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The bell above the door chimed, as the last of tonights’ patrons left the tavern. The silence posed a stark contrast to the loud bustle during business hours. With a sigh Diluc started his routine of cleaning up the bar. He walked through the two floors collecting all the glasses, which were then cleaned and put away in their respective places behind the Bar. With rolled up sleeves and a wet rag in hand, he wiped down the tables and the barcounter, with slight annoyance on his face at every sticky spot. Alcohol might be his bread and butter, but he couldn’t find any appreciation for the substance. Unlike his brother, who seemed to spend more time looking at the bottom of a wineglasses rather than the documents on his desk. Despite that, Kaeya hasn’t actually been here today. One less nuisance to deal with, or so Diluc likes to tell himself. But in truth he didn’t particulary disliked Kaeyas presence in the Tavern. It was more the way how they couldn’t interact with one other without glares and condescending remarks thrown at each other. It’s not all that undeserved, he thinks. He made mistakes…and deserved all the scorn Kaeya held for him. But the question as to why Kaeya still visited the tavern stayed unasked.
Lost in thought his knee hit the one of the chairs, promptly drawing him back to reality. That was the third time today. He grunts in annoyance at the chair, as if it was the objects fault for standing in his way. He was tired and maybe there was the slight of a headache making itself known. His mind seemed to be a little…distanced latly. But todays shift was stressful, and considering he has slept little more than 4 hours the last couple of nights – it seems like that now came to bite him back. But as long as that only manifests itself as him constantly running into chairs, it won't cause him much more trouble than a bruised knee at best.
With a heavy sigh he went back to cleaning the tables. Half an hour later he was finally done and walked up the upstairs to the room on the third floor, the old wood creaking under his heavy boots.
The light of the full moon pooled through the window onto the bed. Diluc lied there on his back, one hand thrown across his eyes, red hair strewn across the pillow. Despite the cool autumn breeze coming through the open window, he felt a little too warm. Nevertheless, the exhaustion of the last few days slowly pulled him into sleep.
--
With a gasp he woke up. A nightmare had ripped him out of his sleep. He felt anxious, panicked even. Sweat beaded as his forehead as he tried to get his breathing under control. The emotions felt so vivid, even though he can’t remember what the dream was about. He was glad not to remember. There was never anything good to find in his nightmares.
A look at the clock hanging on the wall told him, that he had slept for a total of one whole hour. Great. He was now fully awake and really didn’t feel like going back to sleep.
If he can’t sleep, he might as well do something useful. With that thought in mind, Diluc got out of bed, threw on a red leathercoat and pulled his hair up into a high ponytail and lastly fixed the eagle-like mask on his face. With one swift movement he leapt out of the window into the night.
--
Aside from the occasional treasure hoarder, nothing else has happened the past few weeks. So Diluc didn’t expect it to be any different today. Kaeya didn’t have any useful information for him either.
The dark knight hero stopped short on one of the many red tiled roofs, as his eyes caught an unusual glint of light. Squinting his eyes, he could make out a red sheen and if his elemental vision saw correct, he would guess it was connected to pyro.
Diluc carefully closed in on the suspicious red glow. He was now perched on the roof above the alley and looked down on…a single pyro abyss mage? There haven’t been any abyss mages in the city for a while now, most likely due to his own activity. And it was even alone. How bold, Diluc though, hint of a smirk on his face. Time to get to work.
As precise as an owl hunting its prey, he leaped of the roof and landed right behind the mage. Within the same movement he summoned his sword and swung it directly at the abyss mages neck.
To Dilucs disappointment, the abyss mage noticed him and activated its shield last minute. It quickly regained its composure and sent a bout of flames towards him. With a slightly clumsy jump to the side he evaded the flames. It being a pyro abyss mage posed a disadvantage, but nothing he couldn’t overcome. His own element will be useless in breaking the shield, so he has to rely on pure strength. It wouldn’t be the first time he broke those shields with brute force.
Diluc and the abyss mage exchanged a few blows. The abyss mage was keeping the upper hand. The fight had already dragged on for far longer than what it would usually. Was this mage somehow stronger than the others or was he simply weaker? Diluc ducked away at the last minute before the ring of fire spewing heads could trap him in their formation. Why was he so distracted? It’s mid combat for Archons sake. With an irritated grunt he charged at the abyss mage that was now floating mockingly in its shield.
