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It wasn’t often that Diluc willingly cooperated with the Knights of Favonius.
Scratch that, it was pretty much common knowledge he never did. If anything, he avoided them like the plague, always going on about their inefficiency and poor behaviour.
Which was exactly why it was so hard to fathom why, on the rare occasion he had agreed to work with them, Kaeya had been assigned as his mission partner, of all people.
Kaeya couldn’t tell whether Jean was bullying him, or if this was her trying to send him sort of message, but needless to say he wasn’t very appreciative.
And yet at the same time, he couldn’t be more grateful.
Contradictory as that may sound, there was actually another reason to assign him this mission, other than to make him try, and fail, to reconcile with his estranged brother. A reason that genuinely concerned him. A good, proper, logical reason.
Thanks to the traveller, they’d made a new discovery regarding the Fatui, and by extension, the accident that happened all those years ago.
The very same accident that killed Crepus Ragnvindr.
Jean understood more than anyone they’d both want to get to the bottom of this, and that despite the way the two of them were too emotionally involved, they were the only right people for the job regardless.
There was no way either of them would let someone else do it, especially not after the knights tried covering up what really happened last time. While Kaeya didn’t have the same resentment for them as Diluc did because of that, he still didn’t feel quite comfortable enough to allow anyone else to inform him of the truth, rather than go and uncover it himself.
The traveller’s information led them to an abandoned laboratory near the border of Sumeru, well-hidden in a spot that would likely be considered no man’s land. A perfect location to avoid local authorities, and to conduct questionable experiments in peace.
As Kaeya and Diluc made their way through the dimly lit research lab however, it didn’t feel like they were making much progress. This time it wasn’t even because of their usual bickering hindering them in their search, but simply the fact there wasn’t much to be found in the first place. It was as if someone had left in a hurry, and had attempted to destroy as much as possible before fleeing.
From the fact Il Dottore, the presumed owner of the lab, had built it so close to the region he used to study in however, Kaeya could tell he was a sentimental person.
Sentimental people were rarely capable of destroying everything. They’d try to preserve as much as possible, leaving little keepsakes in hopes of reuniting with them and rebuilding what they’d lost, rather than starting from scratch.
Letting go was hard, as Kaeya was well aware. They’d find something worthwhile. He was sure of it.
He could only hope that his people reading skills hadn’t grown rusty over the years.
Just as he was about to rummage through the umpteenth pile of charred documents however, he heard stumbling coming from one of the storage rooms. Diluc was on the other end of the lab, checking out the engines just around the corner, so it couldn’t be him causing the noise.
For a moment Kaeya simply assumed it to be something falling down, but that was suspicious enough on its own. Most of the time, objects didn’t fall by themselves. They needed a push, a pull, or any other outside force to tip them over.
And besides, the stumbling didn’t cease, meaning something was in there.
The grip Kaeya had on his sword tightened, his senses on high alert as he quietly entered the room the noise was coming from.
Only for him to rush straight back out, all caution forgotten as he pressed himself against the wall, his breathing frantic and his heart racing.
This couldn’t be real.
There was no way this was real.
It wasn’t.
Couldn’t be.
Kaeya couldn’t breathe.
He tightly clutched his chest as he sank down, his shaky legs no longer able to hold him.
He felt like throwing up.
Like ripping out all his intestines just to make that gruesome ache stop.
‘What’s going on?’ Diluc asked as he approached him.
The other had likely heard the noise he’d made upon stumbling out of the storage room, but if he bore witness to what he’d seen in there, Kaeya didn’t think he’d be okay. Or ever would be okay again, for that matter. In that case a panic attack such as his own would be mild in comparison.
‘Don’t—’ he gasped, reaching out to grip Diluc’s coat as tightly as he could. ‘You shouldn’t—’
‘What happened?’ Diluc asked, kneeling down by his side with a worried expression on his face.
Kaeya couldn’t even remember the last time the other had shown this much concern for him.
‘It’s—’
How did he even begin to explain what he’d seen? What he’d laid eyes upon should have been impossible. So how could he possibly find the words?
