It was the third night after the "Welcome back" party,
He was currently sleeping, in the middle of a dream...
...
Strangely enough one that wasn't about the past,
Or flashes of current events in distant parts of Teyvat...
...
But rather, it felt like someone was calling him,
The voice sounded almost pleading...
"...Lord Barbatos, can you hear me...?"
"...Can you hear my voice...?"
"...Please, my Archon, I wish to speak with you."
Someone who knew his real identity,
And who was also very respectful towards him...
*It was someone from Mondstadt, then...
...
It was one of his people, of course he will reply to them,
Whoever it is, he would communicate with them through this dream...
...
"Oh, Lord Barbatos, you have really come!", a relieved and grateful voice was heard as soon as he appeared, "Thank you for accepting my sudden summons."
Barbatos, having automatically shifted into his Archon form, looked at who it was...
-... Rostam...? How are you here...?! -The Archon couldn't help but blurt out in shock, soon becoming sad, as his wings drooped. -...So, your soul somehow attached itself to the artifact...- Reminding him of his failure again...If only he was a good Archon and prevented this loyal knight's death...-... You were even unable to move on, huh...- He then continued, while putting a hand on his face, not noticing how the atmosphere around them suddenly started to get gloomy. -... For all these 500 years, because of my incompetence, you were...
"That's not true! I was the one who readily went to fight against the Abyss! And it's my own fault for being too weak and dying like this!", Rostam interrupted him, angry that the Archon even though of this being his fault, "A choice that I made of my own free will, as a citizen of Mondstadt and a Knight of Favonius! An oath made to protect and fight for the people of the nation of Freedom! The Freedom that you gave us, Lord Barbatos!", he explained while getting very emotional, before his expression changed to that of sadness and regret, "...I should be the one to apologize to you instead. Having been residing in the artifact for all these years, I could clearly see all that Rossie did.", he suddenly got to his knees before the Archon, his head lowered, "I deeply apologize for the attack at the Cathedral and for everything she did during the invasion on Mondstadt…"
He started apologizing, sounding so regretful it made the Archon's heart clench.
...
Why was Rostam so dutiful even now...?
*A knight through and through, he truly was...
...
Why was he apologizing to him...?
*When he was the one who failed him so much,
When he was the one who couldn't save the other's life...
...
It would have been more understandable if he hated the Archon,
Just as his lover, Rosalyne, did all this time...
-...Why are you apologizing to me, Rostam…? Even though everyone says I saved them and are thankful for it, there are a lot of people that I have failed...- Barbatos sadly mumbled, as the atmosphere around them became gloomier. -... Like you and Rosalyne, everyone who hurt and died during the nobility time, my first friend...
He continued in anguish, as a weird miasma suddenly started to appear around them,
One that Rostam noticed upon looking up from his position on the ground...
...
Soon realizing that it didn't just appear,
It was there from the very beginning,
They just couldn't see it before...
...
The miasma also felt vaguely familiar to the knight,
But while the one in the Abyss was pitch black and felt like hate and death,
This one was gray and gave a feeling of deep sadness and guilt...
*The emotions that the Archon must have been feeling right now...
"...So this is it's actual origin...", Rostam couldn't help but sadly say, noting how it became bigger the more the Archon talked of his guilt, how he failed so many people by forsaking them while calling it "freedom" and... "...The miasma back then, it was created from the negative emotions of dead gods..."
...
And it was rapidly getting bigger,
Looking like it was consuming the Archon now...
*Who looked like he was...
...
...
N-NO!
HE COULDN'T BE LOSING CONSCIOUSNESS!
*WHO KNEW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF HE DID IT HERE!
WHAT IF HE COULD EVEN...D-DIE BECAUSE OF IT?!
"Lord Barbatos, I beg of you, don't get consumed by your sadness and guilt!", the Knight pleaded, as he frantically tried to think of what he could do in this situation, getting even more frantic upon noticing that the Archon looked like he was barely conscious now, "I-I will find a way to get rid of it! S-so just endure this until then, please!"
What could he do to get rid of this "miasma"...?!
Was there any way for him to save the Archon from getting engulfed by it?!
*HE HAD TO FIND A SOLUTION FAST OR LORD BARBATOS' BLOOD WILL BE ON HIS HANDS!
...
But he was a spirit and they were in a kind of a "dreamscape", so how could he possibly...?!
...
If it really was a dream, he could create a weapon from his thoughts alone!
