#(aether i love him so much *squishes his cheeks*)

[time-for-despair]

Aether don’t question how the random mysterious voice knows your secrets- Do you wanna know anything about the people here? ‘Cause I know- a lot of stuff-

Uh... OK??? I guess??? But absolutely! It'd be so fucking awesome to know about the people here! Uhh... tell me some shit about Charles! That guy and his backstory n' shit! He's so mysterious for no reason!

[hypnoneghoul]

Hyp my good sir, I beg you for more on touch sensitive Dew 🙏

Touch for ghouls is a need. It might be said that it is for humans, too, but it’s different.

A ghoul that isn’t touched would…deteriorate over time, mentally and physically. They’d lose their mind and give in to the wild part of their soul.

The process had already started for Dewdrop, days before Rain was summoned.

Aether and Mountain had all but begged the young water ghoul to help with their mate once they'd noticed how Dewdrop fell in love with him at first sight. They realized quickly that Rain was that last chance; the last glimmer of hope.

And indeed, he helped Dewdrop slowly come back to life by reintroducing him to touch. Step by step the fire ghoul is healing and after a couple months he and Rain are preparing to take yet another step; sleep in one bed.

Before they do that, Rain sets up a wall made of bedding in the middle of the nest, to keep Dewdrop comfortable. The fire ghoul is grateful, wanting nothing more than to be able to sleep next to Rain, but scared of what unexpected touch would cause.

They decide on attempting to intertwine their tails—considering that the skin on Dewdrop’s is different than on the rest of his body, and that Rain’s own is very smooth; like the fire ghoul’s used to be.

“Goodnight, Dewdrop,” Rain mumbles when they’re all set. “See you in the morning.”

“Night, Rainy,” the other replies, and silence falls. Dewdrop’s anxiety makes it hard for him to fall asleep for a while, but when he lets it dissipate and focuses on the comfort of having Rain’s tail tangled with his own, sleep does take him.

Rain wakes up first in the early morning, to something heavy(ish) and warm spread out on top of him.

It takes a moment for him to wake up properly, open his eyes and realize that it’s Dewdrop.

At first he grins sleepily with pride, but then he panics.

What if the fire ghoul will freak out when he wakes up and fall back on his healing journey? No, no, Rain can’t have that. As much as it pains him to do it, he gently pushes Dewdrop’s sleeping body off of him and back onto the other side of the—somehow still existent—pillow wall.

Rain can’t stop chewing the inside of his cheek as he waits for the other to wake up. When he does, Dewdrop doesn’t notice the water ghoul’s anxious behavior. It’s a good half an hour later when he decided to tell him what happened—and ask how he feels about it.

“Okay, so…” Rain starts, “I need to tell you something.”

“Yeah, sure,” the other smiles at him kindly, “is everything alright?”

“Yes, it’s just–I feel like you need to know you…you slept on me.”

“On you?” Dewdrop repeats with confusion. “Like…like I was touching you?”

“Yeah, you must’ve rolled over and you seemed–uhm, quite comfortable.”

The fire ghoul stares at Rain with his mouth agape for a little while before speaking again, “Uh–first of all, sorry–sorry for squishing you.”

“It’s alright,” Rain chuckles, “you’re not that heavy.”

“Sorry, uh–I…” Dewdrop’s voice cracks, “I have to process.”

“That’s fair, take your time,” the water ghoul assures and moves away to do something unrelated, not to stress the other out even more than he already is. He disappears into the bathroom for a moment, too, to give Dewdrop space.

“So…looks like it’s all in my head,” he says when Rain comes back out.

“Seems so,” he agrees with a twitch of the corner of his lips.

“Do you think if–if I was able to sleep on you,” Dewdrop asks shyly, “do you think we could try hugging…now?”

“I don’t want you to–”

“Please. Please, Rainy, just for a moment,” he begs and Rain would be the most cruel person to have ever existed if he denied Dewdrop his hug.

He opens his arms and waits for the smaller ghoul to move. He’s nearly shaking—as excited as he is terrified.

Dewdrop closes his eyes before stepping forward. He gasps and clenches his jaw as Rain’s arm grazes his shoulder.

“I’m okay,” he whispers. He’s not giving up now.

Dewdrop lets out a hurt little sob and melts against the other ghoul, knees buckling. Rain wraps his arms around him and holds him up as the fire ghoul cries in relief.

He leans in and hits Rain’s chest and it’s…it’s fine.

He’s fine. 

“You–you’re so–you smell so nice,” he giggles through the tears. He can finally smell Rain like he's been wanting to for months.

“And you’re so warm,” Rain replies, nearly as emotional himself.

Just like that, Dewdrop is alright.

[staryuee]

“ YOU MAKE ME FEEL SAFE.”

꒰warnings꒱ semi-proofread <3

⠀꒲ ` synopsis . . . telling [char.] that they make you feel safe ♡

⠀꒲ ` characters . . . aether, lumine, dainsleif, xiao, tartaglia, wanderer, yae miko, kokomi, itto, cyno, kaveh

⠀꒲ ` notes . . . quite short bc a bitch is exhausted from exams </3 love u lots mwah mwah sorry for dying every month

AETHER — 空

“you make me feel safe.”

“eh..?” aether pauses for a brief moment and instantly turns to look at you, a look of both surprise and joy encapsulating his features. he blinks twice, a smile forming on his lips as he stares at you with eyes filled with so much adoration that it makes your breath hitch.

“i’m.. im really happy to hear that, i really can’t put it into words.” he walks over to you and entraps you in a heartwarming hug, one that made you melt as soon as his body made contact with yours. hearing such a lovely phrase so easily drop off your tongue made him genuinely feel like everything he’s done so far wasn’t in vain.

it felt so right; to be the cause of someone else’s happiness; a haven for their security, and to know you had that in him was something so sweetly fulfilling.

LUMINE — 荧

“you make me feel safe.”

lumine stops in her steps to swiftly turn back to you. you flash her a lovely smile, one which she complaisantly returns with blush dusting her cheeks. “you’re so corny.” she goes over to you to squish your cheeks together, staring at you in awe as she does so.

“but,” she pulls you in for a hug, “i’m glad — it’s my job to look after you after all.” she squeezes you tighter and you can’t help but pull away to sneak in a sweet kiss to her forehead, she leans into it, still looking adoringly up at you with that smile of hers, you feel yourself heat up at the very sight of it.

“you make me happy.” she whispers and presses herself closer to you, hands resting gently on your waist.

DAINSLEIF — 戴因斯雷布

“you make me feel safe, you know?”

you were merely having a late night conversation, it divulged from your morning duties and then to what you love each other; your words leaving dainsleif rather speechless. such flowery words being uttered by someone he’s internally sworn to protect till the end of time genuinely feeling safe with him ? if he was a tad bit more.. emotional.. he could shed a tear.

instead, he opts for kissing your cheeks and cuddling you closer with his lips turning upwards ever so slightly. he wants to tell you how loved you make him feel, but he settles for his own quietness and the comfort of your warmth.

there’s still no words in any teyvat language that could express or even comprehend his love for you; he can only hope that his fleeting touches are enough to share a sentiment similar to your own.

XIAO — 魈

“xiaoxiao.” your voice echoes melodically in his sleepy mind. he replies with a simple hum.

“you make me feel safe.” you lean on him nonchalantly as if you didn’t just say something that could break him.

“it’s my duty to protect you.” he pulls you in closer, his heartbeat beginning to quicken with every shallow breath.

“i mean that being with you is just extremely comfortable and peaceful, it has little to do with your ability to protect me.” you laugh as you intertwine hands with him. xiao leaned forward to place a gentle kiss on the crown of your head, responding with a stuttered yet wholehearted reply was not worth the embarrassment for the yaksha.

he pulls your interlocked hand up to his lips and places a soft kiss on your knuckles, the silence thick yet so serene. he finds comfort in solace, but you’ve shown him that the atmosphere of loneliness can be shared with the silent affection of a loved one.

TARTAGLIA — 公子

tartaglia caressed your cheeks, staring at you with such determined love and adoration it was enough to send your heart into overdrive. every swipe of his thumb, every glance at your lips and every kiss that he stole managed to send flurries of butterflies into your stomach; which lead to your impromptu, “you make me feel safe.”

he stopped his ministrations abruptly, his eyes widening yet his smile remaining all the same. he lets out a soft sigh before sprinkling gentle kisses across your face, “you’ve really got me wrapped around your finger, huh.”

your fingers trail up to caress his nape before tugging him down for a quick peck. “yes i do... “ you murmur as his hands move from your face to hold the back of your head, pulling you closer. he lets out another chuckle before kissing your nose softly, a light blush colouring his skin. “ you make my heart race like nobody else could.”

SCARAMOUCHE — 斯卡拉姆齐

“you make me feel safe.”

“i’m sorry, what?”

he wonders what kind of miracle blessing he must’ve committed for you to even think about expressing such a thought. “are you feeling sick? what’s wrong with you?” he pinches your cheek with an unamused look as your giggles bounce off the walls. he turns to leave without a second thought, trying his best to suppress his feelings.

“hey — i was being genuine !” you hug him from behind with a soft smile.