‘Calm down, Kaeya.’ Diluc said firmly.
For a moment Kaeya feared the other might slap him across the face, or anything along those lines, so it took him by surprise when he put a gentle hand on his shoulder instead.
He let out a shaky breath, refusing to look Diluc in the eye, and averted his gaze back to the storage room he’d just come from.
‘Father’s in there.’ he breathed out.
Gone was the hand on his shoulder.
‘Father’s buried six feet under.’ Diluc told him coldly.
‘I’m aware.’ Kaeya hissed. Even if he hadn’t been to the funeral himself, everyone that had been there, which was about the entirety of Mondstadt and then some, had told him about it. About how tragic it was. How beautiful the service was.
If there was anyone painfully aware of Crepus having been buried, it was Kaeya.
And yet he’d just seen him inside that storage room.
He was certain of it.
‘Are you hallucinating?’
‘Hell if I knew!’ Kaeya exclaimed, his breathing coming out ragged. He’d been trying to protect Diluc from seeing something so traumatizing, yet all Diluc was doing in return was mock him for it. ‘He’s just-…there.’
The stumbling was getting louder now, a shadowy figure making its way towards the door Kaeya realized too late he should have closed behind him.
‘Who’s—’
This time, Diluc’s voice faltered much the same as his own.
The person in front of them put a shaky, mechanical hand on the doorway to support himself, looking weak and exhausted from walking even such a short distance. Now that he’d come out of the dark room and into the hallway, beams of light fell onto his face, making him recognizable as none other than Crepus Ragnvindr himself.
Or something or someone wearing his face, anyway.
Crepus Ragnvindr was dead.
And yet what Kaeya and Diluc saw in front of them would suggest otherwise.
‘Hey, Diluc…’ Kaeya breathed out, unable to tear his eyes away. ‘You see him too, don’t you?’
‘Yeah.’ Diluc whispered, apparently finding it equally impossible.
‘Two people don’t usually hallucinate the same thing at the same time, do they?’
‘Shut up.’
Kaeya did, if only because the piercing gaze of those familiar eyes was boring into him. He felt frozen in place, unable to do a thing.
‘I kind of…need a hand here…’ Crepus brought out, his voice raspy almost as if hadn’t used it in, let’s say, almost five years.
Instead of a hand, Diluc pointed a claymore in his direction.
‘You better explain yourself first.’ he hissed, clearly thinking his words over carefully but not having it in him to attack the potential threat. ‘As far as we know, our father is dead.’
At that, Kaeya sucked in a deep breath.
Our father.
Completely the wrong thing to focus on in that moment, and yet the words echoed in his mind demanding to be made a priority.
‘He should be.’ Crepus stated, before letting out a deep sigh and sinking to his knees. With his free hand, which unlike the one supporting him still seemed to be made out of flesh, he was clutching at his chest. If Kaeya wasn’t mistaken, he could see the faint glow of some sort of mechanism there too. ‘I should be.’
‘So how come you aren’t?’ Kaeya asked, finally daring to speak up. The sound of his own voice almost startled him. ‘What happened?’
‘I take it you know who this lab belongs to, if you’re here investigating it.’ Crepus spoke.
‘Il Dottore.’ Diluc replied. ‘A Fatui Harbinger with questionable morals at best. In comparison to him, the others behave like saints.’
‘Precisely.’ Crepus confirmed. ‘And those questionable morals are the very reason I’m here when I really shouldn’t be.’
‘I saw you.’ Diluc brought out, clutching his claymore tighter as if that would somehow solve things. ‘I held you as you lay dying in my arms. I had to—’
A sentence Kaeya knew he was incapable of finishing. And really, he couldn’t blame him.
Having to put your own father out of his misery was not something to speak of lightly.
‘And I was about halfway into my grave by the time they took my body away.’ Crepus confirmed. ‘Further, even. And yet that doctor still managed to preserve that which remained.’
As if in demonstration, he let go of the doorway, and held up the mechanical arm attached to his torso.
