#aeon summer week

[pink-strawberry-kissess]

aeon summer week - day 3 cruise

just thinking about them on a fancy cruise and having to sneak off o_o

tag list @aeonloves @a-phantoms-shadow @fleurdelily @kittenslady @maristarfish @cutecherrykisses @poisonarrow98 @cbros5

[aeonloves]

Love on the run

where ... 🏖💭

aeon undercover on a cruise ship

⛱️ aeon undercover au

🛳 2k words

☀️ aeon summer week day 2 & 3 - sunburns and cruise ship

[coffeeghoulie]

Mushy May Day 8: Subtle Affection

Mushy May put together by the lovely @forlorn-crows <3

Mountain is the only person in the world that Aurora lets get away with a particular form of physical affection. Aeon teases her for this. 900 words.

divider by @ghuleh-recs <3

Aurora doesn’t mind being the shortest member of the pack. Nor does she mind how driven by physical touch her packmates are. She’s no different, nuzzling up to them or holding hands or cuddling them any chance she can get.

However, it makes every hair on her body stand on end when her packmates use her shoulder, or worse, her head, as an armrest. Aurora doesn’t blame them, she is just the right height for most of them to do it, but something about it sets her off.

She hisses at Swiss the first time he tries it, blushing furiously as she slaps a hand over her mouth. “Sorry, didn’t know what came over me,” she squeaks, watching his eyes go wide as he pulls his arm away.

“Don’t apologize,” Swiss says, showing her his palms, settling back into a calm smile. “Don’t worry, not gonna do that again.”

She smiles, a little sheepish, and he returns it with one of his own grins in full force.

The same thing happens with Aether, and Aeon, Rain and Dew and Cirrus. Each one of them apologizes, finds different ways to express physical closeness, though it doesn’t stop Aurora’s cheeks from flushing after every instinctual reaction. She’s far from feral, she enjoys her packmates’ touch and affection, but she can’t wrap her head around why this particular thing sets her off.

She shrugs it off, figuring as long as it’s not an issue, it’s not something she needs to worry about.

It’s all but forgotten until Mountain calls her down to the greenhouse, Rain and Dew both busy with other duties. “Needed someone with water to help me with the sprinkler system,” he says, flashing her a boyish smile, a smudge of dirt already smeared across his cheek. “It’s been giving me trouble for weeks, and with summer around the corner, I needed to put my foot down.”

She grins up at him, craning her neck to meet his eye. “Don’t know how much help I’ll be, Mount, but I’ll give it a shot.”

He nudges her shoulder with his arm. “That’s all I ask, morning glory.”

They get to work then, together in the heat and humidity of the greenhouse, until Aurora’s just as covered in dirt and sweat as Mountain is. But he beams at her when the sprinkler system finally comes back online, rocking back onto his haunches.

Aurora laughs, pushing bubblegum pink hair away from her face, no doubt smearing even more dirt through it. It’s caked under her nails and she wants nothing more than a long soak in the bathhouse, and she tells Mountain as such.

“Well, morning glory, I’d hate to invite myself along, but you see the state of me,” Mountain teases. “Could go for a soak too.”

Aurora’s smile shows the gap in her teeth, crinkles her nose and her eyes. “Is it a date?” she asks, getting to her feet and dusting her hands off on her knees. She extends a hand down to Mountain.

It’s always a little dizzying to see just how much bigger Mountain’s hand is compared to hers, the way it wraps completely around her own and dwarfs it. Still, she helps him to his feet and he smiles, ducking his head to kiss her knuckles like a proper gentleman. It makes her stomach swoop, and Aurora shakes her head.

"I'd hope it is," Mountain says as he slings his arm around her shoulders as they walk into the Abbey. Aurora pays it no mind.

Later, curled up into a fort of pillows and blankets with her summons-mate, washed and relaxed, almost glowing with satiation, Aeon peers curiously at her.

“Saw you coming in from outside with Mount this afternoon,” they say, raising an eyebrow.

Aurora shrugs, reaching for the tub of popcorn set between them as they watch a cheesy B-rated horror movie, Aeon’s turn to choose. “Thought you wanted to watch this,” she teases, nudging them. “But yeah, he asked for some greenhouse help.”

They laugh. “Not that. When you came back up to the Abbey together. He was using you as an arm rest, wish I could’ve seen the look on the big guy’s face when you hissed at him.”

“I- I didn’t,” Aurora says.

Aeon’s brow furrowed. “But you hissed at the rest of us when we tried that,” they say, more curious than anything. “I mean, with me, I thought you were going to bite my finger off!”

They both laugh, and Aeon squirms away as Aurora tries to ruffle their hair. “Well, I dunno why I didn’t hiss at Mount.”

Aeon coos, eyes wide and mischievous. Aurora suddenly gets the urge to upend the popcorn bucket over their head to shut them up. “Ooooooh, I know why,” they tease. Aurora bats their fingers away from her ribs. “Rory’s got a crushhhhhhh.”

“Oh fuck off,” she hisses playfully, wrestling them back into their spot. “Shut up and watch your movie, don’t think I don’t see you and Swiss, fucking disgusting.”

“Oh, I’ll have you know we’re in love,” Aeon swoons dramatically. “Just like you and Mountain!”

“Can it!” she snaps, but as she turns back to the tv, Aurora can’t help the smile growing on her own face.

[winxanity-ii]

⌜Cycles of You, Cycles of Me | Chapter 02 Chapter 02 | aeon's witness⌟

╰ ⌞🇨‌🇭‌🇦‌🇵‌🇹‌🇪‌🇷‌ 🇮‌🇳‌🇩‌🇪‌🇽‌⌝

❘ prev. chapter ❘༻✦༺❘ next chapter ❘

Time didn't touch you as it did mortals. Days turned to weeks, and yet you aged swiftly, your small body unfolding like a budding sapling.