“right, and i’m a human being.” he rolls his eyes as he attempts to push you away, with very little reluctance at your affection. thought he doesn’t believe your words, for ehem obvious reasons, he still feels the slightest bit overjoyed at the prospect of your words being genuine.

YAE MIKO — 八重神子

“you make me fee safe.”

“well, aren’t you a charmer, my dear?” miko gives you a sly smile before taking another sip of her saké. “which book did you steal that line from, hmm?” she laughed softly, patting your head gently as consolation for her teasing. you pouted at the playful touch but she was far from deterred. the moment she pulled back, she had a mischievous glint in her eyes. “do you have a way of showing me your words are true, darling?”

you roll your eyes at her shamelessness, reaching up to pull her in by wrapping your arms around her neck to oblige her romantic request. she gives you a final sly grin before leaving a soft yet passionate kiss on your lips.

“hmm..i’m still not convinced.” she giggles, pulling you in once again. you were in for quite the long afternoon..

S. KOKOMI — 珊瑚宫心海

“hey koko,” she hums gently, looking up at you with drowsy eyes, “you make me feel safe.”

it was honestly like you shook her with electro itself, or like she poured hot tea over herself with the way she instantly woke up; the biggest smile beginning to adorn her gorgeous features. kokomi sighs pleasantly, gazing at you with pure devotion before getting up to hold both of your hands in hers.

“i’ve had many people express such a sentiment, but hearing it from you..it means so much more.” she leaves a trail of chaste kisses across your cheeks before leaving a final one on your lips.

“did you read some sort of book on how to attack the divine priestess’s heart? because it’s very hard to not fall deeper in love with you.”

A. ITTO — 荒泷一斗

“you make me feel safe.”

itto nearly gave himself a concussion with the way his head instantly shot up and then proceeded to hit the large branch above him. you were simply aiding him in finding some onikabuto, what was that phrase for ?! he shook his head to shoo away the dizziness before stabilising himself on the tree beside him with a goofy grin, “well of course you’d feel safe around me ! look at me man, strong as an ox !!” he started flexing subconsciously out of nervousness, your affectionate laughter filling him with warmth.

he took a quick glance at you before trapping you in a sudden rib-crushing hug. “you are too adorable for your own good.” he smiles and squeezes you in tighter with a kiss.

“you’re one to talk, love.”

he feigns an insulted expression and points at himself with dramatics, “heyhey, i’m not adorable i’m cool, there’s a difference!”

CYNO — 赛诺

“you make me feel safe.”

cyno looks at you confused, his head tilting lightly to the side. “it is an honour to make you feel that way, i’m glad to be of service.. but what brought this on?” you hugged him quietly, he pulled you in closer yet he still craved some sort of verbal answer from you.

you thought for a bit before answering, “dunno, it just feels natural to say stuff like that with you, you know?” he absentmindedly smiled at you, kissing your forehead as a reply. “it feels natural saying puns around you.” he mumbles.

“i’ll take everything i just said back, cyno.” you flicked his nose, a small grin landing on his face as a result. “you love me but not my jokes? how disrespectful.”

KAVEH — 卡维

“you make me feel safe.”

“i don’t think i’ve done anything to receive such a grandiose sentiment from you, love.” he nonchalantly mutters as he continues on his recent sketch. your frown doesn’t escape his gaze and he can feel his heart clench with guilt at the thought of making you feel upset at the cause of his own insecurity.

you walk over to him and hug his back and he can’t help but lean in to your touch, “sorry — i appreciate your words, really, you’re too good to me.”

you nuzzle closer to him before mumbling, “next time you disregard my love i’m gonna bite you.” you chuckle and it makes him feel slightly less embarrassed for his lack of response. he turns around and places a gentle kiss onto your forehead and you hum happily against the contact.

“i love you so much.”

©STARYUEE do not copy, steal or repost <3

[mxsinizter]

Mushy May Day 12: Sharing a Bed (again lol)

Take a dash of wholesome Aether/Sunshine <3

Rating: Gen; WC: 1,025

S: Aether and Sunshine trying to nap together!

"Sunny… Sunshine, please, love." Aether groaned as he patted her head to get her attention. 

"What?" Sunshine rolled for the millionth time, her back on Aether's arm and neck stretched up to look him in the eye. 

Aether had an expression of disbelief as he huffed out a laugh, running his untrapped hand down Sunshine's arm. "You gotta stop moving so much, sweetie." 

"Oh. Sorry." There was a few moments of silence and stillness. Sunshine broke it as she slowly pushed herself off of Aether and flopped onto her belly. Aether face palmed and released a small laugh at the sight. Her face was smothered into the blanket beneath her, hair going in every direction. 

Sunshine lifted her head and let it slam back down, this time onto her cheek so she could face Aether. The two watched each other with small, sleepy smiles until Sunshine began to move again. 

Using her shoulders, she attempted to push herself up to move onto her back. Her expression showed she was acting as if Aether couldn't tell she was moving and stilled when he opened his mouth to talk. 

"Really?" Sunshine shrugged in response. "Do you normal move this much? Or is something wrong?" 

Her tail end swished nervously by her feet as her hands played with the ends of her shirt. "Uh, yeah… I'm sorry. I-I can-," Sunshine was moving to sit up, but with a gentle arm over her belly, Aether laid her back down. 

"Hey, love, it's alright." He placed a kiss to her cheek as he propped himself up on his elbow. His hand over her stomach moved to her jaw and caressed her cheek. "I'm not.. annoyed. I'm just not used to it."

"Not letting you nap." Sunshine had a visible pout, her voice coming quiet and muffled. Aether smiled with his eyebrows turned up. 

"It's okay. I'm just a lot more used to… still, clingy ghouls." He pecked her pouty lips. "You take up a grand amount of space for such a small ghoulette, don't you. So wiggly." He tickled behind her ear and her neck, making Sunshine squirm, coaxing a laugh out of her. 

"Stop!" Sunshine laughed and turned so her face was squished against Aether's chest, tail thumping behind her. 

"It doesn't let you nap either, does it?" Sunshine's tail stilled and she shook her head. "Anyway I can help?" The ghoulette stayed silent, still hiding her face. Aether hummed as he ran fingers through her hair. "How about you lay on me, yeah?" 

She pulled her head away from his body to meet his eyes and nodded. Aether situated himself on his back and pulled the ghoulette onto his body carefully. Sunshine wiggled a bit until she was comfortable, sprawling herself over him. 

They laid in silence for a bit - Sunshine stared into space as Aether let large hands roam her soft body. Sunshine was trying to stay still, she really was. She could feel sleep wanting to take over but the urge to roll over to the other side of the bed was just as strong.

"Aeth…"

"Oh, sweetheart." He let his arms loosen around her, giving her room to move if she wanted to. She stayed still for a moment but eventually giving in, she rolled off of his body and back onto the mattress. 

Sunshine whined, her feet kicking softly against the bed. "Not fair." 

"I'm sorry, love." Aether rolled along with her, his chest heavy against her side as he kissed and nipped gently at her jaw. His hand roamed down to her thighs, softly kneading into the flesh. The rumble in his chest brought forth a purr of her own. Sunshine felt her side melt under Aether's weight, her muscles loosening. So, so comfy. Tranquility was reaching for her as her eyes fought to flutter closed.

"Aeth!"

"Wha- what? What?" Sunshined flushed in embarrassment at his reaction, not having realized he had fallen into a sleepy dazed.

"Shit, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to spook you." She placed a kiss on his eyebrow and licked his temple. "But I haven't moved!"

Aether blinked, taking a moment to register her words. "Huh, yeah. Yeah, you're right!" He smiled, tail wagging lazily as he licked at her jaw. 

"Can you lay on top of me? I think that'll help! Now that I think about it… Swiss usually lays on me." Sunshine smirked, "he likes burying his face in my tits." 

Aether laughed against her jaw and pulled himself up to meet her eyes. "Yeah, I know, does the same thing to me." Sunshine chuckled as she rubbed her nose against Aether's. "Are you sure you want me on top of you..?"

"Mhm! I'm sure it'll help! It's usually not a problem with the girls cause they like squishing me between them… wait- maybe this is why." Sunshine smacked her lips in thought but just shrugged. She pulled on Aether's shoulder, urging him to get his body between her legs. 

Carefully, he moved his legs between hers and began lowering his torso onto her frame. "You sure? I'm not t-"

"Aether."

"Ok." Aether made sure he felt comfortable on her smaller frame as he laid onto Sunshine and let his arm slip under her shoulders, hugging her. His cheek pressed gently onto her breast as he looked up at her, asking if she was alright. 

Sunshine gave him a goofy grin and reached to lick at the base of his horn. It didn't take long for Aether to begin purring once again, Sunshine quickly joining in. Her body was starting to really loosen now, comfortable under the pressure of the ghoul on top of her. 

The two nuzzled further into each other, allowing a calm wave of sleepiness to wash over them.

"Thank-," a yawn interrupted Sunshine of her words. "Thank you, Aether. Love you."

"I love you too, my little Sunshine." Aether shoved his face into the crook of her neck, inhaling deeply as he let himself melt into her warmth. It didn't take long for the room to fill with little soft snores as the two slept comfortably, and still, in each other's arms. 