Kaeya couldn’t see how far it stretched. Whether the rest of his body had been replaced by metal and gears as well, or if it was just his arm. He had a feeling he didn’t want to know.
‘He’s been doing the same to himself for years.’ Crepus continued. ‘Taking so-called snapshots and using them to preserve different versions of himself. Except he’s been doing it to the versions he liked best. Those that thrived. When he took my snapshot, I was practically dead.’
‘How do you even know all this?’
The man let out a bitter laugh, and shook his head as he slumped back against the doorway.
‘From the way he talked to me as he worked, I almost got the impression he was lonely.’ he murmured. ‘Or maybe he just wanted someone to recognize him for his work.’
‘But why would he-…?’ Kaeya asked hesitantly.
‘I don’t know.’ Crepus admitted. ‘Guilt, maybe. He was the one who had Ursa the Drake attack us that night after all. Either that, or because a dead man is an easy test subject. No one will come looking for someone they think has already passed on.’
Any and all vulnerability that Diluc might have been displaying vanished in an instant, leaving nothing but rage behind.
‘He did what?’
‘Hush, Diluc.’ Crepus said in that tone only he was capable of. ‘We can’t change the past. There’s no point in getting worked up over it now. Believe me, I’ve tried.’
‘I mourned for you.’ Diluc hissed. ‘All these years we-…do you have any idea how much your death affected me? And now you’re saying you were alive all this time?’
He let out a shaky breath then, running an unsteady hand through his hair as he did.
‘How do we even know it’s really you?’ he continued, sounding almost frantic. ‘How can we be sure it’s not just some trap set up by Dottore to lower our guards?’
Crepus sighed, his expression pained. ‘Ask me anything.’ he replied. ‘Something only the real me could know. Something he’d be incapable of replicating.’
‘How can you possibly think—’
‘The present you gave me on my thirteenth birthday.’ Kaeya finally spoke up again, feeling frighteningly calm all of a sudden.
‘A phoenix ring.’ Crepus replied. ‘Like the one every Ragnvindr family member gets on their thirteenth birthday.’
The one Kaeya no longer wore, because he no longer felt like he deserved to.
‘Our favourite flowers.’
‘Calla Lilies and Lamp Grass.’
‘Where you found me.’
‘On the crossroads, by the old wooden sign. You told me your father had gone to fetch you some grape juice and never returned.’
‘Did I really tell you that?’ Kaeya asked, eyes narrowing.
‘Not right away.’ Crepus admitted, the hint of a smile playing around his lips. ‘You had to be persuaded with hot chocolate first.’
At that, Kaeya let out a soft chuckle, relaxing once more, if only a little. ‘I’d never tasted something so heavenly before.’
The pained expression on Crepus’ face eased ever so slightly now too, clearly remembering the past fondly. ‘Adelinde never did quite manage to get the cocoa and sugar ratio just right, did she? As much of a good cook as she is, you’d always demand I make the hot chocolate.’
Next to him, Kaeya heard a claymore clattering to the ground, the hands of its owner now trembling with an emotion he couldn’t quite make out.
‘You-…’ Diluc brought out. ‘You’re actually-…’
‘I’m sorry for not being there when you needed me.’ Crepus spoke softly, turning serious once more. ‘I’m sorry for all the pain and suffering you’ve had to endure.’
Kaeya could pinpoint the exact moment Diluc’s resolve broke, the apprehensive expression on his face turning into one of heartbreak instead.
‘All this time…’ he breathed out, stumbling forward. ‘You…we-…’
It didn’t seem as if he intended to finish that sentence, if he even knew what he wanted to say in the first place, because not a second later, he was kneeling on the floor besides their father, pulling him into a hug.
‘It’s alright now…’ Crepus murmured, holding on to him as best as he could in this state. ‘I’m here…I’m here now.’
It should have been a heart-warming display, and had Kaeya been anyone else, it probably would have been. Yet right now, all he could do was stare, shivering from how cold he suddenly felt and feeling unable to move.
