Chapter Text
.::A Dream::.
It was that stormy night when their father died in an unfortunate accident but that accident was planned and Kaeya Ragnvindr knew who did it. He’s been trying to avoid and prevent his father from going anywhere that day but he was distracted. He couldn’t blame anyone but himself for being careless. He should have been there beside him, to secure his safety.
Kaeya couldn’t keep the regret and guilt any longer so he told his brother about it but he never expected it to take such a bad turn.
“D-Diluc.. I… I know the people who orchestrated f-father’s accident. T-They are the ones who abandoned me when I was found by father b-but–” he was not actually abandoned, he flee from them but this is all he could tell him.
His brother’s eyes widened in rage, “You’re… acquainted with them?! You knew their plan all this time?!”
Kaeya let out a pained gasp, “L-Luc, please listen! I–”
“It’s your fault this whole time! I knew you were acting strange these days!! You’ve been keeping father close because you wanted the accident to be successful didn’t you?!” Diluc yelled in pure rage.
“N-No! It’s not like that! Luc please, I kept father close to protect him!”
“LIES! All the time, it’s all lies! I can’t believe you even became part of my family!”
The following words that his brother said broke his heart, his tears started flowing together with the rain.
“You’re not a Ragnvindr anymore, Kaeya Alberich! You’re never my brother and you’re never my father’s son! Remember these words, Kaeya. I WON’T EVER FORGIVE YOU!”
Kaeya fell to his knees as he watched his estranged brother walking away, leaving him under the stormy night. He reaches for him as he continues to tear up.
“N-No… L-Luc… Don’t leave me.. Don’t leave me, please.. B-Bro–”
– – –
“Brother!!!” Kaeya screamed as he reached forward only to see the white ceiling of his dorm.
It took time for him to register where he was. His dorm, he’s in his agency’s dorm. He’s not outside, not under that forsaken storm. The hand that was reaching out now covers his eyes, his other hand clenching on his chest as he tries to calm down.
I’m fine… I’m fine…
After a sigh, he got up and went to the bathroom to wash his face. He has to prepare because they have an early rehearsal for their concert this coming weekend. After drying his face with a towel, he opened the window of his dorm, looking at the harbor of Liyue.
He heard a knock from the door and a familiar voice spoke, “Kaeya? I heard a scream, are you okay?”
Ah, I guess I did scream that loud. It’s been so long since I dreamt about that night.
He takes a deep breath before putting on his ‘usual’ smile. He walks towards the door and opens it, looking at the icy-haired young man standing in front of his door.
“I’m good, no need to worry Chongyun.” Kaeya told him as he ruffled his hair.
Chongyun grumbles, “H-Hey! I just fixed my hair!”
Kaeya laughs, “Sorry, sorry~ But I assure you, I’m fine. I’ll just prepare my stuff and head to our training room, okay?”
“Alright.” Chongyun replied, nodding before walking away as he tried to brush his hair again.
Kaeya chuckles before closing the door. He walks back to his desk and stares at the song lyrics that he was writing last night. He’s actually not the song writer of their band but he just thought that it might be fun to at least try writing. He hums what seemed to be the melody of the song he was making as he traces each word and music notes in the paper before putting it back down, hiding it inside of a book.
Kaeya’s band consists of five people and they call their group ‘The Unusuals’. Each of them have their own unique face masks. He’s actually one of the vocals, he usually sings with Xinyan or Hu Tao but Hu Tao prefers playing with her guitar, she’s mainly a bass guitarist though.
Chongyun, the guy from earlier, is their drummer. Another guitarist from their group is Xinyan and the last person is Albedo, a pianist who doesn't usually join their shows and simply stays backstage to assist with the control of the music, effects and lighting.
The five of them met each other on social media, they usually post videos about them singing or playing an instrument and that’s when they tried to talk with each other. It’s mainly Hu Tao who did that though but thanks to her, they got to know each other and even formed a band!
At first, they didn’t belong to any agency so they simply played in the streets or borrowed some spots in restaurants or bars. That was when they met their short manager, Venti. His agency is called Winding Ballads Productions. There are two more bands in this agency but they rarely see them. Kaeya has some of them and they are good people, they even helped his group to settle in in the agency when they were still new.
After getting all of his things, he headed towards the training room where his friends were waiting.
“Good morning, Kae!” the group greeted.
Kaeya smiles at them, “Good morning! Lovely morning, isn’t it?”
“It truly is.” Albedo hums. No one seems to be bringing up about what happened this morning and he’s thankful for that. Maybe Chongyun already informed them.
Hu Tao claps her hands, “Alright, every hilichurls!”
“Stop with the hilichurls. We’re not like those mascots!” Chongyun told her.
“Ehe~ Anyway, gather up! I have a suggestion for our anniversary concert which is happening next month!” Hu Tao announced.
Xinyan whistles, “Our anniversary huh... It’s almost there! So what’s the plan this time, boss?” she asked her, grinning.
Kaeya smirks in curiosity, “Yeah, yeah! What’s the plan, boss?”
