I wasn't sure whether to laugh or grab another Pinkity Drinkity while Diluc was distracted. I knocked this guy down all on my own. He was nothing compared to what Instructor Xiao made us do in class. Why was Diluc getting so worked up about a regular, albeit rude, dude?

"Diluc," I stepped behind him and patted his shoulder reassuringly. "Let the man live."

"Y-Yeah!" the man on the floor began to sob. His face was as red as a tomato, probably due to the alcohol, embarrassment, and getting his face smashed in. "P-Please…I didn't mean to—"

I glowered at him, shutting him up. "Not a word from you."

"He bothered you," Diluc tensed.

I shrugged, "And I took care of it. Look at these hands," I showed him my fists. "I ascended to Physical Combat II in the span of one class. Look at this strength," I flexed my arms. "Physique supreme. I'm, like, beyond okay."

Diluc looked from me to the man. "He would have taken advantage of you."

"Please," I snorted. "Stay right there, Sir Ragnvindr. I'll show him out myself."

"Wha—ack!" I snatched the bastard by the back of his collar and easily dragged him across the tavern floor. He put up a bit of a struggle before going limp in defeat. Patrons stopped to watch us, but they kindly parted to make way for the door.

"Out with ye!" I grinned and hauled him out the door. He landed in the dirt with a tumble. "And stay out."

Brushing the grimy man's residue from my hands, I turned back to face everyone in the tavern. "Alright, back to what you were doing. The show's over! How about another round of Pinkity Drinkity for the lady, eh?"

Diluc was still standing there, knuckles clenched around the broken bottle. I sighed. What's it going to take for this guy to relax? Everyone's having fun. I was having fun.

"C'mon," I tried to pry his fingers loose from the bottle's neck. "You're gonna slice your own hand off with this thing."

Finally, Diluc let out a sigh and released the bottle with a clatter on the floor. I stared at the shards scattered by our feet. I bent down to pick up the pieces, but Diluc was quick to grab my wrist, pulling me up.

"You'll cut yourself." He shook his head. "Plus, your balance is off. Intoxicated, remember?"

"So you say," I shrugged and smiled. "Yay! You're normal grumpy now. This is much better than murder grumpy."

"I'll go find someone to clean this up properly." Diluc took both my shoulders and ushered me back to the bar. "You stay put here."

"I would feel safer by the icebox." Pinkity Drinkity, here I come.

"Lumine," Diluc gave me a warning look. "Find more water if you're thirsty."

"But—"

"Please."

"Fine," I rolled my eyes and clasped my hands together. "Only because the Pinkity Drinkities were on the house. Right? On the house?"

He cracked a smile. "This time."

My heart swelled at the sight. For the millionth time, I wished he would keep smiling. I watched Diluc order an employee to grab a broom. His smile was gone, again. Fleeting like a shooting star.

"We're leaving already?" I sulked as Diluc shrugged his coat back on. "There are still customers here. Don't you need to bartend?"

"I would rather see you return to campus." He adjusted the sleeves. "Safely."

"I know the way back."

"Can you walk the way back?"

What a silly question. "Of course, I can."

"Go on then," he crossed his arms. "Walk."

I stared dubiously at him before hopping off the barstool and walking to the exit. I reached for the doorknob and—oops. I missed. That was weird. I grabbed the doorknob and swung open and—whoa. That was a lot of force. Good thing I had a hold on the door to keep me from swaying. Stepping into the outside air, my foot caught on a cobblestone—a loose cobblestone—and nearly fell over.

"I've seen enough." Diluc followed me out the door. "You're a hazard to yourself."

"Someone needs to fix these roads," I muttered, scuffing my shoe on the ground. "This is sabotage."

"Self-sabotage."

I laughed. "Seems like it, huh? Who would have known I was drinking cocktails this whole time?"

"Anyone with common sense. It's a tavern."

"Ah, semantics," I waved a hand and walked forward. "Teleport time!"

Diluc grabbed my wrist and pulled me in the other direction. "It's this way."

"Right. Yes, of course. Oh man, I am dreading this."

"It'll only feel worse with you in that condition," he informed me and my steps faltered.

I hadn't thought of that. Archons, why didn't I think of that? Teleporting was absolutely horrendous the last time. My gut churned at the thought of how my body would react now.

"You can hold on to me for support," he offered. "If you feel the need to."

What a brilliant idea. Diluc was smart. He's got that chess brain. I took him up on the offer and grabbed onto his arm, feeling instantly more steady on my feet. I giggled. This was nice.

Diluc mumbled. "I meant for the teleport waypoint."

"Oh," I blinked and began to release him.