Should an enemy decide to strike now, he wouldn’t even be able to stop them.
Diluc was clutching at their father as if he’d disappear if he let go, not exactly in a state to fight either. The sight of him then almost reminded Kaeya of the little boy he once had been, all bright smiles and unapologetic tears because he still allowed himself to feel back then.
Kaeya had never had that privilege, and yet he’d always felt the need to protect that boy regardless, caring too much about him to allow anything else. Right now, the only way to do that was by backing of and remaining uninvolved. If he moved even a muscle, Diluc would go back to his traumatized adult self, the moment permanently ruined.
‘It’s alright if you still distrust me.’ Crepus snapped him from his thoughts. He was running a comforting hand through Diluc’s hair as he held him, though the pained look he gave Kaeya as he did spoke volumes. ‘I won’t hold it against you.’
It’s not that, Kaeya didn’t say.
He couldn’t care less whether this Crepus was the real deal, a snapshot, or even just a trap set up by Il Dottore. If it meant hugging him again, even for a moment, Kaeya would willingly walk into any trap presented to him.
He wanted nothing more than to just lose himself in that warm embrace again. To have their father hold them, have the world disappear for a moment, and feel safe. To have his brother’s shoulder pressed against his own, all the while smiling at him like nothing else mattered.
But Diluc had disowned him, so he couldn’t have that.
Wasn’t allowed to have that.
If he let himself get carried away, he risked ruining that precious moment between father and son. That moment for which he’d give everything to have too, if only he had anything left to give.
Crepus couldn’t know what had occurred. Not only because Kaeya was incapable of making that awful admission a second time, but because he feared the man would view Diluc in a different light as well.
If he did that, Kaeya’s worst nightmare would become reality; he’d be the sole reason their little family would fall apart. Himself and Diluc may have been a lost cause, but he couldn’t take whatever they had left away too.
He couldn’t do that. No matter what.
It was better if he took the blame.
Preserved what little was left.
At least then Crepus would still have one son he was capable of loving, rather than none at all.
‘I did something horrible.’ Kaeya finally spoke.
‘I made a mistake.’ Diluc said that very same moment.
Their gazes met, making Kaeya feel frozen in place.
‘Something tells me this “horrible thing” and that “mistake” aren’t entirely unrelated.’ Crepus spoke carefully.
‘Diluc’s wrong.’ Kaeya brought out before the lump in his throat would make it impossible to speak. ‘He didn’t make a mistake, he did the right thing. If anything, he should have finished what he started. It was only the fair thing to do after I told him something so awful.’
Right now, he wished he had finished the job.
‘Are you insane?’ Diluc brought out, not even so much as allowing their father to speak. ‘I shouldn’t have-…what I did was unforgivable, and if you think otherwise then you’re even more stupid than I thought.’
‘Diluc—’
‘I tried to kill you for fuck’s sake—’
‘Not quite the reaction I’d hoped to you finding out about Kaeya’s ties to Khaenri’ah.’ Crepus finally managed to interrupt them, guessing correctly as to what this was about. ‘Though given the circumstances…’
Kaeya’s eyes went wide.
Out of all the impossible things occurring right now, this one had to take the crown.
‘You knew?’
‘Eleven year olds aren’t exactly subtle with their secrets, you know.’ Crepus sighed. ‘I knew you’d tell me when you felt ready. If you ever did. And if not, I’d have been happy to love you all the same. You were a child.’
‘But I was-…’ Kaeya breathed out. ‘But why would you…?’
He didn’t miss the awkward, almost guilty way in which Diluc pried himself away from the man’s embrace. He looked like he wanted to sink through the floor and disappear.
Admittedly though, so did Kaeya.
‘People tend to have this habit of pinning the blame on the person that directly wronged them.’ Crepus explained. ‘Shoot the messenger, so to say. And yet, they never stop to consider whether that person actually wants to be doing what they’re doing.’
‘They have a choice, though, don’t they?’ Diluc breathed out. ‘They don’t have to obey.’
