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Kaeya was NOT sick. Well, he was sick, but he had no intention of admitting it. There was too much to do and he couldn’t stand staying at home doing nothing… and being alone. Instead he was about to head out for his patrol, also alone. The Knights who had been assigned to the patrol were out for the day, being sick themselves. As a captain, it was Kaeya’s job to pick up the slack and this particular patrol had already been put off several days.
He’d slipped out of the Knights building, making sure to avoid Jean, leaving a message for her that he was headed out of the city. She didn’t need to know he was a little under the weather, he didn’t want to add more to her long list of worries. On the way past Good Hunter Sara stopped him.
“Here you go, your usual patrol lunch!” She pushed the package into his hands as someone called her name. “Busy today, be careful out there!” She said, turning away.
The smell immediately made his stomach churn and he swallowed a few times to keep down what little was already in his stomach, thankful that he’d only eaten some toast.
He was mere feet from the gate when his name was called again. He turned to the green clad bard who had been roaming the streets and playing his lyre. Kaeya had noticed this was his morning routine. He knew almost everyone’s routines, it was part of his job.
He tried to clear the tickle in his throat, “Venti, how are you today?” His normally smooth voice came out a bit rough.
Venti’s eyes narrowed at him and concern replaced his vibrant smile. “Sir Kaeya, are you ok? That’s a silly question, isn’t it. You don’t look well, so why would you be ok?” The bard shook his head. “I could make you some soup! Of course, I don’t have the ingredients for soup, but I’m sure I could get some-”
Kaeya cut him off, “No, no! I’m fine.” He looked down at the food in his hands and shoved it at Venti, “Actually, I have some food for you. I have to head out now, enjoy your breakfast.”
Before Venti could say a word Kaeya was out the gate, not looking back to see the confused look on the bard’s face. His patrol today should be a simple one. Check in with the adventurer’s camp at the base of Dragonspine, clearing the road there, then head back to Mondstadt. The sooner he was done, the better.
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He moved slower than normal. Clearing the camps had sapped a lot of energy and left him coughing more than once, but he had finally made it to the adventurer’s camp. Even through the layers of clothing he had worn, Kaeya was freezing. He had planned on checking in with Iris, then sitting by the stove for a few minutes before heading back to the city. He should have known better. Stevens, the researcher who was always there, came up to him as soon as he entered the camp.
“Captain Kaeya! I’m so glad you’re here. I was headed to the north side of the mountain, across the river. I thought there might be more texts there and if I could find them then there might be some clues as to where others are and…”
The man continued on for what seemed like an eternity, oblivious to Kaeya’s chattering teeth, red cheeks and over-all tired appearance. Kaeya half zoned out by the time Stevens got to the point.
“... I’m lucky I was hidden behind that rock or I’m sure those treasure hoarders would have gotten me! What if they found those texts first?!”
Kaeya blinked, his brain trying to catch up. “So there are treasure hoarders and… you want them gone.”
He closed his eyes for a minute. He couldn’t send more knights right now, that was why he had needed to take the patrol to begin with. If he didn’t take care of this problem now, Stevens might try to go in search of his texts anyway and end up hurt, or worse. Kaeya had learned not to underestimate the lengths researchers would go to just to find what they were looking for.
“Ok. I’ll go take care of it soon. I just need to warm up for a few minutes.” He sighed, trying to keep the shaking out of his voice.
Stevens scoffed at that, but went back to his reading as Kaeya turned to sit at one of the tables closer to the fire.
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Diluc was surprised by the number of people already in the tavern, considering it wasn’t even noon yet. When he thought about it, he wasn’t really sure why that surprised him. He knew full-well that nearly every single adult in the City of Freedom drank on some level, usually on the heavier side.
He looked up as the door opened and watched as Venti hopped onto a stool at the counter. Then, using his arm to prop up his head, he simply smiled at Diluc. The redhead ignored him and turned to tidy up the cups. He could feel the bard’s eyes on him the entire time and he worked to find anything to do that he didn’t have to turn around.