"Don't—" he cleared his throat. "If it helps you now, you can stay like this."

Oh, neat. I returned to my position and walked with Diluc to the teleport waypoint at the center of town. There were fewer people out, probably because it had gotten so late. I was still buzzing with energy, though. I wonder if the Pinkity Drinkity had an energy booster in it. I hummed to myself, thinking about it. No, that's not how drinks work. I think.

"What are you thinking about?" Diluc suddenly asked.

Definitely not the Pinkity Drinkity. I couldn't tell him that—he would think I'm a lost cause. Hm, what should I think about instead? The first thing that popped into my mind was the treasure-hunting expedition I did today, but perhaps that should be kept a secret. Kaeya would appreciate it.

"You don't have to tell me."

"No!" I exclaimed. "I was thinking about, um, Kaeya."

Diluc's step stuttered, and I tightened my grip on his arm to stay upright. "Kaeya?"

Oh, shoot. I forgot they were estranged. Kaeya didn't go into detail, but I could tell it must have been something serious. I shouldn't have said his name. No worries, I can fix this.

"I meant," I bit my lip. "Kayaking."

"I despise deception, you know. Lies aren't befitting of anyone. Not even you."

I gulped. "Sorry. I just know you two aren't on good terms. I didn't want to make things awkward."

Diluc sighed. "I don't care."

Didn't care about what? The fact that I brought Kaeya up, or the fact that I was thinking about him? I couldn't help but think it was the former, especially with how Kaeya talked about Diluc earlier. His refusal to reconcile. The pain that was on Kaeya's face was an expression I was familiar with. Grief over time lost. Grief over a broken bond. They were brothers, yet Diluc was a stranger to him. How could he be so indifferent towards his own brother?

Would Aether behave towards me in such a way? Would I to him? I tried to conjure up a scenario that would validate enough bitterness and hatred to break a bond between siblings, but I only ended up hurting my own feelings. My perspective was biased. Of course, I would want to stay by Aether's side no matter what.

"Are you," Diluc halted and turned to look at me. "Alright?"

"Yeah," I sniffled.

He frowned.

"What?"

He pointed to his cheeks, and I lifted my fingers to find mine were wet with tears. Ah, when did that happen? I sniffled once more and hastily wiped my face dry with my sleeve.

"Those cocktails were pretty strong." I tried to muster up a laugh and pushed forward.

I found it hard to bring myself to smile again. For once, I could resonate with Diluc's ever-present frown.

"I didn't mean to."

"Mean to what?"

He looked at me apologetically. "Make you upset."

Diluc thought I was crying because of him? I balked. I mean, I sort of was…in a roundabout way. Though, I hadn't even realized my own emotions were running so high. I never faced my sadness again after Kaeya and I had our heart-to-heart. It was easier to think about other things.

"It's not your fault," I insisted. "There have just been…things weighing on my mind recently."

We finally reached the plaza, and the teleport waypoint cast a blue glow on Diluc's features. The contrast softened him.

"Anything I can help with?"

Could he help? I now knew Aether had no involvement with the Academy, despite Katheryne's connection. Finding my brother was something I didn't have to do alone, I'd realized that. But I wasn't just sad for myself. I wasn't the only sibling hurting. If there was something I could do to help…

"Could you maybe," I took a breath. "Talk to him?"

I didn't say who. Judging by the way Diluc's expression shut down, I didn't need to. It was worth a shot, I suppose. Kaeya had said he'd tried to reconcile before, and I'm not sure why I would be the one to change Diluc's mind on a situation I wasn't involved in.

"Let's go," was his only response, and we walked up to the teleport waypoint.

He removed just one glove from his hand this time, and we both placed our palms on the device. I bristled in anticipation of the unsettling transit.

Diluc pulled me in closer and whispered, "Just breathe."

My head was pounding.

I clutched it, groaning as I rolled under my blankets. Sunlight streamed through the window, signaling a new day and jabbing at my eyes with no mercy. My mouth was dry as a desert, and muscles all over my body ached from the strain of teleporting last night.

I remember taking the town waypoint with Diluc, but there was no memory of our actual arrival. Had the pain hit me so bad that I passed out? The thumping in my head distracted me from recollection, and I cursed the source of my suffering. I swear to never touch another Pinkity Drinkity ever again. Evil in a bottle, that one.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Archons, I might have to stop by the infirmary to take care of this. I winced as the sound thrummed in my head. This headache was like no other.

Thump. Thump. "I know you're in there."

Huh? Was the thumping coming from…my door?

"Are you cowering?" My visitor yelled from the other side. "How very uncharacteristic of you. Come on out and face me head-on, girlie."

Childe.