Work Text:
You were a fleeting figure in Kaeya’s thoughts. Try as he might to wrack his brain for memories, his childhood ones were all a blur when he tried to recall the extra face next to Diluc’s during playtime. His heart yearns when he couldn’t remember your face during the fight he had with his brother, all he remembers is the pain of losing his father, his brother, and the overpowering sense of rain. Even after he took on the role of calvary captain, he spent months looking through archives for a sliver of information, but after so many dead ends, he concludes that worrying over you wasn’t good for his health and he reluctantly closed that chapter in his life. You were once again, just a hazy memory in the back of his mind.
Years pass and he was blissfully sharing drinks with the other knights in Angel’s Share, smiling to himself as he listened to their stories, their adventures, yet still, there is a lingering feeling in the back of his mind that is setting his nerves on fire tonight. His palms are sweaty underneath his gloves, his heart is thumping against his chest, and he can’t tell if he’s experiencing dread or excitement. He can’t figure out what could possibly be getting him like this, it certainly can’t be because Diluc is currently behind the bar working on drinks, he’s never gotten nervous over seeing his estranged brother, so why?
As if the archons have answered his prayers, the door to the tavern opens and his eye is immediately on the two people who are walking in. He spots Klee, her hand tightly wrapped around another as she eagerly pulls them inside, bouncing on her feet and talking animatedly about something he couldn’t quite hear. For a moment he relaxed, happy to see Klee and assuming Alice must have stopped by Mondstadt for a visit, but when he spots you instead of Klee’s mother, his breath hitches. You’re breathtaking, the smile on your face was bright enough to light the entire town, and from how some of the knights were quieting down to also gawk at you, it seemed as though you had gotten more than just his attention. You even got Diluc to pause, eyes wide and mouth open before he’s setting down a finished drink and rushing around the bar to tackle you into a bear hug, surprising both you and Kaeya. Klee is giggling loudly, jumping up and down while chanting “y/n is home! y/n is home!” and its finally then that Kaeya stands to approach the warm scene. Diluc is looking over you, a genuine smile on his face that quickly switches to a small one when Kaeya reaches your side. Your smile however, never left your face even as your bright eyes met with his blue one. Kaeya is nothing but a gentleman, bowing at the hip and taking your free hand in his to press a kiss to your knuckles. You snort out a chuckle, head tilted to the side in amusement that makes the man before you pause, normally that would make other people flustered. Still, he straightens and puts on his signature suave smile, ignoring the clawing feeling of familiarity in his chest.
“My, my, it’s not every day someone as beautiful as you graces this town. What’s your name, sweetheart?”, his aura exudes sex appeal, yet you stood before him, the amusement twinkling in your eyes morphing into one of hurt, and he can feel dread course through him at the small detail. You sigh, letting go of Klee’s hand in favor of lifting her into your arms effortlessly, placing her on your hip much like a parent would.
“Diluc, be a dear and get Klee whatever she wants, its on me”, you quietly spoke to the pyro user, leaning your occupied hip towards the man who obediently took the little pyromaniac into his own arms.
“I’ll get her whatever she wants, but you won’t be paying”, Diluc sends a wink your way before making eye contact with Kaeya, who’s standing dumbly. The relaxed look the redhead’s face morphed into one of disappointment before he’s walking away with an excited Klee. More confused than he’s ever been before, Kaeya feels you wrap a hand around his and then a gentle pull while you lead him further into the tavern and towards the stairs. He hears wolf whistles from the knights, normally he would send a knowing smirk their way, but instead he ignored them, his attention fixed on your back, more specifically the cryo vision on the middle of your back. You pulled him towards a booth, where he sat without question and you settled across from him, a sad smile on your features that has his heart aching all over again. He had to fight the urge to reach over and cradle your cheek in his hand.
“Kaeya… You don’t… Remember me?”, your voice came out quiet, as if scared someone would overhear even if it was only you two upstairs, the sound of the bar down below just as lively as before you stepped inside. Kaeya knitted his brows together, silently contemplating your question. He’s met many people in his life, he knew he would never forget a face as beautiful as yours, yet when he goes through his memories, none of them have you in them. Even if he were to try and reach as far back as his childhood memories, the face next to his brother’s was still a blur he couldn’t make out. The confusion that was still etched on his face was the answer you needed while you rummaged through your bag, carefully pulling out what looked to be a frame wrapped in several layers of newspaper. Carefully, and with a speed that only makes Kaeya’s anxiety rise, you unwrapped the paper and gently laid it on the middle of the table for him to see. The picture, no, the painting that it held made his head hurt, the sudden memories he once lost all that time ago rushing back. The face he was so desperately trying to remember back then was now clear with this painting that his father had made.
It was a small painting, but it depicted the young Ragnvindr brothers with a young you in between them, all bright smiles and holding hands, he remembers that day vividly. Even now he can hear the laughter of you and his brother as you three sat with Crepus at the dining table in the winery. The memory was becoming clearer; you were all celebrating Diluc’s promotion as Calvary Captain, expressing congratulations and discussing plans for the upcoming future. He remembers putting his chin on your shoulder while you ran a finger along Diluc’s pyro vision that you had asked to see up close. You and Kaeya were visionless back then, and he could see how you looked at his brother’s vision with longing. He saw the way you were working hard in your own way, trying all that you can further your potential enough to gain the attention of Celestia. Diluc joked that you should also join the knights, maybe then you could get a vision, but he alongside his brother knew of your fear of weapons, so instead he ruffled your hair and promised you a position at Angel’s Share should you ever need it. The moment was so endearing that Crepus couldn’t help but ask you three to pose for a painting that once had a place on his desk for him to look fondly at. It was unfortunate that he couldn’t look at it for as long as he wanted for soon after, tragedy struck.
