Cross-posted on AO3

Day 10 ALT: "Please Come Back"

To say that Diluc was mad would be an understatement.

Diluc was past anger, past livid, past boiling rage. Diluc was practically a volcano about to erupt and take all of Teyvat with him.

All because of the a-hole who was standing in front of him with his brother in his arms.

The man had shoulder-length blond hair that was lighter than the Traveler's and a mask cover half his face. Two bright blue eyes stared unflinchingly at his glare, seemingly unbothered by his anger. Eyes with the same star-shaped pupils as Kaeya. He merely watched him with a curious look on his face, his head tilted and his eye seeming like it was seeing into his very soul.

In all honesty, it only made him angrier.

He struggled trying to break free of his bindings, but any resistance was just met by the branches curling tighter around him. He snarled and tried harder, forcing himself to stop when it felt like the branches were about to squeeze his limbs off.

"Give Kaeya back!" he demanded.

The stranger blinks in what could be surprise.

"Weren't you the one who wanted him gone?" the man inquired. "You were the one who kicked him out and left him homeless. Why change your mind now?"

"He's my brother!"

"You disowned him." The man was starting to show signs of anger, but the sight did nothing to distract Diluc from the pit in his stomach. "You were the one to constantly tell him that you were no longer brothers and turned him away every time he reached out."

How did this man even know all of that? As if he watched every moment? At this point, all Diluc could do was grit his teeth as he remained silent. Anything he said would likely be turned against him.

The man gave him one more appraising look.

"It is time for His Highness to return home and seize his destiny. If you wish to prove that you truly want him back, then come and prove it to me when you're strong enough."

Fear began to pump through Diluc's veins as his struggles renewed once more.

"Please," he begged. His voice cracked with desperation. "Don't take Kaeya!"

"You have had enough chances to make things right for now, I believe." The blond definitely didn't look amused. "For now, I believe it would be best for him to join his own people."

The man turns and walks away, ignoring Diluc's screams pleading for him to come back."

A/N: The draft for this was written on the 1st of February and the final draft on the 11th of February. Just another brain bug of Dainsleif taking Kaeya away, only Kaeya is unconscious this time around and is essentially being kidnapped.

I decided to take what I've seen of Dainsleif in the 1.3 update and his dialogue during the trailer about the twins' separation. He doesn't seem like a bad guy yet, which is why he gave Diluc a chance to prove he could save Kaeya as he had with the Traveler.