[aeferkssr]

── SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS ──

pairing ;; aether x reader (pronouns not mentioned)

warnings ;; idk christmas? pack it up grinch /lh

notes ;; HEY IM ALIVE and so much shit has been happening with my life lately but yeah i wanna say im fully back now but dont get too excited!! yk what yeah im back now :)

going to your lover's house for christmas is something you did not see yourself doing ever. even the though of having one to spend christmas with made you giddy. a few years ago if someone told you that you would be spending the most wonderful time of the year with your boyfriend of two years you would look at them in shock and then quickly laugh them off.

AETHER's family was having a christmas party to celebrate the holidays. it was a family reunion of sorts, as all of his aunts, uncles, cousins were packed into the large house. why not celebrate it with a family member to-be? you're ears painted with red at both the cheeky smirk on his face and the backhanded marriage proposal.

after greeting his family - some of which he didn't even know he was related to - you two sat down in his living room with your back against his chest and his arms around your waist. you're knees were tucked into your chest as aeher shoved his face deeper into your neck. you adjust the reindeer headband on your head as you crane your head to kiss your lover on the head. feeling this, he raises his head and returns in ten fold, pressing light but frequent kisses all over your face as you giggle from the ticklish feeling

"can you two not be annoying for a day?"

aether ceases his attack as he too fixes the santa hat that got slightly knocked off prior

"its okay to be a hater, lumine"

he says breifly before childishly sticking his tongue at his twin and resuming showering you with kisses. lumine looks at him from the side of her eye then leaves the room, muttering something under her breath. both of you look at lumine leave the room and then back at each other. you two laugh and share one final kiss. (for that moment, that is)

───❄️───

some time has passed and you and aether have switched positions: you were sitting on the couch, one hand mindlessly scrolling through your phone while the other scratched aether's head and playing with his long blonde hair. aether on the other hand, was fighting sleep like his life depended on it all. he's aware that it's absolutely okay to sleep with his lover, in fact you encourage it, but he doesnt want to. but oh, dont you make it hard for him. the way how when you scratch that certain spot it sends pleasant shocks down his spine. he can only grow an even more lovestruck grin (if thats even possible, for his love for you rivals all the forces in this world) as he looks up to you.

you look down at him when you notice his stare. his droopy eyes and wide, love stricken grin brings heat to your cheeks and a smile rivaling the sun to your mouth. your hand that was scratching his head moves down his face to caress his cheeks, flicking away the hair decorating his oh so handsome face in the process. you stretch your thumb to the other side of his face to squish his face. aether groans as the corners of his mouth come closer together

you both laugh at his half-hearted attempt to push you off as you share another kiss. your moment, however, got interrupted by music playing from the alexa in his living room. you only recognized the chorus of the song but that part you knew well. you look down to aether as he seems to have an idea

"a penny for your thoughts?"

aether slightly puckers his lips to show that he's thinking. he seems to have idea when he shot up from your lap and grabbed your hand to the more open area of the living room with you following behind him, very confused. he pulls you over to where he is as he lifts his arm, prompting you to spin around. you're lips form from confusion to joy as you spin round and lean closer to your boyfriend.

"aether, do you know how to dance?"

"nope!"

he replies before taking your hand in his and wrapping the other one around your waist. your free hand on his shoulder as you hold back a small giggle. you two then glide around his living room to the beat of the music, a slow yet calming song.

you two "slow danced" for the remaining of the song before another one played, this one more up beat than the previous. you and aether smile at each other as you two jump and spin around each other, singing along to the horribly catchy christmas song. your hands were in fists, mimicking microphones as you sang to each other.

if you weren't singing you were laughing, the both of you not a care in the world. with this, you failed to notice lumine and paimon (the infamous baby paimon who was said to finish seven bottles of formula in a single sitting in her younger days) standing at the door way.

"yeesh, they're horrible"

the toddler says as they cover their ears from the out of pitch singing of christmas songs

"yes but," lumine looks back to paimon "they're in love. theres really nothing we can do about it"

"if this is what love does to you, remind paimon to never fall in love with anyone!"

paimon says as she walks away, probably looking for more food to eat. lumine takes one more look at the couple (who are now sharing a passionate kiss with the younger blonde dipping down his lover) , smiles, and turns back to follow her baby cousin

"no promises"

[genshinarchives]

Aether, Dainsleif / gender-neutral reader.

Synopsis: Of all things, you became a seelie when you got isekai’d into your favourite game, Genshin Impact. You decide to make him fall for whatever charms you have left in hopes of being taken in as a pet to survive.

— ( Inspired by the manhwa Of All Things, I Became A Crow. Requests relating to this AU will be ignored. )

Headcanons: [ 1 ] / [ 2 ] / [ 3 ]

Scenarios: [ 1 ]

#AETHER

You were ecstatic when Aether chose you over the purple seelie; you didn’t want to be trapped in the glass container you had been captured in for an eternity shortly after being isekai’d into Genshin Impact.

Aether would be surprised by your immense enthusiasm to travel with him, and he laughs softly when you nuzzle his cheek. He certainly picked an affectionate seelie and doesn’t regret his choice at all.

Your intelligence comes as another surprise for him. He knows that seelies are good at finding treasures, but you seem to be a special case as the intelligence you possess is on par with a human’s. You’d help him solve the complicated puzzles scattered around Inazuma, and you don’t hide like his other pets when monsters show up! Like a true companion, you float by his side in battle, empowering him with your moral support. He truly appreciates you.

Aether takes really good care of you, and even Paimon pointed out how he seems to love you more than her. You don’t need to eat as a seelie, but he sometimes forgets that and ends up pushing the food he made against your blob-like body, earning a squeak of protest from you. He also tends to sleep while hugging you like a teddy bear; he didn’t think you were one to enjoy cuddles until he found you all nestled up in his arms one morning.

You’re an adorable and smart seelie, so of course you’d attract the attention of his friends. Childe complimented you on how brave you are to not poof out of existence when there’s danger, and Xiangling commented on how chewy you look… However, Aether’s greatest concern is Ayato; when the Yashiro Commissioner noticed how intelligent and loyal you are, he kept trying to bargain with Aether to keep you as his pet. Of course, Aether would shoot him down every time whilst holding you protectively.

Aether is used to people leaving him - but after embarking on many adventures with you as an extra companion, he can’t imagine things ever being the same if you suddenly disappeared one day. You’ve become an important presence in his life and he swears to protect you from Ayato. You and Paimon will always be with him, right? He didn’t realise he asked the question out loud until he feels you press against his lips, causing his cheeks to flush happily.

#DAINSLEIF

Your first encounter with Dainsleif was in Stormterror’s Lair. He was initially going to ignore you and continue his quest, but you had noticed him before he could leave. He’s caught off-guard when you suddenly barreled into his head with frantic squeaks, like you were trying to gain his attention. You wouldn’t leave him alone no matter what he told you, so he ended up letting you tag along.

He later notices that you’re not like any other seelie. You’re always trying to find ways to communicate with him, whether it’d be bumping against his head and then pointing at something with your blob-like paw, or writing on the sand in human language. Being the polite man he is, he would respond to your attempts at communication and soon finds himself talking to you whenever the silence becomes too much for him.

Dainsleif is surprisingly attentive towards you. He’s quick to pick up on your likes and dislikes, and would play with you for a bit if you persistently nudge his cheek with your seelie body. He’d poke and squish you until you get annoyed, your furious squeak eliciting a rare, amused smile from him. He would let you rest on top of his head if you’re tired of flying; his blond tresses make a good seelie nest.

Jealousy is a rare feeling for him - but you somehow were able to make him experience that unpleasant tightness in his chest when you met Aether for the first time. You squeaked loudly whilst flying around the traveler’s head as if you’re drunk before squishing yourself against his cheek. Aether was surprised by your sudden affection but didn’t protest as he smiled at you fondly. Before he had the chance to pet you, Dainsleif used his magic to drag you back to his side, reminding you that you’re already the companion of a handsome man.

Dainsleif only begins to suspect that your current form is not your real body when he catches a glimpse of a human in the reflection of the mystical mirror a Snezhnayan merchant was selling in Liyue.

He confronts you about it directly after observing you for a few days, and regardless of your answer, he’ll quietly ask you if he’s allowed to hold you for a moment. He’s been deprived of a companion and is touch starved for so long; the knowledge that an actual person has been accompanying him in the form of a seelie is able to relieve some of his burdens as an immortal.

Taglist: @coco-goat-milk​ @m3gitsune @wondrouslovelyflower @melkxsh @irethepotato @frostines-blog @vivisimpact​ @xxhome-is-where-ria-isxx​ @crunchy-princeles​ @sanzuulvr

[hanniejji]

family addition

[ aether x child!reader ]

summary: aether finds himself unable to fix the mess he made on his hair. while babysitting you, you offer to help him out. aether fondly watches you with the eyes of an older brother.

note: self indulgent fic because i love platonic ships especially one with family ties and smol characs uwu | m.list

words: 619 | warnings: fluff uwu

"mister aether?" a young voice called out from behind the outlander, small and quiet, with a weak tug on the man's cape. aether turns to look down on your small figure, a gentle smile on his face.

