It was now the third day of Windblume,
The day when the Talent Show will be held...
*Hopefully, the event will make Venti feel a little better.
...
Yesterday, when the Archon suddenly got deadly quiet,
As he was soon staring into space with a distressed expression...
"Lord Barbatos, are you alright...?"
"Venti, did something happen?"
"...Is there anything bothering you, Venti...?"
"Whom do I need to punish?"
"I shall join you in enacting judgment on these sinners."
"Wait, let our Archon tell us what is wrong first."
"...Venti, are you perhaps...?"
It didn't take long before everyone got understandably worried...
*As Yaksha Xiao and "Battle Nun" Rosaria were ready to punish those responsible.
...
And then, Venti's, no...Lord Barbatos' explanation,
One which wasn't reassuring at all...
"N-no, I...I am alright.
...I am sorry to have worried you all. Give me a few seconds to put my thoughts in order.
...I admit, I am not really okay. It's due to a realization I came upon recently...And it's not something any of you can help me with or give an answer to."
...
...
It was truly not something they could help him with, as they soon realized,
When the Winds told them what was worrying their Archon so much...
"Barbatos realized that SHE..."Paimon" either led to or did not prevent his friend's death.
...From what we remember now, this was done for Barbatos' sake as a precaution of sorts, though even we are confused about how it's going to help our favorite Archon in the future.
...We do have a crazy theory about HER confusing actions, which has to do with the fact the Original Venti is now the Cecilia that is always in Barbatos' hair.
...We hope that this theory is not true, as it might break our favorite Archon's heart once more...But if it's for Barbatos', HER favorite's, safety...We can imagine HER reluctantly following along with this "plan"..."
...
This was truly worrying, as well as eerily confusing...
*Especially the "crazy theory" that the Winds had...
"...which has to do with the fact the Original Venti is now the Cecilia that is always in Barbatos' hair."
Highlighting this part in particular,
That Venti's friend is that familiar Cecilia in his hair...
*Always together with their Archon, even in this still form...
...
"Friend, I am glad...You finally...Stopped using your power...
...It's alright...You are going to be just fine...With everyone here...Watching over you...
...You will continue...Taking care of my silly friend...Wouldn't you...?
...I am glad...Truly glad...Thank...You..."
...
"...V-Venti...I-I...
...I-I just...W-wanted...Us...to..."
That day...And especially how it ended...
*It was hard on everyone...
...
Their Archon was so depressed after the fact,
And only thanks to her youngest, Barbara, did he finally...
...
...
Frederica now also had an idea of what "Paimon's" plan is,
And she really, really hoped it wouldn't be needed...
*That Celestia wouldn't...And then, his friend...
...
"...it might break our favorite Archon's heart once more..."
...
...
They have to do everything they can so this doesn't happen!
*But against Celestia, as simple humans, how can they...?
-Mother, do you think Venti is going to be alright...? -Her thoughts were soon interrupted by a familiar voice from her side, as she soon turned around to see Jean looking at her in concern. -...From what the Winds told us, Venti is...
-After experiencing today's Talent Show event, I am certain that his spirits will soon be lifted. -Frederica soon told her oldest daughter, trying to look and sound as reassuring as possible, before she turned to look towards her (former) husband. -...Isn't that right, Seamus...?
-Considering what everyone prepared for the event, I believe so, yes. -The Seneschal answered almost right away, looking and sounding both reassuring and sincere. -...It's supposed to be a surprise, so I will not be saying much...
He added before starting to tell a small summary of the event,
With Jean attentively listening in, while Frederica decided to continue eating her breakfast...
*Right, they were currently finishing eating breakfast: Herself, her (former) husband and her oldest,
While Yaksha Xiao and "Battle Nun" Rosaria already finished it long ago, insisting on guarding her youngest room door...
...
Where Barbara and Lord Ba...Venti still were,
Sleeping soundly, cuddled in each other's embrace,
As Falcon of the West Vennessa was watching over them...
...
...
Yesterday, during the celebration and after he admitted what was worrying him,
They tried to make Venti feel better, mostly with some barely hidden pampering...
*It clearly helped a little, but Frederica wished they could do more for him...
...
Yet she still had finish breakfast and leave the Estate soon,
She still had duties she had to attend to, after all...
*Though she could definitely "bully" Grandmaster Varka again...
...
...
"Barbatos realized that SHE..."Paimon" either led to or did not prevent his friend's death.
...From what we remember now, this was done for Barbatos' sake as a precaution of sorts, though even we are confused about how it's going to help our favorite Archon in the future.
...We do have a crazy theory about HER confusing actions, which has to do with the fact the Original Venti is now the Cecilia that is always in Barbatos' hair.
...We hope that this theory is not true, as it might break our favorite Archon's heart once more...But if it's for Barbatos', HER favorite's, safety...We can imagine HER reluctantly following along with this "plan"..."
Their Archon...
...
"I am glad to see how much everyone here cares for Barbatos.
