Thread by @lamplitfrost

#kaeluc, #30daysofkaeluc
day 1: anniversary
⇒ fluff ft. caelus cameo 🐦

[ after a day of celebration, kaeya and diluc reminisce on the events of their union. ]

“so the princess and his prince were wed, and they lived happily ever after,” kaeya finished, closing the picture book.

setting the book to the side, he playfully poked the tummy of the bundle nestled between himself and diluc on the sofa.

“now it’s time for /this/ little prince to go to sleep,” he grinned.

“again, again!” caelus wiggled enthusiastically.

“oh? you must know this story by heart by now,” diluc said fondly as he poked the tot on the nose. “all right, up you get, firelight.”

with a giggle, caelus held out his arms. “dada, lift!”

diluc did so gently. “say goodnight to daddy,” he said, holding him at kaeya’s level.

“daddy~! nini~”

kaeya leaned in and kissed caelus’s cheek. smiling, he said, “goodnight, my starshine. sweet dreams.”

lifting the boy to his chest, diluc patted caelus on the back and exited their master bedroom.

alone with his thoughts, kaeya turned his attention to the book he’d read to caelus for what must have been the millionth time—but caelus loved it, so who were they to deny him?

the book, a gift from albedo for their wedding, was expertly crafted and bound. he’d had help from an author in liyue; their combined talents had resulted in a beautifully written and illustrated retelling of mondstadt’s most memorable union in ages (venti had even said so).

kaeya flipped through its pages, smiling in silent reverence at the moments that had been recorded.

after a few minutes, he heard light footsteps approach, then the sound of a door clicking shut.

“did you really get him down that quickly?” kaeya asked with raised eyebrows.

diluc exhaled softly. “it’s not so hard when his daddy isn’t there. he‘s always so high-energy around you.”

“reminds me of another redhead i know,” kaeya chortled.

“you do have that effect on people. redheads in particular, i imagine.”

“oh? and where’s your energy, hm~?”

“as luck would have it, it’s been sapped by a toddler who took all of it in my efforts to wind him down.” diluc held out his hand and nodded at the picture book. “let me see?”

kaeya handed the book over. “i’ll never get over the accuracy of the events in the pages.

even if albedo /does/ have a photographic memory.”

nodding in agreement, diluc flipped to the first page of the book.

there at the altar stood the two men, dressed in reds and blues, saying their vows atop the ruins of the church of favonius.

though they had mourned the loss of the church—leveled in a final battle against renegade gods—it made for a unique setting as the sun peaked behind them at the height of the day. albedo had even illustrated the winds, which had whispered a celebratory tune between the pews.

“and from this life unto the next will our fates be intertwined forevermore,” diluc recited.

kaeya hummed as he moved closer to diluc and linked their arms. “unforgettable. we should have gotten married in khaenri’ah, though. the vows are much simpler.”

diluc gave kaeya a playful nudge. “and what would those vows be?”

“te amo, iubar.”

“that’s not fair.” diluc frowned. “you know my khaenri’ahn is... a work in progress.”

“it means /i love you, sunshine/. it gets to the heart of the matter, as far as i’m concerned.”

“if you’re trying to earn brownie points, it won’t work,” said diluc. “though, it is very romantic-sounding. you always have had a flair for the dramatic.”

“not as dramatic as when you tossed the bouquet,” recalled kaeya as he flipped to the next page of the picture book.

shown was diluc, his back to the crowd, the bouquet—cecilias, lamp grasses, and calla lilies intermixed—suspended in mid-air on the page.

“it nearly hit amber in the face. it would have, had eula not stepped in to catch it,” kaeya chuckled. “she finally proposed last month.”

diluc rubbed a thumb over the page as he reflected on its image. “it was a beautiful bouquet. lisa always did admire the manor’s cecilia garden; she and flora arranged the floral centerpieces without flaw.”

“indeed.” kaeya threaded a finger between pages, coaxing the current one from diluc’s hold.

“our first dance,” nostalgia clear in his tone as he considered the illustration. “who knew,” he began in mock fascination, “that the anemo archon himself serenaded our wedding guests?”

“as if you didn’t know who he was the whole time,” diluc said, a smug half-smile on his lips.

“how could i not? who casually calls dvalin for a ride to some long-lost and supposedly inaccessible islands for a summer getaway?”

“you knew before that.”

“i’ll never tell,” kaeya said with a visible wink. the diamond-eyed man rarely wore his eyepatch anymore; he had no need to. everyone knew what he was: the last prince—now king—of khaenri’ah.

but here, he was just /kaeya/. a lover. a father.

diluc yawned. “let’s look at the rest tomorrow,” he said, taking a moment longer to take in the illustration with warm fondness before closing the book and setting it aside.

with a hum of agreement, kaeya stood up and stretched, then offered his hand.

diluc took the outstretched hand in his, their wedding bands glimmering together as he allowed himself to be pulled off the sofa.

cupping diluc’s head in his hands, kaeya nuzzled his nose affectionately.

“it was a good day,” he said.

“it was,” diluc nodded.

kaeya smiled at that. tilting his head, he leaned in close to lead diluc in a slow, sweet kiss.

the tender love was traded freely between them, trust and devotion built upon a long history of longing, separation, and the mending of broken hearts.

they kissed languidly, there in the privacy of their bedroom; there was no hurry, not anymore.

after an indiscernible amount of time, kaeya broke their kiss, then led diluc to bed.

they silently helped one another out of their dayclothes, then climbed in, one after the other.

settling between the sheets, kaeya embraced diluc from behind. he let out a soft sigh as his lips ghosted the nape of diluc’s neck.

after a brief pause, he kissed the ivory skin; then, twining their fingers loosely, kaeya laid his head to rest.

“happy anniversary, my firefly.”

/end ♡

i didn’t tag as abo bc i don’t consider it to be! in the works for the new year is a caelus slice of life where his birth is by artificial insemination with a *slight* deviation on the science so both parents can contribute. (still requires a womb, though. i wonder who’ll help?)