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“Albedo!!”
A little girl ran into the lab, carrying a disproportionately large backpack on her shoulders. The man tending to his experiments lifted his head from the array of beakers and testing tubes, looking over the table to see the top of the girl’s red hat barely jutting out from under his desk. He chuckled. “Good evening, Klee.” The girl hurriedly rushed off to drag a stool over to the table, clambering up to it as best she could.
“Albedo!! Albedo busy?” She asked, her eyes wide with excitement. Albedo sighed and nodded. “Mm, unfortunately. I’ll try to wrap things up quickly.” “Oh… Okay.” Klee folded her arms as she watched him tinker with his experiments, her chin resting on her arms. With Klee now watching his every move, Albedo couldn’t help, but feel bad considering the way she was looking at him with wide puppy eyes. “Do… you want to do something, Klee?” “Well, Klee was thinking Albedo would teach her how to draw again. I feel like I’ll be better at it this time!”
Albedo chuckled, his eyes focused on his research notes. “Hm, I think your drawings are already perfect, Klee.” “But they’re not like big brother Bedo’s!” She stood up on the stool, placing both hands on the table. “Everyone has their own way of drawing. Think of it as… your specialty, Klee.” “Spe… cialty?” The man lifted his head from his book, a kind smile on his lips. “Your specialty. It’s what makes your art yours. Nobody else can draw the way you do, therefore it’s special.” “Ah… Special…”
Klee furrowed her eyebrows as she nodded. “Mm, but… can we still draw together? Oh oh, Klee wants to tell about Razor! We did so much today, Bennett was there too! Klee helped with a lot!!” With a sigh, Albedo finally closed his books and took care of the lab equipment. “Alright. I guess you’re not letting me finish my work tonight after all. Why don’t you go ahead and wait in your room? I’ll come by with the paper and crayons for you.” Klee immediately hopped off of her stool. “Okay! But you have to promise to come as soon as possible, alright?” He laughed in response, carrying his used beakers and testing tubes to the sink. “I won’t be long, Spark Knight.”
And Albedo kept his promise, as always. Merely a few minutes after Klee got to her room, Albedo came knocking at her door, hugging rolls of drawing paper and a box of crayons for them to use. Klee had finished changing into her pajamas for the night, now brushing out the knots in her hair. Albedo came over to help after setting down their drawing equipment. “Don’t tug on it too hard. You’ll pull out your hair.” He says, carefully taking the brush from her to tend to her hair. He undid the hair ties, making sure as to not hurt her while he combs through her hair. “Klee, how did you get your hair in such a mess? You didn’t go around playing with explosives again, did you?” “Oh, no no! Razor and Bennett went exploring again, so we ran around a bunch! Oh oh, that reminds Klee!”
Klee swiftly turned around with a bright smile on her face. “Klee knows where to find the flowers big brother Albedo likes so much! Celilas!!” The man smiled and affectionately patted her head. “Cecillias, and did you now?” She nodded enthusiastically. “Klee can take you there with Razor!” “Hm, alright alright. We’ll go there soon, hm? Now, I believe you said you wanted to draw?” He moved over to the floor right beside her bed, sitting down with a quiet groan. Klee followed after him, plopping down next to him. She pulled her drawing book onto her lap, carefully opening the pages.
Albedo looked over at her book, his eyes scanning as she flicked through the pages. “You followed by advice then.” “Mm?” Klee looked up at him. “Oh! The… drawing diary! Jour… na… ling?” “There we go, you got it. May I see?” He held out his hand, to which Klee responded by pushing the book closer to him. “Klee’s tried her best to keep it up to date. Oh, idea!! Albedo can help fill in today’s drawing!” Albedo paused for a moment, pursing his lips. “Mm, well, I don’t think I got up to much today. Didn’t even finish a single project.”
“Ah, but…” Klee scowled, handing the box of crayons over to her brother. “Mom said every day should be celebrated, no matter what the occasion, no matter what you did. So, Albedo, draw here…” She paused, drawing a line across the center of the page. “And this is Klee’s side.” Albedo looked fondly down at the kid, who was now picking out different colored crayons for her drawing. He did the same, settling on a yellow one before he went forward with his drawing.