‘In the eyes of a free man, everybody has a choice.’ Crepus confirmed. ‘But what would you have done had I asked you to come to a foreign nation with me? Asked you to help me, despite being just a child?’
‘I-…’ Diluc started, cheeks flushing in embarrassment. ‘I would have done it. Without question, I would have-…I would have followed your lead.’
‘Even if you knew what I was doing was wrong?’
‘Hold up, that’s not quite right.’ Kaeya finally dared to speak up again. He finally felt like he’d regained the strength in his legs now too, enabling him to rise to his feet. ‘I knew what I was doing was wrong. I’m not stupid. Spying on people isn’t exactly good manners, even in Khaenri’ah.’
Crepus sighed again, before shaking his head. In disapproval or disappointment Kaeya couldn’t tell.
‘You were a child, ordered by someone you’re supposed to be able to trust to do something that would help them. There are very few people, if any at all, capable of going against that.’
‘But I should have.’ Kaeya whispered.
‘No one expected you to do the impossible, my boy.’
And that was all it took for Kaeya’s resolve to break too, big, ugly tears streaming down his face.
‘Come here, both of you…’
Kaeya had been wrong about the way these hugs felt, and yet he couldn’t find it in himself to care. Him and Diluc were much taller and broader now, awkwardly pressed against Crepus’ shoulders instead of his chest as a cold mechanical arm pressed into them just a little too harshly.
But it was better like this.
Better, because it was not just a fleeting memory, but actual reality. Here and now.
‘I’m sorry.’ Kaeya whispered as he allowed his tears to fall just as unapologetically as Diluc used to back when he was a child. ‘I’m so sorry.’
If he didn’t know any better, he’d almost assume the gentle hand Diluc placed on his shoulder was just his imagination. But it was warm, and firm, and real, so he did the only logical thing he could think of in return.
He wrapped his free arm around Diluc to hug him as well.
And Diluc hugged back.
Kaeya didn’t think he could stop crying even if he wanted to. He’d gone from the boy who never cried to the boy who never stopped.
Talk about irony.
‘I’m sorry.’ Diluc whispered, several tears rolling down his cheeks now as well. ‘I’m sorry too.’
They had a million things left to talk about, but somehow, those few simple words made Kaeya feel lighter than he had in years.
He’d always thought it would take a miracle to get them to reconcile. That it required the impossible. And it had, because people didn’t usually come back from the dead.
But if miracles did still exist and had pushed them into the right direction, maybe they could do the rest themselves. Maybe they’d be okay.
No, not maybe. Definitely.
Kaeya wanted them to be, and he had a feeling Diluc wanted them to be too.
It probably should have made him feel more embarrassed and awkward that they needed the supervision of their father to make up in the first place, but if it meant getting his brother back, he found he cared very little.
‘Let’s get you home.’ Diluc whispered, though Kaeya couldn’t tell who it was he was speaking to.
‘Let’s all go home.’ Crepus agreed. ‘Together.’
They’d have to awkwardly tell him Diluc sold the mansion. Tell him about how they hadn’t been living together in the same house for years.
Prevent Adelinde from getting a heart attack upon seeing him.
Ask him how long he still had, considering his weakened state.
But Kaeya had a feeling things would be okay regardless. They’d communicate this time. Get proper closure, and a little more time to spare. They’d make the best of it.
For two people who’d grown accustomed to an awful situation, a far from ideal one suddenly didn’t sound all that bad.
‘Yeah.’ Kaeya brought out. ‘Let’s go home.’
‘We’re back~’ Kaeya hummed as he pushed Crepus’ wheelchair into Dawn Winery’s entrance hall.
‘Welcome home, Master Crepus, Master Kaeya.’ Adelinde spoke, already on her way to take their coats. These days, she had a brighter smile on her face than Kaeya had seen in years.
Several months had passed since they’d found Crepus in that abandoned lab now.
He hadn’t expected the man to last long, if he was entirely honest. He’d hoped, and wished, maybe even prayed once, but he hadn’t expected it. Mentally, he’d already been preparing for the loss of their father a second time.
