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“Ey!” A loud, bright, cheerful shout rang through the air, the familiar, yet infuriating voice causing a nearby gentleman to sigh in exasperation. He was wearing an exquisite dark brown themed suit with intricate gold patterns, and seemed to have a most calming demeanour. He quietly sipped his osmanthus wine as he resigned himself to this unbearable annoyance.
“Zhongli~!” A lively teenager wearing green overalls bounced towards the man, bursting out of the door with enthusiasm. “Barbatos,” Zhongli greeted, continuing to sip his wine while the boy pouted.
“Come on~ I thought we were calling each other by mortal names! If you’re calling me Barbatos, should I call you Morax then?” The bard pulled at his hat cheekily, raising his chin ever so slightly in consideration.
“Would you rather Tone-deaf Bard, perhaps?” Zhongli asked pleasantly, and Venti fake gasped. “How dare you! Paimon gets special privileges, but I can’t have you of all people calling me a Tone-deaf Bard!” His form heaved with an exaggerated sigh.
“Guess I’ll just have to call you Broke Boy then!” He winked at the man. Morax’s hand itched to summon his meteor and crush the Anemo Archon for his maddening words.
“What brings you here today?” Zhongli calmed himself down, keeping his neutral tone as amiable as he possibly could. “Come to see you blockhead!” Venti swiped his hand across the back of the Geo Archon’s head, and giggled at the glare that he shot him.
He pulled a chair out, plopping himself down playfully, one foot raised on the chair and the other dangling off of it laxly. They stayed like that, in silence, for a few moments. Zhongli looked up, surprised at the bard’s unusual silence. Venti had a wistful, faraway expression on his face, staring down towards the table with lonely eyes.
“You know…even though I knew that you were faking your death…” Venti sighed, his previous cheerful spirit instead replaced by the true face of three thousand plus years of experience. “I still panicked when I heard you died.” Venti swished his cup around, watching his reflection morph and change with the wine.
“‘What if I’m the only one left?’” Venti laughed. It was a broken, painful laugh, and Zhongli was suddenly stunned. He hadn’t realised that Venti—no, Barbatos would miss him so if he were to disappear from this world to the point of—this.
Venti then smiled. “And then, I realised I was being stupid. The wind had heard your deal with Signora, so I was just being dramatic. It was nothing after all.” One hand supporting his head on his cheek, he stared up towards an astonished Morax.
“Barbatos…” he started, looking away from the younger. How would one deal with a sad Venti? The God was never sad…at least Morax hadn’t seen him as much, even in the 2500 years he’d known him. “I…apologize. I hadn’t realised that you felt this way.” The words tasted foreign on his tongue. Guizhong was always the better one at emotions…(he missed her).
“It’s fine!” Venti grinned genuinely. He tipped his head back, spreading his arms above him theatrically. “Ah, I never knew that Morax could give such a heartfelt apology!”
Zhongli stayed silent. “Not one for conversation, are you?” Venti smiled. Multiple loud bangs went off, causing the two to turn towards the noise. Fireworks. The flowers streaked across the sky, exploding into beautiful patterns, one after another. Sounds of delight filled the streets beneath them, and children cheered loudly as the second round went up, lighting up the dark night skies with a myriad of colour.
Suddenly, a surplus of Xiao Lanterns drifted through the skies, and the streets lit up with the hopes and dreams of the people in Liyue Harbour. The two Archons mesmerised themselves in the atmosphere for a few seconds, marvelling at the beauty of human creations. Happiness, laughter, hope.
And Zhongli couldn’t help but be reminded of more simple, beautiful times. The adepti sitting around that stone table, merrily chatting away. When he hid a smile as Guizhong and Cloud Retainer would argue, and Streetward Rambler would nudge Sea Gazer playfully, asking to see his latest discoveries out of curiosity. When he would chat with the five yaksha about the trivial elements of human life, and Bosacius and Menogias would hammer away on which type of bamboo was tastiest, with Alatus simply stating that all human foods except Almond Tofu and Grilled Tiger Fish were terrible.
Music filled the air, and Venti joined the crowd’s laughter in delight, a wide, happy smile spreading across his face, and Zhongli couldn’t help but give a smile too. Barbatos turned to him, cup in hand. “A toast to better times!” he cheered, holding it out invitingly. Zhongli raised his own.
Clink.
“I believe there will be.” And so, the two ancient beings watched as the carefree, young humans celebrated a new year to come, revelling in the wonderous beauty that only humans could ever create. Guizhong would be proud.
"Happy Lantern Rite Morax!"
“Happy Lantern Rite, Barbatos.”