Having nothing else he could possibly clean, or organize in some way, he had no choice but to turn back to Venti, who hadn’t moved an inch. “I’m not serving you alcohol.” He said, having had this argument too many times now.
Venti put a hand to his chest and feigned being shocked. “But Master Diluc, how is a bard to quench his thirst?! Shall I sing with but a whisper so as to not lose my voice?”
Diluc was unmoved by the reasoning and instead filled a cup with water and placed it in front of the young man.
Despite his obvious disappointment, Venti let out a small laugh. “Oh, if you wouldn’t mind, would you thank Sir Kaeya for me? He gave me some food this morning and I didn’t have the chance to thank him. I would, but I’m headed to Liyue for a few days.”
Diluc nodded as he went back to his work, “Sure. I’ll pass it along when he comes in later.” Kaeya had started to come in every night since they had begun to mend things between them and Diluc had already come to look forward to it. Especially since his brother had laid off the drinking somewhat.
“Oh, I’m not sure he’s feeling up for much.” Venti frowned, “He didn’t look well when I saw him. I guess it didn’t stop him from leaving, though.” He added, tapping his chin thoughtfully.
Diluc’s head shot up at that. “Left? Do you know where?” He asked with a sinking feeling in his stomach. Surely if Kaeya was visibly unwell, he meant the Captain was on his way home to rest, right? Diluc doubted that was the case, he knew Kaeya too well and could just picture him saying something ridiculous like “Seems all the other knights already have their hands full.” before taking on the job himself.
“No. He left through the front gate several hours ago.” Venti said with a shrug and slid off the stool. “It’s time I’m off, good luck Master Diluc!” He winked and left Diluc in thought.
Surely that idiot wouldn’t have gone on patrol while sick, would he? Diluc rubbed his hand over his face. Of course he would, he’s got no common sense or self preservation. He was reckless when it came to his own safety.
Diluc found Charles and let him know he had to leave for the night and was out the door. As he made his way to the Knights of Favonius he realized what the bard had told him “good luck”. Venti had already known exactly what Diluc was about to do. He always seemed to have a pretty good idea of what was going on.
As he entered the Knights headquarters he noticed the lack of guards and the general quietness within the large entrance hall, but he had other things on his mind. He knocked on the door to Jean’s office and impatiently waited to be called in.
A look of surprise crossed Jean’s face before being replaced by a genuine smile. “Master Diluc, what brings you here today?” She asked.
Her smile always made his heart skip a beat, but he quickly recomposed himself. “I’m here to inquire as to why the Cavalry Captain was sent out while ill?” He asked, trying to keep the edge out of his voice.
“What? I haven’t seen him today, but I thought I saw…” She sifted through the papers on her desk until she found a note. “Here. It seems the men who were supposed to patrol were sick and he took it up himself instead of his original patrol.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “The flu has been sweeping through the garrison and many knights are out for the count right now. If he’s not feeling well either, that’s probably why he left a message instead of stopping to see me directly.”
Diluc Frowned, “Avoiding being stopped. Surely it’s something that could have waited?” Diluc asked.
Jean looked at him for a moment, “The patrol was to the camp at the base of Dragonspine. The patrol had already been put off for several days and it shouldn’t have been, but with so many sick knights, it was unavoidable.” She said, “If it had been put off any longer, the people there could face serious risk. Still, I wish he had told me he was ill, I could have gone myself.”
Diluc shook his head, “He wouldn’t have let that happen, there would be no one here to watch over the city. I’m going to go get him and I’ll make sure the camp is safe.” He looked over her tired, worried eyes and added, “Jean, if in the future you need anything, just come find me. I’ll always do my best to help you.”
She smiled at him again before he turned and was out the door.
There were very few competent knights left in Mondstadt at this point and Jean and Kaeya had both been working themselves into the ground with the absence of Grand Master Varka. Diluc was getting tired of standing by and watching it happen. He hadn’t been back for all that long and he’d already seen it several times.
He’d figure something out later, for now he needed to make sure Kaeya was safe.
