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Testing new swords. Visit if free. Not urgent. -D
The note had arrived in the morning, and had the note said urgent instead of not urgent , Kaeya could easily have shelved his work for the day. Jean would just roll her eyes but let him disappear for the morning.
Instead, Kaeya had spent the whole morning stuck looking at ‘more urgent’ paperwork that didn’t really need his immediate attention. Klee was in solitary confinement again, so Kaeya hadn’t even been able to convince her to want to visit the Winery.
Watching the clock always made time crawl by, but Kaeya couldn’t help it. Diluc rarely was in the mood to be crafting swords . He usually stuck to claymores, and even then he usually had a specific person in mind for them.
Diluc only crafted swords when he was in the mood for it, and every single one of them was experimental. Sure, Diluc usually gave him an idea of how he expected the sword to behave, but there were surprises more often than not.
So when Kaeya finally reached Dawn Winery, he was incredibly disappointed to realise it was starting to rain. He was also surprised to hear the chorus of yells and laughter that led him to the back of the winery grounds.
There wasn’t a single sword being used in sight. Razor was clumsily helping Bennett up with Oz keeping an eye out. Fischl was settled in the tree above them, her bow was nocked with a thin arrow containing a strangely large arrowhead.
Venti was running towards the trees further away. A gush of anemo rushed ahead of him followed by a chorus of yelps. A terrifyingly accurate glob of mud hit him square in the face and he tumbled backwards.
A little bear ran out of the bushes and spewed some light flames to dry the mud Venti was lying in. Almost as a backup, Venti was also frozen in place by a light blue haired teenager and the continued rain.
“One down, my liege!”
“Good job, Guoba!”
“Ah, this cruel fate befits not one of the Prinzessin’s retinue. The Prinzessin hast observed thy worthy sacrifice in the name of this Prinzessin’s imminent victory.”
“Mein Fraulein, we are now outnumbered.”
“The threads of fate will ensure the continued glory of thy sovereign.”
Fischl barely dodged the second ball of mud by slipping off the tree. Kaeya moved quickly to stop her from hitting the ground hard.
“Kaeya!”
"Blue Knight!"
“Destiny has brought thee here!” Fischl cried as soon as Kaeya put her down. “Join this royal entourage and defeat the traitor to this glorious land and villainous foes from afar!”
“No, I probably shouldn’t—”
Mud struck him squarely on the face. Kaeya could hear even Venti’s laughter from where he was almost literally stuck to the ground .
“—What’s the plan?”
… oOo …
“Is this why it wasn’t urgent?” Kaeya asked, as they all warmed up near the fireplace in Dawn Winery. Venti and Diluc had almost completely dried everyone as soon as they stepped out of the rain.
“I’m not even sure how we got to the point of a mud fight.” Diluc huffed a laugh. “Xiangling had come looking for boars again. I think she brought Xingqiu and Chongyun to see if the meat tasted different if it was killed with different elements? Xingqiu must have seen Bennett and I
testing the blades.”
“You decided to test swords with Bennett ?” Kaeya asked incredulously.
“Traveller sent me some Trishiraite. I was curious if the calamity seen by those stones would cancel out a little of Bennett’s bad luck.” Venti sneezed, and Diluc threw another blanket at him. “I can’t really say we had fewer accidents than usual. They were probably just less…
dangerous, I guess, but that may have been due to Chongyun as well.”
“And Venti?”
“Razor caught him trying to take a few apples in the rain. Fischl convinced him to join them. The Liyue trio then convinced me to join them to make it fair. I don’t want to remember the utter chaos that came after I agreed.”
“No doubt they expected you to reject the request.” Kaeya snickered. “The story of the great Master Diluc in a mud fight will be legendary.”
“And the heroic Cavalry Captain that came in to save the day?”
“Why, that’s only my duty to protect Mondstadt’s citizens, Master Diluc,” Kaeya teased.
“That’s why there were tiny bits of Cryo only in the mud balls you threw at me?”
“Isn’t it just a standard strategy to take out the biggest threat first?”
“I’m afraid the biggest threat was the one who froze most of your teammates in place.” Diluc smirked.
“We still won.” Kaeya crossed his arms.
“I still say it was because of Bennett’s luck. I hope you know the Liyue trio are already planning a rematch.”
“I’m sure Klee would love to join the rematch.”
“And here I was thinking you liked Dawn Winery’s wine, but it seems you want to join Diona in destroying the wine industry.”
“I would never put the precious grapes at risk.” Kaeya spluttered. “ And no one said it had to be at Dawn Winery.”
“Riiight. Like how you also said Windtrace didn’t have to always be at Dawn Winery.”
“Dawn Winery is just so nice to hide in, though! Besides, it’s the perfect excuse to force you to join a match or two.”
“You mean trick me into being the Hunter every time?”
“Come now, Diluc, we can hardly let the owner be a Rebel, now can we? It would be utterly unfair to everyone else.”
“As if you being a Rebel is any more fair.”
Kaeya shrugged unrepentantly.
“My liege,” Xingqiu interrupted, “The rain is abating, we shall be returning to Liyue.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to call a carriage for the three of you?” Diluc offered.
“No, no. We promised Aunt Qiao some Jueyun Chilli Chicken for dinner. Stone Gate isn’t far enough to trouble you for a carriage. Besides, there are those groups of Cryo and Anemo slimes I don’t want to miss,” Xiangling explained.
“Take these umbrellas with you at the very least,” Adelinde insisted. “Master Diluc can pick them up from Miss Qiao the next time he passes through Stone Gate.”
“Thank you, Miss Adelinde,” Chongyun said.
The Liyue group left to a chorus of goodbyes.
“I guess it’s time to head back to the city,” Kaeya said finally. The Mondstadt teens groaned.
“That includes you, Venti,” Diluc called.
“Aww. Could I not borrow a spare bedroom for the night, Master Diluc?”
“If I allow it, will I be finding you in my cellars at midnight?” DIluc crossed his arms.
“Ehe.” Venti scratched the back of his head. “After such a grand afternoon, surely the best way to end it is some of Dawn Winery’s famous wine!”
“Yes, Master Diluc. Surely your good spirits extend this far on a day such as this?” Kaeya added.
Diluc offered the two an unamused stare. Without the usual alcohol-induced bravery, it left both of them laughing sheepishly. Diluc grumbled to himself and stomped away, and that, they thought, was the end of it.
Instead, he returned with three bottles of grape juice and two bottles of Dandelion Wine.
“Don’t drink it all at once,” was all Diluc said.
Kaeya would swear there were stars in Venti's eyes.