"yes?" he says while tugging on his braid, failing to untangle the strands of blond.

"your hair is very pretty."

the sudden compliment from the child flustered him, the smile on his face widening before ruffling your hair softly. he whisper a bashful thank you, letting you be seated near him on the ground. whenever the young man fails to gather enough energy to accept patrol commissions, he takes up the easier ones, like babysitting you while your mother is too busy with knight duties.

not just because he's tired, but also because he finds your presence calming—you aren't as loud and annoying as the other children. *ahem timmie ahem*

"how did you learn to braid your hair? is it not hard to do so on your own?" your big curious eyes stare up at him, innocent and adorable. aether finds it hard to stop himself from squishing your cheeks in his hands.

"my twin sister used to do it for me,"—you notice his smile turn a little sad—"she taught me how to do it myself, but i can't say i'm better than her, though. mine is not as sloppy as hers," his smile brightens at the memory in his head. he can still remember lumine's voice telling him that he sucks and that he still needs more practice.

you smile in relief when he seems to be feeling fine, thinking of a way to make him more relaxed. you've seen him run around a lot more than usual these past few weeks, clothes dirty, bags under his eyes, and the plaits on his head more dishieviled than usual—with hairs escaping from the messy tangled strands.

oh, that's it!

"can i braid your hair for you?"

"oh! um— sure, go ahead!"

aether definitely did not agree because his fingers are aching from trying to undo the braid. his scalp is also complaining from how hard he's been tugging and pulling.

it's also definitely not because of the enlightened smile on your gosh darn adorable face.

he slid off of the tree trunk he's been sitting on, letting you comfortably take a hold of his face. your hands were gentler than his, carefully undoing the tangled strands of blond from its braid and brushing through his hair after. he breathed a sigh of relief at the absence of pain on his scalp, leaning his head closer to your small hands.

"does it hurt?" you peek from above his head, mentally patting yourself at the happy smile on his face.

"not at all."

with his reassurance, you start brushing through his hair, dividing into three strands and redoing his braids, but much more neat and not as tight. aether resists the urge to chuckle at the weak feeling of your hands gently tugging on his hair. he can literally see the concentrated look on your face in his mind.

the both of you kept quiet as you do your work, the only noise were the sound of birds singing their lullaby, the wind carrying people's dreams, and the soft splashing of the pond near the both of you.

aether can see his sister in you—quiet and shy, but with eyes sharing the same determination to take care of your loved ones.

i'm sure they'd get along if they met each other.

"i'm done!" your enthusiastic voice woke him from his daydream, catching the way your eyes sparkled at your work.

"thank you, little one."

yeah, i'm sure lumine wouldn't mind another sibling.

[sunii-is-typing]

heaven

summary ; celestia is a harsh, overbearing dictator. he should’ve thought twice.

character ; aether

cw ; angst : hurt no comfort : songfic : abandonment : obsessive behavior : denial : xiao’s bad writing

i was happy in the haze of a drunken hour.

“aether, stop moving your head.”

he sways unceremoniously with your hands, wincing a little at a particularly harsh yank at his scalp. still, he does his best to follow instruction.

his best isn’t really that good, but he’s trying. that’s all that matters.

“crystalflies are hard to weave into hair as is.” you tug at his braid and he forces himself to not lean with the movement. “stupid shapes, barely working..”

he laughs a little. “this was your idea.”

“it was my idea,” you repeat. you tug at his hair and he thinks he feels something light flutter against his scalp this time. “it was certainly my idea.”

you lean over him and grin; just a little, but it’s enough to make his heart flutter. by the archons, he doesn’t know what you do to him.

you don’t know, either. maybe it’s better to keep it that way, given how you act. 

and he means that in the most endearing way possible, he swears.

when he comes to, you’re still peering down at him. “you’re too dumb to come up with such a brilliant idea.”

aether feels his cheeks flush with heat, yet he can’t urge himself to look away. not when you squish his face and laugh so proudly.

“i finished the braids, dummy,” you coo, and he thinks he’s been consumed by flames.

quite frankly, he doesn’t mind.

but heaven knows i'm miserable now.

“you’re going?”

he fiddles with his fingers. this was to be expected, yes—you were a traveler, much like he and his sister. yet, he found himself wanting to be greedy.

selfish, even. anything to keep you by his side, a perpetual presence in his life. that’s how it’s supposed to be.

did you not know that? did you not know the flames that crawled up his spine, tangling and winding with his tendons, pulling him to you everyday?

you smile, carefree and careless.

“yep,” you say, as if its the easiest thing in the world. “i got a world to see, y’know? travelers gotta travel; just like lumine always says!”

aether wishes lumine never said that. maybe you wouldn’t feel so inclined to leave. oh, maybe, maybe—but you’re still a traveler. he’d have to do more.

and so, he sniffles.

you perk up immediately, rushing over to him and placing your hands on his shoulders. he suppresses a jolt at the attention.

“oh, aether—“ you coo at him, hands sliding to cup his face and he feels like he could die without your touch, without your hands holding him so tenderly.

like you love him. oh, by the archons, you’re holding him like you love him.

he blinks away tears; false or real, he doesn’t care anymore; and glances up at you from beneath his lashes. you grin a little before kissing him on the nose.

oh.

oh.

the heat blossoms in his chest this time, sliding up to his cheeks. by the archons, he loves heat, he loves the warmth you make him feel.

then, with crinkled eyes, you smile. “—i’ll be back before you know it.”

and the warmth is gone.

i was looking for a job, and then i found a job.

he busies himself with other things to fill your absence. it doesn’t work too well, but it’s something.

as far as he knows, something is better than nothing.

lumine was long gone, having wandered off for the time being. gave him more time to himself, though being alone with his thoughts wasn’t.. well, appealing.

sometimes, he thinks you’re chatting with him. he finds himself talking to the air, leaning back in the grass as the sun beams down on him.

him, a being made from plucked stars and galaxies, wistfully staring at the horizon.

what a joke. what an absolute joke.

“before i know it.” that’s what you promised—you told him you’d be back before he knew it. as the days pass, he’s getting surer and surer that you were lying.

but it was for good reason. you didn’t want him to worry. you didn’t want him chase after you, force his sister to follow after you.

he worries. he wonders if lumine would’ve complied to the idea of traveling with you.

he sinks into the dirt. before he knows it, before he knows it.

and heaven knows i'm miserable now

“you’ve been moping around for the past five weeks.”

aether blinks. then, slowly, softly, “huh?”

lumine stares down at him, a perpetual frown etched into her features. she nudges his side with her foot before stepping over his prone body, scoffing softly.

“you’ve been laying around, collecting dust.” her voice is firmer, harsher than he remembers. that is, assuming he remembers well enough. “get up.”

“why?”

“why,” lumine repeats, mockingly so. “waiting for someone who’s never going to come back is stupid, isn’t it?”

he flinches, just slightly, and rises a little. “they’re coming back—”

“shut up already.” she places her hands on her hips and scoffs softly. “that was hardly a promise; call it false reassurance.”

lumine crouches in front of him and flicks him on the forehead. there is no warmth—she hates warmth, after all, so she’s perpetually cold.

he misses your warmth. he misses the heat that stirred in his heart whenever you were around. before he knows it, before he knows it.

you’ll be back. you said so, you said so.

her eyes are worn and tired—annoyed, even. yet, her voice remains the same. “they’re not coming back, aether.”

aether stops talking to lumine after that.

in my life,

why do i give valuable time..

only the archons know how long it’s been since you left to travel.

only the archons know how long it’s been since lumine disappeared.

aether is alone, aside from the constant presence of paimon. the fairy-like companion is often elsewhere, though, always stuffing their face with food over and over again.

so, to some extent, he is alone. it’s not as gratifying as he thought it’d be all those years ago.

he wonders if you feel lonely, without the presence of old friends. he wonders if lumine feels lonely, for a moment, before reminding himself that she didn’t care for the company of others.

he’s aching all over, and it’s your fault.

the traveler tugs his knees close to his chest, sighing wistfully. he reckons you’re staring up at the same sky, lazing around with arms tucked beneath your head.

you probably don’t miss him.

the thought hurts, it hurts so much, but he keeps it. he wants to feel something, anything, that reminds him that you existed.

he cradles his head in his hands. by the archons, you’ve ruined him.

to people who don't care if i live or die?

“ooo, crystalflies!” paimon cradles one of the cores in her hand, grinning down at it. a gift from xiao, it was, yet it felt like a stab to the skull.

yes, a stab to the skull. certainly not a stab to the heart—his heart is perfectly fine, beating safely in his chest, surrounded by warmth.

it’s not cold. he swears it isn’t cold, because he’s the cute traveler who does everything for everyone, and does it correctly.

he’s warm. he promises.

he’s bad at promises.

aether stares at the letter’s contents wearily, and he’s tired. by the archons, he is so tired, because he is reminded of you everywhere he goes.

he craves the heat that blossomed when you kissed his nose. his fingers graze over the crystalflies and he wonders if he should weave them into his hair.

he wonders. then, with a small smile, he turns to paimon.

