The Bridge Between Us - Diluc & Kaeya x sister!OC

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A/N: sorry if the last chapter was a bit boring ;-;

I kinda wanted to have a moment between Daphne and Kaeya, and soon I'll more than likely write one for Diluc as well :)

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It was already nightfall, yet when Daphne returned to Windrise, the teapot was gone. However a note laid where the teapot once was. After reading the small note, she sighed and put it in her bag.

Aether must've headed back to Sumeru. Shame I didn't get to say bye.
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Daphne continued to explore the outside. Sure it was nighttime and dangerous, but it's alright to be reckless from time to time right? The girl kept on walking around, until it was time for her to head back to the safety of a house.

Since Aether and Paimon had already left, Daphne decided to go to Dawn Winery. Adelinde and Diluc both said she was welcome after all. There was only one issue: it was almost one in the morning. The doors and windows were more than likely already locked.

"Do I just sleep outside?", Daphne wonders out loud. "Not like I haven't done it before...", she trailed of as she spotted a few hilichurls. She quickly walked past the group of monsters, keeping her path towards the winery. "That's a definite nope— I feel like having a good night's rest", Daphne deadpanned.

As soon as she arrived on the property, she snuck her way around the mansion, towards her old room to be exact. Thankfully, she knows how to scale a building. Sneaking out as a kid really allowed her to be quite the talented girl.

Quietly, she broke in through the window, climbed in and then shut the window swiftly. "Aha! I always knew I was special", Daphne quietly celebrated. She turned around to look for a light, but it was too dark to see anything.

"Great— sixth sense don't fail me now", she huffed. The poor girl tried to find her way around the room, yet unfortunately she tripped and landed on the ground, causing a loud thud to erupt through the house. Suddenly, she could hear the door open, followed by a lamp turning on.

"You're not as stealthy as you think you know"

Daphne sat up and rubbed her head. "Huh? Diluc?", she wondered. A sigh came from the person as they walked over and knelt down beside the girl. "Yes, it's me. Mind explaining why you broke into my home at two in the morning?", Diluc asked.

The poor girl nervously laughed. "How'd you know it was me?", Daphne asked curiously. Diluc shook his head, a slight smile creeped onto his face. "I recognize the way you sneak in from anywhere", he states. Daphne mouth hung wide open, "What do you mean?"

Diluc slightly furrowed his brows. "You think I never knew when you'd sneak out at night?", he pondered. Daphne continued to sit there, flabbergasted. The redhead chuckles, "My room was, and still is, right next to yours. I always heard the vines rustling at night"

The young girl pouts and hangs her head solemnly. "To think I was a stealthy spy— dreams are now crushed", she dramatically complained. Diluc sighs and ruffled his little sister hair, "Now, get to bed. A certain someone woke me up from my sleep", he says teasingly as he starts to leave the room.

"Alright...", Daphne yawned. Diluc waited for her to tuck herself into bed before switching the light off. "Goodnight....Luc...", was all she mumbled before passing out there and then. Diluc stiffened at the nickname, before sighing with a small smile on his face. He hasn't heard that name in years, not even Kaeya used it anymore.

"Sleep well, Daph"

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The sun shone brightly into Daphne's window, causing the girl to stir awake. "Another good day", she sighed as she got out of bed. Hurriedly, she ran downstairs to find some breakfast when she was greeted by Adelinde.

"Good morning Lady Daphne", the woman smiled. Daphne waved before sitting down at the table. "Adelinde, how many times do I have to tell you just to call me Daphne?", the young girl chuckled. "You've told me that ever since you were but a small child", Adelinde said, placing a plate full of food in front of Daphne.

"But I'm no lady Adelinde", the girl shrugged and the woman sighed. "Daphne, you'll always be a lady in my eyes", the woman sent her a loving smile. Daphne smiled, she knew she wouldn't be able to change Adelinde's mind. Never has, never will. "Where's Diluc?", Daphne wondered as she ate her food.

"Oh, Master Diluc went out for some business today. Anyways, what are your plans today?", Adelinde responded. Daphne thought for a minute as she finished her food. "Maybe I'll take on some commissions from Katheryne. I can probably meet some new people from the Adventurer's Guild", she shrugged. Adelinde nodded, "I see, be careful out there"
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"Good morning Katheryne!"

The dark haired woman looked over to the young girl headed her way. "Ah, Daphne! How nice to see you've returned to Mondstadt. How may I be of assistance?", Katheryne said smiling. "Is there any commissions I could do while I'm here?", Daphne wondered.

"Hm, let me have a look. Is there a certain rank you'd like to go in?", the woman asked. Daphne took the time to think about it before a grin crept up to her face. "Challenge me. I'd like to take on B ranked commissions", she said with excitement.

Katheryne however, glanced over at her with a concerned look. "Are you sure? These commissions can take a toll on you", she warned. Daphne scratched the back of her neck, "Ah— ok you may be right. So is there anyone who I can go with?"

"All other adventure teams are occupied at the moment, however there is one team who may like to join you", Katheryne informed. "Two adventurers, Fischl and Bennett, are currently on there way back from Wolvendom. They often visit their friend Razor, then come to me for commissions", she said.

Fischl and Bennett. Hm, sounds fun

"Alright! I'll wait here for...", Daphne was cut off by two other voices, of which they seemed to belong to two young people.

"Katheryne!"

"Ah, right on time", the raven haired woman said. A girl and a boy, no older than Daphne, sprung over to the Adventurer's Guild. "Katheryne! Is there any high ranked commissions for us to take?", the blonde boy beamed. Katheryne giggled at their excitement, "As a matter of fact, yes. And here, I'd like to introduce you to Daphne. She's also looking for high ranking commissions"

The two teens look over at the Dendro user. "Hi! I'm Bennett, and this is my friend Fischl!", he gestures over to his friend. "Greetings, I am Fischl. Prinzein der Verirteilung. Thou must also be a fellow adventurer!", the girl exclaims. Daphne sweatdropped.

What the— what did she say?

"Oh— don't worry about Fischl's way of dialect. You're bound to understand her soon, she says she's delighted to meet you", Bennett explains. He must've noticed how confused Daphne was. "Thou dare to be confused on my way of speaking?", Fischl put her hands on her hips.

"Sorry— guess I'll have to learn", Daphne nervously laughs. Katheryne clears her throat, making the three teens put their attention to her. "As I was saying before, there's a commission up in Dragonspine. Though, I will say be careful. Luckily, Bennett here has a Pyro vision to light up nearby heat sources", she explains to the small group.

"Oh man, now you're embarrassing me"
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"So all we have to do is clean the statue of the seven?", Daphne asked as the three of them climbed Dragonspine. It was freezing, luckily Katheryne let them borrow some warm coats.

"Ye shall clean thy statue swiftly", Fischl commented. Bennett nods in agreement. "We should get going, even though we have these coats it's still freezing", the poor boy shivered slightly. "Well what are we waiting for then? Let's get scrubbing", the Dendro vision user saod enthusiastically.
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A few hours later
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"F-Finally we finished!", Daphne semi-celebrated. After a few hours of work the three had finished, however during that time the wind and cold temperature increased. "I can try to find a torch thingy to light up", Bennett offered.

"You should hurry then" Fischl's companion, Oz said. When Daphne first heard the bird speak, she was a bit freaked out. However, as she got to know more about Fischl, Oz, and Bennett, she was fascinated. "Oz is right, who knows how long it'll take to get back?", Daphne hugged herself tighter, attempting to Leo warm.

"Let us take our leave then!", Fischl announced. The trio headed back down to the camp near Dragonspine, hoping that it'd be a smooth trip back.