The room fell silent for a while, except for the occasional muttering from Klee’s lips as she recalled what she went through that day. “Oh, and then we found this whole stash of Wolfberries! Oh, Klee needs… purple.” Albedo took the time to take a peek at Klee’s progress, smiling at her creativity. “Oh that looks great, Klee. Are these the Wolfhook berries you mentioned?” “Ah, no no. These are slimes! Razor took care of them for me, said Klee shouldn’t mess with the purple slimes. I wonder why…” “Ah, well, he does have a point.” He placed his hand on her head, giving it a gentle pat.
Klee turned her attention to Albedo’s side of the paper. “Oh, is this Sucrose? Woah, Albedo drew everything!” Scrawled on the paper was a picture of the lab with all of its bustling activity. In one corner was Sucrose, seemingly working on her newest experiment with a pot of dandelions, accompanied by Noelle dutifully helping with lab equipment. "Mm, but where's Albedo? Albedo isn't here." He chuckled quietly, carefully ruffling her hair. I'm not used to drawing myself, Klee. I draw what I see." "Hm, Klee will help then!" Grabbing the same crayon he used earlier, Klee then proceeded to draw her own rendition of her big brother, standing by his lab equipment with a big smile. "Hm, much better! Now Klee can remember what Albedo did on this day!"
Klee rested her frame against the man's side, a bright smile as her arms tried, and failed, to wrap around his torso. Albedo pulled her close, holding up the drawing they made together. "Mm, Albedo?" She suddenly spoke out, looking up at the other. "Thank you for taking care of Klee. Wouldn't know what to do without you." He sighed and pressed a quick kiss on the top of her head. "Hey, you were doing fine even before I stepped into your life. I wouldn't worry much if I were you." "Yeah, but… if Albedo wasn't here, when mom had to go, Klee would be really lonely." She nuzzled closer into the hug. "Klee heard from Razor that growing up without Lupical is scary. Klee doesn't want that. Klee wants to grow up with her Lupical, with Albedo."
The man's eyes grew watery, maintaining his composure as he pulled her into a warm hug. "I'll be right here for you, Klee. Until you no longer need me." Klee gave out a little giggle, sneaking a small kiss on her brother's cheek. "Silly Albedo. Klee would always need her big brother! And you need to promise to always be with Klee until Klee grows old." "Alright alright, I promise." "No no! Not like that!" Klee put her pinky finger up. "Pinky promise!" Albedo chuckled and linked their pinky fingers together, squeezing tightly. "Pinky promise, Klee." The little girl beamed brightly, ending their deal with a firm nod. "Mm, good! Klee made Razor do the same promise too. Nobody can leave Klee!" "And frankly, little Spark Knight, I don't think anyone should leave you alone."
The man got up to his feet. "But now, I think it's time for my little Spark Knight to get to sleep, don't you think?" "Aww, alright." Klee clambered into her bed, slipping under the sheets with Albedo's help. Albedo then got up to tuck away their drawing equipment, storing them on the desk the Knights had placed in her bedroom. "Uhm, Albedo?" Klee suddenly called out, her hands fiddling with the edges of her clover-patterned blanket. "Hm? What is it, Klee?" "Do you… remember the song mom used to sing?" Albedo pursed his lips for a moment. "I… think so. She used to hum it out in the lab, though I might forget some of the words." "Can Klee hear it tonight?"
Albedo came by her bed, a sheepish smile on his lips. “Alright, but you have to promise to sleep if I do. Got it?” Klee quickly nodded, rolling over on her side to listen closely. Albedo cleared his throat, dimming the lights by Klee’s bed as he starts to sing.
You are my Spark Knight, my only Spark Knight
You make me happy when skies are grey
You’ll never know dear, how much I love you
Please, don’t take my Spark Knight away
Watching as the little girl slowly drifted to sleep, Albedo placed his hand over her head, carding his fingers through her locks. He continued.
