Chapter Seventeen

Diluc ran lightly through the grass, easily keeping up with his brother. They were making good progress under the disappearing moon, but the route to the base of the western cliffs was longer than the direct path they'd taken. And with the night already half over, they'd have to find a spot to hide before dawn brought light to Stormterror's Lair. He did his best to communicate his thoughts to Kaeya.

"Mmhm. You're right. Let's look for a place to stop," Kaeya panted between breaths. His left hand pressed against his side as his nose wrinkled. "Oof, I'm getting stiches. I guess that was too many days of lounging around on a ship." He chuckled, then slowed to a fast walk.

Matching his brother's pace, Diluc meowed agreement. Still preferable to marching with that Fatui Agent. His eyes smoldered at the thought of the man who'd struck his brother twice. I'll find him later and make sure he never touches Kaeya again.

"Can you see the ruins over there? Across that canyon?" Kaeya asked. "It looks like there might be a place for us to stay there. It'll require a bit of backtracking, but that might help us. Vlad will expect us to head straight for the only entrance. We can head around the end of the canyon, where that arch is." He started forward with renewed energy. When they reached the huge arch at the beginning of the canyon, Kaeya ran a half-gloved hand lightly across the stones. The grey light of predawn was enough to make the ancient scars barely visible. "Sometimes I forget how old these ruins are…"

Just then, Diluc caught a rapidly approaching sound in the long grass. His ears flicked up and a low snarl thrummed from deep in his tiny body. Kaeya came to an abrupt halt, his sword materializing in his left hand with only a hint of awkwardness. Diluc crouched, his claws emerging and wisps of fire dancing around the tips of his ears and tail.

Neither of them were prepared for the young girl who bounded around the boulders obscuring the base of the arch, nearly colliding with Kaeya. Jumping back with a gasp, she yelped, "OH! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there!"

Smoothly Kaeya dismissed his sword. "My apologies, I really should have moved out of your way. The fault is mine, young miss."

The girl blinked at him in dismay. "But—" The rest of her thought was lost as she spotted Diluc, still watching her warily from beside Kaeya's boots. Her face lit up as she dropped to her knees. "Oh, how wonderful!" She reached out to Diluc, cooing, "It's been a while since I've seen such a handsome young nekomata!"

Taking a hasty, uncertain step backwards and holding his paw stiffly up against his chest, Diluc shot a glance up at his brother. Kaeya looked just as confused as he was. The tall knight asked casually, "A… nekomata, you say? I'm afraid I'm not familiar with that term."

Now it was the girl's turn to be confused. "Is he not a nekomata? But I thought for sure…" She trailed off, examining Diluc closer. "He's certainly not a normal cat." Diluc blinked rapidly as he noticed not one, but two tails flurrying behind her in agitation. She looked up at Kaeya again. "Did you not know he can change into a human?"

This time, both brothers recoiled in surprise. "You can see that?!" Kaeya's eye narrowed. "If you don't mind me asking, just who are you?"

She bounced up to her feet, which Diluc only just realized were shaped like cat's paws. "I'm so sorry! I haven't even introduced myself yet. I'm Kirara, an Express Courier for Komaniya Express! I don't usually lead with this, but I'm a nekomata from Inazuma. A cat who can change back and forth between human and feline." She pointed at Diluc. "Just like him."

Kaeya couldn't hide his eagerness. "You mean he can change back?"

"Er, yes? He's got plenty of Dendro energy coursing through him. It shouldn't take much…" Kirara eyed them both as if they were going to suddenly turn into hilichurls. "I… I'm sorry, I think I may have misread the situation and gotten carried away. Is he not supposed to be a cat?"

"No. He was attacked by a Dendro Abyss mage. He wasn't supposed to turn into a cat, but something went wrong, and here we are," Kaeya explained lightly. "Oh, by the way, I'm Kaeya Alberich of the Knights of Favonius, and this is my brother." He didn't bother adding Diluc's name into the mix.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir Kaeya! Now about your brother…" Kirara studied Diluc pensively. "Well… I can show him how to do it, if you'd like."

Both brothers inhaled sharply. "Yes! Please do!" Kaeya blurted.

"Okay. Watch me closely." Kirara waited until she was sure Diluc was focused on her. With a swift movement, she performed a flawless backflip. As she did so, swirls of Dendro energy looped around her, and a second later, they were faced with a large delivery box, floating a few feet off the ground. Kirara's distinct twin tails waved from one end, while a cutout in the nearest edge allowed two huge, curious cat eyes to study them. A meow echoed from the box, and Diluc nearly shot into the air as Kirara's cheerful chirp entered his mind. Your turn!

Kirara wound up changing back and forth several times before Diluc grasped exactly how she was utilizing Dendro to perform the switch. Gathering himself, he clenched his teeth and followed her example.

Dendro wisps crossed his vision as he struggled, but with Kirara's helpful instructions, it didn't take much. In an instant, Diluc felt himself snap back into his tall, lean human form. Relief washed over him even as he coughed hard. He threw out a gloved hand and reached blindly for the archway beside him, nearly doubling over as coughs wracked his form. Dimly he felt Kaeya's arm wrap around him, supporting him despite the Cryo user's exclamation of dismay.

It was a few moments before he was able to take a full breath and cautiously stand straight. Kaeya didn't let go of him, watching him with worry in his single exposed eye. "You alright, Dawnbird?"

Diluc nodded, not quite trusting his voice just yet. He glanced down at himself, taking in his familiar black coat, white shirt, red-palmed gloves, black pants and boots. His chest eased more with each breath, and he was grateful to see his Vision hanging from his belt in its usual place. Finally he looked up at Kirara's anxious face and rasped carefully, "Thank you, Miss Kirara."

She was biting her lip, her tails weaving back and forth. "It's nothing, I'm glad I was able to help. You must've been a cat for quite some time, right?"

"At least a week," he confirmed. He had to pause to cough into his elbow again.

"That explains why you're having difficulty breathing properly. Sometimes if you go too long without swapping, it makes for a harder transition, especially if it's your first time, but it will pass before too long." She glanced around. "Are you staying near here? It's probably a good idea to hold off on traveling for the rest of the day, just until you get your strength back."

Kaeya responded in Diluc's stead. "We have a nearby destination in mind. Not to worry."

"Okay. That's good. Do you need any help?"

The brothers exchanged glances, communicating wordlessly. It's not a good idea for her to stay with us. If Vlad manages to track us here, there'll be a fight, and she could get seriously injured. Diluc shook his head shortly as Kaeya politely declined. "We'll be fine from here. Thank you again for all your help, Miss Kirara! We're indebted to you, fair maiden."

She flushed at the praise. "It's nothing, really. I'm just glad I was in the area dropping off a package! All right, I'll let you be now. Stay safe, and I hope you recover soon!" With a final uncertain look at Diluc's white face, she bobbed a farewell and loped off into the night.

After a moment, Kaeya chuckled. "Well. That was certainly easier than I expected." He glanced up at Diluc from where he still supported him, a gleam in his eye. "We should've ordered something from Komaniya Express a week ago."

Diluc couldn't help a fragmented chuckle of his own. "Definitely."

With Kaeya at his side, Diluc carefully made his way around the entrance to the canyon and up the hill behind it. They carefully avoided a small camp of hilichurls, but as they neared the wall and rain began to fall again, he wiped the water from his eyes and frowned. "Kaeya… trouble up ahead."

Kaeya glanced forward and spotted the two Mitachurls guarding the entrance. He wrinkled his nose. "We just had to pick some occupied ruins, didn't we?" He tugged Diluc closer to the wall and made sure he was steady before stepping away. "Stay here, I'll take care of it."

Diluc scowled. "You're injured!"

Kaeya flashed him a smile. "And it's raining. Haven't you heard that Cryo is far more effective in the rain?" With that, he loped easily off, his Aquila Favonia materializing in his left hand.

The Pyro user kept a close eye on his brother as Kaeya closed the distance and jumped into battle. Inching his way along the wall, he drew near enough that he could call up his blazing phoenix, sending the giant bird soaring through the two frozen enemies. Kaeya yelped as the bird shot through him, and Diluc huffed a small laugh. It's always amusing to see my bird take Kaeya off guard.

"I can hear you laughing!" Kaeya yelled back at him, chipping off the last bit of health from one of the Mitachurls and spinning to attack the second one. His Cryo flashed out and refroze the enemy, making it an easy target for the deft Cavalry Captain. He danced backwards lightly as the big hilichurl collapsed. Shooting a quick look at Diluc, he called, "I'm going to make sure there's no one inside."

"Kae! Wait for me!" Diluc scowled as his brother vanished into the gap, completely ignoring his instruction. Grumbling under his breath, the tall former knight limped forward, clinging to the wall to keep his balance.

By the time he rounded the corner, the small alley-like courtyard was clear, and Kaeya was just dismissing his sword, a flush of triumph in his face. "That was easy." He caught sight of Diluc and darted towards him. "Hey, you should've waited for me!" As he caught up with his brother and ducked under one arm, Diluc snorted.

"I believe that's my line, actually."

Kaeya laughed under his breath, helping Diluc through the archway and into the sheltered area behind it. The redhead didn't bother wondering what part the narrow defile had played in the ruined city. He felt uncharacteristically weak, and as Kaeya lowered him to lean against the wall, he relaxed with a sigh of relief and closed his eyes.

"You okay, Diluc?" Kaeya's voice was tinged with worry.

"Don't worry about me," Diluc said without looking up. He still sounded a little raspy, but he could talk without coughing now. "Miss Kirara has likely made thousands of shifts, but that was only my second time. At least it didn't hurt this time."

As he listened to the sounds of Kaeya setting up a minimal camp, he breathed deeper, his body easing back against the stone until sleep stole upon him unnoticed.