“can you help me put these in my hair, paimon?”

two lovers entwined, pass me by.

windblume is tomorrow, probably. aether’s made it his job to never show up, regardless of what needs to happen.

venti told him that was a celebration of love, kinship—everything that he didn’t have, everything that’d been torn from his gentle hands. and if that wasn’t insulting, he didn’t know what was.

he’s not going. he refuses to go. not when you’re still out there—or maybe you’re having your own windblume. somewhere, elsewhere.

the thought of you adoring another makes him want to vomit. you’ve ruined him, you’ve ruined him.

why did you abandon him? what did you get out of doing this to him, the quaint traveler who did nothing wrong?

paimon gently shakes his shoulder. “traveler? you alright over there?”

“spiffy,” he replies, and pretends that he doesn’t see the way his companion’s face contorts. “i’m fine, paimon. i’m just.. not in the mood.”

his companion studies him for a moment—a moment too long, in his opinion, but that’s just his paranoia speaking. it’s gotten worse, sitting alone on peaks and killing anything that posed a threat to teyvat.

he has so much blood on his hands. would you even care to come back to him knowing that? you’d think differently of him, if you think of him at all.

he hopes you think of him.

paimon sighs and looks down at mondstadt. the peak is tall, after all, and keeping watch over the event from afar is the best he can do without feeling the horrid ache.

“whatever you say,” paimon complies, and disappears in a cloud of stardust. and it is then that aether drops his head into his hands and mourns.

he’ll keep waiting. anything. you have to come back someday, right? that’s how this worked, this is how promises work. you don’t break a promise.

“false reassurance, at best.”

a tragedy, it is, having those words be some of the last ones he heard from his sister. she told him, she told him and here he is. a stupid, lovestricken fool for someone who’s never coming home.

is your home even here? he wonders if he could classify as a home, and an overwhelming stroke of heat licks at his heart and he feels something melt.

you’ve ruined him. you’ve absolutely ruined him, and he will continue to let you ruin him.

maybe you’ll be here for windblume—maybe you’ll come and visit teyvat and get trapped by the same unknown god and he’ll find you and he can finally have some solace.

yes, yes, that can happen. it’ll happen, it has to happen, there’s no way you won’t come to teyvat.

and, for a moment, for fragment of time, aether forgets. he forgets, and he feels warmth again. that delicious heat that makes him dizzy and happy.

it’s been so long. it’s been so long and you’ll be coming to him soon.

you could be battered and rotten, decaying and dead, and he’ll still hold you dear to his heart. yes, just like he always does, like he’s supposed to. he was practically made to love you.

you should love him. you’ll come back. eventually, eventually.

before he knows it, he recounts, though it is foggy and he doesn’t think there’s any excitement laced within the thought. before he knows it.

and heaven knows i’m miserable now.

a/n: blegh this was lazy my deepest apologies :’)

[hypnoneghoul]

Mushy May Day 31. Reuniting - Swissraindrop

WC: 525

Read under the cut or on AO3.

Rain was in agony.

What a sick idea it was to make him stay at the Abbey while his two mates left for a few acoustic shows with Aether and Copia?

He does have Mountain and the girls, all ready to smother him in affection, cuddles and kisses, but he wants, he needs, his mates. Swiss and Dew have each other on the road but Rain was left on his own. 

He’s not angry, he’s just lonely and miserable.

It’s been four days since they left and he spent them curled up in their nest, sniffing aggressively at anything and everything that had his mates’ scents on it, surviving at mercy of Mountain and Cumulus who brought him food.

Rain wasn’t being dramatic (he was, but not that much), separating mated ghouls really made them physically unwell. That’s why it was a sick fucking idea to do so!

But it’s been four days, and it was already evening, which meant Rain had to wait only, and as much as, 13 hours to see his boys again. He decided to take Mountain’s offer to get high after dinner to pass said tortuous amount of time.

The earth ghoul put him to sleep back in his, Swiss’ and Dew’s nest, and Rain quietly hoped they would get here before he woke up.

His prayers were answered.

Rain was sleeping rather peacefully when he was jolted awake by a slam of the door and a small warm body pinning him to the mattress, “Oh, fuck, hi, baby.”

“Rainy,” Dew whined into his ear, “I missed you so much.”

“Me too, love,” he breathed, wrapping his arms around his mate tightly. “Where’s Swiss?”

“He’s coming, I ran.” 

Approximately two seconds after, the door burst open again, their bed dipped and the multi ghoul gathered both Rain and Dew into his arms, pulling his tangled mates into his lap with no effort, “Hello, Raincloud.”

“Hi,” Rain squeaked, his mate’s scents making him dizzy and on the verge of tears that he could feel pooling in his eyes. “Never fucking again.”

“Nope,” Dew agreed from where his face was squished between Rain and Swiss, “I’ll bite.”

“You bit anyway,” Swiss laughed, and Rain looked at him with raised eyebrows, as the first tear ran down his cheek, “I’ll explain later.”

Dewdrop let out a halfhearted growl and nuzzled further into Rain, the water ghoul now crying in earnest, “I missed you so much.”

“We missed you too,” Swiss whispered, kissing Rain’s forehead. “He was unbearable, you know. I doubt Cardi will ever get the idea to separate us again, after his bullshit.”

Rain chuckled wetly at that, lifting his head to take a good look at Swiss and was met, of course, with his signature stupid toothy grin. He reached his hand to scratch at Swiss’ stubble, making him let out a content purr, triggering Dew with his own jet-engine like. The little fire ghoul was gone already, high on his mates. Swiss scooted up to rest against the headboard, holding his mates close to him.

“Quick nap,” he announced, “Gotta fuck you both later.”

Rain couldn’t even disagree.

[genshinluvr]

ISTG IM WITH ANON WHO WANTS AETHER IN THE HAREM TOO I LOVE HIM SO MUCH I WANNA KISS HIS CHEEKS AND SQUISH IT EOEJISNSZJ (overall: he's the 2nd cutest because venti comes first like hellooo??)

-🐈meowy meowy anon

The tag is going to be so long, that I don't think I'll be able to put Heizou and Aether into the Tumblr tags at the bottom since there's a limit 🥲 but they will be added into the future stories. Idk when though since I do have requests to work on. Maybe I can throw them into the mix in the requests 🤔

[imaginegladions]

Awkward

A/N: Remember when I said I’d rewrite the events in SuMo but from Gladion’s awkward POV of being in love with the protagonist the whole time? Hahaha guess what I found in my drafts.

It takes all of Gladion’s strength not to throw himself to the ground and beat his own head in until he’s buried himself in the dirt. Nevermind the fact that he’s currently at Aether and beating his head through metal would only end up in him getting a face full of water and maybe sinking the facility. He’s certainly hard-headed enough to accomplish it. He ran away as a child after all.

But then again, so did most children. It’s just that other kids did so with consent from their parents. Though, that does put into question the sanity of parents. Gladion wouldn’t know what a sane parent would be like anyway.

This isn’t a time to question the problem of parenting in Alola though. There were bigger Feebas to fight.

Gladion’s stupid heart fluttering world ending crush on you.

It’s been a nuisance ever since he’d found out about it an embarrassingly long time ago. And now, what seems like his millionth attempt to ask you out had ended in disaster… again.

He’d planned it out. Honestly! He did! And it was a great plan. He was going to give you Type: Null and flirt a little. Then, he’d ask if you needed tips to raise the Pokemon which would lead to an offer to discuss it over lunch at the nice Cafe in Ula’Ula with all the Meowth.

… He’ll admit he got that idea from Nanu, because he’s honest like that and the man scares him.

And the plan was going well.

Up until the flirting part of it.

“I heard that Alola’s got a really strong Champion- what- what kind of line was that?” He groaned, hitting his forehead with his fist softly.

Silvally snorted next to him, staring up knowingly with slanted eyes.

Gladion bit back the urge to stick his tongue out at the Pokemon. “How was I supposed to know they’d get excited and sprint back to the League to prepare?” He winced thinking about how the encounter had gone.

Silvally tilted its head at him as if saying “Does it really seem so out of character?”.

“I mean, I do want to challenge (Y/N). It’s just-” He buried his reddening face into his hands. “I want to hold hands too. Maybe. Just a little.” He muttered.

Silvally simply sat there, warming his legs as if this was a normal occurrence. Which, it was. Gladion stood there, cheeks cooling down in his hands, wondering if he’ll ever get to the end of this hellish cycle.

—————————

Every cycle begins at the point someone sees something round and decides wouldn’t it be fun to roll that? In this case, Gladion is the idiot that saw a wheel of feelings and decided it would be fun to roll it down a tall hill then forgot to put a stop to it. And it didn’t even begin in any spectacular way. In fact, it began with two words.

“Get o-”

Gladion laughed, throwing the dog off his lanky frame. “No, seriously. This hoodie is my last good one, I just finished stitching it. Get off!” He said, chuckling softly all the while and effectively softening the impact of his command. “If Plumeria catches us at it again, we won’t hear the end of it.” He rolled his eyes, cheeks reddening a little remembering the last time Plumeria swung by.

“So, I met your little trainer. When are you asking them out?”