What had once been a fragile, vine-wrapped form now took the shape of a toddler, no older than three or four in appearance.

Your limbs, once thin as new branches, became soft and round with the fullness of youth. Your skin still carried the warmth of autumn, its hues shifting ever so slightly in the light—bronzed like late summer, tinged with gold like the turning leaves.

Yet for all your growth, one thing remained the same: your silence.

You didn't cry; you didn't laugh. You simply watched.

The world moved around you, vibrant and full of life—nymphs dancing, rivers laughing, birds calling to one another in the trees—but you remained still, absorbing rather than participating.

It wasn't sadness. It wasn't detachment.

It was simply how you were.

.☆.       .✩.             .☆.

One afternoon, as the golden hues of autumn deepened, a group of nymphs gathered around you.

They twirled through the clearing, their laughter light as drifting petals, their bare feet rustling through the fallen leaves. They danced in a circle around your small form, their voices ringing like wind chimes, their arms sweeping through the air as they cast handfuls of crisp, red leaves into the sky.

The leaves swirled and spun, catching the sunlight, fluttering down like a rain of fire and gold.

Yet, even as the autumn colors rained around you, you didn't react.

You sat there, legs tucked beneath you, hands resting in your lap, watching.

The youngest of the nymphs, a girl with curls as wild as climbing ivy, pouted as she twirled closer. "Why won't you laugh?" she huffed, kneeling before you, her large, honey-colored eyes searching your face.

You simply blinked at her.

The other nymphs giggled behind their hands, whispering about how cute you were, how strange it was that you never reacted the way other spirits did.

The young nymph huffed again, more determined now. She reached out, her small hands gently squishing your round cheeks.

"Awww, look at him!" she cooed, squeezing lightly. "Such a cute little tree spirit!"

The others awed in agreement, watching as your chubby face scrunched slightly under her touch.

Still, you made no sound.

You didn't swat her hands away. You didn't frown. You didn't giggle.

You only tilted your head, your wide, knowing eyes locked onto hers.

A single leaf from your tree drifted down, settling softly onto your petal-crowned hair. Another fell, landing gently against your cheek, curling against the warmth of your skin.

The nymphs paused.

The young one, still kneeling before you, stared into your deep, unblinking gaze, her lips parting as if she finally noticed something different. Something unspoken in the way you watched rather than reacted.

Her voice softened, curiosity overtaking her playfulness.

"Why won't you smile?" she asked.

The wind stirred.

You simply kept staring, as if the answer lay in the space between falling leaves and fading seasons.

The moment stretched—until a voice, soft yet strong, called through the air.

"Little one," Demeter's voice carried through the grove, warm and rich as the earth itself.

Your head turned instantly.

Without hesitation, without question, you reached out.

Demeter approached, her golden robes trailing through the fallen leaves, her presence like the last embrace of summer before winter's arrival. She knelt, scooping you up into her arms with ease, holding you against her chest.

"You always find trouble, don't you?" she murmured, pressing a gentle kiss to your forehead.

You didn't respond.

But you did lean into her warmth.

The nymphs watched as she carried you away, their once-playful expressions now tinged with quiet wonder.

They didn't speak until Demeter and you had disappeared beyond the trees.

Then, the young nymph whispered, her voice barely above a breath.

"...He doesn't behave like a tree spirit."

The others, for once, had no response.

Something about you unsettled them. Not in fear, not in distrust—but in a way that made them hesitate. Tree spirits, though silent and strong, were meant to be lively, playful, full of light.

Yet you...

You simply watched.

And that, more than anything, made them wonder.

☆

☆

Demeter treated you with the same care as her other spirits—yet she never left you alone for too long, and it clung to her in the way she touched you, in the way her hands lingered just a second longer when she tucked your hair behind your ear.

She taught you everything. The sky, the rivers, the cycle of life, the meaning of the seasons.

She took your small hand in hers, guiding you through wheat fields and flowered meadows, showing you how the wind carried seeds, how the earth made space for growth and decay.

She pointed to the sky, explaining the constellations.

She told you how the sun chased the moon, how the stars whispered secrets, how the rivers ran endlessly to the sea.

You didn't ask many questions, not the way the other nature spirits did.

Instead, you observed.

You watched how the clouds moved with purpose across the sky.

You watched how the wheat bent beneath the wind, yet never broke.

You watched how the rivers carried fallen leaves, never returning them.

And the more you watched, the more you began to wonder.

But what gripped you most, what made you feel something deep in your chest, was watching things end.

It started with the leaves.

One day, as you sat beneath your tree, a gust of wind came, shaking the branches. A single, golden leaf broke free, spiraling toward the ground.

You tilted your head, watching as it drifted, slow and soundless, before settling into the earth.

Gone.

You reached out, small fingers brushing the fragile edges.

It didn't move. It didn't return to the branch.

You looked up, waiting, as if it might change.

But nothing happened.

The leaf didn't go back.

Your brows furrowed—not in frustration, not in sadness, but in deep, quiet thought.

That evening, as Demeter sat beside you, her hands weaving wildflowers into a garland, you finally spoke.

Your voice was soft, careful.

"The leaves always fall."

Demeter paused.

She turned to you, her golden eyes searching yours. "Yes," she murmured, twining another flower into the braid. "The trees must let go of their leaves when the seasons change."

You stared down at the leaf in your lap, its color already fading at the edges.

"...But why?"

Demeter exhaled, brushing a hand over your hair. "Because the trees must rest. And when spring comes, they will grow new leaves."