Shortly before the claymore coming from the right made contact with the shield he disengaged the sword to immediately re-summon it and hit the escaping mage from the left. It was caught by surprise and the shield burst into particles of red glowing pyro. The abyss mage let out an exasperated screech, hurrying backwards. Diluc didn’t let up and charged at the mage, his claymore now engulfed by flames. With one calculated strike he pierced through the mage and it fell to the floor, unmoving.
The claymore struck into the ground heavily. Diluc leaned on it to keep himself from stumbling to the floor. This…has drained him more than he would like to admit. The previously slight headache was now pounding relentlessly through his skull. He felt a little lightheaded. It seems like it’s time to go home. It wouldn’t be good to continue like that. He could investigate the presence of the abyss mage tomorrow when-
Something flashed past his face. He turned around in shock and immediately jumped to the side before another projectile could hit him. It instead shattered on impact against the wall behind him. Before he could see the perpetrator, he could hear the telltale sound of another abyss mage crackling. Lo and behold an abyss mage came floating from around the corner, seemingly snickering in delight. It did not seem to mind that his colleague, or whatever they refer as to each other, had just been ran through by Dilucs Claymore. The body still lied besides him.
Beads of sweat gathered at his forehead despite the temperature seeming to drop by e few degrees. The headache blurred his vision which, considering the darkness of the night, was not very helpful. The situation was not in his favour. Still, he heaved his up claymore and charged forward.
The fight dragged on an Diluc felt himself loosing strength. A slight tremble in his hands every time he lifted his claymore. How his swings where delayed ever so slightly, making his movements sluggish and unprecise. The slight buzz and throbbing in his skull that meddled with his judgement and blurred his vision. Every cut hurt significantly more than the last, despite them being nothing more than scratches on the surface of his skin, bearly even drawing blood.
But finally after another pyro induced slash the Cryo mages shield was broken, shattering to a thousand pieces.
Just as the abyss mage, in a desperate attempt, shot out sharp icy projectiles, Diluc embedded his Claymore deep in its chest. A gurgle left its throat as it fell to the floor lifelessly.
Diluc took a few shaky steps back from the corps, seeing if there were any other assailants hiding nearby, ready to attack him.
Suddenly his vision swam and blurred, and his claymore slipped out of his hand. Next thing he knew, he was kneeling on the floor, a sharp pain pulsated in his abdomen. Hazy eyes travelled down and stopped short at a rapidly blooming dark wet spot on his abdomen.
Fuck.
His breathing quickened at the realisation. He had been careless. The mages projectile from before had apparently hit him.
With the Claymore as support, Diluc pushed himself up. But his legs gave out before he could fully stand. A barely supressed grunt left his lips as Pain shot through his body. He fought against the dark spots that tried to claim his vision. This was far from any favorable scenario.
I..I can’t pass out here. The knights are still on patrol, and someone will be coming soon…Diluc thought. The tavern shouldn’t be too far from here if he remembers correctly. Luckily there was also no patrol scheduled in proximity to the tavern. He can only guess that is due to a certain cavalry captain.
So, he started another, more desperate attempt to stand, crawling over to the wall for extra support. One Hand was clasped tightly around the hilt of the sword, while the other pressed against the wall. With one determined push, he got himself into a standing position, leaning against the wall. He dismissed the Claymore and pressed the now free hand against his wound to somewhat stifle the bleeding.
Leaning heavily against the wall for support he made his way back to the Tavern. Occasionally stopping when his vision blacked out shortly, or he had to catch his breath. Today…or tonight really wasn’t going as planned at all. What was wrong with him? He had been quite absent during the shift at the tavern but that happens from time to time, but this…he had sustained more severe injuries in the past and wasn’t this…incapacitated.
The sound of armour-clad footsteps caught his attention. The night patrol? But no one should be around here.
Did I take a wrong turn?
Shit.
Diluc quickly crouched down and hid in a niche behind some crates, pressing his lips into a thin line to supress any sounds that might slip out. The footsteps closed in and went by just as quickly, not once stopping. Only when they completely vanished, did Diluc let out a sigh of relief.
But now, where is he actually?
Looking around, there are tall buildings to either side, more elegant in style than standard Mondstadt buildings. Further ahead he could make out some stairs along the cities inner wall leading to….Favonius Headquarter? Wait. That was the complete wrong direction. Somehow, he managed to walk even further away from the Tavern.
