Cross-posted on AO3

Day 17: Field Surgery

Diluc was having a pretty crappy day.

The stocks had been delayed because of increased slime activity, which had led to him covered in slime secretion and condensate. He had gone back to take a bath and found that his favorite jacket had somehow gotten ripped around the shoulder. This had led to him having to go into the city to a tailor to fix it.

Then Charles had gotten sick and he had to come in and take his shift for him. While that hadn't been a problem in and of itself, the increasingly annoying antics of some of the inebriated customers was. It seemed like the number of bold customers had also increased and Diluc had a few lecherous women promising him a good time in exchange for more wine.

He had promptly kicked them out.

It wasn't until that night that he finally found somewhere – or more accurately – something to safely vent all of his frustration onto.

Diluc felt a sick sense of satisfaction as he watched the Abyss Mage dissolve into golden particles. He had always hated Abyss Mages, what with their annoying voices and their stupid shields. While he usually struck before they could summon them, this one had gotten lucky summoned its own immediately.

It was annoying how long it took until he took it down.

It probably didn't help that it was a Pyro Mage.

With both of them being Pyro, neither had been able to give any serious injuries to the other. At least that has been the situation before the Hilichurls showed up and decided to get in on the fun.

What was this? Bully Diluc Day?

While they hadn't been much of a problem, the Mitachurls had been. While Diluc managed to take down its shield, it had been able to get in a good hit that had slowed him down. This had led to him getting hit in the leg by an arrow. Thankfully, this one wasn't charged with elemental energy, so he had at least dodged that bullet.

In the end, he had still come out the victor. While the Mage had been annoying to take down with an injured leg, Diluc had known he needed to get rid of the others first. But, now that all the enemies had been neutralized, his leg was throbbing. He knew he needed to do something about it before making his way back to the Winery for first aid and a verbal reaming from Adelinde.

He was distracted by the sound of the bushes rustling to his side. Moving to grab one of the throwing knives attached to his vest, he pulled up short when realized who it was.

Kaeya stood not five feet from him with a look of surprise etched into his face. At least Diluc could take comfort in knowing that the captain hadn't been tailing him.

If the surprise was genuine, that is.

"What do you want?" he found himself snapping.

Kaeya seemed to hesitate as he took a step back, partially disappearing back into the foliage. He clearly was going to turn around and leave before his eyes landed on Diluc's leg.

The captain's face darkened.

"Looks like you ran afoul of an archer."

His tone was dismissive, obviously not expecting an answer. He ignored Diluc's glare as he abandoned his attempt at escape and made his way over to the crouched man. He reached out towards the injured limb only for his hand to be forcefully smacked away.

"Don't touch me," Diluc growled.

Kaeya didn't look impressed.

With a surge of Cryo, the cavalry captain had Diluc frozen in place, his upper body and good leg stuck in ice. Instinctively, he reached out for his own Pyro, only to catch a glimpse of something in Kaeya's hand.

"Looking for this?" he mocked, holding up the Vision.

How had Kaeya gotten it off of his belt that fast? He opened his mouth to yell at him, but pulled up short when the other pulled out a first aid kit. Where he pulled it from, the only man could only guess.

Pulling out some disinfectant, Kaeya carefully began applying it to the puncture wound. This earned him a hiss from Diluc, but the other thankfully remained still. Kaeya wasn't about to take it for granted.

The silence only persisted until Diluc broke it.

"Why do you even have a first aid kit?"

Kaeya gave him a grin that he couldn't quite place. It was unnerving about how he couldn't read his ex-brother as well as he used to.

Before the younger man said anything, the sound of an explosion rocked the air. Kaeya gave a quick glance in the direction and noted the smoke beginning to rise into the sky before turning back to the tycoon.

"That's why."

"Sir Kaeya," a young voice screamed. "I am very much hurt!"

"Over here, Bennett," Kaeya giggled.

There was the sound of hurried footsteps before a young man burst into the clearing. A young man with platinum blond hair and goggles on his head was a boy that Diluc wasn't unfamiliar with. He knew the boy was part of the Adventurer's Guild. He often had to visit the cathedral and was envied by almost every fan Barbara had.

He wasn't quite sure how he felt about him being here.

"What happened this time?" Kaeya ask.

"Well," the young man started sheepishly. "I may or may not have hit a Pyro Slime barrel."

The boy's clothes were charred and even still on fire in some places.

The captain laughed again; the sound so jovial that it made Diluc's head spin. Without saying a word, he patted the ground next to him and the adventurer was quick to take a seat. Using just a little more Cryo, Kaeya put a thin layer of ice over the puncture wound before he shifted his attention to Bennett. Diluc grumpily noted that he didn't bother unfreezing him.

The wine tycoon noticed how the captain took great care in how he treated Bennett's burns. He applied the ointment just as gently as he had with Diluc, making sure not to press too hard and making sure that he got every burn. It reminded him of his younger year when Kaeya had helped him with his own burns after he had gotten a little too overzealous. He could almost close his eyes and picture it, but shook his head instead, dispelling the memory before it could take shape.

When he looked back up, Kaeya had sat back and had apparently been lecturing Bennett. The boy looked sheepish, his head partially bowed, though the smile didn't leave his face. Kaeya seemed to be able to tell that his words would likely soon be forgotten as he sighed good-naturedly.

"Just," he raised his hand to ruffle the silverish blond locks, "be more careful next time. I know you can't help it, but don't tempt Celestia, okay?"

The boy grinned widely as he nodded.

Diluc felt something in him sour at the sight. It had only been four or so years ago that he would have been in Bennett's place, receiving medical aid before rushing home for dinner with their father and finally settling down for the evening.

But he knew he couldn't be upset with Bennett for it; the poor kid did nothing wrong.

He also knew that he couldn't fault Kaeya for it. At least not completely.

His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of the Traveler. They had apparently been lured here by the news of an explosion and had come by to investigate. After a returned Vision, some melting and one short teleportation later and they were back in Mondstadt and heading to the cathedral.

Kaeya had splintered off from the group and made his way back to the Knights Headquarters to write up a report specifically for Bennett, claiming that he would cover the medical costs this time since he knew that the boy currently didn't have a lot of money.

It wasn't until Diluc was released and asked for the cost that he was told it had already been paid in full.

A/N: Nothing to see here, just Diluc giving Kaeya some more attitude and Kaeya passive-aggressively getting back at him by covering his medical bills. I just wanted to see Diluc being jealous that Kaeya was getting along with another Pyro wielder while the two of them still had problems.

I just finished writing this today on the 21st without a draft. It was as grueling as the others.