Work Text:
When signing on to become the maid of the Knights of Favonius, Noelle made a vow to complete every task, no matter how intimidating, with all her strength and ability. Whether it be cleaning every inch of the grand floorboards, dusting the cobwebs from the tallest shelves of the library, or pruning weeds in the courtyard, she executed all possible headaches with ease and enjoyment. As a good maid should, she could always be heard saying brightly. There was nothing Noelle couldn't handle, according to the people of Mondstat.
However, there was one thing Noelle wasn't accustomed to handling, and that was a drunken Captain Kaeya.
That day, a group of knights led by Kaeya had triumphed over a few particularly rowdy packs of hilichurls that had been causing the guards headaches for weeks. Every time the knights thought they'd cut down the last group, a new group would spring up closer to the castle walls, starting the whole cycle of meticulous planning and fighting all over again. It was leading to a decline in morale and a shortage of men due to exhaustion and stress. Kaeya had seen each mission through with a steely determination, as cold as his Vision, but Noelle could occasionally hear him cursing in irritation when she passed by the closed door of his quarters late at night. It made her stomach turn; she liked Kaeya, and she had wanted to fix his woes. But she also knew that sometimes fixing things wasn't the answer; you simply had to let others intervene.
However, a breakthrough occurred early that evening when Kaeya ordered packs of the knights to fight each individual hilichurl nest. He had spent the time silently scouting out each enemy tribe around the city grounds, marking them down on a map. Though some of the knights had worried it was a suicide mission, Kaeya put his trust in them, and all groups of hilichurls were successfully defeated, with Kaeya taking care of any stragglers. The mission was an overall success, and the team had returned to much merriment. A little too much merriment, Jean had confided to Noelle as they glanced out the window to see a large group fighting to get into the Angel's Share. The castle had been quiet as Jean finished up the necessary paperwork to report the mission as successful, and bidded Noelle goodnight. Noelle was used to staying awake into the small hours; she had never needed much sleep to perform well, and it was a nice opportunity to chat to the guards on night shift and see if there was anything she'd missed that day.
At 1AM, Noelle was quietly folding a tablecloth at the top of the grand staircase in the Headquarters, preparing to put it in the wash later that day. The castle was silent and dark, bathed in the glow of moonlight through the grand windows, a few gas lamps fizzling throughout the room. Noelle hummed to herself as she placed the cloth neatly in a basket on top of various other perfectly folded items of laundry. Yawning quietly, she stretched and cracked her wrists and neck, melting away the tensions of a long work day. Suddenly, a loud bang startled her and she cried out. Whipping around, Noelle's eyes darted through the dark as a clatter was heard, and without fully thinking, she raced down the elegant steps to the vestibule. Stopping, she squinted through the dark as a figure staggered in. Her eyes adjusted, and she recognised it as... Captain Kaeya?
A very, very inebriated Captain Kaeya.
Noelle gasped as he wobbled forwards, running towards him and putting one hand on his chest and the other on his back to steady him.
"Captain Kaeya! Are you alright?" she asked in panic. She could feel his slow heartbeat beneath his shirt.
It seemed as if her words literally had to float up to Kaeya and travel through his ears, because it took him a little while to register that she was there. He turned his head towards her, smiling drunkenly.
"Ahhh. Noelle," he slurred. "Jjjjust the person I wanted to see!"
He hiccuped, and Noelle fought back a blush at his kind words. She fretted, and slowly began to walk him forwards, planning to take him to his quarters.
"What happened?" she asked, practically dragging him up the staircase - he was in no state to navigate steps on his own without breaking at least three different bones.
"Weeeeeeell," Kaeya began, and he let out a small hiccup. "We defeated those hilichurls, and to celebrate, we decided to go to the tavern. Aaaand I may have drank a teensy bit more than I could handle." He suddenly stopped her, and Noelle turned to see him holding up his hand, his forefinger and thumb pinched together. "Just a teensy... you see?"
Noelle nodded, smiling placidly. She really hoped he wouldn't suddenly throw up on the carpet. That would be a bitch to clean tomorrow, even by her standards.