But there is no need for worry, Barbatos is just sleeping. He should awaken in a few hours.
...I saw Barbatos die so many times before, that I am truly glad he is both alright and has so many people who love him now."
"Paimon"...
...
...
"It's fine, I can read your thoughts. Your realizations are correct, "we" already talked before.
...As for the Winds' words and the "Equivalent Exchange" situation, that's when I took his place.
Just like last time, 𝓅𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓈𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓃𝓉𝒾𝓃𝓊𝑒 𝓁𝑜𝑜𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶𝒻𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝐵𝒶𝓇𝒷𝒶𝓉𝑜𝓈 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓂𝑒, 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎𝑜𝓃𝑒.
...If something happens to him again, I...
...
...
I̷̘͙̹͍̟̘̯̲͇͑̍̇ ̶͚̰̙̪̼̻̲͇̰̐͛͑̑̅̇̈́͜͝m̸̢̞̞̖̦͍̲͙̟̀̑͊i̷̛̫̜͐͋͛̈͆͒g̵̛͉͖̿̏͌̓̾̾̚͝h̷͈͛̏̈t̸̙̺͕̼̖̙̒̓͌ ̵̫̳̟͖̭͉̭̮͈̔͑̍͋̔̋̓̚͠͝j̵̧͍͙̜͉̠̄̉̉̈͘͝u̴̦̱͆̏͐̉̿̓̎͠͝s̸̨̨̡̡̹̫̝͓̬̋̒̂͝͠ͅt̶̛̼͚̯̠̖͛̾́.̷̗̓̀̀̀̾͂̈́͠ͅͅ.̶̛̺̣͉͈̠̀̈́̓͋̓́͝͠.̴̨̙̟͖̩̦̫̱̘̃̔̍̈̀̈ͅO̷̤̼̲͈̭̪̺͔̣̬͇̦̍̕ͅn̷̹͘ć̴̢̨̡͙̝̳̜̜̳͇̞̱͂̈́̓̎͋ě̷̡͈̱̣͚̩̄͑̇ ̷̱̼̼̦̫̪͔͙̤̩̋̄̆͋͌͝ā̴̧̨̛̩̣̺̳͔͇̖̔͐̈͊̕͜ͅg̴̨̧̡̨͖͉̩̮͖͚̲͔͗͝͝a̷͖̖͒̄ḭ̵̤̼̞̥̰̰͚̮̭͕͈̈́̾̓͑͐̈̑͗͛̀͘͝͝n̷͖̈́̏͌͛.̷̤̥͙̖̺́̾̉͊̍̃̈́̂̈̐͘͜.̸̧̢̝̮̤͇̥̻̮̯̰͉́ͅͅ.̵̡̼̜̭̖̲̮̰̦́̆̃͋̽̕͜͜Ţ̶̙̭̙͐̽͗̌̃̍̒̒̀̆́͐͛̂̃͋͋͊͒̎̌̽̀͘͘͠ḣ̸̛͓͍̼͕̬̼͙̖̜͈̘͍̒͗̓̎̋̍̆̋̓̀̏̽̂̓̽͗͐͑̓͆̄̾̇͘̕͘͜͝ȩ̷̡̗̖̝̀̐́̉͑̓̆̔̾̌̒̉̆͗̆͋̆̌͐͐̾́̑̄̓̕ ̵̨̡̡̛̛̛̝̼͎̗̗̘̠̩̼̝͚̩̖̦̭̪̦̫̱̖̼͖̯̘̣̔̿̆͗̾̒̏̃̿̇̒̈́͑̐͂̈́̚ͅt̴̯͙̼͖̟͚̻̭̞̖̙͓̱̠͖͖̞̟͉̻̱̲͎͈͈̻̆̀̀ͅį̵̢̡̛̫̻͇̞̺͙̤̳̥̈̅̅́̋̐̋͝͝͝͝m̸̼̠͚͓̮̝̻͈̼̜͓͓͗̈́̏̑̆͆̓͒̈́̍͊e̷̠͎̫͍͙̖̙̱̱̜͌l̸̙͒̒͝i̵̱̪̦͋͂̀̎͐̄̌̈́̉͋̐͆͋̂͂̒̋͗͋̈́́̾̆̚̚̕̕͠n̸̢̛̠͓̟̫͎͉͙̙̞͚̣̬͔͉͇̺̦̝͉̗͙̲̰͇̑̾̔́͒̈́͂͛́̔͒̉̈́́̅̅̈́̎́̒̚̚͝͝ͅe̶̢̡̜̝̖͖͚̮̣̪̰̱̬̦̮̱̖̭̫̮̰̗̣̅̔̎͑̀̋̒̿̀̐̿̑̚͘̚͜͝ͅ.̸̢̧̨̛̯̦̫͎̳͎̭͙̭̱̼̣̺͓̘̳̱̯͕͚̪͍͕̀̋̈́̊̆̒.̵̡̛̰̮̟͓̻̯̳̖͙͉̫̗̌̈̐̏̂̈́̎̓̑̓͛̇͗͗̒̅̉̃̈́͝͝͝.̶̻̠̜͓͚̖̫̖͎̪̩̦̣̳̜̝̻̟̩͗̎̓́̆̒̌͐͊̒͋̀͆͋̋͝͠
...
