Innocent Moves - Diluc X Reader

Chapter 12 - war

"Ahh we'll if it isn't Master Diluc himself." Kaeya said as he entered the tavern one afternoon. It was almost the end of summer and there was a light chill that carried itself through the winds of Mondstadt.

The tavern was loaded with the knights who had just come back from their venture to push back against Shnesnaeya and all of them were eager for a taste of Diluc's dandelion wine.

The man before him, kaeya, was wearing a loose fitted blue shirt and skin tight leather pants, his hair tied up into a bun. A smirk plastered across his face as per usual. Diluc rolled his eyes in response to his old friend.

"I'm surprised not to see you with your little play mate. Where is that little princess anyway?" Kaeya slammed a bag of mora on the counter and gestured to the beer pump to the side of Diluc. Typical kaeya, only interested in other people's private affairs and straight to the point when it came to alcohol.

"She's working, which by the way, shouldn't you be?" Diluc pulled out a glass and prepared Kaeyas beer without looking at him once.

"Not much work for a Calvery Captain with no Calvery..." He took his drink and downed it in 8 gulps.

"Knights of Favonius... always so inefficient." Diluc turned to his left to see Venti stumble down the stairs for the seconds time this day and then he glanced at the other knights sat around him, drinking and laughing, while the fatui, Hilichurl's and the abyss remained a constant threat on the city.

"Lighten up Diluc, I thought that girlfriend of yours might have taught you how to live a little by now." Kaeya laughed and helped Venti on the seat beside him.

"Yeah Diluc lighten up and give me s'more wine!" Venti wobbled about on his seat. The bard had a smile spread across his face and hiccuped as he spoke.

"You've had enough - and she's not my girlfr-"

Diluc was interrupted by a loud bang from outside which snapped everyone's attention towards the door, and there was an eruption of screams from somewhere in the city. All the lights in the tavern had darkened to nothing, causing the people inside to panic.

Diluc reached for his claymore instantly and followed the now armed kaeya and Venti out the door, not before instructing everyone inside to stay calm and get under the tables. He reassured them that he would be back to update them soon.

As they left they caught sight of the now dull and eerie city. Monstadt was covered in smoke, flames could be seen consuming the front gates and the people in the street were running up to the cathedral to escape whatever it was at the city entrance.

"What the hell has happened?" Kaeya turned to Diluc. His sword gripped tightly in hand. Looking left to right in search of some kind of answer.

A small boy infront of them had fallen from the crowd and was crying out for his mother, the boy had burns all across his legs and was clutching on to a teddy. Diluc on instinct ran over to help him up.

"Venti, come take this boy to the cathedral and find Barbra. Kaeya, come with me to the front." He said, picking the boy up and handing him to Venti.

"It's the abyss." The boy cried from Venti's arms, "they took daddy."

Diluc couldn't focus, his only thought was whether or not y/n was safe.

********

It had been another boring day for y/n, not much to do at the library this season, she had spent the past five hours organising and stacking the fall collection until her eyes became droopy with sleep.

Her friend Amber had joined her after her lunch break and was swinging her legs idly over a desk, flicking through the pages of a kids book, just for the pictures.