"Captain Kaeya-" she began, but was cut off.
"Captain Kaeya!" Kaeya cried out, kicking his long leg out for emphasis and tugging her close in a friendly hug, causing Noelle to gasp and stagger. "Woo! That's right! I'm the captain, baby, and I defeated alllll those hilichurls earlier. I saaaaved everyone!" He began bouncing up and down on the spot, and Noelle grabbed him roughly, shushing. He pouted.
"Heyyyy, why so fussy?" he whined, then smiled brightly. "Ahhh, but I lllllike it when you fuss! I like to... hmm... watch you do the cleaning in my office." He smiled smugly, and Noelle felt her face flush. Kaeya treading into admitting his secrets to her of all people was not on her list for events of this evening, but another cold shock ran through her - oh, archons, does this mean he judges how well I clean? Does he think I'm not doing well enough?!
Kaeya zoned out as Noelle guided him to the top of the stairs, whispering gently to him to be quiet. She sighed in relief - no broken bones, no vomit. They still had to navigate the short distance to his room. Noelle knew it off by heart - she cleaned it every few days. It was down the second corridor, the last door on the right. She had to literally clamp her hand over Kaeya's mouth briefly to stop him from randomly yelling in the hallway as they walked - drunk people have no volume control, she thought, adding it to her list of things that would happen when she finally tasted alcohol - but they eventually reached his door without a hitch.
"Captain Kaeya," Noelle cleared her throat. "Do you have your key?"
Kaeya hummed, tapping his pockets. "Ah," he said, fishing it out, followed by a "whoops" when he dropped it straight after. Noelle squatted down to retrieve it, slotting it into the lock and walking them in. She carefully closed the door behind them as Kaeya flopped onto his (very neat, by her hand) bed. Noelle dithered - she knew it wasn't professional to enter a knight's private quarters in this way, but she also had to make sure Kaeya was in a fit state to sleep. She gently tapped his knee, and he looked at her through his glassy eye.
"I-I don't want to sound too forward," she began. "But can I make you comfortable in any way or will you be alright from here?"
Kaeya's face scrunched as his drunk brain began the effort of thinking. "Hmmm. Would you mind-" he propped himself up on his hands, "-taking off some of my clothes?"
Noelle's ears burned. She couldn't disobey him! And it would help! But... the thought of engaging in such a tender act made her almost swoon. She swallowed hard, trying to keep her composure, and wandered over to Kaeya. Realising that he hadn't mentioned which items of clothing he wanted removing, her hands hovered over him before she unclipped his scarf and removed his jacket in the most formal fashion she could muster. Kaeya had enough brainpower to remove his boots and socks, and Noelle turned away quickly as he hopped out of his trousers.
"Shirt?" Kaeya asked behind her, and Noelle turned around to see him standing only in his underpants and shirt as he tugged off his gloves. Kaeya must have sensed her embarrassment, because he smiled woozily. "Come on, I'm just a man. You've seen one before, right?"
A very handsome man. Noelle stuttered, darting forwards. "Yes! O-Of course... I have..." She tried to focus on a small patch of skin on Kaeya's chest as she frantically reached around his broad back to unbutton his shirt. She came up a little below his shoulders, suddenly extremely aware of their height difference. Flustered, she dropped his shirt from his tan body and averted her eyes. Kaeya huffed in amusement behind her, and she heard the bed creak as he settled down. Noelle turned her head and was greeted with the sight of Kaeya lounging on the duvet, ankles crossed and arms behind his head. She bit her lip hard - archons, his underwear left little to the imagination!
Balling up her fists, Noelle bowed quickly and let out a torrent of words; "WellCaptainKaeyaIhopeIwasabletohelpyouandifyouneedanythingletmekn-"
Kaeya held up his hand lazily, and a smirk danced on his lips. "Tuck me in?"