The shortest path from here to the Tavern would be across the main plaza, and that was hardly an option right now, considering the amount of knights in that area. But where else…
He looked back up at the knights building. Squinting through his hazy vision he could make out one still lit room. Surprisingly it wasn’t Jeans but the Cavalry Captains.
Kaeya.
There wasn’t much other choice now, was there? Kaeya at least knew of his identity. If he chose to not help him out…well, he could deal with that when it actually happened.
With a frustrated sigh and slight apprehension he continued walking on unstable feet towards the staircase, slowly dragging himself up until the final step. He stopped shortly to catch his breath. Holding on to the railing still, to keep himself from swaying too much. If he fell down the stairs now, well thats probaly also where someone would find him come the next day.
Now how to get to Kaeyas office. Option one would be the front door. Yeah no. So Option two it is. With heavy, ragged breathing he climbed up the wall to Kaeyas office at the second floor. Carefully placing each step so that his bloodied hands won’t slip of the brick.
Finally he had reached the window sill and luckily the window was open. With a pained grunt he pulled himself through the window and managed to somewhat land on his feet inside the office.
Before Diluc could make another move, a sword was pointed at his throat, the warm light of a candle reflecting its sheen off the blade.
“Who do we have- Oh. To what do I owe the Honor for your visit at such late hour, Dark knight hero?” Kaeya said with a slightly hoarse voice, a smirk on his face. His hair was unkept and the clothes were wrinkled. The cape was gone too, probably discarded somewhere in the office. Kaeya seemed to have been working hard all night. If Diluc had the mind to, he might have felt bad for intruding in the middle of the night, but as it was, he didn’t.
“I- I have little bit of a…situation” he rasped.
“What- “
Diluc swayed on his feet and suddenly the world tipped over. Before Kaeya could process anything, Diluc fell unceremoniously to the floor. He tried to hold onto something, but only managed to swipe something off the counter next to him, that then shattered on the floor like glass.
“Diluc? What’s wrong?” Kaeya bearly supressed a yell.
He could feel Kaeya hastily kneeling down next to him. Suddenly there was a hurried knock on the door. The voice of a young man sounded “Everything alright, Captain? Should I come- “
“No- Yes!” Kaeya quickly cut him off “Everything’s good, just a glass. No worries.” he answered in faked nonchalance.
“Okay then. Just call if you need help” and with that the knight went back to his post.
Kaeya turned back to Diluc, a glint of worry in his eyes. Worry? His mind must be playing tricks on him.
“Are you injured? What’s going on?” Kaeya asked in a hushed voice, his hands already searching Dilucs body. Dilucs body was trembling as hitched breathing left his lungs. Red strands of hair stuck to the gleam of sweat on his face. He fought against the buzz in his head, trying to form a coherent sentence. With a gasp his body lurched forward as Kaeya suddenly prodded the wound, only intensifying the pain. Kaeyas hands quickly retracted.
“I- abyss mage…and-“ he wheezed out. “Didn’t know where to go…I-“
“Okay, okay! Stop talking for now. I will- I can’t see shit!” Kaeya said in frustration. He quickly picked up the oil lamp from his desk and put it besides them on the floor. Diluc had to close his eyes against the bright light, as it only worsened the throbbing in his head.
He felt Kaeyas hands struggle to open his coat and shirt. Kaeya seemed agitated. Maybe it was a bad idea to come here, but what’s done is done. It’s better than bleeding out on the streets and being discovered by a patrolling knight or worse, a citizen.
“-luc, Hey Diluc!” Diluc jolted at the cold touch to his cheek, his eyes wide open, immediately regretting that as the light of the oil lamp stung his eyes once again.
“I need you to stay awake, okay? I’ll get someone from the Cathedral so-“
“No- No Cathedral...” he pressed out between laboured breaths. “They can’t know-”
“Diluc, you are bleeding, and I can’t heal you.” Kaeya retorted irritated.
“No healer…just patch me up and- and I’ll leave-“
“Leave?! You can’t even stand by yourself, don’t be ridiculous.” Kaeya scoffed. Kaeya felt sheer frustration with his brother. It was incredibly stupid not to get a healer but at the same time he understood why. It was hard to explain how the Master of the Ragvindr estate ended up wounded in the knights Headquarter. And if that wasn’t suspicious, his current getup definitely was. Diluc didn’t want anyone else to know about his dark knight business. After all he had many enemies.