You thought about this for a long moment, your small fingers turning the leaf over.

"...But this one won't come back."

Demeter stilled.

The weight of your words settled into the space between you.

She reached out, taking the leaf gently from your grasp, rubbing it between her fingers before placing it on the earth. "No, ____," she admitted softly. "That one will not come back."

You blinked, staring at where it lay among countless others.

The wind blew again, carrying some away—gone forever.

Your hands curled slightly in your lap.

You didn't know why, but something about that made your chest feel strange.

Like a small, quiet ache you didn't yet understand.

[iboozi]

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･Lifetime °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･ jjk

Hi!! You can call me zoobi!

This is my first oneshot!!! Which may have flopped on another site.....

Hopefully it doesn't flop here but you never know.

w/c 2.5k

genre: childhood acquaintances... that's all

masterlist

𓇼 ⋆.˚ 𓆉 𓆝 𓆡⋆.˚ 𓇼

One.

Jeongguk knows he shouldn't feel like this. He felt this last week. And the week before, alongside the previous two months when he first laid his eyes on you.

Statistically speaking, the chances of you even having an inkling of who is he is, is low. Fifty percent, give or take. Probably lower, but deep in his heart, he hopes that you remember his face, his name or even his laughter that once harmonised with yours on that summers night.

You seem to be such an inconstant monument in his life. He's met you before. Before that as well. Blips of memories when you a mere child- young and naive on your very first day of school. Despite the outward looks of curiosity and the hushed whispers amongst friendships formed aeons ago, he remembers you walking in, sounding your name out and plopping yourself right next to him, on the shared desk. You glanced at the doe-eyed Jeongguk and held your hand out for a shake and gave quite literally a heart stopping smile. Oh, how could he forget?

He definitely wasn't able to forget you when the teacher announced only two months later that you had to leave due to unforeseen circumstances. Jeongguk was just getting to know you. He knew you liked ice-cream after school. Everyday. Though he couldn't understand, those red bean lollies had a grip on you, and whilst he squirmed away from that god-awful flavour, the treacherous walks after school were always ensured with a pit stop to the local supermarket. You'd wait outside, twiddling your thumbs after insisting him on not buying you anything. There wasn't a way you could compensate him after all, but what did he care?

And everyday, without fail, he would emerge from inside, one hand gripping your red bean lolly, the other, a small carton of milk - he wanted to grow big and strong , sue him.

He'd do anything to see that smile he once had the opportunity to see on that first day of school. Even though the corners of your mouth would perk up, the shining of your teeth and the crinkling of your eyes would never make themselves present like before. How could he miss something he only saw once?

The answer was very much so as the feeling of longing was only amplified when he would have to walk in every dreary morning and look at the empty seat next to him. Sure, he was a child, and what did they know about feelings? The pair of you barely scratched the surface of knowing each other. But Jeongguk was sure that he was different. He knew that what you and him could grow to be one day would be insurmountable to what others could imagine for themselves. The future was clear, it was the one thing he was hopeful for in the short life he had lived so far, but alas those feelings had to be revoked and as the memories of you and him withered away, a translucent block covered the future he dreamed of.

𓇼 ⋆.˚ 𓆉 𓆝 𓆡⋆.˚ 𓇼

He knows he shouldn't feel like this, even almost ten years later. He most definitely should not feel the sinking of his heart as he trails along the coast of his town's beach. But what is he to do when he hears the ringing of your laugh in the distance? His trailing stops. The footprints he leaves in the sand are not nearly as deep as the marks you left on him, his heart and soul. And as he whips his head around, time stops. Not literally, but it sure feels like it does.

He sees you- not alone, but accompanied by another person whose high pitched laugh travels far to Jeongguk's ears. As you recover from your laughing fit - what could even be so funny - you spot Jeongguk. Freeze. He freezes too. The male alongside her also halts and whispers something to her. Rather than gracing him with a response, you run over to Jeongguk. Oh God. His palms are clammy, Sweat drips down the divots in his back. Do you recognise him?

"Is that you Junghyun?", you call out once you near him.

Jeongguk winces. Ouch. The sound of his heart crashing is muffled by the waves, battling for who can sound louder.

"Sure hope not, only Jeongguk around here," he manages to let out before stifling his laugher as you widen your eyes and gasp quietly.

"Oh my- I'm so sorry!" you say as you halt in front of him. He wants you closer. Close enough to see how he's changed, 'cause he reckons he has- at least his mother says so. If anything, he feels the most grown in years, the new ring adorning his lower pouty lip contributing to that supposed feeling. He wants to see your face, and compare it to the daydreams he's conjured, and note if you're just the same as he remembers.

He already knows you aren't. You're prettier. An understatement for sure, but that's all he can think of before you're launching yourself at him. Clasping your hands around his neck, only a small step back proves to Jeongguk as to how compact you are in comparison to him. Did you even grow?

The moment is over before he can return the gesture. The lingering scent of your perfume - was it strawberries? - almost has him closing his eyes to imbed it into his mind, but he refrains. That would be weird? Right? Comprehension has seemingly flown out the window and landed openly on the ground, baring his feelings to you, showing how much he's missed you.

"Soooo, how have you been Jeongguk?" you ask, with the faintest of smiles on your face.

"Wonderful- yeah I've been doing pretty good lately," he says. A lie. What's wrong with him. He's been doing pretty shittily in all honesty. This was the first time he's left his room in god knows how long. Studying was bombarding his life, to make up for the poor grades he reluctantly displayed to his mother at the end of the last semester. But before he can ask you questions as to why you left so suddenly all those years ago, another voice joins the conversation.

