Still mine - Your little secret II

III - "Cold"

"Keep your hands off my goods!" Diluc growled as I let my hand wander to the carrying surface again. "Oh come on! One bottle!"

"Sure." he said in a sarcastic laughing tone while grabbing my wrist. "And then a second and a third..." His gaze fell on the turquoise bracelet that I had been wearing since last night. "What's this?" I shrugged as I pulled away my arm. "It's to protect me." I don't know why he should care anyways.

After a long silence I asked Diluc what he did for a living. "I sell wine and run a bar." Interesting... I wonder if...

"I need a job that I can afford a room with. Maybe you need a new employee..." He cut me off, saying that he'll think about it. After a while we met a group of hilichurls who attacked us immediately. "I'll get rid of them. Keep the horses steady." He jumped off the carriage after handing me the reins and summoned a black red glowing claymore.

It was quite interesting to watch him take down the monsters with ease, he had the pyro vision, which didn't really suit him. Pyro people were outgoing, high-spirited people... at least as I knew them. After the last hilichurl, he brushed a strand of his fiery red hair from his face.
Wait a minute...

Diluc's POV
I looked back at the carriage and saw Y/N stretch her arms out and an ice cold wind blew into my direction, then she passed out. I turned as a giant lavachurl dropped dead right behind me, I just dodged so that it didn't crush me. His head was pierced with a huge ice crystal, it must have been the girl who saved me.

I went back to the carriage, the horses were a bit startled but still surprisingly calm considering we were being attacked. I carefully lifted Y/N and placed her in the back of the carriage, snuggled up in a blanket. Only 2 hours left until we were in Mondstadt.

- - - - -

At last we reached my estate. The servants unloaded the carriage and I took care of the girl, she really didn't look well and her forehead was burning hot. I carried her to one of the guest rooms and laid her on the bed, taking her with me was risky, but what choice did I have now? She could be dangerous, I didn't know if the story she told was true so I did some research right away. I already knew that Quince Village had, more or less, burned down because of her, but if she really was supposed to become a harbinger's wife... I was sure everyone would be looking for her.

I wrote a letter to a well-known Fatui from Liyue, maybe he could help me. I didn't like to admit that I got my information from them every now and then, but nobody knew that anyway. I tied the letter to my eagle's leg and sent it to Liyue, then checked on the girl again.

She was sitting on the bed and holding her arm. "Awake yet?" I asked her with a raised brow and she nodded. "Where am I?" I walked over to her holding a tray with a pot of tea on it and poured her some. "In my estate." I answered coldly. "Why?" I held out the cup I had poured her tea in and stared at her. "You saved my life, I owe you something."

She gave me a askew look as she took the tea from my hand and took a sip, not seeming to understand what I meant. "I'll let you live here until you've earned enough money to get a hotel room." Suddenly she started to grin broadly. "Thank you very much master Diluc."

"Dinner is at 6." i glanced at the big clock on the wall, that was in less than 2 hours. She nodded, I opened the door and was about to leave the room when she suddenly uttered a pathetic cry of pain and coughed. I thought she must have burned herself after I heard the cup bang on the floor but when I turned around I saw something completely different. "What's wrong with you?"

She looked very pale, clutching her arm tightly. I reached out and wanted to feel her temperature. "No-!" She pushed my hand away. Her skin was ice cold. She sniffed. "I think I've caught a cold."

I didn't buy that, the way she clung to her arm, I bet the Fatui were behind it, but she wouldn't tell me any more anyway, I didn't know her. I sighed and walked to the closet and handed her a coat that was supposed to keep the girl warm. "As I said, dinner at six." Then I left the room, I shouldn't care if she was sick, she wasn't my concern.