"...I am sorry to have you waiting, Lord Barbatos. Because of my incompetence, you are hurting so much right now.", Rostam apologized moments later, before creating a sword of light, as he expression turned dutiful and determined, "As a member of the Knights of Favonius whose duty is to protect our beautiful homeland and everyone within it, I will save you without fail!"
And with that knightley oath spoken, he began slashing at the miasma, steadily making it disappear...
After fully getting rid of the miasma, Rostam was about to sigh in relief,
But his relief soon changed to deep worry when he saw the Archon fall down, unconscious...
"...Lord Barbatos…? Venti...?", the knight said as he unsummoned the sword and caught the Archon in his arms, soon starting to shake him, "Wake up, please! You can't leave us now!", he frantically yelled out, upon noticing that the Archon wasn't waking up no matter how much he shook him, "... You know how sad and devastated everyone would be if you were gone, right...?!", he continued, as his voice became even more desperate, "IF YOU DIED AND DISAPPEARED NOW...E-EVERYONE WOULD BE DEVASTATED!", he yelled out as his voice started to shake, the knight now starting to feel so useless, "...B-BECAUSE I COULDN'T SAVE YOU IN TIME! D-DUE TO MY FAILURE AS A KNIGHT, YOU ARE...!"
- Stop panicking, please. I am okay now. I am not going to die and disappear so easily. I can't. Especially not after everything...- A sad voice interrupted his emotional yelling, as the Archon opened his eyes, looking towards the shaken knight with a guilt-stricken expression. -... Besides, there is no way for me to die from this "miasma". At most I will "shut down" and be incapitated for a while as a way of "sleep coping"... -He quietly mumbled. -...It's bad enough that everyone else is extremely overprotective of me now. To hear and see you worried so much for me, too. Looking distraught and even blaming yourself for "failing to save me"...I...!
How much more was he going to worry his own people...?
How much more was he going to make them so sad and anguished...?
...
Why, even when he didn't mean to, he keeps traumatizing them so mu...?
"It's alright, Lord Barbatos, Venti. As long as you are alive and well, it's enough for us. There is no reason for you to blame yourself for circumstances out of your control. Something I am certain you were already told before and more. And that which I wholeheartedly agree to.", Rostam told him in reassurance, interrupting his guilt-stricken thoughts and making the suddenly appearing miasma to disappear and the atmosphere in the "dreamscape" to brighten, "Everyone in Mondstadt loves you, this fact will never change. Because we already know the real you, one who is worth protecting with all we have and more. ", he continued while helping the Archon up, relieved upon seeing that the other didn't look guilt-stricken anymore, "...But it also looks like my Knightly work is not yet done. Even if I could move on, there is still something that I must do.", the knight suddenly said, his expression determined and dutiful again, "I have to stay here and make sure that what happened minutes ago won't happen again. If I was even a little late, you could have been...!"
- Rostam, stop! What are you even saying, suddenly deciding on something like this?! -Barbatos interrupted him, looking and sounding both shocked and frantic. - Being loyal is one thing, but to this extent...?! You are already DEAD! You don't have to follow your oath anymore! Your duty is already long over! -He then explained, trying to knock some sense into the overly dutiful knight. -... And Rosalyne, whether or not she is alive or dead now, isn't she waiting for you...? Are you really going to give up on the time with your lover out of your sense of duty to me?! Haven't you suffered long enough already, having died in such a way and been separated for over...?!
" I won't change my mind, Lord Barbatos, no matter how much you try to make me reconsider.", the knight interrupted him, his voice and expression deadly serious, "This is my decision. A duty I choose to do, as both a KNIGHT and a CITIZEN of Mondstadt. One who BELIEVES IN and FOLLOWS you no matter what.", he resolutely continued, his expression unchanging even when the Archon's eyes widened at his words, " As for Rossie, I am certain that sooner or later she will find me, no matter how much time it takes. More than 500 years didn't diminish the deep love between us, there is no way this would change now. Whatever state she is in right now, we will be together in the end.", he confidently continued, as a warm smile soon appeared on his face, "And when that time comes, having been freed of her anger and the Abyss miasma's effects on her, I am certain that she will come to understand and accept you."
He then reassured, looking the still shocked Archon right in eyes,
An unspoken promise being made between them at that exact moment...
...
One that Barbatos realized he could do nothing against but accept,
As the knight before him was firm on his decision, nothing he could do or say would shake his resolve...