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Diluc followed Kaeya wordlessly through the icy cave. Apparently the cavalry captain had run out of quips and taunts a while ago. That was fine with Diluc. He had had enough of bickering with him, especially since things had gone wrong in every way possible. Not only did an abyss herald make a rare appearance, but one of the abyss mages had scurried off with Diluc’s pyro vision after it had been yanked off of his belt during the fight.
He’d felt in that moment just how cold Dragonspine really was.
They followed the mage’s trail once the fight was over, but it had a good head start on them, and at this rate Diluc began to wonder if they could even catch up to it. He didn’t voice his worry out loud—he didn’t have to. Kaeya was probably pondering the same thing, given how he quickened his pace.
Diluc tried to keep up, but he had to carry his claymore, and the cold was sapping away his strength by the minute. Kaeya disappeared around a corner before Diluc heard him let out a curse.
“What’s—?” Diluc’s question faded as he realized what the problem was. The wind raging outside the cave grew louder and louder as he walked further along. Eventually he came upon Kaeya standing at the exit, or at least what should have been the exit. Neither of them could see past the cave’s opening. The snow blew around, violently tossed by the wind, so much so that the outside world became nothing but a white blur. A freezing , white blur.
Diluc unconsciously hugged his arms close to his body, hiding his hands between his folded arms and his sides.
“The weather was supposed to be clear today. That mage must’ve left before this storm started...” Diluc could barely make out what Kaeya was saying over the screaming wind. Turning away from the entrance, Diluc held back a shiver. The ice cold metal of his claymore felt like it was biting into his skin despite sporting his usual black coat. He thought the feeling would have gone away by now, but even though the weapon had rested on his backside for about ten minutes now, it felt just as frigid as when it first touched his back.
“C’mon. We can’t stay here.” Kaeya surprised Diluc by grabbing his arm and tugging him back the way they came. Instead of protesting, the redhead silently relished in the heat he felt emanating from where Kaeya grabbed on to him, allowing himself to be led.
“What? What is this?” Kaeya stopped in front of a heavily sealed door, preventing them from going much further. Apparently some of the old ruins lining the walls of the caves still had functioning mechanisms. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Kaeya looked at Diluc worryingly, but the redhead didn’t say anything. Instead, he grabbed his claymore and tossed it before gingerly sitting down on the ground, hissing as the damp rock chilled him to the bone.
“We need to build a fire,” Kaeya said.
“Sure. Let me know once you’ve gathered some sticks,” Diluc responded sarcastically, though it didn’t have the same effect when his voice wavered just as he shivered. Kaeya looked as if he wanted to retort, but he closed his half-open mouth. Swallowing his pride and letting out a sigh, he moved next to his estranged brother and sat down with him. They could still hear the wind whipping by the entrance of the cave a ways back.
“Storms come and go all the time on Dragonspine. I’m sure this one won’t last too long.” Diluc only grunted in response. They sat in silence for but a minute before Kaeya got up and began scouring the cave for anything they could use to start a fire. Diluc didn’t mind him. He debated taking off his gloves in order to blow some warm air onto his skin but ultimately decided against it. He pulled his legs up, curling up and hunching his shoulders up to protect his neck and face as much as possible from the cold.
He didn’t even realize he closed his eyes until he felt someone shaking him. Diluc looked up to see Kaeya hovering over. His mouth was moving, but it sounded as if Kaeya was talking underwater.
“Wake up. You have to stay awake.”
I know.
But exhaustion hit Diluc like a mitachurl. It felt good to close his eyes. Why was Kaeya bothering him now? The captain often teased the winemaster about not getting enough sleep, so why couldn’t he let him do so now?
This time Diluc opened his eyes to the white fluffy cape that Kaeya usually wore now draped around his shoulders. It felt great, and in other circumstances it probably would have been all he needed, but this cold…the freezing air and rocky floor of the cave made finding any comfort almost impossible. Still, he warmly accepted the article of clothing, tenderly sinking his face in the soft fabric.
“Diluc, you know I wouldn’t be doing this unless absolutely necessary.”
Mhm. Whatever.
It didn’t register that Kaeya was right behind him until he felt the man’s arms wrap around his waist. Diluc almost fell over as Kaeya lifted him up onto his lap.
“W-what-t are you do-doing?” Diluc asked. Though the movement made alarm bells go off in his head, the idea of getting up on his own felt insurmountable.
“You can’t stay on the floor. It’s damp and sucks the warmth out of you.” Kaeya situated himself against the wall of the cave before manhandling Diluc so that the redhead was leaning up Kaeya’s chest. The bluehead held him securely, but he really didn’t need to. Diluc’s body subconsciously leaned into the newfound heat source. His head fell in place between Kaeya’s neck and shoulder. Despite the absurdity of the arrangement, Diluc found himself unable to protest. He was
So.
