Second Lead Syndrome || Diluc R. x Reader

A Trip to the Winery

It hurt to wake up. Coming back to reality and realizing she's been stuck in the same old house with the same old people hurt. Seeing her family everyday hurt. Having to watch her sister be praised by her parents hurt.

Y/N wasn't jealous. She was actually quite proud to call such successful people her family. Her mom and dad are high-ranking Fatui officers. Her elder sister joined the Fatui as well, eventually surpassing their parents. 

As for Y/N, she did well in school, but never good enough for full straight As. She was well-rounded, but didn't graduate with any special awards. She tried out for sports teams, but never made it to any big competitions. She tried out theatre, but was only ever the runner-up. She tried any of the other arts, but there was always someone who outshined her.

When was it her turn? When would she be able to be first? When would her parents stop comparing her short comings to her sister's success? When would she stop being the "second child"? It hurt. Waiting for her turn hurt.

Y/N is used to being second.

But there's only so much someone can take of being constantly compared and feeling like they aren't the main character of their own life. So, Y/N left. She left Fontaine for this so-called "City of Freedom"; Mondstadt. She left the people it hurt to talk to, the family it hurt to see, the house that hurt to live in, and the bed it hurt to wake up in, behind.

Once Y/N joined the Knights of Favonius, she made her mark. After years of hard work, she was finally successful at something. She became the captain of the Investigative Department. There's no way Y/N is losing that title. Even if it works her to the bone, she's finally good at something.

-----

It still hurts to wake up, but now for a much more different reason. Y/N's legs are extremely sore from running around Mondstadt all day yesterday.

The girl lets out a groan as she stumbles out of bed, massaging her aching legs. If I knew I'd be in this much pain, I wouldn't have asked for a free drink last night. 

After Y/N has delivered Prince to Margaret, Y/N was hoping for some compensation for all that running around. Unfortunately, Margaret thought Y/N was joking and Y/N didn't have the guts to clarify that she was serious and make the situation awkward.

At least I'm not hungover. Y/N thinks to herself as she gets dressed for the day, wearing the same uniform she always does. She adjusts the belt around her waist, making sure her rapier is sheathed properly.

Alright. Time to head out. Y/N says to herself as she slips on her black boots and swings open the door only to bump into a chest. "Ack!"

A charming chuckle rings in the air. Y/N looks up to meet the silver-blue eye of Captain Kaeya, the other eye covered by an eyepatch. He's tall and tan-skinned with long navy blue hair tied in a low ponytail. His signature smirk adorns his face. "Good afternoon, Captain Y/N."

"Good af- wait, afternoon?" Y/N takes a peek outside behind Kaeya to see the midday sun high in the sky. "I overslept!" 

Kaeya lets out another chuckle. "Don't worry. I heard about your little adventure all over Mondstadt looking for a cat yesterday. I'm sure you were tired."

"I'd like to see someone else try to catch that trackstar of a cat." Y/N shakes her head as if to shake off the embarrassment. "I need to get going. I'm already late." She starts towards the Knights of Favonius Head Quarters when a hand pulls her back by the collar, making her gag slightly.

Kaeya raises his hand and in it are the papers including Y/N's tasks for the day. "I brought them over. I thought I'd have to wake you up myself." He jokes.

"Thanks, Kaeya." Y/N replies, taking the papers from the man. 

Y/N quirks an eyebrow in curiosity as she rifles through the pages. Interestingly, she only has one job for today and it's investigating suspicious behaviour from Dawn Winery staff. That's weird. I thought that Tomato-head was in charge of all of them. He doesn't seem like someone to let this behaviour go unnoticed or report it to the Knights of Favonius. I flip through the case details again to find the name of whoever reported this case. 'Anonymous?' Sounds like someone doesn't want to lose their job. Y/N jokes to herself.

"What's so amusing?" Kaeya asks, wanting to take a peek at Y/N's mission details.

"Apparently there's 'suspicious activity' at Dawn Winery reported by someone anonymous." Y/N replies. "Ugh, I really don't want to see Diluc again."

"'Again'?" Kaeya asks.

"I chased Margaret's cat all the way to the winery yesterday." Y/N explains. "And bumped into that asshole."

"Interesting." Kaeya mutters. "May I accompany you on this mission? I'm actually very curious."

"You aren't busy?"

"I finished all my urgent tasks this morning." 

"Oh, right." Y/N replies, remembering she slept through half the day. "Well, then. You can have a read while we walk." Y/N hands over the papers to Kaeya as they make their way towards the Mondstadt gates.

"'Suspicions about cannabalism'?" Kaeya reads out louds from the pages. "This is beginning to sound like a prank."

Y/N shrugs. "It's better than chasing down a runaway cat."

Kaeya laughs lightly at my joke. "Master Diluc won't be too happy to see you two days in a row."

"I'm not either." Y/N grumbles. "You say it like I'm going to Dawn Winery of my own accord."

"D-Did you say Dawn Winery?" A sudden voice pipes up next to Y/N. She turns to face Donna from the flower shop.

"Oh, hi Donna." Y/N greets. Oh, Archons. Not her again.

"Hello, Captain Y/N, Captain Kaeya." Donna replies. "Are you two headed down to the winery?"

"We are." Kaeya responds.

"D-Do you mind if I tag along. I have some business over there." She asks nervously.

Is she using us as an excuse to get close to Diluc? Y/N mentally rolls her eyes at the brunette. She's just going to be awkward and embarrass herself. There's no way Diluc is going to put up with her. An idea suddenly pops into Y/N's head.

"Actually, we're kind of bu-" 

Y/N slaps her hand over Kaeya's mouth before whispering in his ear, "This girl is totally head over heels for Diluc. Don't you think it could be a little fun if we let her tag along? Especially if this case does end up being a prank." Y/N suggests with a smirk, knowing Kaeya definitely wouldn't pass up the opportunity to bother Diluc.

The ends of Kaeya's lips turn up in a playful smile. "You know what, this could be interesting. You're welcome to join us."

Donna's eyes light up. "Really? Thank you so much."

Oh dear. This is going to be quite entertaining. Sorry, Donna.