The rain was something you all remembered, alongside the fight you witnessed between the brothers. The sounds of metal clashing left you immobile with fear, yet when Kaeya was on his back with Diluc ready to strike a finishing blow, you found the strength to push forward. You found your footing then, pushing through and ready to beg Diluc for Kaeya’s mercy, but when his crimson eyes so full of hatred met with yours, you froze. When he turned the tip of his claymore from his brother to you, you lost the strength in your legs, tears blending in with the rain that was running down your cheeks, soaking your skin with cold. Kaeya could only watch as Diluc spewed venom at you, words that made you flinch back and choke out pleas that went unheard, it was only when his brother began to walk towards you that he broke out of his daze. That was the night he gained his vision, it was also the night his memories of you started to become hazy and warped. He realized much too late that it was a coping mechanism to save himself from the past trauma. The brothers parted ways after that encounter, and you disappeared soon after without a single goodbye, unknowingly also vanishing from his memories.
“Oh Kaeya”, your voice brought him back to the present, and he looked up from the painting to watch you move from your side of the booth to his, hands reaching out to cup his face and wipe the tears he didn’t even know he was shedding. He was overwhelmed with emotions and had many questions but all he could do was whimper your name, his arms hesitantly reaching out to touch you. His guilt of having forgotten you was preventing him from holding you like he wanted, thinking he didn’t deserve to, he didn’t deserve the kindness you were showing him, didn’t even deserve your time. You moved your hands down to his, gently taking his wrists and pulling him closer, wrapping his arms around you as if you had heard his thoughts, noticed his hesitance. He broke then, tightly wrapping himself around you and pressing his face on your shoulder to sob, all while you rubbed soothing circles on his back and whispered reassurances in his ear. Kaeya really did feel a wave of relief wash over him, a weight of something unexplainable lifting from his chest and shoulders by having you here, back in his arms. You sat with him for what felt like hours, shushing him whenever he tried to whimper out apologies and calming him down by humming an old lullaby you knew he and Diluc enjoyed in the past. He lifted his head with a sniffle, looking at your face and committing it to memory, he’ll be damned if he had to forget it again. You smiled warmly at him, your waterline a little red from also shedding a few tears but you had calmed down before he did and dabbed at his swollen eye with your sleeve.
“You always were an ugly crier”, you tsked, and your heart flutters at the laugh that erupts from him. He playfully shoves you, making you laugh in turn, and he pulls you impossibly close, head resting back on your shoulder while you card your fingers through his locks.
“Where… Where did you go?”, he whispered, and had you not been practically fused to him you would have missed it, but you hummed, pressing your cheek to his hair while you told him a brief story of how you got your vision the same night he did and left Mondstadt, and a little after that you met Alice who asked you to accompany her and became her apprentice. You did often return to Mond but never long enough to seek him or Diluc out, you’re usually sent to check on Klee and Albedo and you founded your own little second family in them, it’s only because of your hard work and diligence that Alice all but begged you to take a vacation, and you found yourself back in the city of freedom. Kaeya breathed a sigh of relief, content that you didn’t end up someplace uncomfortable or undesirable and made a mental note to ask you out for lunch so he can listen to your adventures, surely, they’ll be interesting.
“Come, I can practically feel Diluc’s patience wearing thin from here”, you chuckled, reaching over to wrap the delicate painting back in the newspaper and place it in your bag before pulling a whining Kaeya off you. You both exited the booth and walked downstairs, the tavern was mostly empty, only a few remaining regulars that were talking among themselves while you and Kaeya walked to Diluc at the bar. A flash of fear coursed through you when you couldn’t find Klee, but the redhead was quick to reassure you that she was picked up by Albedo just before you descended, and you let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding.
“Thank you Diluc… How much do I owe you?”, you begin to go through your bag, but was promptly stopped when you felt arms around your frame, and you were once again pulled into a tight hug by the pyro user. You didn’t even hear him walk around the bar. You wrapped your arms around him, a giggle escaping you while he nuzzled his head against yours, you relished in the warmth that was him. A moment passed before you both part, and he’s back behind the bar wiping a glass with flushed cheeks.
“That should cover what Klee ordered today”, he says nonchalantly, you stifle a laugh and took a seat at the bar, Kaeya sitting next to you and clinging onto your side immediately. You could feel the jealously radiating off him in waves but decided not to tease him about it, he’s experienced enough today already. You placed your head against his when he leaned his on your shoulder, Diluc announcing to the remaining patrons that the tavern is closing and with grunts of protest they all filtered out, leaving you three alone. Kaeya refused to say anything, as did Diluc since he was finishing up putting away the clean glasses before moving from behind the bar. He removes his coat, placing it on your shoulders but not without shooing Kaeya to remove his head from your shoulder, and you look at him confused.
“What, don’t look at me like that. Come on, let’s go home… I’m sure there’s plenty to catch up on”, his cheeks flush, taking your other arm in his and you stood, Kaeya mimicking you as he still hasn’t let go of the arm he’s got in his hold. He looks apprehensive, it’s been years since he’s returned to the winery, would he even be allowed back? You quietly laced your fingers with his, watching his tense shoulders relax with a smile before looking back at Diluc, who was watching you with a warm gaze.
“Let’s go home, I’ve got so much to tell”