Chapter Text
After his second death-after-noon of the night, his usual drinking companions having called it quits hours ago, Kaeya gets up to leave. He picks up his cape and readjusts his belts, his fingers momentarily cold as they brush over the Cryo vision at his hip. He bids Jose farewell, who at this point is caressing his lyre's strings rather than playing any proper music, and heads downstairs. At this late an hour, only a few regulars are sprawled on the Angel's Share's tables.
Diluc glances up from his writing pad as the cavalry captain leans onto the bar.
"Lost a game to Ernest earlier, if you can add his tab to mine too I'll pay ya' what I owe you." Diluc raises an eyebrow at Kaeya's slight slurring.
"I could have sworn you stayed off the alcohol more than usual tonight," says Diluc, a hint of annoyance in his voice, "Seems like I wasn't paying attention."
"Just had a long day s'all," Kaeya responds, almost missing the split second of disappointment on Diluc's face.
"What is it?" His full attention now on the barman.
"It's not important, go home and get some rest, Sir Kaeya." Diluc says, avoiding his gaze. The younger man stiffens, a twinge of worry now colouring his words.
"What's wrong?" Kaeya insists, studying Diluc intently. Things are still and quiet for a moment, then:
"Tomorrow... I'm leaving on a business trip to Liyue, I won't be back till Monday and... you know what, forget it. It's fine." says Diluc, crumbling the paper on his notepad
Kaeya's face falls as realisation hits him.
"Is this about Master Crepus? Luc — "
Diluc’s eyes widen, cutting him off, "No! Well, yes and no. I was just wondering. Since I'll be gone for, you know."
Diluc's looking increasingly uncomfortable, finding sudden interest in his floor, while Kaeya is struggling to follow. He grits his teeth and looks up at Kaeya.
"My birthday, and father's... it's been four years. We never got to spend it to — ” Diluc pauses, biting his lip.
“Can you just wait for half an hour ‘til I close down?"
Kaeya blinks, fully sober now. He eases his hold on the bar counter, his nails having left tiny crescents on the aged birchwood.
"Alright. I'll wait outside."
Diluc exhales and murmurs an ‘alright’ under his breath. He turns his back on Kaeya, focusing on the sink in front of him instead.
The warm spring breeze that hits Kaeya as he exits the bar does little to calm his nerves. Whatever conversation Diluc wants to have is undoubtedly going to be painful and unpleasant. The past three months had been exhilarating, and things were going well, all things considered. They hadn’t spoken about what transpired before Diluc left, and they had maintained a delicate dance around the subject for months. Talks concerning the Fatui had been kept to sharing intel from either of their networks, and even updating Diluc on Eroch’s dismissal, while awkward and curt, had been manageable. He'd somehow hoped Diluc was going to ignore the upcoming date as deliberately as he was planning on doing, and was relieved when he found out Diluc would be out of Mondstadt. This was a conversation he didn't think either of them were quite ready for yet.
He's lost in thought when Diluc exits the door of the Angel's Share, a small backpack slung over his shoulder.
"Care to join me, Sir Kaeya?" He still looks slightly uncomfortable but there's a steadiness to his voice, and that characteristic Ragnvindr stubbornness and resolve in his eyes.
Kaeya pushes himself off the wall and does his best to slip one of his easier smiles back on his face as he looks back at Diluc.
"Rather late for a stroll, don't you think, Master Diluc?"
"I wasn't planning on going far," he says, "How inebriated are you?"
Kaeya raises his brow at the question, "I think we both know the answer to that question given my usual tolerance. Why?"
"Sober enough to climb?" he says, a hint of mischief in his voice. Kaeya blinks. Stares.
"Excuse me, Master Diluc, I'm afraid I don't quite follow.”
Diluc chuckles, but immediately covers it with a cough and starts walking towards the city's eastern wall. Kaeya quickly joins him, not knowing what to make of the situation. They walk in silence, Kaeya stealing glances at the man next to him whose face reveals little of what's in his head. He could have sworn there was a time he could read Diluc like an open book. He could have sworn he still could. This was so uncharacteristic of him he didn’t know what to make of it.
Diluc abruptly stops in front of one of the windmills adorning Mondstadt and Kaeya almost bumps into him.
"Are you serious?"
"Yes."
Diluc goes up the ladder, and Kaeya can do little but stare at him. A barely audible ‘what the hell’ slips past his lips as he follows Diluc up the windmill.
The ladder feels slimier than it did the last time he climbed it, a drunken dare gone wrong that resulted in a few fractured ribs belonging to one of the greener recruits and one broken wind-glider. Sara was kind enough to waive off compensation for her destroyed dishes.
As he makes it up to the highest level, Diluc is already leaving his bag on the floor and taking a seat. He sits next to him, crossing his arms over his knees.
"So, what's this about?" Kaeya asks.
Diluc looks up at the night sky and doesn’t say anything for a while before he takes a deep breath and starts fiddling with the bag’s straps.
"You know, there's a certain Ragnvindr tradition I never got to experience.” He pauses, “It was supposed to happen on my eighteenth birthday. Every child born to the family gets a bottle of wine sealed in the year of their birth and left to still, meant to be consumed when they become adults. From my understanding it's been a thing for generations.”
He chuckles dryly, “We both know why that didn't pan out."
Kaeya stiffens.
"I… still have it. Adelinde kept it in father’s office. And... like I said, I'll be going to Liyue next week on my actual birthday, so..." Diluc pulls out the bottle from the bag, handing it to Kaeya.
"I was wondering if you'd do the honours. Four years late and all, but might as well."
Kaeya exhales, and looks down on the beautiful cursive adorning the bottle's label, reading Diluc's name and date of birth in handwriting unmistakably belonging to Crepus.
"You know, he had one made for you too. He picked one from the year we found you though. Or well, you found us, I guess."
"Diluc..." Kaeya’s voice sounds weak to his own ears. Gods, he thought he was stronger than this.
Diluc's expression hardens,
"Listen, just. I know, alright? I know this isn't easy." Diluc pauses, takes a breath and continues, "It's my first time back home in four years since... Since then. I spent enough of them alone to know I'd rather not do that again. And you still — ”
He cuts himself off, looking down at the edge of his boots instead. Kaeya has to stop himself from brushing away the red locks now covering Diluc’s face. When was the last time they opened up to each other like this?
Realisation hits Kaeya that he had already spoken his truth on the night of Crepus’ death: he’s been bare to the one person that always mattered for years now, but this is Diluc’s first attempt at laying his cards in the open too, now that they both have secrets worth hiding. There’s a warmth in his chest, spreading to his limbs.
"Humour me." Diluc whispers.
Kaeya has questions and he knows there's a thousand uncomfortable conversations they'll have to go through, before any of this is "normal." He runs a finger across Diluc’s cheek instead.
"Well, I hope you brought a corkscrew."
Diluc huffs out a laugh, and there’s a faint blush across his features, barely visible in the moonlight. He moves the bag in front of him, taking out two glasses wrapped in rags and a small knife that he hands to Kaeya.
"You'll have to make do."