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“Master Dilic, Master Diluc! I have a message for you- it’s from Charles!”
The red head glances up from his paper, raising an eyebrow at his delivery man; tilting his head. The candescent glow of the sunset behind Diluc Ragnvindr was splashed on his back and his hair, the man glowing as he basked in the sunlight.
“Hm? What is it, Ben? Is there a problem at Angel’s Share?” He quietly sets down the piece of paper he had been holding, resting his face in the palm of his gloved hand. The delivery man nods his head, nervously biting his bottom lip. Diluc sighs, standing up from his desk. “Did he give you any information as to why I’m needed there?”
“Something about a rogue customer...he can’t get him to leave.”
Diluc raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. “Very well. Tell Ernest to prepare the carriage. I shall be off immediately. I don’t want to keep Charles waiting.” The delivery boy nodded, running out of Diluc’s study.
A rogue customer...nothing new, really. Though Charles can usually take care of it himself, it seems that things have truly gone out of hand. It must have- if it got to the point where the bartender had to contact him. Throwing on his coat, and tying up his vibrant red hair- the man was out of the building within seconds, quietly watching as the employees of Dawn Winery prepared a carriage for him. After they finished the preparations, Diluc stepped into the carriage, looking over at the coachman.
“Mondstadt, please.”
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It’s been around...thirty minutes. The sun had already set completely, leaving Teyvat in a state of darkness. Of course, it wasn’t completely dark. There were the radiant lamp grass and dandelions scattered along the road, lighting the dirt path up.
Diluc silently looked up at the moon, tilting his head. “How bad must a customer be if even Charles can’t handle them?” He muttered to himself, curious.
Were they throwing the chairs around?
It has happened before.
Were they throwing the other bar goers around?
That hasn’t happened before- but the people of Mondstadt are not to be underestimated.
Especially if they’re drunk.
Diluc chuckles to himself as he thought about the blonde bard that hung out around the entrance of the tavern being thrown against the wall, comedically sliding off of a window.
“Master Diluc. We’re here.”
Diluc snaps back to reality, blinking. The coachman promptly hops to the door, opening for the young man.
“Thank you. You can rest for a bit. I don’t know how long this would take, unfortunately.”
The coachman nods, and Diluc walks towards the gates of Mondstadt.
He waves to greet the two men standing guard on both sides of the entrance, making his way toward Angel’s Share. He stops in front of a few pots of flowers, crossing his arms. Even from the floral stand, he could hear something going on in there.
Charles wasn’t kidding when he said out of hand, was he? The redhead looked over at a nearby lady, who promptly turned red. “How long has it been since the noise began?”
“Master Diluc! Erm...it’s been around an hour...Miss Flora h-had to close the shop since the noise was driving customers away...But it isn’t your fault, don’t worry! (Why am I blushing so hard? And in front of Diluc- this is so embarrassing!)”
Diluc pretended to not hear the...last part of the girl’s reply, nodding. “Ah. I see. Thank you.” The girl’s eyes lit up as he thanked her, her hands shaking.
“No problem, Master Diluc! Have a good night!”
Diluc nodded, and continued to walk, the noise getting louder and louder.
He finally reached Angel’s Share, noticing that there was a lot of shouting in the building.
In front of the tavern was Patton, crouched down with his hands over his ears- the caller clearly shaking. Patton looked up, relief washing over his face. He quickly stood up, bowing to Diluc.
“Master Diluc! Thank Barbatos you’re here- It’s getting out of control! I’m sorry for leaving Charles in there by himself...I was too scared of being pummeled!”
Diluc puts his hand on Patton’s shoulder reassuringly, nodding.
“Go home, Patton. I’ll take care of it.”
He quietly puts his hand on the door handle, about to open it….When he paused.
Huh?
Why was he hesitating? It’s just a fight, right? But if it’s just any normal fight, he wouldn’t be hesitating right now...right?
Diluc closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.
Then he opened the door, a blast of cold air hitting him.
Cyrus- a regular had been thrown from the back of the tavern, slamming against the wall to Diluc’s right. Diluc quickly rushed to the adventurer’s side, looking for any injuries.
“Ah- Cyrus! Are you alright?”
Cyrus scowled, pointing at something behind Diluc.
“I was...I just asking if he was alright! Is this really how a member of the Knight of Favonius acts? Shameful!”
Diluc froze, eyes widening. The cold blast of air…a member of the knights…
Could it be-?
“Go to the cathedral, Cyrus. If you’re hurt, Barbara can help you.” Once Cyrus had left, Diluc stood up, turning around.
Kaeya Alberich was pinning Six-Fingered José’s shirt against the wall with his sword, an unusual red flush on his face. Chairs were knocked over, several bottles of wine littering the floor. Diluc scoffs, stepping towards the pair, José squealing with delight as he sees Diluc approach.
Of course, this idiot was drunk.
“Alberich. Let go of José.” Diluc calmly puts a hand on Kaeya’s shoulder, looking over at José, who had...an unfortunate accident, apparently. Kaeya suddenly turned around letting José go.
And that was the first time Diluc saw the other man’s face that night, his eyes widening as he saw the state Kaeya was in.
Kaeya’s usually neat hair was out of his usual ponytail- it was all over the place; sticking to his sweaty forehead.
