Dilucs Birthday

A Night at the Tavern

(this is in current day mondstadt)

Diluc didn't think he missed his 'brother'. After all, it had been many years since Diluc had even considered Kaeya his brother. Recently, he had only been a nuisance to Diluc, annoying him at the tavern and even the winery. However, he did miss the constant company of having a sibling you're close to. These days, he doesn't have many close relations to anyone in Mondstat. Things were quite lonely. Usually the hustle and bustle of the busy winery was enough to keep him busy, but on days when he felt particularly dull and lonely, he would go and work at the tavern. He liked to tell himself that he wasn't going just to see Kaeya and reminisce in the days when they still called each other brother, that he was just going to see the regular citizens, coming in for a drink, but he still felt a pang of disappointment on the rare days that Kaeya didn't come in for a drink.  Tonight, Diluc was particularly bored and decided to go to the tavern.

(fast forward an hour or two)

"Another round, for everybody! *hic*" Kaeya shouted drunkenly, slamming his 4th empty glass of 'Death After Noon'  down on the tavern counter. A cheer let out from all of the drunken citizens inside of Angels Share, and Diluc sighed, snatching up his empty glass and promptly cleaning it. "Oh! Oh! Another oneeee... fffor me *hic*" Kaeya muttered, pointing at Diluc.
"Didn't I tell you to drink responsibly on my premises, Kaeya?" He said, annoyed, while preparing Kaeya another drink.
"Oh, who caressss.. jjjjust make me another one. *cough*" Kaeya smiled crookedly. Diluc sighed and slid another drink down to Kaeya. "Hhhhey! Thhhis is grrAPE juice!" Kaeya shouted at Diluc.
"You should slow down on those drinks, don't you have work in the morning?" he replied.
"Ohhh! I see sssomeones WORRIED about me *snort*. And YES, I have a mmmission in the morning, thanks for asking, brother. *hic*" Kaeya informed Diluc.
"I'm not your brother," Diluc snapped. "And anyway, you're going to have a massive hangover in the morning, it's practically a death sentence going on a mission like that." Kaeya was unusually silent at the mention of it. "Here, this should sober you up" Diluc slid a drink across the bar.
Before taking a sip, Kaeya spoke up, out of the blue. "Do you remember when we were kids, brother? We used to run around all afternoon with nets trying to catch the crystalflies around the winery..."
"Things were different then." Diluc replied, turning his back to the counter and cleaning the townsfolk's glasses. 'That's a strange thing for him to bring up...' Diluc thought, while cleaning dishes. Songs from a drunk Venti rang out across the bar and the townsfolk chattered. It was almost enough to keep Diluc from wondering why Kaeya brought such a thing. Throughout the night, Kaeya continued to sip on his drink and Diluc continued to tidy up. Eventually, the tavern had emptied, and soon it was just the two left inside.
"So." Kaeya sipped his drink. "My mission tomorrow."
"What about it?" Diluc raised his eyebrow.
"It'll be a week long. I'll be back Tuesday. I expect you to be here to welcome me back, brother." Kaeya smirked.
"You're not my brother." Diluc growled. "And I'll do what I want, thank you very much."
"Alright then. See you then, Diluc." Kaeya stuck out his hand for a handshake. This struck Diluc as odd. He couldn't remember the last time that Kaeya had respected his wishes to no longer be called brother. He took Kaeya's hand wearily.
"Where's your mission then?"
Kaeya let out a sigh. "Daduapa Gorge."
"Oh? What for, isn't it a bit dangerous out there?" Kaeya let out a weary smile at the mention of danger.
"Abyss activity."
"...Oh."
"Yeah. Jean decided I'm the only one for the job, considering the fact that the traveler is out in Liyue."
"...Well... stay safe. It would be a shame if one of the Angel Shares most paying customers stopped coming in." Diluc muttered, his ears turning bright pink. (AN: THIS IS NOT BC HES BLUSHING AT KAEYA HES EMBARRASSED THAT HE STILL CARES ABOUT KAEYA OK) Kaeya smiled wryly.
"Well then, I'll be going now. I've got to get ready."
"Goodbye."
Diluc walked back to his winery and walked through the double doors, exhausted. He walked through the grand welcoming area, passing an out-of-place vase on the way to the staircase. There was a pang of anxiety in his stomach. Something felt odd, not right.  He shrugged it off and retired to his room.

Meanwhile, Kaeya was writing a letter.