Work Text:
“When one’s fervent ambition burns brightly,
the gods will cast their gaze upon you.”
- Unknown
- - - - -
(diluc.)
- - - - -
When Diluc cradles his father’s bleeding body in his hands, the only thing running through his mind is “I… …failed?”
Because that’s what happened. He failed to protect his father, so much so that the other had to step in to protect him, at the cost of the other’s life. What use is his Vision if not for protecting his family? What sort of absolutely useless thing-
Kaeya’s absolute betrayal only gives him more incentive to leave everything behind. What use is his Vision, if Diluc no longer has any more family left to protect?
So, it’s absolutely no question why Diluc throws his Vision away, puts on the Delusion, and he runs and he runs and he does not look back.
-
The beginning of his journey is filled with anger at Kaeya.
It fumes and it burns and it fuels every launch of chains, every reach out for his stolen-borrowed-stolen- mine power.
It’s the core of his abilities, it’s what keeps him moving, keeps him and pushes him towards heading as far away from Mondstadt as possible - away away away and don’t look back-
-
Nearing the end of his journey, Diluc can’t help but wonder…
…Who is this “Kaeya” written in his notes?
-
Mondstadt, Diluc decides, is where he’ll find his answers. That is the place he must’ve come from, after all. That is the place he’ll find the answers to the owner of that foreign name and what they must have done to him to earn his ire so and why can’t Diluc remember?-
And still, meeting the mysterious Kaeya doesn’t magically answer all of his questions like Diluc had expected. Not even as the other calls himself “your bro Kaeya” with an impish grin on his face.
And the people of Mondstadt don’t help either.
What do they mean they’re sorry for his father’s death? Diluc doesn’t remember having any family, let alone a father. If the man existed, he doesn’t think there’s much love lost between them anyway.
Why do they call him “Master Ragnvindr”? Who is this Ragnvindr and why does everyone seem to mistake Diluc for him? Why does everyone give him pitying glances when he demands answers?
Diluc thought this was the City of Freedom, so why isn’t anyone here free to look him in the eye and give him the answers he so desires?
(At least he gets them to call him “Master Diluc” instead of “Master Ragnvindr”. At least its his name now, not someone else’s.)
-
He takes up work in the bar of the person whose identity he’s kindly deigned to borrow. The bar that this mysterious Master Ragnvindr owns, along with an entire winery to go with it. It’s his now, his to take advantage of.
Diluc will play the role of the aristocrat son of the late Master Crepus Ragnvindr. He will do so, for as long as his patrons get tipsy or drunk, for as long as they spill the information that Diluc so badly needs.
-
And then.
And then.
And then.
And then Kaeya (who was he again?) gives him a vase. (Oh right, the guy who broke the Ragnvindr’s vase. That explains a lot.)
There’s a Vision inside the vase, a Pyro one, one that’s achingly familiar, so much so that Diluc can’t help but shake it out of the gaudy vase gently and wrap his fingers around it and- oh.
Oh.
This explains a lot.
-
(In the moments before ten-year-old Diluc Ragnvindr receives his Vision, he stands his ground against a group of bullies and thinks to himself: “I have to protect my family!”)
- - - - -
(kaeya.)
- - - - -
Kaeya thinks that Diluc - hold on, it’s Master Ragnvindr to him now, isn’t it? - is so very cruel.
The Pyro Vision on his bedside table pulses, in sync with the Cyro one slung across his hip. In sync in a way that Kaeya knows that he and Master Ragnvindr will never be again. It’s bright and red and warm and a sorry, painful reminder of all that Kaeya will never have again. It’s nostalgia and pain and when he picks Master Ragnvindr’s Vision up, he feels it calling out to someone far, far away.
And Kaeya looks up and looks around his stiflingly small house, tries to figure out how to fix this - whatever this is - and.
And.
And Kaeya realises that he doesn’t remember ever feeling this alone.
-
Years pass. Years .
Years without seeing hide nor hair of his br- Years without seeing hide nor hair of Master Ragnvindr. The Pyro Vision glimmers at Kaeya cheerfully, temptingly, saying “ Hey! Master Ragnvindr is still alive out there somewhere, but I’m not going to tell you how he is or where he is! ”
The most frustrating and useless thing ever.
