Work Text:
A Dill-lightful Family Mash-up
“Jean? I’m home…”
The apartment was quiet, but Diluc knew exactly where to look. He set groceries down on his way past the counter, and headed straight for the room. There Jean was, laying on her side, fast asleep.
A soft smile crossed Diluc’s lips.
Even though she had drastically slowed down on how much work she was doing, she only became more tired. The difference being that this was natural tiredness, rather than stress induced.
Although, she and Kaeya had both blamed it on Diluc for putting a giant Ragnvindr baby inside her. That may be, and Jean was tall as well, like the models in the clothing catalogs from Fontaine, but far more beautiful.
Diluc sat on the floor next to the bed, and simply looked at her, his fingers inching towards her stomach. In this state, she looked so incredibly relaxed. A small line of drool dripping down from the corner of her mouth, and the tiniest little snores escaping her lips.
He could watch her like this forever.
Unfortunately, she would undoubtedly be waking up sooner or later, and lately, awake has meant hungry . He wanted to have dinner already prepared for her, which meant he had to move.
With a sigh, he moved the hair out of her eyes, kissed her belly, and got up.
Jean, as hungry as she often was, still had bouts of morning sickness. So, aside from some risks here, and there, she stuck to basic, but hearty foods. Except onions, she hadn’t been able to down those for some time.
Tonight, he was going to attempt to make something Jean said she was craving. He’d try his best, at least. It hadn’t always turned out well. This recipe seemed fairly simple, but still questionable.
Diluc stared at the ingredients for a moment, preparing himself mentally for what it might end up smelling like. There had been some that made him gag, but these ingredients seemed tame , at least.
With a slow shake of his head, he grabbed the apples, peeled them, and cubed them. Next was potatoes using the same process. He dumped them into a pot, filled it to just over the top of the ingredients with water, and started it boiling.
Next, he took out the giant jar of pickles he’d be using far too many of. Some he sliced, and some he diced, setting them aside in different stacks. He moved on to the cheese. Jean had been very specific when she described this meal, practically drooling onto the tavern’s counter as she told him all of her hopes and dreams.
Sharp cheddar. The cheese had to be sharp cheddar , nothing else would do. Again, he cut some into cubes, and some into slices. Next, he prepared slices of bread, spread with butter.
Overall, the preparation hadn’t been difficult, the hardest part was wrapping his mind around the combination. However, it didn’t matter, he’d do whatever it took to make Jean happy, and if that involved something as simple as attempting to make odd foods, he’d do it every time.
A knock at the door startled him out of his thoughts, just as he heard Jean shuffling down the short hallway. He peeked around the corner just in time to see her waddling back into the room, probably frantically trying to find a comfortable shirt that fit .
“Delivery!” Kaeya’s voice came from the other side of the door.
Diluc’s hand paused on the doorknob, making serious considerations on whether to let his brother in or not, when he heard Albedo’s voice.
“We don’t have anything to deliver,” the short blonde said evenly.
He could practically hear Kaeya wave a hand, “Of course we do. We’re the delivery! Who wouldn’t want to see us?”
Diluc knew he could answer that question quite easily at that moment, but he also knew the moment he opened the door, Kaeya would flash a big smile, and wander right in. With a sigh, he opened the door.
As expected, Kaeya ignored the vicious glare sent his way.
“Wow, you actually answered the door?” Kaeya said as he slid past Diluc, followed by Albedo.
They immediately stopped by Jean sitting on the other side of the kitchen island, and closed in on her.
“Well, there’s our gloriously glowing leader, and beautiful niece!”
Diluc rolled his eyes, as he strained the apples, and potatoes. They smelled odd after being cooked together, but nothing bad. It was merely something like apples, with an earthy scent.
“What are you cooking?” Albedo asked.
He glanced at Jean. It was meant to be a surprise, but the look in her eyes, and happy smile said that she’d already guessed. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t made all the other cravings, so she’d no doubt been expecting it.
“Mashed potatoes with apples, pickles, and cheese,” he said, holding up the other two ingredients to dump into the pot.
The smell got a little more interesting then, but still tolerable. He added milks, butter, salt and pepper, and started mashing.
Kaeya gasped from right over his shoulder, “You mash potatoes like a brute , Diluc. You should cream them into a smoother texture as you go, not just stomp them like a pack of slimes. Oh, and the cheese… you have to make sure it blends as it melts.” He took the masher from Diluc’s hands, “Here, let me show you.”
Diluc raised an eyebrow at the two blondes, now seated together on the other side of the counter, and apparently enjoying the show. He lived in a circus.
As Kaeya continued to give a running commentary, as if he’d made mashed potatoes with pickles and cheese hundreds of times, Diluc turned to another task. He grabbed the sliced cheese, and bread, and slipped back to the stove. He figured he might as well take advantage of the helping hand.