“Well then, I need you on the couch if you want me to patch you up properly. Think you can do that?”
Diluc only gave a small nod as an answer. He pressed one hand against the floor and slowly pushed himself up. Kaeya supported him, Hands under his shoulder and on his chest to keep him from falling forward. He slowly guided the swaying man to the couch. Diluc knew where it was. The Layout and interior of the office hadn’t changed from when he had still called it his own. Kaeya carefully let him down onto the soft and familiar velvet couch. If he wasn’t in so much pain, it might have been a little nostalgic.
Kaeya came back shortly with a first aid kit. “This might hurt a little but please bear with it. I’ll be quick.”
With some struggle Kaeya had managed to free Diluc of his cloak, vest and shirt that all now lay discarded on the floor. The laceration was luckily not too deep. Kaeya carefully cleaned the wound and applied some antiseptic. He also noticed how, despite the occasional shiver, Diluc seemed to be running a little warmer. He brushed the hair out of Dilucs face before placing a hand on his forehead.
“What are you doing…“ Diluc mumbled.
“You are sick. You have a fever.” Kaeya stated with a scowl.
Sick? What?
Oh. That might make sense. The headache, the disorientedness…
“What were you thinking going out in this state? You are so…” Kaeya sighed.
“I’m…sorry…” Diluc muttered suddenly.
Kaeya stared at him wide eyed before quickly schooling his expression. Was Diluc apologizing...for being reckless...to him of all people? That’s new. His fever must really be getting the better of him.
“It’s too late for that know. Obviously.” Kaeya sighed as he carefully placed a patch on the wound before wrapping it tightly. Diluc didn’t let out much more than a few strained gasps during the whole process, or the knights positioned down the hall might hear him.
“Ok I’m done. Get some rest for now, okay? The door is locked and…I’m here so no one will come in.”
“Thanks…” Diluc muttered. He really didn’t want to stay here an cause trouble like that, but he knew that in his current condition he wouldn’t make it two steps past the door let alone out the window.
Diluc had already passed out as Kaeya came back with a blanket. He gently tucked Diluc in, before pulling the nearby armchair closer and sitting himself down.
--
The light of the oil lamp casted a warm glow over Dilucs furrowed expression. He seems to still be in pain, which was to be expected. At least the shivering has subsided for now. His chest lifted and fell in long regular intervals. It put Kaeya at ease. Knowing that his brother was in his care, instead of possibly bleeding out in some dark corner of the city.
A lot has changed.
Kaeya can’t imagine what Diluc went through those past three years for him to become like this. He was such a cheerful and bright child, but now…
It really was quite worrisome that he goes this far all th while disregarding his own health. Diluc was after all a very important person in Mondstadt and despite his more isolated character, he was well liked by the people. What if one day… Mondstadt would miss him. He would miss him. Like he did all those years.
It hadn't always been like this. It almost feels like he had nothing left to give up his recklessnes for.
His late father had passed on. His brother was revealed a traitor. Now it was only Adeline that was left to take over the role of his family.
Kaeyas eyes stung a little at that thought. He let out another heavy sigh, running his fingers through his slightly tangled hair. How troublesome.
--
A muffled repetitive thudding could be heard. It became clearer as it become louder.
“Kaeya? Are you in there?” a familiar voice asked. Another Knock followed.
He slowly opened his eyes wondering where he even was. The morning sun flooded into the room through the still open window. It was his office still. He looked over to his right, where Diluc was still sleeping. Kaeya had half expected for him to leave during the night. He was glad that wasn’t the case.
Someone rattled at the door. “Why is it locked?” the women behind the door puzzled.
Jean? Wait, how late was it? Did he oversleep? He rushed over to the door and quickly unlocked it, opening it only a crack wide.
“Ah, good morning, Jean” Kaeya laughed awkwardly with a still sleep lazed voice.
Jean raised an eyebrow “Good morning? Kaeya it’s 11 a.m. Did you sleep in your office again? I told you to go home yesterday, didn’t I?”
“I uhh- but then there was this important report and you know how it is.” he gave her a sheepish smile.
“You are so…lecturing me about my working hours and then you do just the same?” Jean sighed in displeasure. “Alright well, I’ll take those important reports to my office then. And you go home and rest.” She said assertively, stepping closer to the door, but Kaeya was blocking the entrance.
“Are you…going to let me in or…”
“It’s..it’s really messy and I’d rather stay in the office for now. It’s not like I didn’t sleep so-“
“What are you hiding from me, Kaeya?” Jean asked blankly.