And yet here he was, unable to walk for long periods of time and easily exhausted “like an old man”, in Crepus’ own words, but unmistakably still there.
Alive.
They didn’t know how long he’d last, but every day they got to spend together was one he thought they’d never even have in the first place. One to be grateful for.
And besides, while Il Dottore may have been a madman, he turned out to be somewhat of a half-decent doctor despite it all. The prosthetic additions to Crepus’ body functioned like proper limbs, causing minimal pain.
He’d declined Diluc’s offer of taking back the winery and Angel’s Share, claiming he was at a suitable age for retirement anyway, but he did come to live at the winery, and visited Angel’s Share whenever he could. Preferably together with Kaeya, and when Diluc was on his shift, so the two of them could annoy the hell out of him together.
Speaking of which…
‘Is Diluc in?’ Kaeya asked Adelinde before she had the chance to hurry away into the kitchen to make tea.
‘He’s in his office.’ Adelinde confirmed. ‘Though he specifically ordered me not to disturb him. It seemed like he was working on something important.’
‘You know he’s never been able to resist the puppy dog eye of his little brother.’ Kaeya grinned, patting her on the shoulder before walking towards the staircase. ‘I’ll leave father in your capable hands in the meantime.’
‘I’m well aware.’ Adelinde mused. ‘That eye has on more than one occasion been the reason you two got yourself into trouble.’
In more ways than one, though Kaeya knew she merely meant it light-heartedly. The poor woman didn’t have a clue.
Unless, of course, she took after her master and just hadn’t told him she knew.
‘Mhh…depends on how you look at it.’ he chuckled. ‘I prefer the term “fun” or “adventure”.’
Adelinde sighed behind him, though she didn’t make an attempt to stop him in his efforts. He was already halfway up the stairs anyway; if she wanted to stop him, she’d have to make a run for it, and she wasn’t as young as she once had been either.
‘Just don’t say I didn’t warn you!’ she called after him, though the playful tone in her voice gave away her true feelings about the matter.
Kaeya had missed this.
With quiet steps, he made his way towards Diluc’s office, giving a soft knock on the door before entering.
‘I told you not to-…’ Diluc said as he entered, though his expression softened upon realizing who it was. ‘Oh, Kaeya.’
‘Nice to see you too.’ Kaeya hummed.
The other awkwardly shuffled together the pile of papers on his desk a bit, though Kaeya stopped him when he was about to get up.
‘No need to get up, Adelinde already gave us a more than adequate welcome.’
‘Right, yes, of course.’ Diluc replied, before sitting back down. ‘Sorry, did you plan on staying over? I’m afraid I didn’t ask Adelinde to wash your clothes yet. I didn’t think you’d stay over again so soon.’ he admitted. ‘You could borrow some of mine if you want to, though.’
Another change Kaeya would be eternally grateful for, really.
Or well, perhaps it wasn’t really a change. More the reverting of a change instead.
Not only was he welcome at Dawn Winery again, he’d had the pleasure of discovering Diluc had left his room entirely untouched. All they’d had to do was to clean the excessive amounts of dust, change the sheets, and replace the teenage clothes in the closet with his adult ones.
He had no intention of coming to live at the winery permanently whatsoever, knowing that if he did, the remnants of unresolved tension would still lead to arguments and fights, but he’d made it a habit to come over every once in a while.
That being pretty much every weekend.
Oops.
His apartment in Mondstadt was more than adequate, and way closer to his work, but there was something oddly comforting about getting to spend time in a place he’d pretty much grown up in.
He almost felt like a teenager again, having moved into his own place for the first time yet still coming back every weekend to have his parents do the washing and healthy cooking for him.
It was something he never got to experience, not with the way he’d been forced to move out so suddenly, so it was almost comforting to know he got to experience it now.
That, and the fact his brother apparently wanted him there.
‘Did no one warn you about the dangers of lending out clothes to your siblings?’ Kaeya mused, before letting out a laugh. ‘You risk the chance of never getting them back.’
