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A cold night over Nod Krai and after everything that happened between the traveler, the damselette and the doctor, Lumine found himself relaxing over a roof with the first harbinger she befriended. Well, they were more than friends at this point. A complicated relationship without a proper name between the most loyal Fatui harbinger and the one who had been stopping every and each attempt they made to seize control over another nation. A label was the way to complicate everything more.
"So… Would you still want me if I was a worm?" Childe asked out of the blue.
The blond looked at him arching a brow. "What? Now you can do that?"
He laughed at her expression, the way her eyes told him he was, indeed, being an idiot.
"Na, as far as I know I can't do that." He laughed off while looking at the moon. He tended to get lost in his own thoughts more than what people expected.
"Better that way, I already have enough problems when you turn into your foul legacy." She was exhausted after everything and didn't need to take care of her definitely-not-boyfriend and his lack of self preservation.
"So if instead of a worm I turn into a rock?" He suggested while smirking.
"A rock?"
"Yeah, I'll probably one of those pretty rocks, you could make a necklace and bring me to all your adventures." He sounded convincing, like this was the most clever idea someone ever had.
"Yeah no, I can't go around with a battle-hungry necklace, you will find a way to fight everyone if you were a rock, I can already picture you jumping from my neck to someone's else trying to get into another fight." She argued, picturing him as a tiny rock with dual water blades. "Or worse, you'll stay on your place complaining that I'm not fighting everything in my path."
"With how strong you are you should be fighting stronger foes than my subordinates on a daily."
Lumine hummed, he had a point but sadly those subordinates were the ones behind her commissions at the adventurer guild, and she still needed the mora.
"You say that as if I couldn't kick your ass too." She replied with a smirk, making him sulk for a brief second before both ended up laughing.
It was nights like this when everything felt so easy, even when it wasn't. In those nights, she wished for a future where all the complexity of their relationship disappeared and they were allowed to be what they truly wanted to be.
When Celestia fell, the abysm revolted trying to seize control and in the end, against every odd, they won. It took too much from everyone and without the traveler they would've lost, but now, years later, when civilization began to flourish after the disaster they also started to remember those who gave their lives for the future. Songs were sang about their heroic deeds, books were written about all the important battles and how their effort put an stop on the enemies of mortal-kind.
The most renowned were eternalized as statues on their respective hometowns, so everyone could know how important they were to the fate of this Teyvat. Some of them were a proper representation of them in their primes, like the Gran Master Varka smiling in the entrance of Mondstadt, protecting it even after his passing. The one for Captain Beidou was also a masterpiece, it creations was personally supervised by the Tianquan herself, who also decided replicate it in the gardens of the Jade Chamber.
There were also those that only resembled part of the heroes, the most iconic one was the big hat at the entrance of the Akademiya in Sumeru, where a plate only talked about the importance of looking forward rather than being stuck on past wounds.
At Fontaine they decided for different approach, with different fountains named after the heroes who gave their all. They had a few inscriptions that told the stories of their courage, of their sacrifices, of the wishes they had for those who had the chance to see another day.
But the most peculiar case to everyone else was the one in the cold of Morepesok. Over a hill was a statue made by stone and the last remains of the abyss corruptions. It was contained, properly worked to make it safe for visitors to pay respect to the great hero, a Fatui Harbinger who fought to his limits and beyond when everything seemed lost. For those who survived they knew his sacrifice was the turning point for mortal-kind, without him nothing would had survived.
Yet the defining fact about the statue was the common presence of the renown traveler, who usually spent her days and most nights standing next to the statue. Some said she was guarding the abyss corruption, being able to purify it she wasn't comfortable leaving it be. Others, recalling the Osial attempt at Liyue harbor thought she was still trying to protect people from the madness of the harbinger. But because there was no body to ever be buried the common belief was that she was waiting for him to have their final match to put an end to their grudge.
The truth was different. Their relationship, unlabeled, wild, a secret that they could barely hide, a vow to forever that die too young… As him. As the fatui harbinger who stole her heart before she could ever realise, that even after years of building walls to protect herself of the pain that caring for a mortal implied here she was, sitting at the bottom of the statue, wishing to get a glimpse of the comfort he used to brought to her.
He was storm, a tidal wave of chaos and madness, someone who cared too much for those he loved and wanted to be at the top of the world defeating the strongest enemies he could manage. He wanted to protect the dreams of those who awaited for the times of peace. And he did manage to secure a new dawn for everyone but himself.
She did try to find him, she looked for any remaining piece of the harbinger, the mortal, her Ajax. But nothing appeared, he was no where to be found and no trace of his mortal body could be even be buried. The statue that was her place now the only thing she had to mourn him. To cry without tears while pretending her heart haven't been shattered. To remain stoic while she wanted to be comforted by the only one who couldn't.
Looking at the sky she remembered that silly conversation, years ago, when he mentioned about turning into a rock and she laughed hysterically. For the first time since everything happened she allowed herself all the emotions that were fighting inside her. She wanted to punch him for breaking her heart, for making her want to cry, for leaving her all alone when she needed him most.
But now, there was no him, just a rock.