The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping
I dreamed I held you in my arms
But when I awoke, dear, I was mistaken
So I hung my head and I cried
Tears started to form in his eyes, quickly wiping them away before they got the chance to fall against Klee’s arms.
You are my Spark Knight, my only Spark Knight
You make me happy when skies are grey
You’ll never know dear, how much I love you
Albedo paused for a moment, carefully resting his head against the sleeping Klee before muttering out the last line to the song like a prayer to whatever divine power resides over them.
I won’t let anyone take my sunshine away
____
“Albedo Albedo!!”
The little red girl ran into her brother’s bedroom, ready to start yet another new day with him. “Good morni-” Her words fell short when she noticed her brother wasn’t even there. “Uhm, Albedo?” She called out once again, immediately searching the room. “Mm, maybe in the lab. Geez, big brother Albedo’s such an early bird!” She then skipped over to the lab. The sign wasn’t up so she just pushed the door to come in. “Albedo, are you here?” She called out, furrowing her eyebrows. “Where’s Albedo? We haven’t had breakfast together.”
“Klee?” Noelle peeked into the lab after hearing the little girl’s voice echoing down the halls. “Ah, Noelle! Have you seen where big brother is?” “Oh, Albedo? I’m very sorry, dear, I don’t think I have. Jean told me to get you, though. I’m afraid you have to stay inside today. Storm’s brewing in Dragonspine.” “A storm? But what if Albedo’s outside?” Noelle smiled apologetically, taking hold of the girl’s hand. “I’m sorry, dear. Master Jean’s orders and all. Come on, we can go play in the main hall.”
As they walked out of the lab towards the main hall, they noticed Jean, Kaeya, and Lisa standing in the office with the door open wide, seemingly in a heated discussion. Klee then picked up a few words that seemed to pique her interest. “Has anyone seen Albedo?” “He wasn’t at the lab. I’ve asked Noelle to watch over Klee while we track him down.” “It’s possible he somehow made it to Dragonspine before sunrise. The doors aren’t locked and I do believe he’s been very focused in his research up there.” “Dragonspine?” Klee broke free from Noelle’s hold, rushing into the office.
“Albedo is in Dragonspine? We have to go get him! He might be in danger!” Klee shouted frantically, her eyes wide with worry. “Ah, Klee! Don’t worry, we’ll send a search party up the mountains, hopefully before the storm comes in,” Jean explained, gesturing to Noelle who was now frantically trying to grab Klee. “Klee wants to come! Klee knows the way to Albedo’s lab, Klee can also light the torches!” Kaeya eventually chimed in. “It’s alright, Klee. I’ll be leading the team up there, so I’ll tell you when we get him back alright. You go play with Noelle for now.” “No, you’re not listening! Klee wants to help save Albedo! Klee can do it!”
“Come on, Klee. Albedo will be fine, okay? You can play with him after he comes back.” Noelle had to lift Klee up into her arms and bring her out of the room, with Klee still shouting to let her come with. “No, Klee’s going! Klee wants to go!” The child wriggles out of her grasp, and just in time too as upon seeing an open window, she darted straight to it and hopped out of the Favonius headquarters. “Klee, wait!” Jean called out. “I’ll go after her. Send the troops in after me.” And with that Kaeya ran out the door, followed by the two guards he called in guarding by the door. All in the hoped to bring Klee back to safety.
Meanwhile, a few miles away from Mondstadt’s gates, Klee had somehow found a way to get to the Dragonspine entrance. Panting, she rested her body against the stone pillars, looking up the mountain. “I need to… find Albedo.” She gathered back her strength, looking at the explosives she had in her bag. “Mm, should be enough. Alright, up the mountain we go. Come on, Dodoco!” And with that, Klee set off on her journey up the mountain, the lightning bolts and thunderous storms only making the ice-cold mountain seem much more menacing.
