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It was a warm Spring morning. The worst of the winter storms had passed, the birdsong no longer accompanied by the scraping of snow being shoveled. The sun had regained its strength, making short work of the light mist that lingered in the streets of Mondstadt. By all accounts, it was a perfectly ordinary start to a day.
(Diluc had come home.)
There were recruits training in the courtyard. Kaeya could picture the drill perfectly, the call of the sequence and the barrage of the wooden training swords on heavy fabric dummies a nostalgic sound. The calluses on Kaeya’s palms reminded him of simpler times. Days when loyalties seemed so clear cut.
(Diluc had come home.)
There was an itch under Kaeya’s skin, a discomfort he couldn’t reach. Everyone carried on their morning as usual. He was greeted with salutes and a chorus of ‘good morning captain’. There was a stack of papers awaiting his discerning eye. There were older knights already inviting him out for drinks at the end of the day. But none of these perfectly ordinary things could distract Kaeya from one important fact.
Diluc had come home.
Kaeya had known long before the first report came in. The moment Diluc had set foot within Mondstadt’s border that innocuous red crystal that sat within a satin lined box in his desk drawer began to glow at nearly full power. Since it had come into his possession, it had only ever given off the slightest red glow, just enough to show that Diluc was in good health. Now it hummed with expectation.
Because Diluc had come home.
It took a long time for Kaeya to lessen his grip on the vision. It wasn’t long ago that he had panic attacks at the thought of being unable to check on it, to reassure himself that Diluc was okay. Now, he was comfortable leaving it behind on a week-long expedition to Dragonspine. And he hadn’t thought of it once.
But now Diluc had come home.
Or was it more accurate to say that Diluc had returned to Mondstadt? Kaeya wasn’t certain that Diluc still considered the land of freedom his home. Afterall, not all who are born to a land consider it their home. Anyone could find themselves a stranger in a place of familiarity. Diluc had traveled far beyond the reaches of the wind, to places no dandelion could hope to reach. Perhaps he had found himself a new place and people to call home.
Kaeya couldn’t bring himself to drink his usual coffee, not with the nausea that swirled in his stomach. Was it the lack of food in his body that was making him feel like he was outside of his own skin? Like a phantom possessing a puppet.
The important thing was that Diluc had returned at all. Would he stay? Or was this simply a pit stop in his journey? Kaeya would give up his position as Cavalry Captain in a heartbeat if Diluc desired it. But he knew Diluc would never ask it of him.
They had left off on a tense note, something dissonant so far estranged from the harmony they had once achieved. Even so, the few letters they had exchanged held a glimmer of hope for reconciliation. Kaeya had continued to send Diluc updates knowing that until the young master returned they would go unanswered. He wondered if Diluc was reading them now.
“Captain?”
Kaeya responded with a hum, just enough of an indication to acknowledge the page’s presence.
“Master Jean wishes to see you.”
Kaeya finished the flourish of his signature and placed the quill down. He glanced up at the page, who swallowed nervously. He gave the boy a reassuring smile.
“I will visit her shortly, thank you.”
The page gave a clumsy salute and slipped out of the room. Kaeya sighed and stood up. What had the page seen in his expression that had him so nervous? Perhaps his mask wasn’t as perfect as it felt.
The door to the grandmaster’s office was a simple, solid slab of oak. It had been a long time since Kaeya last thought the door to be heavy, but today it took a great deal of strength to open it.
Jean sat at her desk. She was poised as ever, though the permanent shadows under her eyes gave her true state away. Her lips were set. Kaeya's easy smile felt out of place.
“What can I do for our beloved Master Jean on this fine morning?”
Jean’s expression cracked and she gave an exasperated huff. She indicated for him to sit. He did as he was told. Silence lingered between them as she poured him a cup of tea. He held it in his hands, but couldn’t yet bring himself to take a sip. He watched Jean as she hesitated.
“He’s back.”
It was Kaeya who had spoken, not wanting to cause Jean undue stress over something he already knew. She blinked owlishly, then understanding settled over her.
“How are you doing?” she asked.
“I’ll be fine.”
“If you need to take the day off–”
“No, I can work,” Kaeya shook his head, “I need to work, Jean. Please”
Her mouth opened, wanting to say something more, but she took one look at his expression and dropped it. She sighed, “...will you go to visit him?”
“Eventually.”
“You two can’t avoid each other forever.”
Kaeya played into the innocent act, “Who says I’m avoiding him?”
Jean didn’t say anything, just watched him knowingly. He expected nothing less and shrugged, “We’ll run into each other eventually, I just don’t think he’d appreciate me barging into his home.”
“It’s your home, too,” Jean said. She seemed so sure of the statement that Kaeya almost wanted to believe it. He gave one small nod. Jean’s eyes betrayed how his lack of response broke her heart.
The conversation stalled there. Kaeya took a small sip of the tea, guilty that he was unable to finish it. He set it to the side.
“May I be excused?”
She took a deep breath and nodded. He gave her a formal salute and walked out.
Albedo was sitting on his couch. Kaeya stopped halfway through the door, his gaze stuck on the alchemist who seemed to have made himself at home in Kaeya’s office. There were notebooks set up in small, disorganized piles all around him.
The alchemist glanced up at the sound of his arrival. He waved at Kaeya.
“Welcome back,” he said, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Thanks…?” Kaeya stepped fully into the room and closed the door. “What brings you here? I thought you were still holed up in the lab?”
Albedo turned back to his notebooks, scribbling something down onto a much larger piece of paper laid out on the cushion next to him, “I thought a change of scenery might do me some good.”
Kaeya raised an eyebrow, “Is that so?”
“Yes,” Albedo said.
“And you decided to come here?”
Albedo stopped writing, the point of his pen creating a large ink spot where it touched the paper, “Would you rather I go somewhere else?”
Kaeya’s eye widened and he immediately shook his head, “No, that’s alright. This room is plenty big enough for two.”
Albedo smiled. Kaeya took a seat at his desk, leaning back into the chair and breathing deeply. He let his eyes close, his mind sorting through his thoughts in an attempt to convince himself to relax. The soft scratching of Albedo’s pen kept him grounded.
Kaeya remained that way for some time as Albedo worked. The Cavalry Captain was grateful for his partner’s quiet nature. It was calming. No pressure, no questions.
“I take it you heard, then?” Kaeya said.
“I hear a lot of things,” the alchemist replied without missing a beat.
I’ll take that as a yes.
For someone who had been shut inside his lab for the past few days, he was surprisingly in the loop. Though, maybe it shouldn’t have been all that surprising. Jean was thorough, and she knew Kaeya too well. He had thought she’d let him go a bit too easily.
He forced himself upright and pulled at every vestige of mental strength he could find. He had told Jean that he’d work. Even though she probably wouldn’t mind him lazing about his office for the day, he really did want the distraction.
Before picking up his pen, Kaeya opened the top drawer of his desk. He grabbed a small caramel square wrapped in wax.
“Albedo.”
The alchemist looked up just in time to catch the candy. Kaeya didn’t miss the way his teal eyes sparkled with recognition. Albedo quickly popped the sweet into his mouth.
Kaeya watched Albedo’s blissful expression and laughed slightly.
“Thank you,” the alchemist said.
No, I should be thanking you.
Sometime in the late afternoon, Jean woke up from an accidental nap at her desk. She shook herself awake and noticed an unusual heaviness to her shoulders. She removed the familiar coat, smiling slightly to herself as she folded it neatly. When she turned back to her papers, there was something wrapped in wax sitting near her pen.
She opened it and popped it into her mouth.
It was caramel.