#aetheryic

halsin would know her face anywhere. it was burned into his mind, infecting his dreams, haunting him with every step he took. isobel thorm, the daughter of his enemy, the girl ketheric doomed the lives of countless for. the girl he had slaughtered in a moment of sheer desperation. it was in that moment that halsin tore apart his enemy's world, and with it, his own.

gods, if he could have taken it back, he would have.

but if he remembered her face, then surely she would remember his. the man who took her life, who condemned her to the cold dark of death. how could she ever forgive him for what he had done if he could not even forgive himself?

her power lit up the air, beautiful and hopeful. was she frightened? was it a warning? or was it a cruel sort of kindness she offered to him now?

ker stares at zenos with an expression barely hiding a well of anger. not at zenos, no, but at the fact he exists in the state he does. laurel, as his heir, is something like a 'child' of his, meaning zenos would be kostas's inheritor-- and if kostas is to have a descendant, as his partner ker must claim shared custody.

zenos then belongs to ker, too. and someone has harmed him, sullied kostas's soul. the colour of aether that would otherwise glow uninhibited is besmirched. ker's disgusted snarl deepens as zenos speaks of his past.

ker's facial expressions tend to be minor, fleeting smiles given and then gone. almost none can claim to have seen him showing anger, much less having seen that and survived. yet here zenos is— and ker isn't angry at him, he's angry at something past the prince. "your family?"

that shouldn't be done. "have you killed your father yet, then? or has my star done it?" laurel, gleaming thing in his visions of the past-future. ker scoffs at emet selch's name, disdainful. "pathetic! pathetic, that he should destroy so much of one, especially if i assume he could recognize you as he could laurel..." ker paces a few steps, then turns abruptly on his heel to face zenos again.

Fun in the Sun

❃ "A sand castle?" Came Odtsetseg's query, as she tilted her head at the young elezen. Eyeing the pile of sand he was building up, xaela pressed a curled index finger against her chin. "I admit, I have never done this before."

- This was the truth, for her homeland did not offer much in the way of play for children. Neither did it possess much beaches, for growing auri to relish in. Twas not until she and her father began their travels that Odtsetseg beheld a proper beach for the first time. Regrettably, they had no spare hours to enjoy its splendors. Ever busy and eager they were, to arrive at continent the other half of their family was whisked away towards, duo rarely ever stopped working towards goal.

- But that was long ago, in a past which she can never go back towards. Twas best to set her sights forward now, onto a brighter tomorrow.

- The Island Sanctuary was truly a blessing for her. A place where she could rest beyond prying eyes and even let Luu finally fly about freely. Naturally, she kept its location a secret to most not merely because Admiral Merlwyb told her too but also so xaela may have some peace. Au ra had inadvertently become quite popular over the years, especially after saving the world multiple times. There was a growing concern that this side-effect would attract many unsavory individuals towards her, so having at least one place to get away from it felt comforting.

- Amethyst rimmed with lilac shifted towards clear, costal waters. Waves sloped up and down the white sand, like someone's hand caressing lover's cheek gently. Unclouded were the blue skies above, as a gentle breeze moved across skin. It was the perfect day for the Scions to have a beach party. Xaela in turn, was more than happy to host the festivities. Turning gaze back towards less fiery twin, she picked up a bucket.

My muse has amnesia, send "Remember me?" for your muse to be the first to talk to them when they wake up. @aetheryic

Vincent blinked away the sleep from his eyes, then turned toward the direction of the voice. He was slightly startled from the intense gaze, but as he relaxed, his eyebrows slowly furrowed together. For some reason, he felt as though he knew the man hovering over him, but...

"I...don't," he murmured. "I..."

howl's moving castle sentence starters. / @aetheryic

a lover's words, and too sweet for her taste. tsuyu's mouth curls in old habit--though she likes to think she's making good progress in diluting her bitter crone's heart down into something softer for gosetsu's sake, the presence of zenos galvus (yae no longer, she supposes, from what news has come to doma in the time since she's become tsuyu) makes all her old wounds flare: including the deep sorrow of a young woman unloved by all in the world, even her only patron. zenos' clear disinterest in a woman who could not fight him had been better than what she was used to. better than her brother's torment, her husband's drunkenness, her father's resentment.

but the cruelty rises too, unbidden, at seeing his face after all this time. the emptiness in his eyes, not unlike her own. "protect?" tsuyu spits the word, her white hair blowing gently in the wind. her heart hammers in her chest, old fears rising up, but gosetsu stands in the distance. tsuyu knows he would never let zenos hurt her. "perhaps this is the tale you spun to your new eorzean compatriots to gain their trust. but i know the truth of who we are, and the monstrous sickness we carry." she turns her face away, as if disgusted, but mostly it's grief, her mouth a tight line of distress. once, zenos was the most powerful man she knew, and cowering behind him was the safest place she could possibly be, but now? where is his armor, his sword, his cutthroat demeanor? worse, what is he thinking about her? white hair, no makeup, a practical traveler's outfit. pathetic, both of them.

“Y’know what the key to winnin’ is?” Meiko could not help but intervene, after watching poor Alisaie lose at the crane game twelve times in a row. Even she got something after three or four tries! “Have a drink afore tryin’ again. Calms the nerves.”

“Perhaps if you would stop shouting at me for one second, you would notice that I am packing.“ pov divorcing nero OK IM DONE U ♥️♥️♥️ pov divorcing nero becomes infinitely difficult to stop him from going NUH UH // ask meme // accepting

Nero will not stop shouting at him for a second. Or he will. He does, crossing his arms and leaning back to glare at Cid and the bag he's packing with great distaste. This idiot. Thinking he can do that. Again! There are rules in this arrangement. "What, you can't just leave." That is because Nero must wrest back control and Cid can try and pry it from his teeth only after he's dead. "I obviously noticed you were, and it's a good thing, too, as I'm kicking you out." Cid can't divorce him if he divorces Cid first. That's what matters, keeping control here, and Nero is obviously in that and very good at it.