Diluc blinked.
Then twice.
And looked away from the wooden ceiling.
His sight blurred.
And his head spun with the tiny movement.
He only caught a glimpse of a small blur when the door creaked.
And tiny footsteps echoed down a hall.
"Mom! Big brother! He's awake!"
That was the last thing he heard before he rolled to his side.
And face planted the floor by utter accident.
._._._._._.
When Diluc woke up again, a face smiled down at him.
A human face.
"Good to see you're awake!"
And Diluc nearly screamed.
._._._._._.
Ajax didn't know if he should be surprised.
But he was.
His guest was a literal handful.
It took minutes to get the other to calm down.
Maybe that was a given, since the Abyss was not a kind place.
Yet, Ajax almost couldn't stop himself from being in awe of him.
Those eyes he waited to see were such a brilliant, vibrant red—
It screamed of a fire that burned so desperately.
Ajax nearly found himself burned yet again.
Flames leaked from the Vision.
Distantly protecting the Holder.
Ajax doused the whole room with water.
His own Vision glowing in the aftermath.
The mysterious guest of his was thoroughly drenched.
The bandages took in too much water.
Seeping into the red from reopened injuries.
And Ajax sighed.
He just changed them, too.
"Ah, man, there goes all my hard work," he jokingly huffed.
Red, vibrant eyes looked rather conflicted between a glare and confusion.
It took seconds.
Maybe a minute before a low, raspy voice graced the air.
"Sorry."
It was so small, far too meek, strained—
It made Ajax offer his hands in surrender.
He smiled, "Let's get you dried up."
._._._._._.
His guest never spoke after that.
His crimson eyes were weary, far too guarded.
Even around his gentle Mother.
Even with his Father's kindness.
But then again, it must've been the fever he still ran.
There was an unspoken agreement to limit who saw him.
Ajax had always tried to strike up a friendly conversation.
It worked in a way.
The small drops in the tense shoulders was a good sign.
The less wariness in the crimson eased up.
But there was never a verbal response.
Mother tried to coax a name.
Father made roundabout stories to prompt.
But nothing worked.
They resorted to calling him Firefly.
It seemed like a fitting name.
Firefly still flinched every time the door opened.
Still shifted away from his hands every time Ajax changed the bandages.
Ajax's patience was running a tad thin.
There was only so much time he could take off to visit family.
He sat by Firefly's bedside, reading a book out loud.
Firefly was sitting up now.
Curled up with layers of blankets.
Closer to the wall, than to Ajax.
Still a touch out of reach.
But the crimson eyes were closed.
The shoulders were relaxed.
And Firefly's head tilted toward Ajax.
It was the little things that pushed Ajax to stay a little longer.
._._._._._.
Teucer was a curious child.
He often peeked into the room of their mysterious guest.
Never mind that Ajax and Mother said to stay away.
That man just looked so cool!
The Vision on the nightstand looked just as cool!
Too bad he was banned from entering Firefly's room.
Big brother Ajax never left the room for hours.
Father was able to visit.
Mother, too.
But not Teucer.
Not any of his other siblings.
Even Tonia told him to stay away.
So, he waited until the right moment.
He waited until Ajax left the room to fish with Father.
Until Mother had settled herself in the kitchen.
Until Tonia and Anthon had left for school.
Teucer snuck upstairs.
Along with a box of colors and a good stack of papers.
._._._._._.
Diluc dreamed.
He knew he did.
It was Angel's Share again.
Seated at a table.
Surrounded by many.
The glass cup sat innocently on the table.
Quietly taunting him to take it.
To drink it.
But the dream began to change.
Every time he looked up now.
Something loomed on the other side of the table.
He could see bits of the dark armor.
The power of that endless night always flooded the room to suffocate.
It asked him to take it.
That overflowing power that tried to snatch him deeper in that place.
Abandon it, it would whisper in his head, Come home.
Diluc still didn't dare to touch the glass.
Didn't dare to drink it.
He still wanted to run.
To get up and just leave, wake up, go home—-
But he didn't.
Instead, he would always, always tap the edge.
And spill the bitter wine without fail.
._._._._._.
Diluc stared at the little boy that snuck into his room.
The shock of orange was just like Ajax.
Just like Ajax's Mother.
"Hi! I'm Teucer! Can I play here?"
The smile was so bright.
So curious.
Teucer took his stunned silence as an absolute "yes".
Diluc could do nothing when the child climbed into his bed.
A box of colors were spilled on the wool blankets.
Papers littered half of Diluc's space.
And Diluc could do nothing but pick up a color.
"Oh! What's that," Teucer asked the second he finished.
Diluc looked up, blinking at the child's enthusiasm.
He opened his mouth to answer—
But it was like a rock sat in his throat.
He coughed for a second before he finally answered.
"Crystalflies. Anemo ones."
His voice was raspy, very scratchy.
Like he tried to scream at the top of his lungs.
But really, it was because he felt rather ill.
It was painful to say just that much.
But when Teucer demanded (because children never seem to ask) him to show—
Diluc didn't mind.
He especially didn't mind when the boy ranted for minutes on end.
It was funny how many times he was called Firefly in a single span of a minute.
In the midst of it, Diluc had a ghost of a smile on his face.
"Diluc," he suddenly said.
It was still quiet.
Still raspy, and pained.
Teucer looked at him then.
Jaw dropped and eyes wide.
Before he light up like a firework.
"Big Brother Diluc!"
._._._._._.
When Ajax and his father came home, they had enough fish to last a couple days.
But in reality, Ajax was forced outside.
He spent far too much time tending to the quiet Firefly in their home.
His vacation time had been pushed far too much.
It was only a matter of time before someone in the Fatui would personally pick him up.
The thought of going back usually excited him.
To let loose and ravage the battlefield again.
But it didn't.
Ice fishing gave him a lot of time to think.
It was clear that Firefly needed time to recover.
Something wasn't even right.
The wounds healed.
But the fever.
It fluctuated too much.
One day, it could be low.
The next, too high.
Few hours, gone.
It really pulled at his concern.
At least, his youngest brother came to ease his worries.
"Big Brother Ajax!"
Teucer waved a paper in front of him.
"Look! Big Brother Diluc taught me how to draw crystalflies!"
Ajax spluttered.
._._._._._.
Diluc started blankly out the window.
The world outside was so white and grey.
The air was frigid, even with the blazing fireplace.
HIs breaths always came with little puffs in the air.
Clearly he wasn't in Mondstadt anymore.
But that wasn't the worst of it.
His head hurt.
And kept hurting.
It was too cold.
Yet too hot.
He barely heard Ajax enter the room.
"Diluc. That's your name."
He looked up at cerulean blue eyes.
They were almost friendly.
But the warning was clear.
"Why speak now."
A demand.
Not a question.
Diluc dropped his hands away from his head.
Blinking away the pain.
And spoke.
"I got tired of Firefly."
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