"Hey, I'm Jimin,". A hand reaches out to him.

Tongue pressed to the inside of his mouth, he doesn't want to reciprocate the action. But he figures it would be childish not to and finds himself placing his palm opposite the one in front of him and shakes. Grips extra tight. But shakes it nonetheless. Even manages to get his name out. Go him.

He sees you in his peripheral looking upon the awkward interaction and immediately reddens. Shit. First impressions man. He internally sighs and asks,

"You guys wanna join me on the beach? I know a good spot,"

He knows this was the right move, the ways your eyes crinkle up and you let out a small yes! He takes this as the chance to look at you. More like is starstruck by you, but y'know, semantics. He really looks at you. So, so pretty.

"Lead the way," Jimin interrupts, again, before shuffling alongside you and Jeongguk. He points something out to you in the distance before sharing another laugh with you. God, how insufferable could one be?

Jeongguk refuses to dwell on those spiteful emotions, because you're there. It's really you, by his side in the flesh and not a figment of his imagination. How could he be angry, when he's just been presented with you once again. It's fate, he thinks. Smiles to himself a little, unbeknownst to you and Jimin who trail behind him. It's perfect.

His spot, no-one knows about. It's right under a cave, where the sun hits perfectly during the day, warming it up for those who visit at night. Well, it's only Jeongguk, but he believes the place was made for him.

The water doesn't reach this high, even when the tide rushes in, but the moonlight does. The deep blue of the sky feels brighter from his little corner and when the days were too long for him, he'd lengthen his nights by cosying himself up under the rocks and listening. He listened to the sound of silence, where nothing would infiltrate his mind, not even you- shockingly. He would lay on the sand until the sun would rise, signalling a new day and to Jeongguk that he would make it out and one step closer to you.

And as he sits beside you, listening to you babble about how much you've missed him in the past years, he knows that everything he's been through, has led him to this exact moment. Obviously, he'd wish to be alone with you, no Jimin around, but he'll take what he can get. And right now, what he was getting was you, illuminated by the moon, rays of light encompassing you like a blanket and sheen of your skin, glowing brighter than ever.

As the night dwindles on and the conversations ebb, you jolt up from your position - lying in the sand, between the two boys and check your phone.

"I-I need to go. Jimin. We need to go - now." you barely stammer out, before jumping up and dusting the sand off of you and jostling a sleeping Jimin.

There isn't any sand on you anyways - Jeongguk's sweatshirt offered you the protection from it, but still, it's like you're trying to wipe of any remnants of him.

"Are you okay, do you need help?" he asks gently, to not disturb you further in your already frazzled state.

"No, it's okay. I'm sorry. T-This was nice and I'm glad to have seen you again. Jimin c'mon let's go. Please," the last part comes out hushed, like you're on the verge of tears. But before Jeongguk can even question if you're sure, the two of you are gone. The darkness swallows you up and Jeongguk can't help but feel as if he just lost you again. For the second time. He slowly gets up, dusts himself off - because he had no protection from the sand - and walks back to his house.

In his low lit room, he questions if you were really there. Slaps himself a few times. Comes to the conclusion that you were. Your smell lingers in the threading of his hoodie, so you must've been there. He smiles to himself. You're back.

Jeongguk doesn't even realise he's fallen asleep until he hears the loud ringing of his doorbell Mashing a fist into his eye, he grumbles and makes his way down the stairs. Almost falls head first, but catches himself on the banisters before cursing at whoever decided to be the rooster of the farm at his door.

Fumbling with the lock, he creaks open the door, his eyes widening as Jimin stands there. How the fuck did he get his address?

Before questioning as to why Jimin is at his door at the ass crack of dawn, Jeongguk notices something. Notices a whole lot of things. Jimin's eyes are red-rimmed and there's a tiny blush blossoming on his nose. Alongside that he seems to be sporting no shoes and the same outfit as yesterday.

"She's gone. I don't know where, but she's gone. She left a note saying she wanted me to tell you, so here I am. Sorry." he whispers this, voice cracking on multiple words.

Jeongguk stops. The sound of his kettle drowns out any noise as he filters what Jimin said. Finds that he has nothing to say back, so he closes the door. Sits by it and stares into his hands. He's lost you. Again.

𓇼 ⋆.˚ 𓆉 𓆝 𓆡⋆.˚ 𓇼

Jeongguk thinks that he's longed before. Had ten whole years of it. But it doesn't amount to the feeling of longing after quite possibly one of the best moments in his life. It stays at the top of his spot, and nothing comes quite close to it, not even getting into the University of his dreams, with his best friend Jimin by his side. But what does shake its position is seeing you on freshers day. You look the same, albeit slightly tires. But who isn't after those painstaking exams that you had to take to confirm your spot in your new school.

He confirms that it's really you when you walk into the same lecture hall as him. He ducks. Why is he ducking? Waits a little for you to find your seat before he lets out a sigh. Garners some weird glances, but he couldn't care less.

He knows that he's absolutely fucked when two months later you still haven't crossed paths, yet Jeongguk seems to be aware of all your moves. It's not like he's stalking you per se, but just happens to be where you are at the same moment... at the same time.

So as he sits two rows behind you, Jeongguk knows that he shouldn't feel this way. But how could he not? His heart is an arrow, shooting out of his chest, destined to find solace in your arms.

He thinks you're a magnet, but can't figure out if you're the opposite or the same pole as him, attracting or repelling what he feels for you.

He's loved you for a lifetime. He's loved you enough to cover two lifetimes. But what he fails to recognise is that it's simply not enough.

