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Kaeya was reversed over the counter. Had he drunk too much? Well, it was hard to say, given the amount of alcohol he ingested every night.
That night he was alone. His favourite drunk-mate Rosaria had some urgent matters to take care of, and had been kidnapped by the Favonius Cathedral’s sisters.
“Have a glass for me too,” she said to Kaeya before being dragged away by Barbara. Kaeya had taken her words as a serious matter, and ordered two drinks per time.
His head was dizzy, his thighs and arms hurt. The missions as a Knight of Favonius were terrible in that period: he was one of Jean’s best ensigns after all, but the Abyss Order was also demanding. In truth, he was seriously thinking to drop the Order. But it is not anytime you go and say "I quit!" to their terrible queen...
His eye glitched for a moment under the eye-patch. He pressed with a hand on it. Memories of past things had his mind wander around. He kept that eye covered to prank people... no, to prank Diluc. And after that, the eye-patch became useful to cover the little gift from the Abyss. If only things had gone differently...
All of a sudden the alcohol stroke him like dead and he passed out, snoring, on the wooden counter.
Then he felt someone touching him.
“Kaeya.” A voice called. “Hey, Kaeya, wake up.”
He opened his eyes. Both of them. He was on a beach. The sea reflected in his deep eyes. White sand was all over his
cheek.
“Kaeya, look! Look at this one! It’s so shiny and smooth!” A little boy, with flaming red
hair, was holding a seashell in his hands. He was smiling. He had a tender voice.
Kaeya tried to stand up and grab the seashell, but he fell down again, right on the hot sand. The other boy laughed.
“Get up!” Said the little one with flaming hair and joyous eyes, pulling his arm. “Come
on get up!” His tone grew deeper and menacing. “I said get the fuck up, Kaeya!”
The sun became a lamp. The sand became wood. And Kaeya woke up for real.
There was no sea before him.
Though, in front of him, there was a guy with the same red flaming hair as the boy in
his dream. Diluc. He was holding his arms crossed on his chest.
“Oh… Master Ragnvindr. It is quite some time we don't meet. What have you been up to,
lately?”
“Kaeya, get out of here. We’re closed.” His orangish eyes were giving him their best
menacing look.
“Ok, ok! I won't cause any trouble, Master. Won't you have a galss with m..."
“Leave at once.”
“I am leaving, see?” Said Kaeya standing up, raising his arms and moving to the door.
Diluc’s eyes followed the shaky movements of Kaeya exiting the Angel’s Share. As
soon as he got out, Diluc said to the man next to him: “Charles, can you close on your own? I have something to do.”
“Sure Diluc. See you next morning.”
Diluc got out of his tavern. The night was cold and silent. Mondstadt was sleeping.
He climbed to the roof of the Angel’s Share. He put on his mask and got lost in the
night.
***
Kaeya walked the streets of Mondstadt. He didn't want to go back home. That last
encounter ruined his evening. He just wanted to relax, but that son of a… That son
of a…
No. He was his brother. His very own brother. Something more than a brother. He missed him. He would have wanted to say everything to him, to tell the truth of the accident and of what happened afterwards. He wanted to see him smile once again as he did when they were kids.
While lost in his thoughts, he realized he wasn't alone. Somewhere over the roofs,
there was something, someone.
Was it someone from the Abyss Order? Did they have words for him? Or maybe Jean had
discovered his game, or someone wanted him dead.
He stopped. And the being over the roof stopped too. Their eyes were on him, he
could feel them piercing through the darkness.
He turned as fast as he could, his vision got brighter, and he directed ice spears
towards the undistinguished presence. The figure escaped, but Kaeya could see it
for a second. A flash of orange-reddish eyes, covered by a white mask.
He kept still, his vision returned back to its normal azure colour. He looked in the
direction occupied by the eyes.
He had watched those eyes all his life. He could not be mistaken. He felt a tear coming out of his right eyes, the covered one. Yes, the eye-patch was a real fortune.
“It seems you won't let anyone else hurt me, right, Diluc?” He whispered to himself, smiling. "I hope when they come for me, you won't be here..."
He continued to walk, slowly, every little street of Mondstadt. He wished the sun would never rise again, so that the owner of those sneaky glancing eyes would never abandon him.