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Kaeya was jolted awake by a book hitting the table by his head, sending his headache up about three notches and causing a wave of nausea to hit him. He looked up at the owner of the book with a bleary eye.
Stevens smiled at him curtly. “Oh, sorry about that, I lost my grip. You’ve been resting for a half hour, I guess it’s about time to go take care of those treasure hoarders anyway.”
Kaeya stared at him and managed to croak a “Yeah”. Stevens looked like he was about to berate Kaeya, but seemed to think better of it and settled for pouting and walking away. Kaeya took a moment and stood, trying to focus on anything but the headache, the world swaying and thoughts of vomiting.
Making his way to the narrow point of the river, just past the broken bridge, he drew on his Vision’s energy to freeze the water and crossed. The cold wasn’t usually as much of a bother for cryo users, but right now the cold was causing his already shivering body to shake harder. As he reached the other side he stumbled onto the shore, barely catching himself. Using his vision had sapped more of his energy than he had expected.
He made his way west, along the shore line and before long he came to the treasure hoarder camp. There weren’t many of them and normally wouldn’t have been a problem. That was exactly what his fever-addled brain told him, too.
He walked along the shore until he was hidden from sight behind a tree on the other side of the camp. Just getting there seemed to suck away the rest of his energy and he sat with his back to the tree. He could feel a small amount of warmth from the brazier just on the other side, it was enough to at least keep the sheer cold at bay, not enough to stop the uncontrollable shivering.
Kaeya brought his hands to his face. He couldn’t think straight, his stomach had been trying to rebel constantly, every inch of his body ached bone deep and he was losing his battle to keep his eyes open.
I’ll just rest a moment, then I can finish this and leave, he thought as he brought his knees to his chest and curled into a ball. Darkness washed over him in an instant.
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Diluc had run the entire way to the adventurer’s camp, noting that the road was already clear of any wandering monsters. He was worried about why he hadn’t met Kaeya along the way, the Captain should have been making his way back to Mondstadt by now.
“Dragonspine, of all the stupid places you could have gone while sick.” He cursed under his breath.
As the camp came into view Diluc quickly scanned the area for Kaeya, but found no sign of the man. He ran to the woman dressed in Adventurer’s Guild clothes, “Cavalry Captain Kaeya, have you seen him?” He asked.
“Yes, he was here earlier. Last I saw, he was headed toward the mountain. He spoke with Stevens briefly before he left.” She pointed at a man standing at a table stacked with books. “He may know where the captain was headed.”
Diluc nodded and thanked her before turning to the other man, who stood thumbing through an old book and mumbling to himself. It took a moment for Diluc to get his attention when he approached. “I was told you may know where the Cavalry Captain who was here may have gone?”
The man huffed at being interrupted from his work and glared at the redhead. “He was supposed to be clearing out a treasure hoarder camp and letting me know when it’s safe so I can continue my research. I haven’t seen him since, obviously an unreliable moron.” He scoffed.
Diluc’s eyes darkened as he pulled his claymore from his back. He stepped forward, until he was only inches from the other man’s face and scowled. “If something has happened to him because of your idiocy, I’ll ensure you won’t be functional enough to even pick up a book. Now, where is this hoarder camp?”
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Thick flakes had begun to fall heavily and the wind was starting to pick up the moment he had glided across from the broken bridge. From there, it took a while for Diluc to see the fires and tents of the treasure hoarders, but still no Kaeya. He couldn’t see into the tents clearly, he’d need to get closer.
There were only four hoarders, an easy take-down. He sent in his phoenix and followed in its wake. Two hoarders made a run for it, while the other two tried to make a stand. As fire made its way down his blade he used the flat surface to hit one of the hoarders in the side. The man grabbed his stomach before throwing an orb to the ground and disappearing in a puff of smoke. The other used that moment to come after him from behind with a shovel. Diluc had already gone into a spin, dodging the shovel and smashing his elbow into the side of the hoarder’s head hard, the man dropped like a rock and didn’t move.
