Two Birds on a Wire (A Diluc and Kaeya fanfic)

Part 10

Kaeya listened intently as Lisa explained that as of yet, she wasn't sure what spell did this to Diluc.

"I'll keep looking into it, of course," Lisa said upon seeing the conflicted look on Kaeya's face. "There's no need to worry. Besides the sudden age difference, he's in perfect condition. Even if answers take a little while to find, I see no reason to rush things."

Easy for her to say. If the whole 'Diluc being the Darknight Hero' thing really was staying a secret between him and Jean like he hoped, then Lisa was missing a big chunk of the issue at hand. Jean decided that if anyone asked, the current story would be that the Darknight Hero saw Diluc being attacked last night and tried to save him, but ended up being injured himself and went into hiding. It was a little flimsy, but it was a very spur-of-the-moment thing they had to come up with in case anyone put two and two together. Other knights had been at the scene of the attack, and even though only a handful of the knights probably knew about the mask, it was better safe than sorry.

Anyway, last night when Kaeya found Diluc, the Abyss Mages fled as soon as they saw him coming. If he had to guess, he'd say that whatever spell they cast drained them and they weren't prepared for another fight. For all he knew, they had further plans with the Darknight Hero that they couldn't complete with Kaeya there. There was the chance that they were even out looking for him now. Diluc could still be in danger, and even though the red head was plenty capable at the age of 12, he was still just a kid. A kid who Kaeya didn't want anywhere near the Abyss Order.

"That's a relief," Jean said with a sigh. Kaeya could see that she was still looking a little cautious, or nervous even, about talking to Diluc like this, but she looked at him and smiled. "I'm glad no harm has come to you."

Diluc only nodded silently, and lowered his gaze to the floor. Kaeya couldn't help but frown at that; he didn't remember his brother being so shy as a child. It was most likely only due to the stress of being put in such a strange and unfamiliar situation, but he still found himself feeling worried. He'd be sure to talk to him later, once they were alone.

There was a lot to take care of today, once the two of them were finished at the Headquarters. Jean told Kaeya to take the whole day off, even though he was supposed to lead a small team to transport some materials to Dragonspine. Their Chief Alchemist was working on a longer experiment up there and didn't want to pause it to get the materials himself. Ordinarily, Kaeya would have been thrilled to say hello to his favorite alchemist, but the trip would take a few days and he didn't want to leave Diluc alone like that right now. Someone else would be sent in his place.

Besides that, Kaeya had to somehow spread the news about Diluc across the whole city (or to those who personally knew Diluc, anyway), so that the kid didn't get overwhelmed with questions and curious looks everywhere he went. The looks would still be inevitable, he was sure, but he was determined to stop any uncomfortable confrontations from happening, at least.

And if the news didn't spread, well...Kaeya was worried about what might happen then.

Before Kaeya left Jean's office, he'd brought that little fact up.

"Diluc doesn't know Crepus is dead," he said slowly. "And I'd prefer to keep it that way. Sure, he's a little nervous around everyone right now, but he's more cheerful than I've seen him in a long time. I can't see him go through losing his father again." Our father, he wanted to say.

Jean looked hesitant, like she wanted to argue but wasn't sure she should. "If you want my advice...I don't know if keeping that from him is the best idea. He's bound to find out sooner or later, and he'll only be angry with you once he does."

Kaeya shook his head. "He's just a kid again. I can't do that to him. You can't make me do that to him."

Jean sighed and waved her hand in a dismissive motion. "I'm not going to make you do anything. Ultimately this is your choice, but it will be exceedingly difficult to get all of Mondstadt on the same page. Believe me when I say I want nothing more than for Diluc to be happy. I don't want him to have to deal with all that grief again, especially at this younger age, but my main concern is that someone will let it slip that Crepus is...well...The Ragnvindrs are one of the most influential families in the city; people are going to gossip about Diluc's situation, and it's only a matter of time before your father comes up."