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"These slimes are agitated..."
You and Kaeya were out scouting around the city walls. After the unexpected tornado hit Mondstadt, the Knights were mobilized first thing in the morning to take care of the damage.
You had finished off an electro slime that was abnormally huge. Kaeya flipped his sword over his arm after he finished off a pyro one.
"What a mess..." You wiped yourself from the slime condensate that had splattered into your skin.
"Hm. Mondstadt hasn't seen a tornado since the Stormterror incident..." Kaeya put a hand to his chin. "I wonder what exactly caused the winds to change."
You knew the answer to his question, but you kept it to yourself. The shard that was located in Stormterror's lair had obviously caused the tornado, but since you couldn't publicize that, you acted just as dumbfounded as he.
"Who knows." You wiped off your arms. "The damage is mild. Thankfully there are no casualties."
Kaeya looked down at you. "...We've finished with our scouting. I'll say we should call it a day."
You groaned, feeling your skin stick to itself. "I need a shower..."
Kaeya laughed as you struggled to remove the slime secretions from your body. "Sucks to be you. I'm off for the rest of the day."
You rolled your eyes. "Don't tell me you only came out here just to make yourself useful."
"Of course not." He chuckled. "I was just bored."
You scoffed, but then realized Adelinde's words from earlier. "...You say you're off today?"
"Oh?" Kaeya smirked. "Is my disciple trying to asking me to accompany them throughout their work?"
You huffed. "I'd rather eat the slime I just killed."
He laughed. "Then why did you ask?"
"You know Adelinde, right?" You crossed your arms.
"Of course. I'm in her debt." He replied.
You were going to just put her request bluntly, but you actually wanted to know if Kaeya was even interested in her. At least that way, you could let her down easy. "...What do you think of her?"
"Hm? Where's this coming from?" He asked.
"Just answer my question." You stated.
"Alright, alright." Kaeya hummed. "She's a really helpful lady who's very humble. Even when I try to compensate her for her work, she denies it. I can almost consider her as stubborn as you."
You bit your tongue, realizing this was not the time to be arguing. "How would you feel about getting to know her?"
"I'd be delighted." He said. "She tends to be fairly busy, so I never had the time to ask her out..."
You smiled. "So, you would ask her out on a date?"
"I've thought about it." Kaeya replied.
"Well, lucky you, today will no longer be your off day." You cheered. "I'm going to plan a date for the two of you."
Kaeya looked at you confusedly. "Date? You? Just what do you know about dates?"
You scoffed. "Plenty."
Kaeya smirked, making you look away. "Don't tell me that you've been on one."
You crossed your arms and furrowed your brows. "Of course not! I just know a thing or two."
"Whatever you say." He said. "So, what's on my agenda?"
"Hmph." You looked at him. "First, you need to get her a proper gift."
"Alright. What should I get..." He thought to himself.
"...Flowers." You replied.
"Flowers? Isn't that a bit too basic?" He asked.
"Trust me. She'll love them." You held back a smile. "So let's go pay a visit to Miss Flora."
...
"Oh, Miss Adelinde? Hm..."
After you went back to the city with Kaeya, you approached the flower stand that was the first thing you would see when you walked inside of the walls.
You had asked Flora about what type of flower Adelinde would like.
"... She strikes me as a fair and romantic lady. So, I would suggest Cecilias."
"Hm..." Kaeya looked at the flower Flora held. "... Alright, I'm sold."
"Great! I'll wrap them up for you." Flora went over to a table and grabbed several Cecilias while you talked with Kaeya.
"Now that you have a gift, we're going to get the materials ready for a picnic." You stated.
"Picnic? That does sound nice..." Kaeya looked up at the clear sky. "...Though I would choose somewhere we could enjoy a good scenery."
You giggled. "What do you have in mind?"
"...Perhaps Starsnatch Cliff." He replied.
"Alright then."
Flora walked back over to Kaeya and handed him the bouquet of flowers. He paid the price for them and she returned back to her stand.
"Where to next..." You thought aloud.
"With Wind Comes Glory is bound to have the materials for a picnic." Kaeya said. "We should head there."
"Let's get lunch first." You replied. "I'm starving."
He nodded and the both of you walked over to Good Hunter.
"Ah, good afternoon Master Kaeya and Miss L/N. Care to try our specialties?" Sarah waved and greeted the both of you.
"Ohhh, you know it!" You said, looking hungrily at the menu.
Kaeya laughed. The both of you ordered and sat down at the table, enjoying the clear weather.
"You know, they say that after every storm, comes tranquility." Kaeya said, pulling out a deck of cards.
He placed the flowers to the side to spread them out on the table.
"That's how it normally is." You replied, crossing one leg over the other. "Say, if I beat you, you're paying."
He chuckled. "Vice versa, then."
"Alright. Best two out of three?" You said, grinning.
"You're on."
The both of you enjoyed a good meal and a challenging game of TCG. After Kaeya won two rounds, you fussed up the mora to pay for your lunch and continued having idle chat to pass the time.
However, someone's jealous eyes were watching the two of you enjoy each other's presence.
— Earlier —
"Ah, Master Diluc! Welcome. I didn't expect to see you here..."
Diluc had entered Angel's Share to check up on the tavern. It seemed the tornado didn't hit the city, which was good, since he didn't want to risk losing business.
"Just checking in on things." He stated. "How bad was it?"
Charles sighed. "The city is alright. It managed to steer clear from here. But everything outside of the city took majority of the damage. The worst place that was hit was Springvale."
Diluc sighed. "...Have the Knights done anything?"
"Of course! They mobilized first thing in the morning and cleared off monsters as well as issuing emergency supplies to everyone." Charles said.
Diluc grunted. "Why not mobilize right after the storm? Why let it marinate for hours?"
"...I'm sorry?" Charles looked at Diluc confusedly.
"...Nevermind." Diluc said. "But I've also come to inform you of the Winery. Majority of the grape crops were damaged, so expect a low stock in wine."
Charles nodded. "Understood."
"Good. I'll be heading out, then."
"Alright, be safe."
Diluc walked out of the tavern, catching a cool breeze in the air. His stomach grumbled a bit, so he decided to pay a quick visit to Good Hunter before returning to the Winery.
As he silently made his way over, he noticed a familiar laugh coming from the small restaurant.
In fact, it was two familiar laughs.
He glanced over to see you and Kaeya chatting away with each other, laughing while playing TCG. You threw down your dice and cursed aloud while biting into your meal.
Kaeya laughed in response and sipped on some water while rolling his end of the dice.
Diluc's pace came to a halt when he noticed the bouquet of flowers sitting on the table.
Not only that, but the laughs and smiles you gave to Kaeya played at his heart.
He remembered your words.
"...A very close friend."