“What do you mean? I’m not hiding anything from you.” He answered a little flustered. It was too early, and he couldn’t come up with any believable excuses to keep Jean out of the office. She didn’t know about Dilucs other identity, though he can guess she has her suspicions. And he really doens't have any ambitions to reveal all that at apparently 11 a.m.
“It’s fine, Kaeya…” a rough sounding voice came from behind Kaeya.
“Who is with you?” Jean inquired. Kaeya simply stepped aside with a lowerd head and let her into the room. What she saw was not anything she had expected to see at this hour and especially not here.
Diluc was half lying half sitting on the couch. His face carried a feverish flush and his hair was a mess, a few strands sticking to his face. The Blanket fell down and exposed the slightly bloodied bandages wrapped around his abdomen. All in all, he looked awful. He looked like he should be lying in the cathedral instead of Kaeyas office.
She crossed the room in a few fast steps and crouched down besides him, to meet his hazy gaze at eye level. “What did you get yourself into?!”
“No- Nothing…just a small incident.” Diluc said while propping himself up into a sitting position.
He hadn’t planned on staying the night, wanting to sneak out after he had recovered enough, to avoid any encounters with the any of the knights, specifically Jean. But somehow, he felt worse than yesterday. The stab wound pulsated in rhythm to the throbbing headache. And now he ended up putting Kaeya in an awkward position too. It was high time to leave.
He pushed himself up just to dangerously sway on his feet. Kaeya was quick at his side to keep him from toppling over. “What are you doing? You shouldn’t move yet.”
Diluc tried to wiggle himself out of Kaeyas hold “I’m leaving. I don’t want to implicate you any longer. I’m sure you have important things to do-“
“Don’t be stupid! You can’t even stand. What makes you think you could go anywhere in this condition?” Kaeya lectured him.
“I’m with Kaeya on this one, Diluc. I don’t know what happened and I won’t pry if you don’t want to tell me, but you definitely can’t leave like this. I actually think you should go to the cathedral and-“
“No.” Diluc interjected. “I can’t go to the cathedral.”
“That’s what I thought.” Jean sighed in defeat. “You can stay in one of the rooms in the Knights quarters here. They are more comfortable than a couch. And I will see what I can do about your wound. I really can't in good conscience let you leave like that.”
They weren’t wrong Diluc thought. He hadn’t yet actually thought about how he would make it back to the tavern, let alone to the winery.
“Alright…If you insist…” he gave in.
Kaeya dragged him towards one of the empty rooms while Jean kept the knights out of their way. It felt a little like in the old days, when all three of them were still young knights, playing pranks and trying to avoid the scolding of their supiriors.
Diluc let himself fall onto the bad, hissing as it shot a spark of pain through his body. Jean came in shortly after with some water, medicine, and bandages.
“I’ll take a look at your wound. I’m not as good a healer as Barbara but I’ll see what I can do.” She placed all her things on the nightstand and quickly got to work.
After Kaeya and Jean carefully unwrapped the bloodied bandages and diligently cleaned the area of the wound, Jean placed her hands over the wound, making sure to not actually touch it. “This might hurt a little…” she warned.
A soft breeze smelling of fresh grass and spring rains filled the room. He stifled a groan as he felt the fibres of his skin and muscle reconnect. Healing, despite popular belief, was actually a quite painful and taxing process. But Jean worked quick, and the pain soon receded to a dull throbbing. He breathed out a held in sigh and his body lost some of the tension.
“It might scar. I’m not as skilled as Barbara is in this area of expertise.” Jean said, lowering her hands into her lap.
“It’s fine. Thank you, Jean.”
“Of course, Diluc. As for your fever, I have some medicine here, since as you probably already know, elemental healing can’t fix that.” She handed him a pill and a glass of water. He looked at it with a frown but eventually took it and quickly downed the medicine in a few gulps. Kaeya was a little surprised at that. As far as he membered, Diluc despised taking any form of medication. He always complained about the bitter taste when they were children. He had whined a lot and Father or Adeline always had to coax him with treats.
“Now get some rest, okay? No moving around or anything. The wound is closed but it still needs to heal properly. And-“ She had just grabbed some bandages as a knock on the door interrupted her.
Noelles voice could be heard from the other side “Acting Grand Master? Are you in here?"