Only manages to understand this when you bump into each other one day. You're rushing for your third lecture - not that he knows- and drops the coffee you're holding. You both gasp at the icy drink seeping into your clothes and you whip your head up and zero in on him.

He stiffens at the gaze in your eyes. It's different. Harsher. Not an ounce of recognition is there and as you pick up the plastic cup, you brush past him and the faint smell of strawberries floats up into his face. That's different too. It's tinged with bitterness and pain and something else he can't put his mind on.

Of course he won't figure out what it is. He doesn't know you. Only thought he did in what little you've told him. It's his fault that he expanded those silly moments to the horizon and beyond.

To him, he's known you for a lifetime and will continue to do so by relaying those memories over and over again in his head. But to you? Jeongguk is a fleeting moment. Two seconds that won't ever cross your mind again.

It's that sinking feeling. The water rises up and overcomes Jeongguk as he stares at you walking away. The once hopeful future is shielded. It's no longer translucent, but opaque. Opaque like the barriers you've placed between yourself and Jeongguk. He can't help but feel like he's lost you again. For real this time.

End

𓇼 ⋆.˚ 𓆉 𓆝 𓆡⋆.˚ 𓇼

Hope you guys enjoyed. I suck at dialogue but I tried to capture the vagueness of "reader's" character and how all Jeongguk did was think, not speak.

Let me know what you thought!! Pls!!

[iamthecomet]

𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘺 𝘔𝘢𝘺 𝘋𝘢𝘺 𝘚𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯: 𝘓𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦

Rating: T Pairing: Aether/Dew but also Aether/Everyone Word Count: 986 Featuring: Some angst and a bad dirty joke or two.

Also could count for "telling stupid jokes" which was the actual day 7 prompt because Dew is Dew and I couldn't resist.

Many thanks to the amazing @forlorn-crows for putting Mushy May together again. And to @ghuleh-recs for the divider which I am mildly obsessed with.

It’s worse than he thought.  He thought staying would be easy, but it’s clear the moment the buses pull away that it’s leaving that’s the easy part. Staying is agony. 

Aether knows he’s made the right choice. That Aeon is ready and the Ministry needs him here and that he and Sunny will be fine.But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt. 

He watches the driveway until the dust settles, and then he turns his back, his pack out of sight, and walks back into the Abbey proper. Sunshine had already gone inside–a meeting with Imperator she said. But Aether thinks maybe she just wanted some time to herself–he doesn’t blame her. 

Aether keeps busy for the first couple weeks. Picks up extra shifts at the infirmary. He works most nights. The idea of climbing into an empty bed in the middle of the night makes his chest hurt–it’s easier to do it in the day time when he can imagine that the rest of his pack is going about their day–not gone. 

He talks to them on the phone every day. Dew video calls him from the bus after every show. Swiss texts him pictures of all of the weird snacks he buys. Cumulus sends him beautiful landscapes, and little I miss yous. They call call him–he speaks to at least one of them a day, usually more. 

The missing goes both ways. But they’re busy. He isn’t. Even with extra shifts, and begging Imperator for things to do–he even offers to help with taxes, which is a huge mistake, he still feels like he’s got too much time to think. 

He walks the grounds. Sits at the lake on warm summer days and thinks about how unfair it is that Rain is trapped on a bus and not here floating. He offers to help Sunshine take care of Mountain’s plants, but she waves him off. She’s been given very specific instructions, and one of them is to not let Aether anywhere near the greenhouse. 

He and Sunny cling to each other like a lifeline on harder nights. Especially once the rest of their pack has gone overseas and the timezones get more and more ridiculous to manage. They nap together, curled up in swatches of sunlight like cats. Aether wakes up warm, and comfortable, and loved and still feeling like one of his limbs has been removed. 

Dew calls him early one morning–before the sun is even up. It’s late wherever he is. Dark. Aether can barely see his face on the video call. Aether sits up in bed and rubs the sleep from his eyes. 

“Dew?” 

“Shit sorry, timezones. Forgot how early it is there. I can call later–”

“No,” Aether says quickly. Trying to force himself to look more awake. He turns on the light next to his bed. “No. No it’s fine. I’m up. Don’t go.” 

There must be something in his voice. A hitch. A tilt in pitch. Because Dew’s mouth pulls down just a little. A tiny frown of worry that Aether wishes he could reach through the screen and smooth away. 

“Not going anywhere, Starlight,” Dew promises. His bunk light switches on and Aether can see him better. Sitting up in the corner of his bunk. Phone resting on his knees. He’s eating chips from a bag that looks familiar. 

“Are you eating those weird chips Swiss got?” 

Dew nods. “I’m the only one who likes them. They’re good weird you know? You’d hate them.” 

Aether watches him chew and feels the ache start to ebb, just a little. The same way it always does when he gets one of his packmates to himself for a minute. When things feel unhurried and he can talk to them like they’re sitting next to him instead of a continent away. 

“Swiss said they tasted like ass.” 

“Probably why I like them,” Dew shrugs. Aether snorts. He smooths his hand over his face, dragging his fingers through the mess of his hair. 

“How many more weeks?” Aether asks, can’t help it. 

“Three,” Dew answers without hesitation. “Not that I’m counting.” 

“I am,” Aether admits. 

Dew frowns again, a little deeper. He looks at the screen a little too directly and Aether feels like he’s being seen in a way he isn’t ready for. 

“Yeah, Sunshine said you’ve been moping.”

“I haven’t been moping!”

Dew rolls his eyes. “Whatever. But just–you know we miss you too right? Like you’re not just stuck at home missing us while we have this grand adventure. It’s tour. It’s boring and humans are stupid and the food is awful. And it’s not the same without you.” 

