Disclaimer: I do not own Genshin Impact or any of its characters. The world of Teyvat and all of its residents are property of miHoYo. I'm just someone who likes to play the game.
A Phoenix Returns Home
Diluc returns home almost two and half years after Kaeya's funeral.
It was a normal and sunny day just like any other. It was almost like nothing had changed. But the ex-knight knew better. He had been traveling for three years before he ever even considered coming back home.
After his failed quest for revenge, Diluc had laid low to recover, occasionally helping his benefactor that had saved his life, though they hadn't actually needed him much. That left Diluc with a lot of free time on his hands.
And free time was a terrible thing for the young Ragnvindr.
It made him think back to the night he lost his father. The fight he had with Kaeya that same night.
If there was anything he hated more than anything, it was thinking about Kaeya.
Thinking about his laughter as they played between the grapevines in the vineyard. How he huddled close to his side on stormy nights. How he used to cower behind him when someone bigger tried to pick a fight with him. How Diluc had foolishly defended him at every turn whether it be from actions or words. How Kaeya's eye had been suspiciously red during their fight.
How he had closed his eyes as if to accept his fate.
Shaking his head, Diluc dispelled the thoughts as he continued his march towards Mondstadt. He had arrived at Dawn Winery the night before and had been greeted by an enthusiastic staff. Even Adelinde had allowed herself to smile when she had opened the door to see his face.
It was almost like he had never left.
Until he began to notice the things that were different.
The staff did seem to be genuinely happy he was home, but it was like there was a cloud over everyone that refused to lift. Adelinde had a look in her eyes that looked like she didn't know if she wanted to laugh or cry.
It began to make him nervous that all of the rumors he had heard were true.
Diluc had settled down at Wangshu Inn on his way back to Mondstadt. The final trek home was planned for in the morning after he was done resting here for the night. However, as he rested against the wooden railing on the balcony, he began to hear rumors surrounding his hometown.
It started with a woman asking another woman if she had heard about the new rule in Mondstadt. The other woman sounds exasperated as she asked what had happened this time. The other eagerly tells her that the guard around Mondstadt had increased again and the other woman gave a sound of disbelief. She asks the first woman if they were planning on turning into another Inazuma and the other gets nervous as she says that she hoped not.
The last thing they needed was another nation like Inazuma.
Diluc felt his head begin to spin. Mondstadt was increasing its guard? Had something happened while he was gone?
It must have been big for the country to start to shut itself off from the outside world.
He hoped it hadn't actually gotten that bad yet. Instead of staying and waiting 'till morning, Diluc had left right then and there, unaware of the sharp golden eyes watching his every move.
Diluc dismissed those thoughts as he saw the bridge just up ahead.
He almost stopped in his tracks.
Knights were lined up and down the bridge on both sides, all of the knights with extremely serious looks on their faces. Something about it made him want to reach for his claymore, but he was able to resist. Carefully – trying not to make any sudden moves – Diluc began to make his way over the bridge.
He could feel the knights' eyes on him for every step of the way. Like they were judging him.
Clenching his jaw, the wine tycoon didn't cease his stride. For a moment, he thought he would be stopped at the gates but the knights at the entrance seemed to recognize him. With only a simple nod, the two let him walk right through.
'That's one hurdle out of the way,' he thought.
The city was nowhere near as lively as he had been expecting. Instead, it seemed like everyone was going about their own business in an almost somber manner. The children sat together, but they weren't playing; just talking amongst themselves. The adults bustled to and fro, not paying any attention to each other outside of a casual greeting or fleeting conversation.
Something was wrong.
And he knew just who to talk to for answers.
While it didn't take Diluc long to reach the Knights of Favonius Headquarters, he was a little off-put by how light security was. The two guards at the front door barely gave him a glance, though one did seem to recognize him.
However, neither of them really made a move to stop him.
Any other time, this would have set off a lot of alarms in his head, but he was too focused on his current goal to really care about it. Thankfully, the Grandmaster's office was close to the front doors. He was sure Varka would be there.
However, the moment he walked through the door, it wasn't Varka he was met with. The large, imposing man that would usually be seated behind the desk was replaced by a much smaller and slimmer form.
"Jean. . .?"
The woman looked up and Diluc felt his breath catch. Jean's eyes, which used to be as soft as an afternoon breeze, were cold and hard.
It was like walking into a nightmare. Had the knights corrupted Jean as well after he left?
"Hello, Master Diluc," the woman greeted.
Diluc flinched. Something seemed so wrong to hear her address him with a title.
"Where's Grand Master Varka," he asks.
"Varka went on an expedition a year ago," she answers, putting down her pen and folding her hands in front of her face, her elbows resting on the desk. The setting sun behind her painted her visage with an intimidating aura. "Until he returns, I am the Acting Grand Master."
The admission leaves Diluc stunned. When he had left, Jean had been a normal knight just like him and was working her way up to captain. She had been kind and calm and knew how to dissolve almost any situation. How had Mondstadt gone from the lively and peaceful place it was to being so subdued?
What happened?
"Why is Mondstadt on lockdown?" he demands. This was so wrong, like a twisted nightmare. There was no way any of this was real.
"As long as I am Acting Grand Master," Jean says, slowly – threateningly – rising from her chair, "I will not allow any harm to befall my people." Her gaze goes from cold to icy. "I will protect them no matter what."
"Even if it means treating your own people like prisoners?!" the former knight shouts. "I've seen the city, Jean. You can't tell me that you think this is right." His hands clench at his sides, his anger growing by the moment. This city was the farthest thing from freedom.
"All rules were run by the citizens before they were implemented. Every new law needed to be approved of by the citizens first."