A faint ripping sound drew his gaze down where a small rip graced the back of his hoodie. “Null.” He stared deadpan at the Pokemon who only wiggled in excitement. “You’re gonna get it now!” He lunged and the Pokemon tore away from him, running around the tiny room.

Gladion gave chase, a small smile on his face. He didn’t normally have this much time to spend on himself and his Pokemon between battling to get stronger, work he had to do for Team Skull, and research on how to stop Ultra Beasts. It was a relief that Null was still as cheerful as ever.

So cheerful, Gladion didn’t hear the creak of the door opening.

“Oh! Sorry, the landlady kind of didn’t say anything when I asked if there was room so I went exploring-”

Well, speak of the Zubat and they’ll appear.

You both froze, staring at each other. Gladion had one hand on his torn up hoodie, his shirt riding up where Null had its face squished to his chest avoiding Gladion’s grabby hands. The sewing set was off to the side while thread spilled onto the floor like tiny streams of color.

Null seemed to smile, liking how the situation turned out. The Pokemon began to chew at the hoodie in earnest, taking advantage of its trainer’s shock.

“You look like you’re in a bit of a pinch there.” You giggled, gesturing to Null. “You sure you’re both eating enough?” She teased.

Gladion felt his face reddening, unable to think of anything past how absolutely humiliating it is for you to see him in this state of utter awkwardness. The feeling of frustration, embarrassment, and even fondness bubbled up into one loud cry.

“G-Get out!”

And so it spins.

[love-and-monsters]

Stolas and Corvain Pt. 2

This is part 2 to this story. Reading it is recommended to understand what’s going on here. Sorry its a bit late, finals are kicking my ass. Hope you enjoy!

Over the next few weeks, demonic presences in my house became more and more pronounced.

For a few days after I’d officially allowed my new roommates to stay, they kept mostly to themselves. I saw no more of them than I had before I knew they were there. That wasn’t to say there weren’t signs of their presence; I still got breakfast every morning, in a surprising number of varieties, and Catmint always seemed to be able to find a large black feather before I came home from work. But I never caught sight of them.

But then, like they were growing more bold, they started showing up a little bit more.

It was a gradual change. First I started catching glimpses of Corvain right when I came home. It was only for a few minutes. I’d walk in and he would be hunched over Catmint, fussing over him. Before I even had a chance to say hello, he’d sheepishly vanish, as though he’d been caught doing something untoward. Then I started catching glimpses of Stolas in the morning, finishing up breakfast before he vanished.

As the days passed, they seemed to show up more often. Corvain would stay later into the evening, mostly playing with Catmint, but also sitting with me and asking about my work. Stolas hung out into the morning, sometimes staying into breakfast, though I noticed he never ate.

“Where do you guys go when you’re not here?” I asked Corvain one evening. He was the one I could usually guarantee a straight answer from. On the regular, he seemed to be just to cheerful for any sort of suspicion or guardedness.

“Into the aether,” he said. “It’s not really hell, but human souls sometimes go there. Usually the ones that had big emotional issues they couldn’t overcome in life, especially if those issues made them die. They’re good spots for demons like us, who eat emotions.”

“You eat emotions?” I said. Corvain nodded.

“Mmhm!” He stroked his talons along Catmint’s back. “Usually we have specific emotions that we can eat. I like anger. Right now, there’s a tree growing from an angry spirit and that one’s fruiting, so getting food is really easy for me right now. But, anyway, that’s why we need to anchor ourselves to points in your world. It lets us get physical forms and we can come here to get something to eat.” He lifted up Catmint and let him paw at his face. “It’s probably good there’s a tree for me to eat from right now. You don’t get angry too much. It makes it hard to eat.”

“Sorry,” I said automatically.

“You don’t need to feel bad,” Corvain said. “But my luck powers are really useful! Bad luck makes people angry, then I can eat.”

“You haven’t done that to me,” I noted.

Corvain placed Catmint back on the couch. “No. I like you.” He frowned. “Stolas suggested it at first, but-”

“Stolas what?” I interrupted. Corvain jumped and shrank back, crouching down next to the couch until I could only see his head.

“I- he-” He fiddled with his claws. “As much as I’m grateful for the meal, I-”

“I’m not giving you a meal,” I snapped. “I’m pissed off! You guys were using me as what, livestock? Did you do this to the previous owner?”

Corvain mouthed soundlessly. “I- I don’t… no?” he finally offered. “Stolas did, a little bit, but we had a better selection of spirits in the aether and we just ate from those for a while. And then the house was empty for a while. And then you came and, um…” He trailed off, still pressed against the couch. “Um, he didn’t mean anything by it. He was just hungry. And I didn’t want to, I don’t like being mean to humans, and you were pretty sad anyway, after coming here, so he said not to bother, and then he never asked again.” Corvain fiddled with his talons. “I didn’t think you’d be mad about it. He never did anything.”

I slouched back onto the couch, nursing the slight headache that had built at my temples. “Could you get Stolas?”

Corvain, looking immensely relieved to be dismissed, nodded and vanished. A few seconds passed and he reappeared, apparently dragging Stolas by the arm.

“What?” Stolas snapped, shaking Corvain off. “He said you wanted to talk?” He looked at me archly, but I thought I could read some measure of nervousness in his expression.

“Yeah.” I gestured for him to sit on the couch next to me. Corvain crouched on the floor next to Catmint, who ignored him and instead sauntered over to me, settling partially on and off my lap. I was grateful for the support. “So. Uh. What was it you told Corvain about using his powers on me?”

Stolas narrowed his eyes. “I was under the impression you didn’t mind the extra luck?” he said.

“Not that,” I said through my teeth. “When I first came here. Before you showed up.”

That got him. His eyes widened and he cast a glance at Corvain. “You told her?”

Corvain shrugged helplessly. I continued. “He should have! I should have figured it out before, when you said it was better to have a human around. How long have you been planning on using me as a source of food?”

Stolas clamped his jaws together and hissed. The hair on the back of my neck lifted, but I kept my steady glare. “How long?”

He stood and stalked away from me, tail lashing. Corvain looked like he’d rather be anywhere else, shrinking low to the floor. Finally, Stolas said, “Why did you tell her?”

“I didn’t think she’d be upset! We didn’t do anything!” Corvain answered. The second sentence was shot toward me in a pleading tone.

Stolas growled, but Corvain’s last sentence had caught me. “He’s right, I think,” I said. “Unless you did something I don’t know about.” Corvain shook his head rapidly, but I kept my eyes fixed on Stolas. After a moment, he shook his head too. “Why not?”

Stolas rubbed a hand over his face. From the way Corvian was looking at him, I got he impression even he wasn’t really sure why Stolas had stopped.

It was minutes before Stolas spoke. He walked back over to the couch and sat down across from me. “At first, it was because we didn’t need to. Corvain had food, and you were sad. That’s what I need, sadness.” He licked his lips, hesitating. “I didn’t bother, at first and then…” He stopped, sucking in a low breath. He drew in on himself, looking suddenly and intensely ashamed. “I didn’t want to anymore.”

“Explain,” I said. Stolas shifted, drawing his tail close to his body.

“Demons eat negative emotions. Sometimes the human souls that end up in the aether can provide us with food, but more often, they cannot. So, when we are tethered to a human home, we sometimes push humans to strong emotions so we can consume them.” He clicked his claws together. “As I said before, such pushing was not necessary at first. You were mournful when you arrived and you remained mournful for several days after. I assumed it was a temporary state, so I prepared Corvian to change your situation once your sadness faded.” He kicked at the ground. “And then the situation changed.”

I thought back to the first week in my new house. It had been hard; I’d been homesick beyond belief. But just as he said, I’d gotten better and it now felt completely normal living here. I couldn’t remember anything so strange that it would have changed a demon’s mind about eating from me.

Stolas sucked in a deep breath, expression twisting like his next words were hard to get out. “Every emotion tastes different. Two humans experiencing the same thing can create different kinds of sadness. Yours was…” He considered, his tongue prodding out between his lips. “Interesting. Deep and complex and mournful. It was one of the more unique sorrows I have tasted and so I became interested in you. Corvain and I, we watched you for a time and the longer I watched you, the more interested we became.” He hesitated, glancing at me. “It wasn’t anything untoward. We just looked in from time to time.”

“Okay,” I said. “I’m not hearing anything that would have made you stop wanting to eat me.”

“Not eat you,” he snorted. “Eat your sadness. There’s a difference. And that was what stopped me.” He paused. “I see little of humanity other than what comes to the aether, and many of those people are not great representations of what humanity is. But you are a good example. You feel deeply about morals and fairness and you care for others. And you are sweet. Surprisingly so.” He sighed, closing his eyes. “This is not exactly how I thought I would be confessing to you, but I think I have grown… attached to you.” He cracked open an eyelid. “I like you.”

A strange, almost cawing laugh burst from Corvain as he rose from the ground. Within seconds, he was on top of me, squishing me into the couch. “I knew it,” he said, squeezing me and pressing his head against mine. He turned his head slightly to look at Stolas, though he still pressed his weight into me. “I knew you liked her.” He pulled his head back from mine, squeezing my face in his hands. “I like you too!”

“I- what?” I stammered. Corvain’s expression softened and when he spoke again, it was slower and more careful.