Jean turned towards the door "Noelle? Yes I'm here. What do you need?"
"Captain Eula is waiting for you in your office. She said you were supposed to have a meeting with her.”
“Ah yes I had forgotten- please tell her I’ll be there in a minute.” Jean palmed her forehead. Noelle confirmed and left, the sound of her hasty steps quickly disappearing down the hallway.
“To finish what I wanted to say: Kaeya, you should stay here just in case and maybe get some rest too. If you guys need anything, I’m in my office. Take care.” She turned towards the door “Oh and could you bandage Dilucs wound. It serves as support and to keep the skin from moving too much. Just in case.” She handed Kaeya the roll of bandages, she had still held in her hand. She gave them a small smile before closing the door behind her.
“I can bandage it myself. You don’t have to-“
“You are a patient Diluc, so act like one” Kaeya retorted “It’s more efficient if I do it.”
Diluc had no counterargument to that. Kaeya sat down behind Diluc and started to carefully wrap the bandages around his torso.
Now in the daylight he noticed how many scars Diluc had amassed on his body. By the looks of it most of them were received during his 3-year journey. They varied in severity, some were jagged, inflicted by unsharp knives while others where were more round, likely from an arrow or bullet. The most prominent ones though were the two scars stretching down from the upper right shoulder all across his shoulder blades. He felt…sad? Regretful? Upset? It was a hard to describe emotion. He will have to work harder, to keep this dumb lone wolf of a brother safe. At least within the city walls.
After Kaeya finished bandaging Diluc, he left to get something to eat for them. He wasn’t feeling hungry at all, but Kaeya had insisted that he would at least try to eat a little. Diluc now sat in bed and stared out the window lost in thought. It felt weird being cared for like that by Kaeya. To be honest, he hadn’t expected Kaeya to, or at least not to that extent. He didn’t know how to act and kept trying to get away. It all felt so unfamiliar yet nostalgic. It wasn’t necessarily bad, but he just didn’t know why Kaeya would be so…kind to him.
The squeak of the door hinge broke his train of though. Kaeya entered and walked over to the small round table by the window, placing down the tray with their breakfast, or lunch considering the time. Diluc joined him and they both sat down. The table was originally meant for only one person as the knights’ rooms were generally not shared rooms, so it was a little cramped. Kaeya placed a hot bowl of soup in front of him “It’s chicken noodle soup. I thought a light meal would be best.” Kaeya specified.
It tasted good. Not as good as Adelines’ cooking though. They finished their meal in an unusually comfortable silence. Only the clinking of metal spoons against the ceramic bowls could be heard. This was…nice. Under normal circumstances they would only meet at the Tavern and throw condescending insults at each other.
Kaeya insisted Diluc went back to bed after they had finished their meal. Meanwhile Kaeya cleared away the tray and came back with what seemed like paperwork from his office. Diluc fell asleep at some point, while Kaeyas quill kept gliding across the paper.
It was long past noon when Kaeya finally laid down his quill and leaned back in the chair with a sigh. Diluc had slept more or less peacefully the entire time. Now that he wasn’t in his office, no one could disturb him and he managed to actually finish writing the reports in peace, that he had procrastinated on for a while now. It had started to rain at some point. The clouds covered the sun, which otherwise would have coloured the sky in all shades of pink at this time. He closed his eye and listened to the raindrops splashing against the window. It was calming.
That calmness was soon broken by a whimper followed by a distressed moan. Kaeya turned his head to where Diluc was stirring in bed. Was he in pain again? Kaeya walked over to the bedside his brows drawn together in worry. Diluc let out another groan. His expression looked pained, and his skin glistened with sweat. His hands gripped at the bedsheets.
“Diluc?” Kaeya asked, worry bleeding into his voice. Diluc didn’t react, only letting out another moan. Was he having a nightmare? Kaeyas hand reached out to check Dilucs Temperature but as soon as he made contact with his skin, Dilucs eyes flew open. The hazy red eyes were blown wide in near panic. He instinctively grabbed Kaeyas wrist and twisted it painfully in an attempt to pin the man down.
“Diluc, stop it’s me! Kaeya!” he yelled completely caught off guard by Dilucs sudden assault. But Diluc didn’t let go, his breath came out erratic and laboured.
“Diluc!”
Diluc jerked at that, and his gaze slowly cleared up. Kaeya was able to wiggle his hand out of Dilucs now loosened grasp.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Kaeya asked carefully placing a hand on Dilucs shoulder.
