#a.ether g.enshin i.mpact

[danafeelingsick]

Novemetober 2023

@monthofsick

Prompt list | Masterlist | AO3 collection

Day 5: Undesirable character

Word count: 1,1k~

CONTENT WARNINGS: descriptions of vomiting, of food, nausea, burping, stubborn sickie

A/N: not too happy with this :( for the record: i didn't like lyney at first, but now i regret skipping him, he's cool and he's highly whumpable. and another thing, i think it's silly the traveler was so cold to him during the trial, but i did like how they grew to trust him and his siblings. and thought it would be cute to write something like this. might've turned out more overindulgent than the angsty comfort fic i had in mind. i might do something more detailed with it in the future!

         A shuddering sigh escaped Aether's lips, breaking the silence hanging awkwardly around him and his flying companion, who just shot him an anxious glance. Trying to distract himself from the growing boredom, he traced the outline of the playing card in his pocket, with his finger. Lyney was late.

         In the last days they had met inside the fortress of Meropide, that would be a first for him, and while it would be fair to allow him a grace period, several minutes had already passed. What Aether was feeling was a mix of annoyance and a bit of apprehension. He was lending his help in the magician's investigation, and was still being left out like this. And then there was the matter of...

         “Ourrp—”, Aether burped discreetly into his fist, tasting his lunch in the root of his tongue. “...yuck”, he muttered under his breath while massaging his chest gently with his fingertips, trying to chase away the heartburn.

         “Ugh, don't remind Paimon”, the small fairy groaned, hugging her middle as she floated aimlessly by the traveler's side, like a deflated balloon. “Paimon doesn't wanna think about the horrible lunch we had!”

         “I didn't even say anything, you did”, Aether responded, his voice coming from the bottom of his throat. Now he was thinking about it, and his belly wasn't too happy to be reminded. “I don't know why you're being so dramatic. I was the one who had to eat both of our bad dishes...”

         “That's exactly why!”, Paimon stomped in mid-air. “We both had bad luck, you ate your seafood soup AND my onion soup! Now Paimon's hungry...”

         Aether let out a nauseated groan, loud enough to silence her, he had started to sweat cold. The memory of the suspicious-looking dishes he had forced down came flooding back, fish stench and greasy cheese churning restlessly inside his belly.

         “Stop— ugh, we'll get some food for you after this, okay?”, he hurriedly said, through his teeth. ”Just don't talk about it anymore.”

         “Really? Oh, you're too nice, traveler, hehe”, Paimon cheered, flying around him, which she only realized was a bad idea as she saw Aether wince with nausea. ”Ah, sorry! Now, if only Lyney would show up —”

         Paimon stopped talking as she picked up on footsteps on the metal sheet flooring, turning to their direction. Aether only heard them when they closed in, raising his gaze to find the pair of twins standing there, Lyney already smiling apologetically at him, and Lynette, with an unamused expression.

         “Oh, hi two! Some slackers you are, keeping us waiting”, Paimon greeted, briefly cordial as she already jumped to accusations.

         ”My sincerest apologies, friends. We had some trouble getting to our meeting spot, but we're here right now”, Lyney said, with a small bow.

         Lynette simply shrugged, muttering an apology, which Aether took as an opportunity to change his posture, and strategically cross his arms over his belly. While it wasn't the most comfortable position, it was his best shot at hiding the noticeable size of his abdomen. His exposed midriff was nearly pink, the skin stretched over his upset stomach, making his discomfort quite obvious.

         “So, what's the plan?” Paimon ushered them, knowing they didn't have much time to talk.

         Aether's face scrunched up as soon as Lyney started talking, leaving his companion to lead the whole conversation. The idea of working with a fatui didn't sit right with him, especially one that had lied and deceived him, but at that point it couldn't be helped.

         The traveler briefly closed his eyes, his stomach was churning viscously, leaving him disoriented. It was already hard to tell which way was up when all he could see was metal and rust inside that underwater fortress, but now it seemed nearly impossible. The ever present musk of sea salt and humidity was making the nausea even worse.

         “Did you get all that?”, he felt Paimon nudge him, bringing him back to the conversation.

         Aether grunted, shifting his weight. “Y-Yeah.”

         Though he tried to act like he had been paying the least bit of attention, Lyney gave him a curious look, his green eyes pinning him in place. A second of silence hanged in the air he spoke up:

         “You seem a bit pale, friend. Is everything alright?”, the magician asked, and at first, Aether took his tone as mocking, seemingly shrinking in place.

         “Let's just finish this so I can go back to my — OoUrP!”, he started before a rather loud belch cut him off, his hand flying up to his mouth as a small splash of bile came up with it.

         If at that right moment a portal to the abyss opened in front of Aether, he wouldn’t hesitate to jump into it. His face immediately flushed a bright red as he felt the twins’ gaze closed in on him. He swallowed hard, trying to keep down the rush of hot acid pooling over his tongue. Lyney gave him a worried glance, stepping in his direction

         “Ah, I suppose we could… take a break? You really don’t look well”, Lyney offered, to which Aether, hand still pressed to his mouth, shook his head vehemently. “Are you sure…? You look like you might —”

         A noise akin to a wet muffled gurgle leaves Aether's mouth, unable to protest before he feels his abdomen squeeze, a thick mass of undigested food inching closer to his mouth. He turns on his heels, stumbling a few steps away before he vomits onto the floor.

         In between coughing wetly over the puddle of his regurgitated lunch, he hears Paimon shriek, and light steps coming his direction. Lyney appears in the corner of his vision, kneeling by his side. He doesn't hesitate before he reaches out, gathering Aether's hair in his hand.

         “You could’ve just told me you weren't feeling well”, he tells him in a playful tone, brushing a few strands before his ear. “Now, try to get it all out, okay?”

         Aether scowls, about to argue he doesn't want his help, but he doesn't get the chance. His stomach squeezes again and he leans forward with a harsh retch, bringing up another thick wave of cheesy clumpy vomit. It splatters wetly in front of him, missing his boots by little. Lyney seems disaffected by it, keeping a firm hand on his back.

         Aether groans miserably and spits into the puddle, trying to rid his mouth of the sickening taste. He is faintly aware of the stare crawling up his back, though Lyney’s presence somewhat distracts him from it. He rubs his back lightly, his demeanor gentle, almost brotherly, a small chuckle leaving his lips.

         “I think we’re done here. You should pay a visit to Sigewinne”, he suggests. “Do you want me to help you get there?”

         Aether nods, defeated.

[strawberrynsugar]

the way i took an embarrassing amount of screenshots during this scene (⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄) 

[geodeism]

added two new rules to guidelines. 

⋄ If you were / are part of the F.ate RPC, I ask that you don’t follow me, even on your non-fate blogs. I have little pleasant memories from it and would like to remain unaffiliated with anyone from it.

⋄ Given how ambiguous G.enshin I.mpact is about ages, I’ve grown uncomfortable with characters who the appearance of teenagers being shipped with adults, ex: A.ether / L.umine. I won’t unfollow if we’re already mutuals but I ask that you tag your ships so I have a way to blacklist them. Ones who are confirmed adults like V.enti & S.caramouche are okay, but depending on the ship itself, might squick me out.