Once the grilled cheese was cooked to perfection, he carefully plated one for Jean, cut in half - diagonally , he wasn’t a monster– added the sliced pickles to the side, and added the mashed potatoes.
It seemed like he, Kaeya, and Albedo were all holding their breath as he slid it in front of her, and waited for her to take a bite.
Thankfully, despite the fact she was being watched by multiple people, Jean happily dug right in. She took a small amount onto the fork, and brought it to her nose to inhale deeply, then took a bite.
Jean groaned, and closed her eyes as she chewed, her smile widening, “This is perfect . Thank you so much, Diluc. Mmm, so good .”
“Oh? I helped too,” Kaeya pouted as he pulled out a fork and helped himself to the potatoes, “ Huh. This really is pretty good…”
Even Albedo seemed surprised by that comment, but didn’t hesitate to take a bite when Kaeya held it in front of his face. He chewed slowly.
“The starchy texture of the potato acts as a neutral canvas. While the apple introduces a crisp, sweet flavor that counters the salty brine of the pickle. The cheese serves as a binding agent, both in texture and flavor melding the components into a surprisingly cohesive whole. I wouldn’t have expected the pickle to harmonize with the apple, but it adds a lively sharpness that elevates the entire dish,” the alchemist concluded.
As he prepared more grilled cheese for himself, and their guests, he watched, and listened. Everything was so light-hearted in a way it almost made his heart ache. He was happy , and it felt nice.
He had family around him, laughing, and talking. Not worrying about some situation that was out of their control.
Diluc felt the lightest he had in a very long time.
~xxxxxxxxxx~
After dinner was done, and their surprise guests had left, Diluc sat on the couch with Jean, who was shirtless once more. He rubbed slow circles on her belly. It had become something of a game he and the baby would play.
He’d put his hand in a spot until the baby would kick at it, then move and wait for it to find the hand once more. One thing was certain, the baby was very precise in its aim. It never took very long for the baby to find daddy’s hand on mommy’s ever-growing belly.
With a slightly harder kick, Jean sucked in a small breath, and laughed, “At this rate their leg muscles will be so strong it will be running circles in no time.”
“I can't wait to see it,” Diluc smiled.
“Hm. I believe it will be your job to chase them down then.”
His smile widened, “Gladly. If they’re anything like I was, I probably should have upped my exercise routine months ago. Dad said I only had one mode, and that was go .”
Jean nodded, “I remember when we were still very young you were always running after bugs, making warrior moves, or climbing on things. Kaeya would watch you with his chin in his hand, as if he were trying to figure out something. I wish I had ever asked him what he was thinking.”
“He was probably trying to figure out how I was still alive. With his birth family, he didn’t get to… he didn’t get to be a normal child…”
Jean put a hand on his cheek, to draw his attention, and looked up from his shoulder, “But you and Master Crepus did everything you could to make up for that. He grew to be a good person.”
Diluc shook his head, “That was all dad’s doing. All Kaeya got from me was a reminder of what it looked like to be hurt by someone who was supposed to care.”
“That is not true, Kaeya would say so himself, and you know it, so don’t even bother arguing.”
He snapped his mouth shut, knowing that Jean was right, and that he did not want to start an argument with a heavily pregnant, and heavily hormonal Grand Master. She could order the troops to skewer him, and they might just be obliged to follow that order.
Diluc let his cheek rest on the top of her head, and started rubbing circles again. He watched as Jean’s fingers started drumming restlessly on his thigh. That always meant she was thinking, but it didn’t mean she would say what was on her mind.
He’d just wait patiently. If she didn’t say anything, but started picking at the fabric, it meant she would probably just hold whatever it was in. Jean was better at talking about her feelings than he was, but she could sometimes be shy, and liked to thoroughly think a conversation through.
“Diluc… What do you think the baby will be like?”
“Like you, I hope. Though judging by the kicking, it might be a bit of a hothead. No idea where that would come from, though.”
“None at all, hm? I hope the baby has your hair, and eyes. It wouldn’t be so bad if they were just like you. That would make me happy,” Jean said, placing both of her hands over his.
Diluc laughed lightly, “In that case, I hope they have your smile. The world doesn’t need another brooding redhead scowling around.”
Jean laughed, her shoulders shaking against his chest.
“And your heart,” he added quietly. “No matter what happens, I want them to have that kindness you carry within. That strength that can pull someone away from the precipitous with nothing but love. That’s so special.”
As if in agreement, a kick hit right in the center of his hand. Jean shook her head with a huff.
“We know they get their stubbornness from you.”
“No, that can’t be. Maybe they’re just trying to tell us we’re both wrong,” he denied.
Jean sighed with contentment, and snuggled back against his side, “That does sound about right, a child who does things their own way.”
Diluc hummed in agreement, “Then I guess we’ll just have our hands full.”