“I also like you. In the same way Stolas does.” When I stared at him blankly, he elaborated. “Romantically.”

Stolas looked as though he was blushing, though it was impossible to tell with his red skin. I felt certain that I was almost the same color as him. “You what?”

“You are attractive,” Stolas said slowly, as though someone was strangling him. “And you were kind to us even when you did not have to be- you’re kind to everything. You are humble and gentle, qualities we rarely see in the humans who come to out lands.” He took a deep breath and slowly, cautiously, drew closer to me. “I am a little bit in love with you.”

Corvain laughed. I could feel his soft breath tickle against my cheek. “You’re fun,” he said. “I’ve never met a human like you.” He looked at me with gleaming eyes. There was utter adoration in them. It made my heartbeat quicken and my stomach flutter. His taloned hand brushed along my cheek. “You’re beautiful.”

I was blushing to the roots of my hair, I was sure. Both demons were staring at me with affection, even if Stolas seemed more embarrassed and Corvain, more enthusiastic. Stolas licked his lips, glancing momentarily at Corvain. “Then we are agreed,” he said. “You are someone we care deeply for.”

Corvain chuckled again, softer and more teasing. “Say how you feel!” He pressed his head to my shoulder. “We love you.”

The words made my breath catch. My heart shook my body with each beat. Stolas stared down at the couch. “This is awkward. We shouldn’t have- We should have done this a better way. You don’t have to accept.” Corvain looked between us and seemed to wilt, pulling in on himself.

“No,” I said. “I…” Bright, cheerful Corvain, who could make me smile after a long work day, who adored every moment we spent together. Patient, slow-to-warm Stolas, who made me breakfast and was always willing to listen. “I do accept.”

Stolas stared, eyes wide. Corvain slammed into me again, pressing soft kisses against my forehead and cheeks. He hugged me against him, covering me in warm feathers. I giggled under him and reached out an arm for Stolas.

He swallowed and crept forward. Tentatively, he reached down and pressed his lips to mine for a moment. He tasted faintly of smoke. It wasn’t unpleasant.

On the ground, Catmint mewed and complained until Corvain scooped him up and forced him into our family cuddle pile.

[mysidewriting]

Through the Storm

Chapter Seventeen

Lillie and Hau knew they liked each other, they had both admitted to it during their time stuck in the cells at Aqua. But due to the crazy situation, they hadn't done anything beyond confirming their feelings to each other. She restated a ton of the cute things he'd said to her, how he'd tried to be as protective as possible while at Aqua. She ticked everything off on her fingers, working through a mental list of sweet words and actions he had given to her and each one made me grin like an idiot.

"So, you should talk to him then." I said after she finished, her cheeks a light pink and a shy smile on her mouth. "We're safe for now, and can't do anything else until the other champions are here. It's a good time."

"Is it?" She asked, "There's still a lot of crazy stuff happening." She pouted, eyes growing wide and shaking her head as she hastily changed her mind. "No, wait! Don't listen to me, it is a good time to admit feelings."

Her smile had become more devilish and I knew she was trying to warp things around to be about me again. I pressed on, ignoring her attempts. "It's a great time, especially since you're actually with him right now." I pointed out. "If you wait until after this is all over then you'll probably be in Kanto again."

"You're right." She mumbled, playing with the tips of her long blonde hair. She grew distant, mind drifting into thoughts that I wish I could hear aloud. A moment or two past before she flinched and looked back to me with wide eyes. "You know the same applies to you right?"

"Let's not talk about that right now." I said, glancing towards the egress window on the other side of the room. Water was starting to pool behind the glass pane, the ground too wet to absorb any more of it. It wasn’t like I actually lived somewhere different than Gladion, I was just away on a trip. A long, stressful trip.

"I've told you almost everything about Hau and me, though." She complained, "We're at a standstill."

Her words were an attempt to get me to start talking about myself, but I changed the direction. Focusing more on the last part about being at a ‘standstill’. "You don’t have to be at a standstill though, you two like each other!" I said with a smile, "You should do something! Do you want me to say something to him?"

"No!" She jumped, bringing both her hands up to squish her own cheeks in reaction. "Please don't. I'd feel so awkward."

I laughed at her smooshed face, reassuring her I wouldn't do anything if she was worried about it. "But seriously, just bring it up. You can ask him out too."

"Maybe..." she muttered, going distant once again.

I stretched my leg across the bed, tapping her with my foot and making her jump in surprise. I laughed, "This is kind of crazy, isn't it?" Her head tilted to the side and the movement was so similar to Hau's normal confused head tilts that I giggled. "Just a handful of weeks ago you were barely even talking to him that much! You were too shy."

She laughed, "I know, I don't know what I was scared about."

"I told you." I dragged the words out, giving them a musical lilt to sarcastically poke fun at her. She pulled a fake pout over her face before smiling once again.

"Yeah, thank you for making me just talk to him. Things wouldn't have changed by now if you hadn't done that." She pointed a finger to me, her tone changing rapidly from thankful to mildly accusing. "But you!"

I looked away again as she continued. "You told me you didn't like anyone!"

"I didn't then!" I defended, "Not like I do now, at least."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know... I feel like there’s a possibility I’ve liked him for a while now. I always wanted to be close with him." I muttered, recalling all my attempts to visit Gladion and how over the top I could be when he visited the league. How I got so excited to find out he’d actually reached out to me whenever he did. Maybe I’m just super oblivious and it took leaving the region to actually realize I like someone.

She started bouncing on the bed, shaking the mattress. I nearly fell off the edge I was sitting on and she burst out laughing as my arms wind milled in an attempt to stay upright. "Are you saying you've always been attracted to my brother?" She winked and I faked a gag before laughing as well.

"In some way, maybe." I felt so awkward saying these things out loud. As exciting as it was to sit and talk stupid lovey dovey stuff with my best friend, I would have never pictured or even thought I'd be doing it only a few months ago. I never thought I'd really fall for anyone to begin with, let alone someone I've known since I moved to Alola.

"When do you think you started to like him?" She asked.

My mind drifted back at the prompt, I twisted and flopped down on the bed so my head rested on the pillow next to where Lillie sat. "I don't know exactly when it started. Sometime in Kanto for sure, around when I was working with Oak..." Like when I chased Moltres away and I thought of him yelling at me for being so reckless.

"Are you serious? You liked him that long and didn't tell me?" She freaked out.

"Wait wait! Let me finish!" I said fast, pressing my hands against my temples. "I didn't realize I liked him until I was in Johto. Specifically when I met Krys and Gold. After I was nearly drowned by Lugia."

"Okay what made you realize then?" She questioned after hesitating as I said Krys's name, she didn't know her yet.

I pulled out my phone, both of us laughing as it unlocked straight to my messages with the guy we were talking about. I could feel my face going red as I scrolled through, trying to find the conversation we'd had when I couldn't sleep...

"He talks to you more than he does to me!" She said, sounding a bit upset.

"We talk a lot." I muttered, pulling the hem of my shirt over my nose to cover my blushing cheeks. I finally landed on the messages and handed her the phone, pressing the pit of my elbow over my face as she read through.

“You talked about Hau and me?” She giggled, “He’s so mean to Hau.” She commented and I struggled to recall what exactly was said between about the two of them. Something about Gladion calling Hau a loudmouth…

“To be fair, those two conflict in a lot of ways. Gladion is not an energetic and loud person.” I laughed.

“Obviously.” She shook her head, “He never was, and never will be.”

I shifted to look at the messages as she scrolled, she’d gotten to just about the end. "Aw, you two are so cute. I didn't know Bub even had it in him to be so sweet on someone." She cooed as she handed me back the phone. "He's so happy around you too." She made a strange squealing noise. "You're going to be my sister-in-law!"

"Whoa!" I held my hands out, "That's way too far ahead, Lillie. Let's not talk about that yet okay?" I sat upright, sliding my phone back into my pocket. "I don't want to think about that."

She nodded, "Okay, I understand. It's still super awesome... You should make a move though. Make a move on my brother, Moon!"

I winced. "Don't say it like that." I complained. "Besides, I don't know for sure if he feels the same. That and we don't have the time to date anyway."

She pouted, "How can you doubt he likes you when he talks to you like that? He's so sweet on you, Moon. I have yet to see a moment where he isn't smiling when you're around." She hesitated. "Like I mean yeah it hasn't even been a full day yet but still! And there is always time for love." She held her hands up, her fingers and thumbs shaping a heart. "Alola champion Moon and Aether president Gladion, you two would be a power couple." She giggled.

I still don't know... "You make a move on Hau and maybe I'll consider being more obvious with Gladion."

A knock at the door made us both jump, both our faces going red as we realized the last thing that had been said gave away not only what we had been talking about, but our feelings towards the guys.

"Who is it?" Lillie called, her voice trembling a bit. She took my hand and squeezed it as the door opened. I shut my eyes, ducking my head so my hair fell over my face. It's going to be Gladion...

"What's going on?" Hau's voice met my ears and a momentary rush of relief fell through me before I remembered that I'd said something about Lillie making a move on him.

Her face had gone pink. "We're talking." She said hesitantly.

Hau laughed, "About me, right?"