“Fufu~ We should make a new song! One that is a little different from our style, I’m sure Kaeya can still sing with that!” Hu Tao told them.
“Depends.” Kaeya replied with a shrug.
Hu Tao pouts, “Come on, Kae!! You’re our vocalist! Our angel!”
Kaeya laughs, “That’s too much!”
“Even our fans say so! I agree with them, you have the voice of an angel!” she told him.
“I really can’t argue with you, huh.” Kaeya says, leaning on Albedo.
Albedo looks up from the sketch he was working on, “So what will our new song be about? So I’ll know where to start.”
Hu Tao hums, “How about… since it’s our anniversary, let it be about family! We as a band are a family after all!”
“Family… That would be tough since our songs are usually serious but I’ll see what I can do. Kae, can you assist me?” Albedo asked, Kaeya nodded.
“Sure~” Kaeya answered then smiled. Family, huh… That’s right, they are my family now.
Hu Tao claps again, “Alright, let’s start our rehearsal then! To your positions!”
They all stood up from their places and went to their own instruments. Even if Kaeya is a vocalist, he also uses a guitar but not that much. After all, playing it brings bittersweet memories from his past and his bandmates understand that thankfully. They soon started their practice, letting the music fill up the room.
.
.
.
Kaeya sneaks inside their agency’s kitchen and opens up a cabinet, grinning as he sees a bottle of his favorite Death After Noon. He was about to get it only to receive a head chop from their manager.
“What are you doing sneaking around the kitchen for the nth time?” Venti asked, giggling a bit.
Kaeya chuckles, “Hey Manager~ I’m just about to get a bottle of my favorite wine.”
“Tsk, tsk. What did I say about moderation? You already drank some yesterday!” Venti told him, pouting.
“Says you. How many glasses of dandelion wine did you drink this morning, hm?”
Venti froze at the mention of that and nervously looked away, “W-What are you talking about? Ha ha ha, I-I didn’t drink this morning!” he nervously exclaimed.
Kaeya grabs the bottle from the cabinet, still smirking. “Did I catch you red handed?” he asked, chuckling.
“Kaeeyaaa, put that back! You should really control your urge to drink!” Venti told him but Kaeya only shrugs as he closes the door of the cabinet and walks towards the table.
He pops the bottle open but only for Venti to snatch it, “You know, drinking too much is bad for a vocalist like you Kaeya.” Venti warned seriously this time. “I know I should have been strict with you ever since I found out that you love to drink.”
Kaeya just shrugs, “Can I have it back, please?” he asked, smiling.
Venti stares at him before sighing, “Before I give it back, is something bothering you? I remember Albedo saying that you’ve started controlling your urge to drink but it seems he was wrong unless… something triggered you to drink.” he said, catching a flinch from Kaeya. “It seems I was right.” He sat in front of Kaeya, the bottle still in his hand. “Mora for your thoughts, hm? It would be better to share your troubles instead of drinking it away. A lot of people love you, Kaeya. It would make them sad if something bad were to happen to you.”
“I know... Also, please stop saying that. What if we get jinxed and something bad happens to me?”
“Kaeya!”
Kaeya chuckles, “Alright, alright. I’ll tell you but can I still get a drink? Just one glass?”
Venti sighs, “Just one glass.” he repeated before getting a glass from the other table and filling it up with the wine. He returned the bottle inside the cabinet.
“Thank you~” Kaeya takes the glass for him, staring at the wine. “Just had a dream about the past.”
“Oh…” Venti sat up straight, ready to listen more about it.
Kaeya only told him little about his past but Venti knew he got into a bad fight with his brother. They’re not in the same blood since Kaeya was adopted into their family. Venti doesn’t know the reason why the two fought but he has a hunch that the dream is about his brother.
“I just… dreamt about the night that I have long forgotten. I wonder why.” Kaeya said, taking a sip from his glass. “It was really surprising to be honest… To remember that night again.”
“And so you wanted to drink it away so you could forget it?” Venti asked, making the vocalist chuckle.
“It’s the only way. That’s how I usually… solve my problems. Drinking, smoking…”
Venti nodded, “Yeah, I heard about it from Chongyun.”
“He worries too much.”
“He sees you like a brother, Kaeya. You know that right?” Venti asked, only to receive a moment of silence. “He would worry, not just Chongyun but your other friends too. Aren’t they your family now?” he asked, smiling a bit.
“True, they are.” Kaeya mumbles. “I still can’t believe that we reached this far from just being internet friends.” he said, chuckling.
Venti giggles, “It’s a beautiful story, good to be sung in a ballad~ Speaking of which, I heard your band is making a new song for your anniversary?” he asked.
Kaeya nods as he drinks, “About family this time. Quite a tough subject for me to be honest but they look so excited about it so I didn’t bother to say anything.”
“I see. Just don’t push yourself, okay?” Venti told him, Kaeya nodded. “Alright, I’ll be going then.”
Kaeya watches as Venti stands and walks towards the door, “Venti.” he called.
“Hm?”
“Thank you.”
Venti chuckles, “No problem! It’s what I can do for our precious vocalist~”