Something about her eyes gave Diluc pause. It was a look that he recognized very well. It was the same expression that he would see on his own face in the mirror for most of the endurance of his journey. There were bags under her eyes and he finally noticed just how exhausted she looked.
She looked so fragile.
The desk was piled high with paperwork and Diluc knew she wouldn't have left for anything less than an emergency.
"What happened to you?" he asks breathily. This wasn't the friend he knew.
The knight's expression immediately closed off.
"I don't have time for your inquiries," she says coldly. Her face was so smooth that it made a shiver go up Diluc's spine. "If you'll excuse me," she continues, gesturing to the piles of work, "I have work to do."
Diluc opens his mouth as if to argue, but stops himself. Jean looked like she was reaching her limit and he wasn't sure he wanted to see what would happen if he pushes her past it. instead, he forced himself to remain silent and turned and left the office. As he shut the door behind him, the ex-knight could have sworn he heard a tired sigh and the thump of a body meeting a chair. He felt like punching something.
What happened while he was gone?!
The sound of heels on tile had him looking up to see a woman dressed predominantly in purple make her way up to him. She looked almost as tired as Jean, though she was trying valiantly to hide it. Something in him told Diluc that she knew something.
However, now more than ever, he knew he couldn't trust the knights.
He barely spares her a glance before he strides out the front door, not bothering to look back.
Just what in the world could have happened to cause such a drastic change to the home he once knew? He didn't hesitate to hurry back to the winery, though he didn't miss how he received stares from some people as he went.
He valiantly ignored them.
It had been a few days since Diluc came back and things had only gotten stranger.
Adelinde would occasionally stare at nothing as if reminiscing. Elzer tried to act upbeat, but there were bags under his eyes that clearly spoke of little sleep. Hillie and Moco would sometimes be seen talking in hushed voices to each other, but would quickly stop when they would see him and hurriedly go back to work.
Even old Tunner would even sometimes be seen muttering to himself, but would remain quiet.
Frustratingly, after he tried to confront them about it, they all abruptly stopped. On the days where he would take over at Angel's Share, the patrons weren't as merry as he remembered them being during his coming-of-age party. Almost everyone seemed somber to some degree and actually kept the volume down some days as they talked amongst themselves.
Sometimes, he heard snippets about himself and his achievements while he was Cavalry Captain and what they thought he had been up to while he was gone. Others, he heard about a different captain whose name was ever really mentioned, only being referred to as "that poor boy" or other variants. He'd been tempted to ask about this long-lost second-youngest captain, but he finds that he no longer wants anything to do with the knights.
Even if a small part of him felt bad for the guy.
It was his own fault for joining the knights.
Ignoring the gossip eventually just became part of his routine until he finally noticed the lack of knights and their inefficiency was leaving the city not as protected as it should be. He had caught the odd thief or Abyss Mage inside the walls and he could have stormed into the headquarters to rant and rave about their inefficiency causing trouble for the citizens. However, he found himself silently vindicated at every at every threat he took out that the knights missed.
Soon, his nightly activities caught the attention of the people and gave them something new to gossip about. Soon, his nightly activities caught the attention of the people and gave them something new to gossip about. Eventually, it was rare that he would hear about the captain that was never named. It made him wonder if the people actually cared about the boy at all.
He shook the thoughts off as he got ready for his shift at Angel's Share. He had no time to worry about someone he didn't even know.
It would be a few weeks still until he noticed that he hadn't noticed a certain blue-haired individual around the city.
Kaeya startled as his eyes shot open.
He couldn't quite remember what he had seen. All he could remember was blazing bright fire consuming everything around him. The figure before him with bright red hair, though the shadows had hidden their face, despite the light of the flames.
At first, the flames had been gentle in their warmth, crackling gently in the air. The figure had been shorter at first, around his own height, if the slightest bit taller. Then, the figure had gotten bigger, certainly larger than him now. With the figure's growth, so too did the flames seem to roar in reply, flaring up savagely.
It felt like it was trying to consume him.
Kaeya tried to reach for the shadowed figure, but it merely stood just out of his reach. Though he couldn't see their eyes, he could feel the hatred coming off of them in waves. It made his undead heart feel like it was trying to shove its way into his throat.
He couldn't breathe, his vision was getting spotty. All he could do was beg the unknown figure for forgiveness; for release.
He felt something slam into his side and something circle around his hips and he fought not to flinch. Looking down, he was met with the sight of Qiqi having buried herself into his side. Her grip was tight, as if she was afraid he was slipping away.
Carefully, he brought his hand to her currently hatless head, running his fingers through her purple hair.
A hand on his shoulder had him looking up into golden eyes. Xiao looked concerned – his brows furrowed and mouth tight – and the undead teen couldn't figure out why for the lack of life in him.
"Are you alright," the Yaksha asked. "You slipped into some kind of trance. You weren't answering us when we called you."
Kaeya tries to reach for what he had seen in his mind, but found that it had already slipped away. He gives the Adepti a sad look.
"I can't remember."
Xiao gives him an understanding look and settles down next to him on the roof of Wangshu Inn. Gently, he moves Kaeya's head to settle on his shoulder, a gesture that Kaeya noted was meant to bring comfort. It made Kaeya's mind settle as he allowed himself to sink into the other, being sure to keep an arm wrapped around Qiqi, holding her close.
Maybe what he had seen wasn't that important after all.
A/N: This is an alternate one-shot that was written after the poll on my Twitter. I wrote the other version first because my imagination got away from me and I couldn't stop. This will be the one added to the Icy Zombies continuity.
I can't remember when I started this draft (somewhere around my first job), but I finished it on the 21st of August and finished writing out the finished product on December 29th, 2021.
- Addict