As for his face…
His left eye was red and puffy, with a nearly frozen tear stream sticking to his face. His nose was red- and running. And looking at him up close, Diluc saw that he was hiccuping- but clearly not from the wine.
Had he been crying…? It’s not exactly uncommon for drunkards to cry but Kaeya? Diluc swore that the cryo user didn’t have tear ducts.
“D-Diluc…?” Kaeya dropped his sword, throwing his arms around Diluc. The sober man let out a surprised yelp, nearly knocked over by the sudden embrace.
“Get off of me, Alberich!” Kaeya simply shook his head, hanging onto Diluc even tighter. “Kaeya. Get off.” Diluc attempted to get Kaeya off of him, ultimately failing. He scoffed, giving up. He’s going to take him outside, and throw him in with the trash. Then he’d have to pay a few thousand Mora to each person that got assaulted by Kaeya, just so he can keep the image of Angel’s Share.
He looked over at José, struggling to take out a bag of Mora as Kaeya held onto him even tighter. “I apologize for what this man has done. Please take this bag of Mora as compensation.”
Diluc then began walking toward the backdoor, dragging Kaeya along. The redhead wouldn’t admit it, but he was a bit concerned for the blue haired male. Kaeya’s gotten drunk before (Diluc’s thrown him out more times than he can keep count), but it was never this bad.
And...he was never sobbing.
He opens the back door, groaning as he walks through, the weight of Kaeya nearly breaking his shoulders. He promptly closed the door, looking at the bags of trash.
He grabs ahold of Kaeya’s arm, about to throw him down to the garbage- when he finally hears Kaeya talk.
“Dilic...it’s you, right? I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry…”
Diluc froze, suddenly hesitating to throw Kaeya down with the litter. Kaeya was...apologizing? And to him…? He wanted to throw Kaeya down right then and there- to end it right now.
But...something inside of Diluc’s head told him that he should listen to his ‘brother,’ that ‘something’ causing him to hesitate.
He sighs, moving away from the stair railing, setting Kaeya down on the stairs, making sure he was leaning against the railing comfortably. Diluc quietly sits down next to him, hunched over. He was curious, concerned- for once.
“For what? Destroying Angel’s Share, or nearly killing José?” Diluc asked sarcastically, leaning his head on the opposite railing. He gave his brother a side glance, waiting for a response. Kaeya closed his eye, hiccuping.
“For lying to you all these years. I shouldn’t have ever lied to you. But…” He paused, struggling to breathe between his sobs. Diluc closed his eyes, quietly leaning his head against the railing. “I-I never wanted things to be this way...I wanted to mend our relationship so badly…but I can’t even express my feelings properly. I don’t even think I can save Khaenri'ah. I can’t, I can’t…”
Diluc opens his eyes, quietly listening. “I see.”
“A-And, I never wanted to lie to you. I never wanted us to break apart, you know…No matter how much you hate me, I’ll always consider you my brother...” Kaeya trailed off quietly, frozen tears sliding off of his cheeks.
And then...silence.
Diluc sat there, hands clasped between his legs- just thinking. He looks towards the moonlight, sighing. They say alcohol is a truth serum, meaning what Kaeya said was genuine, right? Diluc relaxes his shoulders, looking over at Kaeya.
The other male was fast asleep, quietly snoring under the light of the moon. Distant traces of his icy tears glimmered under the candescent moonlight, his lashes glistening from his tears.
“How many other things are you hiding, Kaeya?” Diluc quietly muttered, standing up. He takes a dark red handkerchief out, lightly dabbing at Kaeya’s sweaty forehead, before walking off, glancing back a few times to make sure the sleeping male was in a safe position.
He walks towards the Knight’s Headquarters, greeting a few guards and adventurers on his way. Once there, he enters the building, lightly knocking on the Acting Grand Master’s door. He knew his way around- he’s worked here before after all.
“Come in, please.”
Diluc quietly opened the door, Acting Grand Master Jean sitting at her desk. He gives her desk a quick glance, furrowing his eyebrows.
“You need to get some rest. You wouldn’t be able to protect Mondstadt if you’re constantly tired.”
“It is my duty as the Acting Grand Master to take care of Mondstadt, Master Diluc. You know how devoted I am to our city.” Jean looked up at Diluc’s remark, smiling weakly.
Diluc sighs, crossing his arms,“You should at least get some rest. What if you fall asleep in battle?”
Jean chuckled a little, tilting her head, “I didn’t know you liked to joke around, Master Diluc. Anyways- what brings you here?”
Diluc looked out of the window behind Jean, staring at the luminescent moon. “I need you to come help me grab your Cavalry Captain. He’s had a bit much to drink.” Jean stood up from her desk, stretching.
“Well, I suppose a short walk wouldn’t hurt. But that’s strange… wouldn’t you usually just dump him in the trash?”
Diluc shrugged, looking at Jean, “He’s done some questionable things tonight. It might be best if he wakes up in his bed and thinks it was all a dream.” Jean raises an eyebrow- obviously curious as to what Kaeya has done. But she stayed quiet, simply pointing at the door.
“Lead the way, Master Diluc.”
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Kaeya Alberich wakes up in his bed the next morning, still sweaty and still in his clothes from the night before. A mysterious dark red handkerchief found its way onto his nightstand, its owner nowhere to be seen.