Chapter Text
Albedo didn’t usually venture beyond his laboratory, much less to the Angel’s Share - known for it’s alcoholic drinks and boisterous customers, neither of which the Chief Alchemist can tolerate. To be honest, he himself didn’t really know why he was here, pushing past sweaty drunkards in an attempt to get to the bar.
Scratch that. Albedo definitely did know why he was here. It was stupid, it was illogical, and it was everything that the supposed genius should avoid in his pursuit of the truth of this world. Truth is - he, yes him, the homunculous made of chalk and held together by nothing but alchemy and spite, was in love .
The him from a few years prior would dismiss love as nothing more than chemical reactions in the brain, meant to aid humanity in reproduction. But that was before Albedo had met the Calvary Captain of the Knights of Favonius - Kaeya Alberich, coincidentially also the last hope of Khaenri’ah.
It was the second title that had captivated him at first. Around two years ago, Alice had brought him to the headquarters of the Knights of Favonius in an attempt to in her words, “find him a proper job.” He must have been introduced to over half of Mondstadt, that day: the Acting Grandmaster smiled at him warmly, the Outrider shook his hand so enthusiastically he thought his arm would crumble, the Captain of the Reconnasciance Company declared vengeance at him multiple times… Then, Kaeya had sauntered up to him, every bit the peacock his constellation declared him to be, and basically shoved his chest in Albedo’s face. At the time, Albedo didn’t really care about that in particular, as he was rather preoccupied with the Calvary Captain’s eyes. The shade was off, but the shape of the pupil was the same as Rhinedoitter’s - his Master’s. Which meant that this seemingly random Calvary Captain was one of the, if not the last Khaenri’ahns alive. In a way, they shared a heritage.
His master was the only Khaenri’ahn that he had known, and whenever she spoke of her homeland (whose downfall she did kind of contribute to, ever so slightly) a certain sort of wistfulness came over her. She spoke of the endless fields of inteyvats, of the way the palace towered above all else, of how the countless stars in the skies were reflected by four pointed stars in the citizens’ eyes. When Albedo came into existence, Khaenri’ah was already nothing more than ruins and ashes. Even so, he found himself curious about the beautiful nation that his master had spoken so fondly about, especially of it’s people that he himself was modeled after. And it just so happens that one of those people was right in front of him.
As a result, Albedo accepted the position of Chief Alchemist and Captain of the Knights of Favonius' Investigation Team. Kaeya, as the Knights' unofficial spymaster, frequently collaborated with Albedo, and before Albedo knew it, they were friends. They had lunch together frequently (though mostly in the lab or Kaeya's office), they went on picnics with Klee...
In time, that friendship grew into something… more. At least from Albedo's point of view. Every time the Calvary Captain greeted the alchemist in the morning or smiled that sharp smile, Albedo felt a strange warm feeling in his chest that he had never felt before. And sometimes Kaeya’s ridiculously revealing outfit slipped downwards… well. Perhaps a homunculous could feel more emotions than he had thought.
Anyways, back to Albedo’s situation in the current day. The reason why he was looking for Kaeya was because the Calvary Captain had dropped his earring in the lab after his visit in the afternoon. Of course, Albedo could just hand the earring back to him tomorrow, but hey a chance to see Kaeya was a chance to see Kaeya, even if it was in this downright vile location. Maybe Kaeya would smile that charming smile of his, when he saw him and his missing earring. Maybe he would drape an arm over Albedo’s shoulder and pull him into his side.
Or… maybe he would be completely absorbed in talking with someone else. Namely, the bartender with red hair who also happens to be Diluc Ragnivindr, the richest man in Mondstadt.
Of course, this usually wouldn’t be of concern at all. Kaeya was just talking to someone else in a bar, as people did. But the way Kaeya looked in that moment-
He smiled like the archons had personally blessed him, eye crinkling at the side. His shoulders untensed, posture relaxing in a way the alchemist had never seen before. Kaeya was happy, and relaxed, and he looked at this man that was not Albedo with nothing but love.
Ah. Was Albedo too late?
He didn’t know much about Diluc Ragnivindr. The other had already left Mondstadt when Albedo arrived, and after his return the alchemist did not see the need to approach him. Of course, he knew the basics: The Ragnivindr owned both Dawn Winery and the Angel’s Share, used to be the Calvary Captain, had a pyro vision, and was apparently the most eligible Bachelor in town. He also knew that every time Diluc and Kaeya interacted, they would devolve into bickering - it seemed clear that the two loathed each other.
And yet right now, as Albedo stood in the middle of Angel’s share, Kaeya’s missing earring clutched in one hand, the two shared looks so fond that they couldn’t be mistakened for anything other than love.
Deep down, Albedo knew that he never stood a chance. Kaeya was charming, and beautiful, so incredibly human in a way the homunculus could never be - of course he would be taken. Putting aside their constant bickering, the two were a good fit, two pieces of the same puzzle: red and blue, fire and ice, outgoing and stoic… one could go on and on. Meanwhile, what did he and Kaeya have between them other than a half-shared heritage?
As he turned to leave, Albedo let the earring in his hand drop. It’s not like him returning it to Kaeya would change anything. In fact, the last thing Kaeya probably wanted was for his colleague to randomly interrupt his conversation. Diluc himself would probably find the earring after the bar closed. When he returned it, would Kaeya smile that smile at him instead?
…Maybe Albedo should have just stayed in his laboratory.