Diluc only took a moment to ensure that the camp was clear of any threats before he ran to the smaller tent and peered in hopefully. There was no sign of his brother and Diluc felt his frustration rising. “Archons, Kaeya, where are you?!” He nearly yelled.
He wasn’t expecting a response, a moan so quiet he had thought it was the wind playing tricks on him at first, then he heard it again. It was close. Diluc walked closer to the brazier at the edge of the camp, eyes widening when he saw a very familiar boot poking from behind the closest tree.
Diluc dropped to his knees beside Kaeya and let out a long breath he’d been holding. Kaeya was mostly curled up into himself, shaking uncontrollably and slumped against the large rock that the tree grew against. Despite the freezing air, his hair was stuck to his forehead with sweat and his face was clammy and pale, except where his cheeks burned bright red.
Diluc shook him gently and was surprised when a slit of Kaeya’s eye appeared and the man mumbled something incoherent before his eye slipped closed again. They needed to get out of here. He put his arm around Kaeya’s back and the man struggled weakly to get free.
“Shh, it’s just me Kae. It’s too cold here, we need to get you somewhere warm.” He said gently and the man stopped moving.
As he scooped his brother into his arms, he’d tried not to jostle him around, but Kaeya let out a moan and small gagging cough. Diluc’s eyes widened, but he wasn’t willing to put his brother back down at this point. He hoped for the best and carefully made his way down the slippery path.
Progress was made slow and difficult by the now blizzardous conditions. Diluc had stayed by the river’s bank as best he could, but walking wasn’t easy when snow blotted out everything in front of you and it seemed to be taking forever to get to the narrowest area of the river where he might have a small chance of getting them to the other side alive. He just wasn’t quite sure how, yet.
Diluc looked down at his brother, checking on him for the hundredth time. He was still shivering despite Diluc being able to feel the heat through their coats, he was still pale, sweaty, wheezing, coughing and had been mumbling in his sleep continually.
“I can’t believe you came out here when you were sick.” He said, concern leaking through his voice. “You’re not invincible and taking care of Mondstadt is not your responsibility alone.”
Kaeya murmured what sounded like something about duty.
Diluc let out a small humorless laugh. “It’s also your duty to take care of yourself. Mondstadt wouldn’t be able to handle losing you.” He said.
I wouldn’t be able to handle losing you.
Diluc finally saw the rocks that marked the area he was looking for, now there was the next problem. The water wasn’t shallow enough to walk across and he needed to make sure Kaeya didn’t get wet. There was an old, broken boat on the shore, but there wasn’t enough of it to hold someone out of the water. There was also a broken tree trunk, but he doubted he could get it into the water, let alone balance his brother on it while he swam them over. There was only one other way he could think of.
He shook Kaeya gently, “Kaeya.” He said, but the only response he received was another gagging cough. “Kaeya, I need your help. Wake up.” He worked to quickly coax the sleeping bluenette awake.
Finally, a glassy eye squinted up at him. “Wht - D’luc? S-sssleepp…”
He was slurring, but Diluc breathed a sigh of relief, happy to get any response at all. “I know- I’m sorry, but I need you to freeze the water so I can walk over it, can you do that?”
At first, he wasn’t sure if Kaeya understood him, but eventually received a nod.
Diluc waded up to his knees in the water, caught his breath and gritted his teeth as any feeling leaving his already freezing limbs left him shaking. “Now!” He ground out.
Kaeya reached out with a shaking arm and sent a burst of ice growing across the surface. Diluc quickly stepped onto it and ran across as fast as he could and leapt over the rest of the unfrozen water, barely making it to the shore. His legs gave out and he fell to his knees. He took a few deep breaths and looked down at his brother.
Kaeya’s eye had slid shut again and he didn’t respond to Diluc’s insistent shaking and talking. Diluc pushed himself up with wobbly legs and trekked towards the adventurer’s camp as fast as he could.
As he stumbled into camp he heard Iris gasp and Harris called to him while quickly clearing the table next to the stove. A moment later Iris came over with some water and a cloth.
“Thank you.”