"Did you not hear us?" Lillie asked. I looked up to Hau, seeing he had folded his arms behind his head and looked a bit awkward.

"I did." He said. "Something about making a move on me and Moon being more obvious to Gladion?"

I groaned and fell backwards on the bed again, covering my face. Great now ‘the loud mouth’ knows about it too… Hau laughed, "So Moon you...?"

"Quiet!" Lillie shouted, bouncing on the bed. Thank you…

"Okay! Okay!" He laughed, passing me a huge grin as he stepped into the room and shut the door behind him. "Sorry!"

"Did you need something, Hau?" Lillie asked, I was thankful for the complete change in topic.

"I wanted to talk to you." He said sheepishly.

I stood from the bed. "I hope it's about the same thing we were just taking about." I suggested to him as I stepped towards the door. As interested as I was in what Hau had to say to her – I knew I had to give them their space for this.

"It is." Hau confirmed, his grin growing wider.

Lillie blushed hard at his words and I opened the door, "I'll leave you two alone then. We can talk more later if you want, Lillie." I smiled.

"Thanks, Moon." She said, her eyes wide and honest and I knew she was saying thanks for a lot more than just me leaving them to talk. I nodded and stepped out, closing the door behind me.

How convenient that he came by just then. This had to be good news, and after I had just told her she should jump at the opportunity to date. I was hopeful that the next time we talked she would be able to call Hau her boyfriend. After so long waiting for it to happen, it seemed very likely that the two would finally be a couple. A super cute couple at that. Hau was perfect for her in so many ways. Although Lillie wasn't anywhere near as shy as she used to be, she was still very reserved. Hau was the complete opposite, entirely extroverted and brave when it came to social situations. They would balance each other out perfectly.

The borrowed room was dark when I walked in and I opted for a desk light over the light hanging with the ceiling fan. I sat on the edge of the mattress and set some music to play on my phone, letting my mind wander and listening intently to the sound of the rain pattering outside mixed with the soft sounds of music. Distant rolling thunder forced my eyes closed as I drifted back through some old memories of Alola's infrequent thunder storms. Those memories transferred into thoughts of my likely worried mother, alone in her house, struggling with her disease and divorce. A hollow ache for home opened up in my heart and I checked my phone to see if she had even seen the message I'd sent her yet. But it was late now and she had long been asleep by this point, the message sat unread and longing for a response.

A flash of red light brought my focus back to the current times as Rosemary hopped up onto the bed and curled into a ball next to me, her head resting on my lap. I stroked her back, thankful for the slight glow that emitted off her blue markings. I scooped her up, apologizing when she cried out over being moved and laid down on the bed, letting her curl up on my stomach like she had as an eevee. She seemed to be so sensitive to emotion, always popping out of her ball the minute I was feeling something intense. It's amazing how Pokémon can sense those things...

A louder crack of thunder shook the house, causing the items on the bookshelf in the room to rattle with the growling noise coming from the sky. Is this really just after effects of lugia again? That was something that no one had brought up to Steven, the strange behavior of all the legendaries lately. I wondered if there was any correlation, wondered if any of the other legendaries had acted up. Articuno was the only Kanto bird that I had not heard or seen any violence from. Celebi and mew had seemed normal as well, at least from what I knew of them.

Red, Green, Gold, Steven, me... even Brendan and May. There were a lot of distinguished trainers here at the moment, that wasn't even including Hau and Gladion's expertise and Lillie's new found strengths. I was sure we could handle going to do some investigating if we broke into teams. It couldn't have been that dangerous if we stuck to a low profile like Brendan and May did with Aqua and Magma. But Steven was the experienced one... he knew best. I was just too anxious to find out more about the woman and find an end to this mess. It won't be too much longer, over half of the champions are here already.

Would there be enough room for everyone? There were a lot of rooms in this house, but a lot of people were going to be here once all the champions arrived. Ten people here already, and Red and Green were staying in the same room. As well as Brendan and May. I wouldn't doubt we would have to stay two to a room... I can stay with Lillie, why am I even worrying over this...

...Because there’s a small chance that it would be Gladion staying with me instead... that's why. I couldn't lie to myself that the thought was the only reason I was truly concerned about sleeping arrangements.

Rosemary's weight shifted and her head rose, crying out towards a figure in the doorway. "Oy." Speak of the devil.

Gladion was leaning up against the doorway of my room, a towel draped over his shoulders to catch the water dripping from his freshly washed hair. A stack of papers was folded up under his arm and from what I could see, it looked to be a ton of forms and paperwork.

"Hey." I replied through a tired and hushed voice, I hadn't realized I was beyond exhausted after spending all this time laying in a dimly lit room just thinking.

A smile slid across his lips, "You're tired, eh?"

I nodded, Rosemary crooning at the movement and she fell off my stomach, curling up by my side instead. "The last few days have been pretty exhausting."

"They have." He nodded with a soft chuckle. "You've been through a lot, Moon."

"You too." I said, acknowledging the dark welts on his arms and the bruise across his eye. The twist of guilt in my gut was a bit too much to bare without saying something. "I'm so sorry you got sucked into this, Gladion. You got the brunt of everything and it’s not fair at all."

His eyebrows arched high across his forehead and he stepped into the room, the light from the hallway no longer falling across his face so it was much harder to see him. "You have nothing to apologize for." He said, his voice barely above a whisper as he kneeled by the bed. Rosemary purred in reaction to his sudden proximity, stretching her front legs out like she was reaching for him. I just barely saw the grin on his face as he watched the umbreon react. "I came here on my own whim."

"But you got beat up because of me." I complained.

"I got beat up because I fought against Archie and his grunts. Not because of you." His voice was stern yet still had this warmth to it that made my heart flutter.

I rolled onto my side, finding it easier to see and speak to him when I wasn’t craning my neck. The position was much more comfortable though, the sleepiness hanging over my head tugging at the corners of my consciousness as I attempted to focus on his face. What time is it even? Probably past ten… I could sleep if I wanted too, it wouldn’t be odd to go to bed so early considering how insane the day had been. “Still.” I said, my voice regretfully slurred with the exhaustion. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it Moon.” He replied in the same tone of voice, but a few levels quieter. He rested his chin on the edge of the bed, now close enough that I could smell the scent of shampoo lingering in his hair… something generic and fresh. An oddly nostalgic scent that was far from unpleasant. When he spoke I could feel his breath on my face and goosebumps shot down my spine. “No one is upset with you for doing what was necessary. No one blames you for any harm.”

If I moved even just an inch or two I could kiss him right now. So close…No, no, no. What am I thinking?

I changed the subject, shifting a bit to pull myself even just a bit more away from his face. “What’s all those papers for?” I cringed at my own lazy wording, scolding myself for sounding like an idiot while also likely looking like one. But a soft chuckle left his mouth anyway, I took it to mean he hadn’t even noticed me pulling away… Is that good or bad?

"Work stuff." He replied. "Apparently these are urgent, Wicke couldn't wait for me to get back."

"That's dumb. You're always working, the least they could do is give you a break when you're trying to help someone." I complained, covering my mouth as I yawned.

“It’s practically a break, this isn’t that bad.” He readjusted the stack of papers and stood, startling Rosemary enough that she cooed at him and curled herself back into the small ball. I pat her side, apologizing again for disrupting her sleep. She’d made a mistake in coming out of her ball… Gladion reached out and for some reason I’d expected him to give Rosemary a few pets as well – but instead his hand drifted up to tuck a piece of hair behind my ear. The unexpected touch made me shiver and I hoped to Arceus he just thought I was cold again. “You should get some rest.”

I grabbed his arm before he could leave, heart thundering in my chest as he turned to look at me once again. Surprised and curious. "Have you slept at all? I couldn't tell if you did at Aqua." I asked quick, hoping my nerves over holding his arm weren't prominent through my voice.

"Yes." He laughed, "I passed out the second night from exhaustion. My schedules been a bit off since then but I'm sure I'll sleep tonight." He shook his head, the grin on his face making me curious of his thoughts.

“Good, you’ve been so bad with sleep.” I replied, releasing him, "Don't stay up too long working on those dumb papers."

"I won't, Moon. Goodnight." He left the room then, closing the door behind him slowly and as quietly as possible.

I waited until I had heard his footsteps recede and the sound of his door closing before looking to Rosemary, her yellow eyes watched me carefully as I spoke. "He has feelings for me too, doesn't he?"

Rosemary simply yawned in response, rolling onto her back and pawing absently at the air. Today had been such a weird collage of excitement, nervousness, and danger that I struggled to work through my thoughts over all of it.

I'd reunited with Gold, we'd escaped Aqua, I'd been cut by a crazed woman potentially in charge of this whole mess, reunited with Red and Green, Lillie and Hau had a high probability of being together by tomorrow, and Gladion had been... Beyond sweet and seemingly in control of my emotions. Like he was the percussion behind my soft ballad, bringing an otherwise quiet and dull song to life.

There was no way to be certain how the next few days would play out. With Red, Green, and Gold here and more champions on the way... people I hadn't yet met. Things would certainly be interesting at the least...

Note: Super short chapter, sorry about that. I've got a half decent amount of chapters stacked up after that short time off. Hope things sound good and you guys are all still enjoying. c: