Thread by @morphasia4

We've had de-aged Kaeya, but consider:

A SFW de-aged Diluc twt thread below. Implied Luckae feelings, but no established ship.
CW: angst, hurt/comfort, heavy topics canonical to their pasts.

Thread starts below.

One of their rangers brings him in, with the report that they had found him just short of Starsnatch, muddy and a little uncomfortable and lost.

Fortunately, the ranger had been older, and he had recognized the boy instantly.

Kaeya... regrets the fact that he is the first one they think to take him to. Maybe their disagreements weren't quite public enough, if people make such assumptions, but he's a little too distracted by the boy that sits on his desk, kicking his legs, the minute he walks inside.

So far, what the knights had gathered was that Diluc had been /very/ excited to see them, and very distraught that they couldn't tell him where his father was.

Of course Kaeya would be the second option, in such an instance.

Of course those bright red eyes would turn his way, and his smile would blast wide across that freckled little face. He missed how Diluc's freckles had stood out so much more when he was younger, but like many things, he had grown into them.

"Kaeya!!"

When was the last time Diluc had ever been so happy to see him?

When was the last time Diluc had been happy to see him at all?

The boy launched himself off of the desk, eager to close the gap between them, throwing himself at the other's waist. He was /just/ barely tall enough to reach his thigh instead, hugging his side tightly.

"Look at you! You're so tall! You're a /Cavalry/ Captain? Wow!"

The pride brimming through every one of Diluc's words dug into his heart like tiny knives, and he let out a soft, short laugh. It's reflexive, but also a defense mechanism. "I am," he confirmed, shifting to rest a gloved hand on those untamed curls.

Still, he's wary. He has to be.

"..And you're very small, right now. Do you know what happened to you, Diluc? What do you remember?"

Judging from that greeting... well, not very much at all.

When DIluc gave an awkward little shrug and shook his head, that answered that well enough, too.

Maybe it was better this way, if just because... well, Diluc would be easier to handle.

Kaeya would insist quietly to himself that it wasn't because he'd missed that smiling face, and that it wasn't because he'd never though he'd see it aimed his way again.

Kaeya paused, and gestured back to the desk. "It looks like they got you something to wear, at least. Is that Klee's parka?"

Diluc tilted his head slowly, because he definitely didn't know who 'Klee' was, but he wore shorts and one of her jackets all the same.

"Right," he hummed, shaking his head, though he lifted Diluc to sit on the desk again. "Nothing at all? Not how you got out to Starsnatch, or what you were doing there?"

Knowing Diluc, it was likely some casual vigilante justice, but Kaeya couldn't insinuate that to anyone.

"No, I woke up there, and Sir Morgan found me and brought me here." His brows creased a little, and Kaeya could hear his little feet thumping his desk as he kicked it again.

He'd have to scrub out those scuff marks, later.

Still, he turned that sulk Kaeya's way again, and sighed. "Can we go home? My knee is skinned and it hurts and I want some cake."

Ah. Adelinde /would/ always make them cake when they'd injured themselves. She said sweet things healed things faster.

But Kaeya didn't quite know how to tell him that 'home' was no longer 'home.' Diluc had sold the family mansion immediately upon his return to Mondstadt, and now... well, now another nobleman lived in it.

Kaeya still hated the thought of that man living there.

Only Kaeya knew what sort of deals he had going on in the underbelly of Mondstadt, and revealing that knowledge would have been.. disadvantageous at the time.

It wasn't like Diluc would have listened to him, anyway.

So he'd have to lie to Diluc again, as much as he had told himself that he never wanted to do so.

"They're doing a few repairs at home," he explained, keeping his smile thin. "So you've been staying at the Winery for the summer."

Diluc paused, tilting his head in the way that made all of his curls lop to one side. "Me? What do you mean. You aren't staying there too?

Oh, Barbatos' Balls.

Kaeya cleared his throat, offering his sweetest smile. No doubt Diluc, had he been normal, would have told him ti wipe it off of his face. "No, I've been staying in town, since it's a bit much to ride in every day for Knight duties."

Diluc's mouth made a little 'o' shape, before he nodded, as if Kaeya had said something sage-like instead of fibbing through his teeth.

"Why don't I stay with you, then?" He asked, immediately afterwards.

Kaeya cleared his throat, shifting in his seat. "Well, I have my own apartment. Why would you need to stay with me?"

Diluc's little brows furrowed, and his little lower lip curled into a sulk. "We... aren't married yet?"

Kaeya hadn't been drinking anything, but he sure did choke.

Gaze widening a little, he blinked in alarm at the boy who.. yes, well, that certainly was Diluc. He never hesitated to let people know what he wanted, after all.

He realized almost too late that he /did/ expect an answer, and Kaeya cleared his throat quickly, looking away.

/Why/ was his face so red at such a simple little question? "...No, we are.. not married."

Diluc's brows furrowed, as if immediately frustrated by something. "...Did I not ask yet?" He didn't give Kaeya a chance to answer, arms crossing as he chewed on the inside of his cheek. "....Did I mess something up?"

Then, with slight horror. "Are you married to someone else?"

He reached for Kaeya's hand quickly, then sighed an /audible/ sound of relief at not finding a ring.

Kaeya's almost a little offended, but, well, from the mouth of babes after all.

"You didn't mess anything up. We're both just... busy. And no," he smiled. "You didn't ask yet."

Diluc seems mortified at the thought that he might be a coward as an adult, and so, his tiny grip on Kaeya's hand tightened.

"You will though, won't you? You'll marry me when I'm back to normal, right?"

Kaeya didn't remember him ever being this straightforward as a child.

The earnest plead makes his face burn brighter at the thought of Diluc expressing this sort of intent when he was older, but for now, he only laughed again and gingerly tugged his hand away.

"Maybe if you grow about three feet taller than you are now, and ask again."

Oh, he'd forgotten how potent that pout is, too.

He shook his head, and brushed his fingers through Diluc's hair, ruffling it. "Let's get you back to the Winery. Adelinde will make you that cake if you ask nicely, I'm sure."

Cake is always an excellent distraction.

As it turns out, cake at least keeps Diluc from dropping any more questions about marriage--but that might also be because Adeline had nearly cried at the sight of little Diluc, restraining herself from scooping him up.

It only took one look at his knee, and he got his cake.

And while he eats it, Kaeya and Adeline... talk.

"We still don't know how it happened," he explained, in hushed tones in the doorway of the kitchen, watching while Diluc eats at the counter.

"...Will you be staying?" she asks, arms crossing, looking at /him/ instead.

Kaeya gives her a strained look.

"It's not my place to anymore, Adelinde. He's better suited in your hands."

Her brows crease, and she folds a hand over his arm, her thumb soothing his sleeve.

"Your place is always here, Master Kaeya."

He can't ever tell her no. He's never been able to, even when he'd been less of a man confident in word and nature.

Kaeya sighed, relenting, with a half-smile. "For a piece of cake, then."

She cuts him one, gladly.

It is Adelinde who has to tell Diluc the lie over dinner, that his father is not there because he is out on business in Sumeru.

Kaeya is grateful to her for that, because Diluc believes it so easily, and it smooths over the question quickly.

Fortunately, she'd made herself busy during dinner, and very quickly, she had at least prepared them a room that wouldn't bring attention to the fact that the Master Bedroom was occupied by anyone other than Crepus Ragnvindr.

When the time came for Diluc to actually /go/ to slepe, though... he started to kick in his feet a little.

"I don't want to go to bed without Kaeya. Why don't we share anymore? I'm not gonna be able to sleep without him there!"

Both adults paused, and Adeline smiled.

"...Well, if Master Kaeya will agree, I'm sure he can sleep in the spare bed in the room tonight?" She turned Kaeya a look that made /him/ want to throw a fit about it.

Exhaling, he looked to Diluc's pleading face. Oh, Archons damn them both.

"Alright, but /just/ for tonight," he relented, sighing as he let Diluc tug him along. At least Adelinde could fetch him one of Diluc's sleeping shirts to borrow.

Diluc can sleep in any of his old clothing, tucked carefully away in the attic still.

The 'adult Diluc's' night shirt hung loose, and reminded him of the first time he'd shown up to the Winery. Diluc's shirts had been big on him then, too. Some things did not change; Diluc would always be a little better built that he was. He could thank Khaenri'ah for that.

Diluc was full eager to settle in, though. The guest bedroom held two beds for comfort, though Adelinde /did/ insist on making the boy brush his teeth first. No bed on dinner and cake.

Kaeya thinks that will be it. He thinks he's exhausted and that the boy will fall asleep quickly and maybe he can sneak out the window and head back to Mondstadt and pray that Diluc would be back together in the morning, and not remember a thing.

Across the room, though, Diluc shifts a little, and Kaeya remembers distinctly how many nights they'd stayed up far, far past their bedtime talking in the shadows until one of them fell asleep and stopped responding. The little voice of "Kaeya...?" Brings it all back in seconds.

But still, he won't refuse Diluc anything. In that instant, he feels small again, distant like the years have not stretched between them.

"Yeah, 'Luc?"

He's surprised by how tired he sounds himself.

"...Something happened to my dad, didn't it?"