Diluc worked to get some water into Kaeya before dampening the rag and putting it across Kaeya’s burning forehead. The extreme cold had done nothing to help his brother’s raging fever, it had only served to dangerously dehydrate him.
He looked up at the few people hovering and staring, unsure what they could do. Except the researcher, he kept his distance and that was for the best as far as Diluc was concerned.
“I need someone to go to the Angel's Share and find Charles.” He already knew the Knights didn’t have the manpower and the winery was too far. “Tell him to send a couple of men up here with a stretcher, anyone who can help.” He winced as he shifted his frozen feet.
Iris nodded and ran from the camp. Diluc let out a sigh of relief, until Stevens came over. Diluc let out a warning growl.
The researcher stopped a ways away and looked over Kaeya briefly. “Look, I didn’t know he wouldn’t be able to do this task or I wouldn’t have sent him. He’s a captain in the Knights, I thought he’d be able-” He was cut short as Diluc closed the distance.
“Really?!” Harris exclaimed before Diluc could do or say anything. “So you couldn’t see how pale and exhausted he was when he got here? You woke him up when he’d fallen asleep at the table, you had to have noticed he was sick!”
Stevens backed up to his table of books. “Well- well he looked a little pale… but I figured he was just hungry!” He said.
“You were too concerned about what you wanted from him to stop and think about anyone else.” Diluc closed his eyes, counted to ten and stalked back to his brother.
Just as he reached the table, Kaeya broke into a coughing fit and seemed to be having trouble drawing in a breath. Diluc quickly sat him up and tried to get him to drink, Kaeya whimpered, but eventually managed a couple of swallows before his breath evened out somewhat again. Diluc pulled off a glove and pressed his hand to the sleeping man’s forehead, Kaeya was burning up. Diluc laid him back down and replaced the damp cloth.
Harris had pulled over a bench from one of the other tables and Diluc sat down with a grimace. He pulled off his wet boots and socks and set them by the stove to dry. His feet were cold on the stone, but it was only a moment later that the weaponsmith and chef came over with some blankets. Diluc turned to face Kaeya and laid a blanket over his legs. As tempting as it was to try and warm up the shivering man, that would do no good for a fever.
Having wrapped the other blanket around his own feet, Diluc sat and stared at his little brother. He wanted to be angry with him for doing something so stupid, but Diluc knew that his actions had only been meant to help his fellow knights and the self-absorbed researcher. None of it mattered right now, anyway. He just needed to get Kaeya somewhere that he could be cared for properly.
Diluc was brought out of his thoughts by another coughing fit wracking his brother’s body. Diluc quickly sat Kaeya up again and moved to sit behind him, using the bench for his feet. He positioned Kaeya’s torso across his lap and used an arm to help prop him up. He wasn’t planning on moving any time soon.
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The next few hours were spent trying to coax Kaeya into drinking more and replacing the cloth helping to cool his head. It wasn’t doing much, this stubborn fever refused to let go of his brother, but Diluc felt it was better than nothing.
At some points Kaeya would start weakly thrashing around in his fevered dreams, so Diluc started humming. It’s what he had done when they were kids and Kaeya was sick or having nightmares and it seemed to have the same effect, as his movements stilled.
As he hummed, Diluc became lost in thought about his mother humming the same song to him. He didn’t have many memories of her, he was so young when it became just him and his father, but he remembered this song. It calmed him, it helped him remember her hair, her smell, her smile and her voice. It helped him keep his sanity, singing it in his head in his most desperate times when he was held prisoner and experimented on by a psychotic Harbinger. It was like she was there, protecting him. Now she was protecting Kaeya, too.
“Luc?”
Diluc’s name brought him back to reality and he looked to his lap to see a tired, starry eye staring at him. He smiled down at his brother. Kaeya was still in a haze, but he frowned up at his brother.
“W-why yyyou crying, Luc? Y’ok?” He asked in a hoarse voice.
Diluc just kept smiling instead of letting on about how worried he was that Kaeya was slurring so badly. “It’s because my feet are cold, Kae. You know how much I hate my feet being cold.” He grabbed the water and brought it up to Kaeya’s mouth. “You need to drink some, come on.”