“Isn’t Aeon doing–”

“Aeon’s fine. He’s good. He’s kicking ass every night but you know that isn’t what I mean. It isn’t all about the music you know.” 

Aether’s chest constricts. “I know.” 

“Nineteen days,” Dew says after a minute. He rolls the chip bag closed and for a minute that’s all Aether can hear, the ungodly crinkle of whatever magic material chip bags are made out of. “Less than three weeks.” 

“You are counting.” Aether teases. 

“Of course I’m counting,” Dew counters. “I’ve been counting since the day we left.” 

“You love touring.” 

“Yup,” Dew agrees, nodding. “I do. I still do. But I love you too, and just because I’m happy to be out here doesn’t mean I also don’t want to be there. I miss my bed. And being able to cook a meal that doesn’t come in a styrofoam cup. And you.” 

Aether feels his chest crack open, but this time it feels good. Warm. Like he really can reach out over all of these miles and slide his hand into Dew’s–just for a second. 

“You just miss me for my ass,” Aether teases. Awake now, and warm and loved despite his empty bed.  Dew laughs. “Well, I mean, it does taste better than those chips.”

[nostalgebraist]

selections from my almost nowhere writing playlist

This morning I took a trip down memory lane and listened to a bunch of my AN playlist (previously described here).

And then I thought, hey, why not say a bit more about it on tumblr? Someone might find it interesting...

CW: Almost Nowhere spoilers, highly questionable musical taste

(More specifically re: spoilers – they're not very specific, and if you haven't read the book they probably won't mean much to you, but OTOH if you haven't read the book then you won't get much out of this post. And they do involve the whole plot from beginning to end. So if you haven't read the book, you almost certainly shouldn't click the readmore.)

First song on the playlist.

This was my standard background music when working on my notes (as opposed to writing the book itself). It's strongly associated in my mind with thinking about the story in a relatively analytical and distanced way, working on conceptual puzzles or plot holes, and that sort of thing.

Third song on the playlist. Like the previous one, most often listened to when doing notes/plotting work.

Mentally associated with the MM, the dominant aeon, and other "cosmic" aspects of the story.

Background music for writing Chapter 13 (first arbitration scene), and also for some occasional later scenes that had the same vibe.

Mentally associated with Azad's feelings about Michael, and with viral/infectious/pathological metaphors for what the anomalings experienced during and after first contact.

Ever since I first came up with the Nowhere-to-Hide event, this has been its "theme song" in my mind.

(The theme song of the actual event/moment itself, I mean, as opposed to all the setup that leads into it, and the various consequences that result from it.)

(Meanwhile, this and this and this – all of which are directly quoted in the book, as songs that the Annes "canonically" listened to – supplied a very different sort of inspiration for the same event.)

Background music for writing Chapter 34, "Everywhen" (following up on each of the main-character NTH Annes after the NTH event).

Strongly associated with that chapter, and with the pleasant summer weather of the week in 2022 in which I wrote that whole sequence of chapters.

I often listened to this (as well as this from the same album) while writing sections of Part 3 involving Anne Eleven.

Background music for writing Chapter 40 (Angelprobes / Stein's Rock).

Strongly associated with the tone and texture of that chapter (which it presumably influenced).

Background music for writing Chapter 46 (with Arthur the raccoon), and associated with the subject matter exposited therein.

(BTW: in my head Arthur was named after Arthur C. Clarke. As for why he's a raccoon, specifically: it's mostly because I just like raccoons, but also in reference to an infamous experience related by chemistry Nobel laureate Kary Mullis.)

The soundtrack that this is from – for some anime called "Date A Live" – came up on YouTube autoplay at some point near the start of time in which I was writing the final 6 chapters, and I ended up listening to it a lot while writing those chapters.

In particular, this 3-track compilation...

...ended up feeling like the "theme song" of that whole final stretch.

Its emotional vibe – of buoyant and vertiginous ascent, of decisive triumph, of unexpected hope – had some obvious effects on various parts of that sequence, and was a perfect match for the intense, elevated mood I was in while I writing it.

I had a little personal ritual of listening to this every time I finished writing a chapter. It was always the background music for getting formatting nuances worked out in the AO3 editor, and for pushing the fateful "Post" button at last.

[kariririi]

First Valentine's Day post! It hasn't even been one week and I'm unleashing another new OC Aeon who is Crystal's twin brother. I kind of wanted to reveal him in his fullbody png form but I drew this scene anyway so might as well introduce him like this with Lilac!

Also, not super happy with their winter uniforms because I designed them quickly just so I could finish this, so I'm probably going to change it later. I want to show you all their summer uniforms soon though 🥺

[ao3feed-adaleon]

Love on the run

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/J8Bvjef by aeonluvs “I told you not to sit in the sun after noon” Ada laughed, taking out a sunburn cream from her bag, one she got with her just in case. She knew he’d do something stupid while they were on here, and this was definitely one of those dumb things he could’ve done. “I know I know, but I got sick of the room” Leon dropped his head, allowing her to rub the cold cream over his skin, a light hiss leaving his lips as she touched him. She hummed, moving his hair out of his face, putting some of the cream on his cheeks and forehead. — or ; aeon undercover on a cruise ship Aeon Summer week day 2 - sunburns , day 3 - cruise Words: 2185, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: F/M Characters: Ada Wong, Leon S. Kennedy Relationships: Leon S. Kennedy/Ada Wong Additional Tags: Ada Wong Loves Leon S. Kennedy, Ada Wong Being Ada Wong, Leon S. Kennedy Loves Ada Wong, Married Leon S. Kennedy/Ada Wong, Undercover, Undercover Missions, Undercover as a Couple, Undercover as Married, Sunburn, Cruise Ships, Alternate Universe - Cruise Ship, Mission Fic, Summer, Summer Vacation, Leon S. Kennedy is a Sweetheart, Aeon summer week read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/J8Bvjef

[pink-strawberry-kissess]

aeon summer week - day 1 - beach day

THEY DESERVE A BEACH DAY

tag list @aeonloves @a-phantoms-shadow @fleurdelily @kittenslady @maristarfish @cutecherrykisses @poisonarrow98 @cbros5

reference used here [link] but i lost their twitter handle! so if someone can let me know who it is, please let me know!