Diluc rolled his eyes, though Kaeya already spoke up again before he could say anything about it.
‘Thanks though, but that’s not why I’m here.’ he said. ‘I agreed to get father back home safely after our walk, so I thought I might as well come in and say hi to you while I was here.’
Diluc gave him an incredulous look at that. ‘You came in just to say hi.’
‘What, can’t I just come in to say hi to my big bro once in a while?’
The expression on the other’s face would have been hilarious, if it wasn’t for the hint of a smile also playing around his lips at the casual mention of being his big brother.
It was something they still had to get used to after all this time, and yet every time either of them said it, the whole mood seemed to lift.
‘Okay, okay, you got me.’ Kaeya grinned, before turning serious. ‘And to tell you the traveller intends on invading Zapolyarny Palace.’
‘Oh.’
‘Yeah.’
It was quiet for a moment, the playful atmosphere gone immediately after dropping that bomb.
‘I’d have assumed they’d have told you already.’ he admitted.
‘They didn’t.’ Diluc replied. ‘Probably because they knew I’d go after them to try and help.’
Then, he groaned, burying his face in his hands out of frustration. ‘I could have helped.’ he repeated. ‘I could have given them all the best escape routes.’
‘Aren’t you like…an outlaw there?’ Kaeya asked. ‘Or at least a wanted criminal?’
‘Kind of.’
‘I think I have a hunch of why they didn’t tell you.’
‘Shut up.’
Kaeya let out a chuckle at that, before shaking his head. ‘Still, I was just wondering…I mean, I don’t doubt their abilities in combat. They’ve taken on multiple archons, gods and other insanely powerful beings. But…well, there’s someone in that palace we have a rather complicated relationship with.’
‘You’re asking me what we should do about Dottore.’ Diluc stated, getting the hint much sooner than Kaeya had expected.
‘That’s exactly what I’m asking, yeah.’ he murmured. ‘We still don’t know what the guy’s motives were. Why he did what he did…’
‘Why it took nearly five years to find father.’ Diluc helpfully added.
‘Yes.’ Kaeya agreed. ‘Something tells me the guy didn’t save him just out of the goodness of his heart.’
Diluc bit his lip in thought at those words, glaring at the papers on his desk as if they’d personally offended him.
‘I still don’t know whether to be grateful to him, or to despise him.’ he admitted. ‘Right now, it’s some weird combination of both.’
‘Same here.’ Kaeya agreed. ‘I’m scared of what would happen if we confronted him.’
‘Seeking revenge has never worked out for us, has it?’ Diluc mumbled. ‘It’s always put us in the most awful situations.’
‘That’s about the understatement of the century.’
Diluc nodded. ‘Then again, a man capable of preserving snapshots of himself has no reason to fear death.’ he stated. ‘Whatever the outcome of that battle, it has little to do with us. We’ve got father back, and each other…I don’t want to risk losing that.’
‘Are you saying you’ll neglect your duties for the sake of family just this once?’ Kaeya mused. Although his tone was playful and teasing, he couldn’t deny the hammering of his heart inside his chest.
Diluc had always been an emotional man, letting his actions be guided by whatever he was feeling. For him to make the rational choice was rare to say the least.
‘I think we should put our faith in the traveller.’ Diluc spoke, before rising from his seat. ‘And that we should join father for tea.’
‘Seems like we see eye to eye for once.’ Kaeya chuckled. ‘In regards to both your proposals, I should mention.’
‘Good.’ Diluc replied. ‘That’s…good.’
As much as Kaeya would like to interrogate Dottore himself, he knew just as well as Diluc that that wasn’t an option. That it was too big a risk to take, especially with what little time they might have left to spend with Crepus.
They’d just have to trust the traveller to deal with the situation accordingly. They’d proven themselves perfectly capable on more than one occasion.
‘Let’s go get that tea then.’ Kaeya hummed.
Somehow, he didn’t think they’d come to regret this decision.
Closure was nice, but Kaeya was convinced they’d both come to realize having their family by their side alive and well was even nicer.