Stardust

K A E Y A

Unknown

Kaeya woke up feeling better than he had in years. There was a nagging in his mind, something he forgot, but he felt content as a kitten. How could he not when Albedo was there?

He reached a hand across the bed to find it empty and cold.

Did I forget? Kaeya wondered before a foreboding feeling had him shoving his feet into his boots and tumbling out of his apartment as quickly as possible. Kaeya did not forget things. Ever.

Kaeya's lungs burned as he ran–somehow he felt worse than if he just spent three weeks amongst the hilichurls. There were so many things Kaeya imagined waiting in his office. The Chief Alchemist, the Spark Knight, and an incredibly flustered Sucrose sitting on his carpet with an impressive array of baked goods were not one of them.

"Kaeya!" Klee screamed. "We baked all these goods because this time you're in biiiiig trouble. Jean told me you went office blasting!" Kaeya sucked in a breath looking at the miraculously put together room.

"Oh don't worry!" Klee giggled. "We did some office unblasting of our own." Sometimes Kaeya forgot what an accomplished alchemist Albedo was, to have accomplished this in a few hours. Finally what felt off slid into place.

"This isn't real, is it?" Kaeya asked, eying the alchemist who smiled gently, closing his book.

"What we shared is real, even if it wasn't in reality," Albedo said in that simple way, as if he were telling him to pick up milk. "I meant every moment of it." Kaeya knew better than to ask, but he could not stop himself.

"Can't we stay?" Archons for once in his life, all Kaeya wanted was this. Albedo reached down and brushed Klee's hair back from where it fell in her face as she returned to her colors.

"We can. There would be consequences," Albedo said, his eyes on Kaeya. "I'll go where you go." Kaeya knew what an impossible promise that was to make.

"But I won't," Kaeya said.

"But you won't," Albedo smiled back.

It felt like an ending, and perhaps it was, but that did not mean that this thing had to end. Kaeya was learning, in fact, few things truly ended at all. Diluc came to Dragonspine, even when he did not have to. Albedo followed him here, to this place Kaeya escaped to, and stayed as long as Kaeya needed.

He owed it to them both to give them a chance.

He owed it to Klee.

—

Present Day, Mondstadt, Dragonspine

Kaeya felt when they returned because nothing burned like the pain of elemental healing. Similar to Barbara's song, Lumine was humming a ballad of the sun. One of Skirk's favorites. Kaeya could feel the power of hydro stitching him back together.

Despite the fact she wore no vision, it felt just as cursed.

"Stop the vision healing," Kaeya grunted, rolling over so he could expel everything in his stomach. The darkness was so complete it felt like Khanri'ah, only embers lighting the city.

'The city?' Kaeya jerked backwards, eyes narrowing on the Anemo shield whirling around it. Then he finally registered the cold. 'We're back on Dragonspine?'

"Before you start," Lumine said, frowning as she examined the Anemo portal. "Mondstadt is okay. There was not much damage, at least not in the moment Barbatos and your Grandmaster froze the city."

"Froze?" Kaeya asked and he saw Albedo move closer, inspecting his wounds with a frown now that he was awake. Kaeya ignored him, gasping out his question as Albedo twisted Kaeya's shoulder, "what about Diluc? Klee? Je-"