[aeonloves]

one more aeon week ⛱️💭

introducing.. aeon summer week 🏖️ from 18 to 24 July !!

planned with @cherrycelsius (pic made by her too)

—

use #AeonSummerWeek when posting so it can be retweeted !

[ai “art” of any sort is NOT allowed]

[racsow]

time tree celebrant

The fading glory of late summer, a burning land on the brink of stark sleep. The fires burn and dance in the carnage of the forests. Celebrant specters of red-gold exuberance.

The fire: ephemeral towers of molten honey dripping upwards towards those neutral spectators in the night sky. Coruscating avatars of blinding rage snarling and reaching.

They are the eaters of history. They are the predators of life in all its unthinkable forms. What ecstasy these lights must feel as they swallow the storied pillars enmeshed in aged bark, crackling and curling and peeling, digested by the flames.

The trees: stood for a million years, more than all the minds of humanity could collective dream of imagining. They have seen winds and suns and rainstorms beyond count, watched species far older than humankind rise and vanish.

From their leafy boroughs they perceive the turning of the sky and the romance of the starscape, see it take stroboscopic form throughout millennia. Each distant sun like the tip of a paintbrush hair, blending and swirling into a maelstrom of the cosmos.

They are the true children of the cosmos - unbound by age or social binding, unmotivated by fear and desire. They are the observers of all, the watchers, the celebrants.

The fire lives for only a week, but it has eaten aeons.

[redheadinjapan]

Niigata Station Is Opening The First of Three New Sections

The Niigata station construction will soon start paying off as Niigata station is opening several new sections over the next few months. Ever since I arrived in Niigata a year and a half ago, Niigata station has been under construction, sometimes opening sections and closing others. However, we’re nearing the end of one of the major projects: the station building. Many new stores are set to open on the second floor by the end of March as well as the new bus tunnel under the station, and more will be coming before summer.

On March 27th, Niigata station will officially open most of the second floor. Two small sections–one on the east side and one on the west side–will remain closed until next month, but there will be almost 60 new stores available by the end of March. Most of the stores in this section seem to be food and snack shops, though there will be some general stores and services. There will be rice cracker stores like Happy Shop (soft rice crackers) and Bakauke (Niigata rice crackers), as well as coffee shops and cafes like Kaldi Coffee Farm and Tully’s Coffee. Everything from gelato shops to sake stores to snack stands and even a Japanese omelet cafe will be opening. There will even be a 500 yen store, adding to the existing bargain stores Can Do (100 yen store) and 3 Coins (300 yen store).

If you want more information, check out the Niigata CoCoLo website: https://jenic.jp/cocolo/newopen/#f1-east_wrapper

While the second floor will be open next Wednesday, we’ll have to wait a few more days for the new bus terminal under the station, which won’t open until March 31st. This new terminal is meant to connect the north and south sides of the station, which were previously separated by the station building. A combined B12/S61 line will go all the way from City Hall through Furumachi and Niigata station to Kameda Aeon Mall, making travel more convenient. Several other lines will also change their routes to go through the station, including S5, E9, and S9, and two morning direct routes will be added for S90 and W14/W24/W46, which won’t stop at the station at all. 

You can check out the new bus stop location map and routes here: https://www.niigata-kotsu.co.jp/~noriai/news/infomation/2024/2024_kouka_station.html

Even more excitingly, just today they opened a brand new grocery store in Niigata station! Seijo Ishii is the newest centrally located grocery store and the first of its kind in Niigata prefecture. This will be great for people living around the station and those passing through as there hasn’t been a grocery store inside the station since construction started. Seijo Ishii is known for its premium raisin cheesecake, cup desserts, and cheeses, and it features many great products from around the world. Next to Seijo Ishii supermarket is also Niigata station’s new tourism center, which opened earlier this month and has information about tourism across the prefecture.

Niigata station is opening a wide variety of stores for the first time since last year, which is especially exciting for anyone like me who lives in the area. And this isn’t the only change Niigata Station will see this year. In the next few months, even more stores will open along with the new first floor of Niigata station. Currently, the grand opening is set to be April 25th, just before Golden Week, while the last to open will be a small first-floor food court on May 29th. While there’s still work to do on the station, I’m excited to see what Niigata station has for us on March 27th.

[mysticdestiniesarchive]

Day 0: Your Mystic Destiny Begins

there's some things i want to say about this post and all the character teasers if you click read more, but the important note to make is that i'm missing some images for this right now but i still want to publish the post on the right day, so i just won't be including them for now! also possible spoilers for the games in the read more, you've been warned.

And so the final day of our countdown is here! Have you been teased enough? Are you ready?