“Albedo!” Klee shouted out, only to be answered by the howling winds of the mountain, lighting up yet another torch she had found nearby to warm herself up. “Where is he?” She muttered to herself. She looked up ahead, across from the collapsed wooden bridge in front of her. “That should be his lab. I just… I just need to jump.” She checked her wing glider, grabbing onto the straps before making a running start. And then, she jumped. And she would have made it too, if it wasn’t for a sudden cold breeze, blowing her and her glider further away from the camp. “No!” She shouted, gripping tightly onto her glider straps. The wind blew her off the side of the mountain, sending her hurtling down towards Wyrmrest Valley.
With a loud scream, she fell straight down onto a tall stack of snow, only saved by the glider strapped on her back. Her head was the first to pop out of the mound, quickly shaking her body clean from the snow. “F-Fire…” She shivered, holding a small bomb in her hand as she waddled close to a nearby fireplace. With the fireplace now lighting up the dark surroundings, she lifted her head to get her bearings. She peeled her eyes to make out the large inlet of water, with hilichurl camps littered along its shoreline. “Ah, so not… there, uhm.” She turned her head to the other side, where a large cavern stood tall above her head, pausing for a moment before deciding to head in.
“Albedo! Big brother Albedo!” She called out in hopes she would hear a response. But what she found wasn’t what she intended to see. At the end of the cavern was a figure, slouched on their knee with wings measuring up to 5 feet in width on each side of their body. Klee gasped, prepping up her bombs in case things escalated. “W-Who are you? Have you seen Albedo?” The figure responded, turning their head around. “... Klee?”
It was Albedo, his clothes tattered, with reddish veins spread across his skin. One of his eyes had turned dark, the usual turquoise color changed into a bright magenta. There was a mark on his neck, a star also glowing in a similar reddish color. “Albedo…” Klee mumbled, dropping her arms to her sides in shock. “What… what happened?” Before Albedo could explain, thundering yells were heard from outside, all calling out for the missing knights. “Klee, hey, listen to me. You get out of here and come back, okay?” Albedo shifted his attention to the girl, a pained smile on his lips. “No. Klee went out here to save you. Klee will bring you home!”
The shouts grew louder as the crowd came closer to the cavern. Klee rushed over to Albedo’s side, wrapping her arms as far as she could around his figure. “Klee’s not leaving without Albedo.” “Klee, I will be fine, okay? Please, go with them for no-” “No! You’re lying!” The girl burst into tears, burying her face on his shoulder. “Klee wants to stay with Albedo, no matter what. Klee made Albedo promise to Klee, to stay with Klee forever. Family never breaks promises.” Albedo cradled the girl close as she sobbed into his arms, feeling droplets of his own tears slip past his eyelids.
As the flickering light of the torches the knights carried started to bounce off the cave walls, Albedo only pressed his lips against Klee’s head. “Klee… I’m sorry. You stay with the Knights, okay? Wait until Alice comes home.” “No, Klee… Klee wants to be with Albedo.” “And I do too, sweetheart. We’ll meet again someday.” “We haven’t gone on adventures yet. We haven’t finished our bombs together yet. Klee… Klee doesn’t want to leave. Klee hasn’t even finished her drawings yet.” She wept into his arms, to which Albedo could only hug her, maintaining his composure as best he could.“Save them for when we meet, Klee. You can tell me all the things I’ve missed out on then. You be a good girl and listen to Jean when you get back, okay?”
A loud gasp was heard as Klee looked up to see the knights’ search team, led by Jean herself, standing only a few feet away from them. Jean hesitated to make a move, telling her army to stand back yet be wary. “Albedo,” Jean called out carefully. Albedo smiled and sighed, looking down at Klee. “Don’t forget about me, Klee. And remember what I said, okay?” With the girl still staring in disbelief, Albedo pushed Klee away from him, right in time for Jean to catch her into her arms as her men charged towards him.
“Albedo!” Klee shouted, but it was too late. Jean quickly ushered her out to the other cavalrymen as Albedo was pinned down by the knights, their weapons held up against his throat to make sure he wouldn’t move. Albedo turned his head to watch as Jean carried the sobbing and screaming Klee away. “Take care, Spark Knight.” He muttered to himself as tears fell from his eyes, moments before the knights plunged a sword through his chest to end the curse once and for all. “I love you, my sunshine.”