...
...Let's just end the call here, this retelling took a lot of TIME, right...?
...Whatever happens in the future, remember that FATE can be changed. It's hard, but possible nonetheless. The main problem is overwriting THEIR "Defective system"..."
...
...
...
Is SHE truly going to leave things as they are...?
The "Dreamscape",
He was here once again...
...
This place felt different than usual...
*And it was not just because he didn't see Rostam anywhere...
"You must be wondering why your Dutiful Knight did not welcome you as he usually does, Barbatos. The truth is that Rostam agreed to give us time to talk in private, just the two of us.", a familiar voice was soon heard, answering his unasked question, before there was a short pause, "...'Did "Kairos" really have something to do with my friend's death...?' is what you must still be worrying about. I summoned you here to give you the answer to that question.", the voice continued, sounding quite conflicted, with the tone of guilt being heard the most clearly, "Before you ask, yes, I am a part of "Kairos". One that was "left" with you 500 years ago, during the Equivalent Exchange: Your Time Power. Because of my nature and the terms of the Equivalent Exchange, I dare not physically appear before you.", she explained, before there was a short pause once again, followed by a sad sign, "...She..."We" didn't lead to your friend's death, but "We" didn't prevent it from happening either...When "We" could have done so easily. I can't tell you the reason why this decision was made, as it might change the favorable future event from occurring. A precaution of sorts that should be able to save your very existence when THEY...", her words suddenly trailed off, as a woman's vague outline appeared in the "space" moments later, "...As a part of "Kairos", I would like to apologize to you for what happened to your friend. Even if his death was necessary, it still hurt you deeply and was one of the reasons why you almost gave up on life.", the voice continued, as the outline shifted slightly, as if going into a small bow, "...I deeply apologize for how much "We" hurt you, Barbatos. If "We" could, "We" would have gladly paid the price necessary for altering fate "Ourselves"."
"The Winter/Ski-Resort Cafeteria:
A venue specifically created as a place to rechange from the highly excitable resort's activities by partaking in all kinds of delightful meals, including soups, cold foods and special dishes nearly identical to those enjoyed in Snezhnaya."
Was the inscription on the door frame above the cafeteria entrance,
And just as it stated, there were different kinds of foods available for choosing...
*With the Snezhnaya-like dishes having a range of different kinds of seafood and meat dishes,
As well as specified meals like Borscht, Sorrel soup and all kinds of pierogi, including the blueberry ones...
...
All in all, it was a wide selection of different kinds of dishes,
And yet Qiqi soon realized that she hated most of them...
*They were too hot for her, after all...
...
Not wanting to feel disgusting, the little zombie choose from the variety of cold foods,
In the end deciding on Frozen Yogurt with a combination of forest fruits and milk chocolate...
*Qiqi still couldn't taste any kind of food, but she was still happy with her choice, nevertheless,
Since she could freely share her cold dessert with her friends, either adding more chocolate or more forest fruits ice cream...
...
Apparently the Chocolate made the Frozen Yogurt sweeter,
While the Forest Fruits ice cream made it sourer...?
*If her friends told her this, then it must be true,
After all, it's not like she could check this herself...
...
...
The food was nice, cold and mostly soft,
And she was enjoying the company of her friends...
*Who were eating all kind of dishes themselves,
And also having small talks...? She didn't really listen...
...
Was it about what they were going to do after breakfast...?
There was some kind of talent show going on in Mondstadt city...?
*Some of her friends wanted to participate and some just wanted to watch...
...
-Klee is going to show everyone her new super-duper Dodoco Bomb!
-Klee, I don't think this is a good idea. What if you blow up the stage...?
-Klee destroy place. Very bad.
-Wait, Razor, the bomb is not that big, right...?!
-...Klee, do you perhaps have a grudge against the residents of Mondstadt city...?
-...Huh, Miss Shenhe...? Klee doesn't understand what you mean!
Qiqi stopped listening to the discussion then and there,
Coincidentally seconds before Fischl started voicing her reply...
*The big sister wasn't bad, but she was talking too much,
Qiqi wouldn't be able to remember all that...
...
...
And Qiqi already forgot who that fox lady was,
Even though she thinks she saw her somewhere before...
*Was it on a ride here...? Qiqi was looking at the view most of the ride...
...
The lady with long purple hair and the boy with short blue hair by her side...
...
They looked/felt(?) weird somehow...
*A little like Venti, but scary...
Were they also gods...?
...
...
They won't bully Qiqi, right...?
...
The boy felt very mean,
As for the lady...
...
Like Big Sister Shenhe, but doesn't care about Qiqi...?