[missing image]

[missing image]

Huh? What just happened? Looks like we got a glitch…

Well, we’re not sure what happened, this might take a week or two to fix, but since you’ve been so patient, we’ve decided to do a full character reveal!

finally concluding the initial character reveals! for anyone who knows the characters, you'll probably see the resemblance between the final character designs and these ones. and yes, the suspicious ginger man smiling at the top of the post is galinn.

unfortunately, i don't have two images from this original post. there's meant to be one above and one below the image of galinn, assuming the wayback machine was showing me all of the images it couldn't load. i think i may have seen this full post before, but i don't remember where and i hadn't archived then, either because the original tumblr blog was still up or because i saw it back when i was solely interested in information about the game's characters and not so much in development. i only checked the wayback machine for this post, but since i'd collected everything from the other character teasers a long time before i looked for this day 0 post, i couldn't remember how i managed to find them all. if i have some time to kill (probably after the summer this year), i'll try finding the missing images to complete this post.

oh, and if you were wondering, i'm pretty sure the missing images were just glitchy text that hinted at something, like galinn be able to see people interacting with the post. i don't really remember the exacts though, so don't quote me on that.

the other thing is that i tried keeping these posts as close to the original posts as possible, like keeping wording like "we present" instead of changing it to "i present" since there's only one person running this archive.

i did make one pretty major change to the posts, which was basically just deleting all mention of the game's kickstarter. i didn't want a situation where someone manages to stumble across a post mentioning the kickstarter and then get confused when there wasn't one, or think that i was trying to act like this was my game and was in the process of starting a kickstarter campaign for it. this whole countdown was to the kickstarter, and day 0 was posted at the same time as the kickstarter announcement! (i think, i don't actually know since i didn't bother looking at any of the kickstarter posts o-o;;;)

and since this may be the only post where all the guys' original designs are, i might as well talk about them all together here! i'll be mentioning a little bit of trivia from one of serendipity of aeons' art books as well, and i plan on making a full post comparing the different art books (there are two, their content overlaps in some places and differs in others).

shou was the first character drawn and written for in the game's development. he was originally an "oresama" type and managed to do a complete 180 by the time development ended (reminded me a bit of riddle from twst who went from immature brat to serious rule-follower). i think shou's original design definitely gives off untouchable cool guy, it's almost unbelievable that he turns into the absolute sweetheart in the game lol. the original definitely makes shou being a party guy seem more believable (i remember telling my irl friend after we played his route together that shou's the super popular life of the party type of guy and she got so shocked bc his final design looked so innocent)

apparently, tatsu was meant to look younger than his age, which i can definitely see in this design. while it definitely got dropped for his final design, he does look a little younger in his confession cg by the fountain. i think one thing i particular i love about his original design is the way his lips were drawn. i think they're sooooo cute!!! in that confession cg, they're drawn in a similar way to the original design and whenever i see it i squeal. i call them "lizard lips" bc it reminds me of a lizard's smile, and also slightly of toothless and light fury from httyd (like yeji from itzy). i also think kayo and sakuko have similar smiles to original design tatsu and always sob at how adorable they look when they show up in the game (litr the ideal adorable younger sis... also hikki's got similar lips but i don't want him as a younger sister)

i love shinji so much, both old and new <3 his original design was made with basically all his key character traits in mind: a calm, mysterious genius with a rocker vibe and fashion loosely based on japanese visual kei. i have to agree with the note in the art book that his current design portrays him better, but they both have a special place in my heart!! the only other detail that really sticks out about shinji's design is that his original design has the dyed bits looking more red, like described in some trivia on the old blog and in the game, but the final design definitely looks more pink than red, and while i do have a history of being absolute shit at identifying colours in people's hair, i've heard at least three people also say that his hair looks more pink than when it's described as red in game. but either way, pink or red, i love it :)

from the way he's described in the art book, original taku just sounds like final shou. an innocent lil guy who doesn't have a single troublemaking bone in his body. but then they decided to change things up with the childhood friend troupe and ta-dah! the quirky rouge we all know and love was born. it's not mentioned in the art book, but taku actually had a two design changes: one being the change from innocent to troublemaker and the other being quite minor, with just a few changes to his facial features. i think the change is quite noticeable between all three designs that were featured on the blog, and in-between taku did feature in a few of the art/sprite response posts, though i don't know which of the two updated designs were used in the official game art for the main menu and banners (i suspect his final one as the in-between design has slightly bluer eyes)

hikaru was the project's local design problem child lmao. he's just too complex of a character smh (hikki is like my inner monologue's daily punching bag, my teasing is my affection for him and it reflects in my ocs). hikki actually has three designs like taku, but the difference between all three is definitely more noticeable than taku's. the final design for him was decided to be the most accurate to what xel had in mind while creating him, and they were all relieved when the true hikki finally stepped up. the in-between design for hikaru is like his original design in the updated art style, but the final design is definitely the one that most screams "HIKARU" to me, especially considering how the in-between design looks like the youngest of all the love interests when hikki is meant to be the oldest by a few years. while the in-between design isn't used within the game as a sprite, it's actually the design used on the official main menu and banner art, and the sprite is used for the cover of hikaru's "before i met you" story!

[darkarfs]

Eleh - Floating Frequencies/Intuitive Synthesis II

The Flatlanders - The Odessa Tapes

Ken Camden - Lethargy & Repercussion

Library Tapes - a summer beneath the trees

Motion Sickness of Time Travel - Seeping Through the Veil of the Unconscious

Nicholas Szczepanik - Please Stop Loving Me

Gridlink - Coronet Juniper

The Caretaker - Persistent Repetition of Phrases

Alva Noto + Ryuichi Sakamoto / Ensemble Modern - utp_

Cryptopsy - As Gomorrah Burns

Gunship - Unicorn

The Breeders - Last Splash (30th Anniversary Edition)

Fair to Midland - Fables From a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times is True

Stortregn - Finitude

Sulphur Aeon - Seven Crowns & Seven Seals

The Reticent - The Oubliette Your man had a GREAT time this week. A great, somber, energetic, lysergic time.