“Kae?” Diluc muttered under his breath. Kaeya was taken aback by the sudden use of his old Nickname but quickly dismissed it in favour of the situation at hand. He carefully, as to not startle Diluc again, placed his hand on Dilucs forehead. His fever somehow spiked despite the medicine earlier.
“I’m getting a Healer. If you want it or not.” Kaeya said in a tone that didn’t leave any space to refute. He turned around for the door, but Diluc tried to grasp his hand again.
“Don’t..le..a...ve..” he slurred looking at Kaeya with glassy eyes.
Something about the way Diluc looked at him struck deep in his being. He couldn’t place the emotion. Didn’t know if it was good or bad.
“I- I’ll be right back” and with that Kaeya quickly left the room.
Not much later Jean came back with Barbara in tow, letting themselfs into the room after a soft knock on the door. Kaeya was sitting at the bedside, immediately making some space for the Deaconess.
“Good to see you, Barbara” Kaeya greeted her. “Thank you for coming so quickly.”
“Of course.” she gave him a soft smile. “Jean already filled me in. I’ll take a look now” she said and started to busy herself with the examination.
Aside from his laboured breathing, Diluc kept quite the entire time. Jean and Kaeya stood silently at the side, while Barbara did what she does best.
“Physically he is more or less fine. He just has quite a high fever. I don’t know him very well but my guess he simply overworked himself and this is the result of that. He needs a lot of rest and should take it easy for the next few weeks.” She advised.
Of course he did, that dumbass. He really doesn’t know when to stop, does he? Pretending to be invincible, as if he can’t get sick. Kaeya was so done with Dilucs antics at this point: Ignoring being sick, getting himself stabbed and then try to run away before even getting proper help, thinking he would make it past the door. What happened to the whiny Diluc that demanded everybody’s attention when he had just caught a light cold. Loocking back, that had been a lot easier to deal with.
“Also, I have something more potent here to lower his fever.” Barbara handed a dark tinted glass bottle over to Kaeya. “This is usually only given with a prescription so don’t use it lightly. These can be administered every four to six hours, but I suggest you keep it to a minimum.”
“Thank you, Deaconess.” Kaeya gave her a smile. “I’ll see that Master Diluc here will follow your instructions to the T.”
Jean and Barbara said their farewells and left the two Brothers alone again.
Kaeya slumped into the chair next to the bed. His gaze landed back on Dilucs face. He was paler than usual aside from the feverish blush. Diluc looked up at him through half lidded eyes.
“Kae…?” he whispered confused. It hurt. It hurts when Diluc calls him that. That name was a ghost of the past and only serves as another reminder of what he had lost that night.
I don’t deserve to be called that.
“Don’t call me that…” he said with a sad smile. “Don’t say things you will regret later.” Diluc just gave him a puzzled look.
“Go back to sleep, will you?”
Diluc only gave out a soft hum and closed his eyes. If only he were this cooperative all the time.
After making sure Diluc was asleep, Kaeya walked over to the couch and immediately fell asleep himself. Who knew that taking care of someone sick could be this exhausting.
The next morning Dilucs fever has finally been broken. Diluc woke up and found that his mind was not as substantially clouded by a feverish haze as the previous day. He searched the room for Kaeya and found him curled up and asleep on the coach. He must be quite tired after all that. He’ll have to make it up to him. Diluc quietly made his way over to the door and left.
“Oh, you’re awake! How are you feeling?” Jean had caught him in the Hallway.
“I’m better thanks to you two. I didn’t mean to trouble you like this…”
“It was no trouble at all but I think I speak for all when I say that you should maybe not overdo it like this in the future. But if you do – You can always come here.”
“Thank you. Also, Kaeya is sleeping right now so could you relay my thanks to him? I don’t want to disturb him…”
“You really should do that yourself, but I will tell him that you are feeling better.” She gave him a soft smile. “Also, Adeline is in my office. She was looking for you and came here after she found the tavern empty.“
Uh oh. How long was he gone? Two days? Adeline is sure to give him an earful for that.
A few days later an envelope form the Ragvindr estate arrived at Kaeyas office. It contained a lengthy letter from Adeline, thanking him as well as telling him how difficult it was to get Diluc to properly rest. The second letter was kept quite short. In a rough handwriting, unbecoming of a descendant of a noble bloodline, was written an invitation to dinner at the winery.