Kaeya throws himself into taking Master Ragnvindr’s place in the Knights, because the other’s sudden resignation caused a serious amount of upheaval. Everywhere he goes, the eyes on him are judging him, singling him out, because he’s Master Ragnvindr’s replacement, and so he must be good. Not just good. He has to be better . Better than his predecessor, better in everything Master Ragnvindr could do, and in everything that Master Ragnvindr can’t.
And then.
One day.
Diluc Ragnvindr comes back.
-
Things don’t get better - Kaeya wonders why he (so naively) thought that it would, anyway.
He saunters up to his enstranged brother with a grin teasing the corners of his lips, letting himself radiate confidence that he doesn’t truly feel. “My, how you’ve changed in the past few years,” he coos, eyes dancing over the other.
It’s true. Master Ragnvindr has changed, and not necessarily in a good way. He’s darker now, a stiffness in his shoulders and a firmness in his eyes that most definitely wasn’t there before.
“Now, I think I have something that once belo-”
“Who are you.”
It’s a demand, not a question, and the harshness of the words would’ve stopped Kaeya in his tracks if he hadn’t been somewhat anticipating it, if nightmares of various reunion scenarios haven’t made constant appearances at night. All things considered, he figures that this is probably one of the more ideal ones, after all.
But still…
“Aww, don’t tell me you’ve forgotten all about your bro Kaeya?” He smirks, all teeth and not a trace of genuine emotion. He knows Diluc used to hate it when he did that, said that expressing true emotions is the bravest thing that anyone can do.
But now, he knows, even as he teases the other with words that he doesn’t truly mean, that Master Ragnvindr has intended those words to be that way. They’re not anyone to each other, not anymore.
Strangers.
Somehow, that’s even more alienating that calling Kaeya his enemy.
-
They’re not brothers anymore, but that doesn’t stop Kaeya from calling himself that, watching as Master Diluc’s face contorts in an unreadable manner, letting the words “your bro Kaeya” roll of his tongue. He watches as the dart hits the vase instead of the board, then again as Master Diluc - this time with the falcon mask that barely conceals his identity - leaps over the rooftops.
It’s bright daylight, and the other’s red hair is starkly obvious against all the black. Kaeya would easily admit that it’s an absolute miracle that everyone in this city is naive enough to completely miss the similarity, especially since there’s only so many red-haired, darkly-clothed people in Mondstadt.
Then again, these are the same people who blindly accepted a Khaenri'ah spy, not just into their midst, but even as their Ordo Favonius Quartermaster-Calvary Captain. So, maybe Kaeya shouldn’t be so surprised. Maybe he should just be thankful. Surely, if they were bright enough, they would’ve figured out Kaeya’s true history, at the very least.
No.
Kaeya can’t afford that.
Better to just let sleeping dogs lie, lest Master Diluc decides that enough is enough and unleashes the information that he has (so far) deigned not to share.
Blackmail. That’s what it is.
Ha. Kaeya never thought that the great Master Diluc would ever stoop so low as to do that, but that’s what this is, isn’t it?
-
Master Diluc can never use his Delusion again. Is that a good thing? A bad thing? Kaeya doesn’t quite know how he feels about it, staring at the wine swirling around in his glass like it holds all the answers to his questions.
It’s a thing, he decides, sipping at the sweet sweet wine. The more important part would be reliant as to how the two of them go about it. So… how does Kaeya want to go about it?
…Does he want to go about it?
The Pyro Vision is somewhere in a drawer, but his Cyro vision still sings with it, pulses rapidly and calls out for Diluc Diluc Diluc-
Kaeya downs the rest of his wine bitterly and heads out to buy the most gaudy, the most ugly vase he can get his hands on.
-
(In the moments before Kaeya Ragnvindr Alberich receives his Vision, he stares down his brother’s Diluc’s flaming swords, sees the fire and the rain on his skin, and thinks: “This can’t be how this ends-”)