Cold.
“I’d rather you try to stay awake, ‘luc. You’re hypothermic.” Diluc opened his eyes, unsure of what just happened. Did he fall asleep? That’s not good. Why wasn’t it good? It felt good to close his eyes.
“Please, stay awake.” Diluc tried to oblige and turned his head, surprised to see Kaeya watching him.
“Kaeya?”
“Yeah.” Diluc furrowed his eyebrows and frowned.
“Why are you in Snezhnaya?”
“We aren’t in Snezhnaya. You’re just confused.” Diluc settled his head back to where it was. How was he confused? Only Snezhnaya was this cold. “Dragonspine is also this cold when you don’t have a pyro vision.”
Oh.
Diluc raised his left arm and studied the back of his hand. His delusion wasn’t there. That was good. Or was it bad? What if the Harbingers found him? He had no chance of defending himself without it.
Kaeya reached out and gently pushed Diluc’s arm down.
“Tell me something that happened during your time away.” Diluc closed his eyes and tried to think of something. What happened during his time traveling Teyvat?
He felt someone shaking him.
“Wake up, Diluc.”
I’m awake.
“Good.” For some reason, Kaeya sounded stressed. “Now why don’t you tell me a story? I’m dreadfully bored.”
“Dottore wanted to experiment on me,” Diluc mumbled.
“...what?”
“He wanted to know why the delusion didn’t backfire on me. It didn’t make me age or lose any of my life force.” Diluc didn’t realize how slurred his voice was until now, but he couldn’t bring himself to care.
“...and…did he…? Did he get a chance to experiment on you?” Kaeya asked warily.
“No.” Diluc heard a sigh of relief from the other.
“How about something good that happened, hm?” Diluc let out a quiet chuckle but didn’t oblige Kaeya’s request.
“I wanna sleep.”
“I know you do.” Kaeya bit his lip. “But I’m afraid you won’t get up if you go to sleep. The storm’s still going strong, but it’ll die down soon, I’m sure of it.” Diluc closed his eyes and let out a sigh.
“Kaeya,” he started. “The storm never dies down.”
*****
It took Diluc a minute to realize he was in the back of a wagon when he woke up. He couldn’t move his head around or sit up since he was covered in layers upon layers of blankets. It was suffocating. He wanted to protest, but he lost all effort to do so as he closed his eyes once more.
When he woke up, Diluc recognized the ceiling of his bedroom. He also recognized the concerned face of Barbara looming above him.
“Oh, Master Diluc!” At her sudden exclamation, Adelinde and Elzer came rushing to his bedside from archons know where.
“Are you alright, Master Diluc?” Elzer asked.
“‘m fine,” Diluc groaned.
“You’re lucky you didn’t get frostbite!” Adelinde rejoiced. “If Master Kaeya hadn’t come across that adventurer, you might not have made it.” Barbara nodded.
“Your pulse is much stronger now, but you have to rest and stay warm,” the deaconess ordered.
A knock on the door drew everyone’s attention. Without waiting for a response, Kaeya waltzed in looking somewhat haggard but safe. He paused when his gaze caught Diluc’s.
“Ah, Master Diluc. I didn’t know you’ve awoken…” No one made any comment on the nervousness in the cavalry captain’s voice.
“He just woke up,” Barbara said. “Thank Barbatos you brought him back when you did. He’s doing much better now.” Kaeya studied the redhead currently drowning under blankets.
“That’s good. I’m sure with this he’ll be feeling even better.” Kaeya pulled out a familiar pyro vision before setting on the nightstand.
“Master Kaeya, I thought you said you were going to rest at your apartment,” Adelinde put her hands on her hips, but the feeling of relief that flowed through her features repelled the chiding she was planning to give.
“I never said when I was going to rest at my apartment,” Kaeya grinned. “Besides, it wasn’t too hard tracking down the mage. He was showing it off to his friends.”
“Well, I’m very grateful that you retrieved Master Diluc’s vision, but you’ve lost the privilege to return to your apartment now.” Kaeya’s grin fell as Adelinde looked at him sternly.
“What?”
“Come along, Master Kaeya. You’ll be staying in the guest room until I deem you well enough to return home.”
“But, I—” Barbara and Elzer hid their smiles, but Diluc just stared blankly before pushing the covers off and sitting up. Adelinde had Kaeya pushed halfway out the door before Diluc called out to him, pausing the scene.
“Kaeya.” Diluc held eye contact. “Thank you.” Kaeya seemed to be at a loss for words, struggling with deciding how to respond. He felt his face heat up as all eyes were on him.
“Come on, Master Kaeya.” Adelinde pushed him out the door before turning around and giving a slight bow. “Let me know if there’s anything you need Master Diluc.”
With that, she shut the door.