Kaeya managed a few gulps before his eyes refused to stay open any longer and slipped back into a restless sleep.
Diluc closed his eyes tight and rubbed at them with his palm. He was becoming more and more anxious as the minutes dragged by at a painfully slow pace. Someone should have been back by now. Where were they?
As if to answer his question, he heard footfalls coming up the path and looked up to see Charles, Iris and two others running towards him.
Charles came to a stop right in front of them, pulled out a bottle and handed it to Diluc. “It should help reduce the fever, at least by a bit.”
Diluc nodded and brought it to Kaeya’s lips and Kaeya turned his head away. “Come on Kae, this’ll help you feel better. Just drink a bit for me?”
After another couple of failed attempts Diluc capped the bottle and slipped it into his Jacket. “We’ll keep trying on the way, but we need to get going.”
Diluc moved from under Kaeya, and though his feet felt like weighted ice, he wasn’t going to let that stop him. He turned and slipped his arms around his brothers back and under his knees and laid him gently on the awaiting stretcher. While they tucked Kaeya in, Diluc quickly put on his mostly dry boots.
Coming to stand directly next to his brother and taking his hand, they finally started back to the city.
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Kaeya felt like he was floating, or maybe he was stuck inside a shaking cryo slime. It didn’t feel good, it made his stomach churn. As he gagged he felt himself being sat up just in time for the meager contents of his stomach to make their way up his throat, then laid back down. His whole body hurt, but he drifted off again.
The next time he was aware, he heard a voice. It was a familiar voice, deep and calming, but he couldn’t understand it. Someone had his hand, rubbing comforting circles on the back of it. He tried to open his eyes, but they wouldn’t cooperate. He felt a noise make its way out of his throat and turned his head, trying to hear the words. A warm hand laid gently on his forehead and swept his itchy bangs aside, it lulled him back to sleep.
He tried to open his eyes again without success. The air felt different. He was still so cold, but the air was still and he no longer felt like he was floating. Was he inside? How did that happen and where was he? He found himself not caring. He drifted off again.
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His sense of touch came back first. Someone was holding his hand and he could feel long hair and hot breath against his arm. He could also feel the comfort of a warm bed and sheets that threatened to pull him under once again.
Next he noticed the sounds. Everything sounded muted, like he was indoors. Last he could remember, he was outside. He could hear light snoring now, he knew those snores.
He slowly peeled his eye open. He was in the cathedral, he realized. He wasn’t sure how he got there. He looked down at his left side to see a pile of bright red hair laying across the bed. Why was Diluc there? Worry welled up inside of him, was Diluc hurt? He tried to sit up, but his body felt like lead and it left him a shaking mess, coughing and working to try and catch his breath.
Diluc stirred at Kaeya’s noises and bolted upright from where he was sitting. He quickly grabbed the cup from the end table and helped Kaeya take a few drinks. As the coughing subsided Diluc set aside the water and Kaeya grabbed his arm. The redhead looked exhausted and disheveled.
“A-are you ok, Diluc?” He managed to rasp out, wincing at how rough his own voice was.
Diluc looked at him for a moment before letting out a tired chuckle. “Do you know where you are?”
Kaeya was confused by the question, but nodded at his brother.
“Do you know why you’re here?” Diluc asked this time.
Kaeya tried to think hard, but it wasn’t coming to him. His brain was running in slow motion and he had no idea what was going on, just that he felt terrible. A stabbing headache, sore throat, nausea, weakness, aching, hot and cold all at the same time. Still not being able to put the pieces together, he looked back at Diluc and shook his head no, which made him dizzy.
Diluc put the back of his hand across Kaeya’s forehead before he sat back down, wincing as he did. Kaeya furrowed his brow but didn’t get the chance to speak before Diluc started.
“You are here because you went out on patrol, to Dragonspine of all places, while you have the flu. You are lucky you are more resilient to the cold as a cryo user.” Diluc said, crossing his arms and fixing his tired eyes on his brother. He wasn’t angry, he was worried. “Your fever spiraled out of control and you fell asleep in the freezing cold while trying to clear out a treasure hoarder camp for a whiny, ungrateful researcher. Does any of this sound familiar at all?”