Kaeya's breath froze, and if he had any illusion of warm sleepiness in the moment, it was brought to a grinding halt.

He can't be direct, he can't be the person that hurts Diluc again, not like this. "What makes you say that?"

"Earlier," Diluc started, sounding sleepy despite the weight of the topic, "Adelinde called me 'Master' Diluc, instead of 'young master.' And.."
He rolled on his side on the bed, bright eyes watching him through the darkness. "It's like when my mother died. Everything's.. faded."

Kaeya's brows furrowed, rolling on his side as well to face him. "Faded?"

"Everything down to the scent of the Winery. After a while, nothing smelled like my mother, either. Nothing smells like my father. There's no pictures. The chairs at the table... no guests."

Kaeya has forgotten what a perceptive child Diluc could be, too. It was easy to forget, after so long of knowing he'd fooled everyone with his secret. How many times had Diluc come close to figuring him out?

There was a reason he'd made Cavalry Captain so early in his teens.

Kaeya's silence says it all. Diluc frowns, and even in the shadows, Kaeya can see the pain on his face.

"...Diluc," he murmurs, reaching out slowly. How many times had he wanted to comfort that very pain away, even though he knew he'd made it worse?

Diluc breaths too harshly to keep his cool, and when his eyes open again, they're shining with tears.

"It's okay," he croaked, quietly. "I'll be okay. Papa said as long as we're never alone when we lose someone, it'll be alright. I had him when we lost you, and I have you, Kae."

Kaeya feels the weight of the world on his chest, and he can only nod, fingers wrapping tight through the blankets over him.

"Yeah. You have me, Diluc."

Diluc sniffles, but he is doing his best to keep it in--he never liked crying, not in front of others. But still, he sits up, wiping his eyes and looking over. "Can I share your bed tonight?" He asked, swallowing hard.

Kaeya nods, scooting over to pat it next to him.

Diluc crawls in next to him, and cries against Kaeya's arm while pretending he's not as hurt as he is. Kaeya regrets a lifetime of lies leading to the one moment where he simply can't lie any more.

After all of it, Diluc pulls back, and swallows.

"Was it my fault?" He asks, deathly quiet. "Mama was sick for so long because she had me, but... was Papa my fault, too?"

Kaeya tries so desperately to shake the image of Diluc on his knees in the rain, hands covered in Crepus's blood.

He smooths back Diluc's hair from his face, and kisses his forehead, and finally convinces himself that one more lie may be for the best. He believes it, after all. Diluc may not, but he is no judge of that.

"No. It was never your fault."

Diluc nods slowly, already dozing off.

Kaeya's plans of sneaking out the window are dashed, because he will never be able to dislodge the boy clinging to his arms, tears drying on his cheeks. Eventually, he dozes off as well.

It's been a long day.

He'll blame that for the dreams of white weddings playing funeral songs.

When he wakes, he no longer has an arm protectively wrapped around a tiny Diluc.

On the contrary, there's an arm around /him/ now, and he goes tense, realizing he should have taken the window when he'd had his opportunity. Diluc will strangle him, when he wakes-

Except he looks up, and those bright eyes are on him again. Diluc's been awake all along. The arm around him tightens just a little, fingers grasping his side. "Kaeya," he hums, tilting forward. "Let me ask. I'm big enough now. Marry me?"

The kiss against his naïve, but tender.

Kaeya's lost for a moment, startled by this affection from a much more modern Diluc, and his heart races before he can stop it.

But the body must have been the first thing returned to normal, because that sweetness lasts only a few seconds, and Diluc pulls back, a sudden, startled confusion working across his features.

He recoils.

"What are you doing here?"

Every little promise of the sweeter Diluc's youth was shattered by the weight of their past, and by the consequences of Kaeya's actions.

Quickly, Kaeya pushes himself away, straightening the night shirt. "Adelinde will tell you everything."

He can't do this. He won't. He has already promised himself that he will no longer tie his fate with Diluc's, whether that meant he has to accept his disdain or not.

His heart can't handle it. He can't look at Diluc's confused, embarrassed fury.

And Diluc-- well, DIluc doesn't trust him anymore. He can think of any number of reasons why he'd woke up in a guest bedroom with Kaeya, no matter if it was perfectly innocent or not.

"Get out of my house," Diluc starts, slowly. Defensively.

Kaeya gives him his most strained, winsome smile, and moves to find his shoes, ignoring the burn at the corners of his eyes.

"Already on it, /Master/ Ragnvindr."

Having one night where he could pretend like everything was as it had been was enough.

Kaeya will keep it like a treasure, even if Diluc's gaze burns like fire at his back as he leaves.

///end