Noelle screamed internally. She had a lot of patience, and she liked to help, but she got the feeling Kaeya was toying with her. Was he really as drunk as he seemed? And she was tired too. Her brain suddenly conjured up an image of Kaeya and her sharing a bed, and she fought it back with a loud mental "NO!" Inhaling, she tugged the duvet from under Kaeya's lithe body, trying to not look at his well-defined stomach or strong arms. Up close, she saw more intimate parts of him; a piercing twinkled in his left nipple as he moved under the sheets, causing her mouth to run dry. She averted her eyes, concentrating on her duty - come on, Noelle, you have a job to do!
Kaeya settled under the cool duvet, snuggling down as he looked up at her. A pink blush stained her cheeks, and he smiled gently.
"You look like a rose," he said, and Noelle took the compliment as gracefully as she could, a sweet smile shining on him.
"Ah, I am glad you see me as a trustworthy person, Captain Kaeya," she replied, regaining her composure. "It is my duty as your maid to always be on hand for you."
Kaeya laughed internally at her misunderstanding of his compliment. Typical Noelle, he thought. The alcohol swimming in his brain clouded his thoughts, and a wave of tiredness washed over him. He sighed into his pillow, yawning.
"Thank youuuu for your help, Noelle. Much appreciated," he said, stifling another yawn. "You're dismissed for tonight."
Noelle nodded, bowing quickly as she made her way towards the door and opened it. She paused briefly. "Goodnight, Captain Kaeya."
"Night, Noelle."
She closed the door with a soft click, determined to get some good sleep of her own. Chores were a cakewalk compared to dealing with a drunken Captain. But, Noelle thought, biting her lip lightly as she walked, maybe she should hover around Kaeya's quarters more often if he looked like that underneath his uniform.
The next morning, Noelle entered Kaeya's office to clean the bookshelves. Glancing at him after her customary greeting, she realised he looked a little unpolished compared to usual - his brow was furrowed, and he had dark circles under his eyes as he stared down a report. Noelle remembered the other knights talking about something called a hangover - apparently, a bad headache after you drink. As she began to dust the trinkets on his desk, Noelle cleared her throat, and Kaeya looked up at her. She hoped he didn't remember much from last night.
"Ah, Captain Kaeya - apparently, you were a little drunk last night... do you have a hangover? Would you like me to fetch you anything?"
A smile formed on Kaeya's lips at her words. "Ah, yes, I was drunk, wasn't I?"
Noelle nodded, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot as she worked. "That's what I heard from the other knights."
Kaeya hummed, sitting back. "That's funny. Did they also mention that I was so drunk, you walked me back to my room and stripped me?"
Noelle froze, blushing. If he remembered... She glanced up, and saw him looking at her with that daring glint in his eye. His smile had twisted into a fully formed smirk, the kind that made her melt like a pad of butter on a hot knife.
"W-Well, Captain Kaeya, when you put it like that, it- it sounds-"
Kaeya waved his hand, stopping her explanation. "I had no idea you were so forward, Noelle," he replied huskily as he leaned towards her.
Noelle blushed harder in protest, almost wanting to cry from embarrassment. Kaeya watched her squirm, breaking out into a grin before laughing.
"I'm sorry, I jest. I remember parts from last night... that just happened to be a particularly standout one," he smiled, and Noelle nodded, smiling sheepishly.
"You know," he began, standing up and walking around his desk so he was stood in front of her, "I may have to get drunk again if our little maid will tend to me that way." A gloved finger came up to twist a lock of her soft grey hair, and her green eyes widened.
Kaeya smiled. His... other plans for her could wait.
"Come on. You've got a whole castle to get round and we only have 24 hours," he chirped, sliding back into his desk seat. Noelle sprang into action and finished her cleaning without a hitch, as usual, Kaeya staring appreciatively at the way her dress bounced as she moved. She was so lovely when she was focused on working - like a hummingbird drifting through the breeze.
Noelle smiled brightly at him as she left his office, green eyes twinkling. As the door clicked shut behind her, she collapsed against the wood as her heart pounded, her composure melting away as a light grin spread across her face.
On the other side, Kaeya smiled. It seemed that for all her strengths, love was one mess Noelle couldn't deal with.