to the strong scents of flowers, that kind of image wasn't fitting of the name "Rex Lapis", after all...

Edited February 4, 2021 by Guest
typos lol

[Usagi]

Thank you for this is hot for sure! I love Zhongli!

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Usagi said:

Thank you for this is hot for sure! I love Zhongli!

Oh yes Zhongli is great! I'm glad you liked it 😄

[monochrome]

OH MY GOSH, YOU WROTE THE ZHONGLI FIC!! I'm so happy! And this is AMAZING, I enjoyed it a lot! The perfume quest is really such a perfect opportunity, it's so clever that you worked off of that ;w; I love how Zhongli reacts, he manages to be so distinguished and polite the whole time - it's so nice to see his attempt to stifle (the fact that he stops stifling once he thinks Paimon and Aether can't hear him anymore is really sweet 🥺). 

I love how you characterized everyone!! Zhongli handles the situation so gracefully despite his allergies, which I feel is really fitting for him. I love Paimon and Aether just sort of like, guiltily watching as they realize their failed perfume is the culprit haha. And Zhongli knowing too, but still telling them to offer the perfume because he knows they've worked hard on it 😭Zhongli xiansheng... ahh, I love this take on him so much 💕 💖

Thank you for blessing us with your writing!! I need to take notes on your spellings, they're so good ❤️this is making me feel so inspired to write Zhongli... I've been wanting to write something with him and Childe for awhile now but I keep being indecisive about what situation to write them in. :'D I'm really excited to read whatever you write for Albedo!!

[Guest]

@monochrome Omg thank you so much!! Yeah, I kind of imagined a scenario the moment the perfume quest started, so I'm glad I ended up writing it. I'm so happy you liked my take on him! 💕 Idk just the idea of him being allergic to perfumes despite being a god is so fun to think about, also because he's polite and cute aahhh;;;

 I would love to see what you write for Childe and Zhongli, they have a very interesting relationship (I also finished Childe's story quest yesterday because I had been sleeping on it and he's starting to grow on me lol). Thank you for your words! I feel touched 🥺

[Dye]

Cries oh my GOODNESSSS Zhongliiiiii 💖💖💖 this is incredible, I love the spellings, how he stops stifling when he thinks Paimon and Aether can't hear... His usually strong and stoic demeanor cracked by a perfume awawaaaa

He's so cute 🥺 

(I chose Lumine too bahahaa)

[Spoilers abound for AR40 Story quests] 

I recently finished Childe's story quest and wowowowow I have Such ideas for him.... It's a matter of me getting off my ass and actually writing for once 

If you guys have done said quest then you'll know what I'm talking about 👀👀👀 I am going to make him Suffer (when I get off my lazy ass)

[Guest]

@Dye Aww I'm so happy you liked it! ❤️ And I'm very interested in what you might write with Childe, there's so many scenarios to put him in and it would be nice to see him suffer a little bit lol 👀

[monochrome]

@Blooming  RIGHT? It's so cute to imagine him with allergies because it's such a contrast from his normal distinguished/put-together image... I love it so much 😭 I'm so glad that you decided that he stifles in the presence of others, I hadn't thought of it before but it seriously fits him perfectly?? Like even though he's not totally in control of the situation he still puts in extra effort to be really polite and unobtrusive... it's so sweet  ❤️💕 Also I picked Lumine too!! She's so cute (but I don't get to see much of her bc she's not on my main team... she and Aether are both so wholesome 🥺)

@Dye omg my heart stopped a little when I read that you're thinking about writing Childe, he's like my favorite character (I blame the story quest too for that... he's like one of those characters that I can't bring myself to dislike despite his involvement in the Liyue arc ;w;). I've been seriously craving content w him, so I would seriously love to read for him if you find the motivation to write!!

[Guest]

4 hours ago, monochrome said:

 I'm so glad that you decided that he stifles in the presence of others, I hadn't thought of it before but it seriously fits him perfectly?? Like even though he's not totally in control of the situation he still puts in extra effort to be really polite and unobtrusive... it's so sweet  ❤️💕

Yes!! That's exactly my trail of thought while writing it, he just fits so perfectly as someone who stifles because of good manners, you know? ❤️ I guess this will be my only headcanon from now on lol

4 hours ago, monochrome said:

Also I picked Lumine too!! She's so cute (but I don't get to see much of her bc she's not on my main team... she and Aether are both so wholesome 🥺)

 Yeah, Lumine squad! I have a team just for her even though I only use her for exploration at this point, I just can't let her go 😅

[Akahana]

DELICIOUS - this was wonderful and sweet!!  They're so cute and play off each other so well, but also HOT EARTH DADDY YES

[MikiSan]

HNNNNGH! A peepaw snzfic my day has been made! 

[Evian]

This is the first time I see a zhongli fix love y!

[Sneezyflowergal]

I love this fic so much lol, hope to see more 

[peach_princess]

OMG I was only considering pulling for Zhongli, but my mind is made up now 😍 this is one of the best written stories on the forum, and definitely my new favorite. Please tell me you have more Genshin content?.. 🙏