Blessing in Disguise

Persuasion (II)

As Diluc bid his guests farewell, he wondered what to do with the honorary knight's friend. She had served the guests without break, and even the other waiters were amazed by her aptitude and service performance. A lot of the guests had commented about the girl from Liyue. It seemed that she had managed to charm them. 

Now, Diluc was without his coat, in a white button-down with a couple buttons loose and the sleeves rolled up, black ankle-length slacks and a pair of cinnamon brown oxfords, tying his hair a notch higher to help his maids clean up. 

He smiled with his arms crossed at the last of the carriages leaving. He turned, and on his way to the kitchen, he noticed y/n walking up to him, a slightly nervous look on her face. 

Diluc shifted to face her. "Hello, miss y/n. Is anything the matter?" 

Y/n was suddenly rethinking her decision to ask him to hire her. The last time she had a chance to ask him about it, she had hesitated (yes, she forgot about it mainly because she was too entranced by his beauty, but there was another reason she didn't catch him before he got back to the guests), because what if he was planning to let her stay for longer than she had anticipated? Then again, y/n couldn't just lounge around in the winery when she was an able-bodied woman, not to mention she would need mora eventually anyway--

"I'll be going now, if you don't have anything to say..."

"No no! I do have something to say. Um..." 

Y/n took a deep breath, followed by a long exhale. She resumed, "I'd like you to hire me as a maid. You and I both know I'll be staying for quite a while. Aether told you about my situation, yes?" 

Aether had. He had been almost entirely sure that Diluc was going to let y/n stay because of his apparent loathe for the Fatui. That last bit was true, but that wasn't enough to motivate Diluc to let y/n stay. In fact, it was quite the opposite; he would rather be hit by a meteor than be affiliated with someone wanted by the Fatui for a reason he didn't know. 

It seemed that y/n had detected the redhead's thoughts, for she had put on her signature pleading expression that had a record-breaking streak of success for extra servings and discounts. 

There is no way he's declining, this facial expression is my pride! 

Her expectant face was met with a sigh and nod from Diluc. Maybe he'd be able to get some information on her with his underground connections, then she'd be less of a danger. 

Diluc figured he would enhance the employment requirements a little. 

~~~

Moco and the winery's master was standing a couple ten meters away from a drenched y/n, the latter sipping on a cup of grape juice as he and his maid watched the h/c haired girl heave an enormous basket of grapes on her head for something over the fortieth time since she awoke.

"She looks like a strawberry in harvest," Moco suggested, giggling to herself. 

To her amazement, Diluc nodded in agreement at the simile as he took another sip of his juice, not in time for Moco to miss the rare sight that was the corners of his lips rising.

They stayed like that for a while before Diluc was back to his normal self again, gently reminding Moco to go back to work. 

Y/n worked like hell for a few days that way until her body finally refused to cooperate. Now, she was laying down on her bed, recovering from her fever and wondering when that picky tomato head was going to employ her.