It didn’t. Maybe it did a little, kind of like trying to remember a distant dream.
“I’m sorry, Luc.” He said quietly, his teeth chattering.
Diluc sighed and pulled the blanket over his shivering brother. “I just… I want you to stop taking on everything for everyone at the Knights. If there’s something that needs an extra hand, come ask me. I have problems with the Knights of Favonius, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be there when our city needs it. For when you or Jean need it. I could have gone, Kaeya.” He said before standing and limping to the door. “You don’t have to do everything alone. I’ll be right back, try to stay awake for just a few more minutes.”
Kaeya nodded off.
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Although Diluc hadn’t been gone for more than a couple of minutes, Kaeya had already fallen asleep when he hobbled back in with an annoyed Barbara, who glared at him and pointed to the chair. As he sat he couldn’t bite back the pained groan that escaped his mouth as the pressure was let off his feet. Barbara brought over another chair with a pillow on it and pulled his feet onto it.
“No more moving or I’ll tie you to the chair!” She ordered in a sing-song voice.
When he had gone to Dragonspine, he wasn’t dressed appropriately and had waded in the freezing water, now he had some minor frostbite on his feet and he wasn’t supposed to be walking, thus earning Barbara’s wrath. It hurt, but he would recover and having Kaeya safe was worth it, in his opinion.
He watched her expertly get his sleeping brother to drink some medicine, even in his sleep Kaeya made a face at the terrible taste. He still had a rough few days ahead of him. He’d be surprised if the man even remembered what they had just talked about.
He was brought out of his thoughts by a light knock on the door before Jean entered.
“How’s he doing?” She asked quietly and stepped up to the bed.
“He’s doing…ok. His fever is coming back up, but Barbara just gave him something to help.” He said as he watched Kaeya start to struggle in his sleep. He reached up and took his brother’s hand again, “Shhh, it’s alright Kae. It’s just a dream, everything is alright.”
As Kaeya started to calm, Diluc caught Jean’s bright smile. His heart stuttered as it always had when he’d see that smile of hers, “He’ll remember he doesn’t like me when he feels better.” Diluc tried to explain away. While he and Kaeya had been working hard to fix their relationship, it wasn’t public knowledge, but Diluc knew that those who knew them best had probably figured it out on their own.
Jean didn’t look convinced and shook her head. “I just wanted to see how he was doing. I’ll be back in the morning.” She put her hand on his shoulder as she passed by, “I am glad you are both safe.” She said before she slipped out the door.
Diluc sighed. He had been thinking about ways that he could help Jean and Kaeya. He wouldn’t join the Knights again, never. It didn’t matter that anyone responsible for trying to cover up the cause of his father’s death was gone, he’d never go back.
Jean was doing the best anyone could, considering what she was left with, but was left exhausted and overworked. It made his heart ache to watch her struggle with such a large work-load, but if anyone could do it with grace, it would be Jean.
Kaeya was one of the only competent knights who went out in the field, he tried to help any citizen who stopped him in the street and he frequently babysat that strange child who belonged to the Chief Alchemist, but Diluc knew he did much more behind the scenes. He’d been watching closely.
Many times, when it seemed like Kaeya had come in to drink at Angel’s Share, he was talking to random people who Diluc had already pegged as shady from the moment they had walked in the door. Watching his brother sweet talk information out of them could be quite entertaining, but it still concerned Diluc with how dangerous it was.
He hadn’t started working at the tavern out of boredom, either. It had been because it was an excellent place to gather information, which he passed along to the right ears.
He looked at Kaeya, then at his own claymore standing in the corner of the room. He’d start clearing some of the patrol routes, he decided. He had already begun to use his own information gathering to keep a closer eye on any immediate threats to Mondstadt, especially with the Fatui around.
He’d go out in the dark of night and do all he could to ensure everything and everyone he cared about was safe. No one had to know.