Aether Centric One Shots 🔞 bttm!aether

Golden Apple Archipelago

Summary: Aether decides to bathe in one of the small waterfall areas from the islands, finally excited to relax after finishing his commissions. He doesn't know a certain alchemist has taken notice of his nudity from the distance and has decided to join him after brief sketching. Aether doesn't mind the company, in fact he ends up quite enjoying it.

Rating: M 🔞

Pairing(s): Albedo/Aether

~.~

There was something refreshing about being at the islands that made up the Golden Apple Archipelago. Aether was somewhat thankful to Alice, Klee's mother, for arranging something like this for her daughter. It was very sweet and it warmed everyone's hearts when they heard the message she left behind.

Aether had just finished his commissions and asked Jean if there was anything else he could do while he was at the islands but the Acting Grand Master told him that everything was taken care of and that he should take this opportunity to have some fun—now that the sun was bright and the breeze felt nice on the skin.

He wanted to argue but even Paimon said he needed to relax for once, and that she was going to go check out Klee's fish blasting techniques anyways.

Finally he sighed and relented, setting out to explore the islands on his own since everyone has gone off to do their own thing.

He finds a small area a top one of the cliffs of an island, finding an area where he can see the beautiful view of the Golden Apple Archipelago. He can see Jean, Klee and Paimon from up here, the tiny girl using her pyro vision to blast fish that would come close to shore. Only a few feet away was Razor doing his own thing, probably enjoying himself as well.

The others must be around the area as well but Aether doesn't have time to dwell on it as he moves on to explore around. He finds a few berries on his way and decides to snack on them, the tangy flavor taking over his taste buds.

Something catches Aether's attention from the corner of his eye. He saviors the last berry as he makes his way to the small waterfall that caught his eye. It's connected to a body of water surrounded by smooth rocks, the perfect size for bathing in it.

Aether takes off one of his boots and dips his toe in the water, the fresh feeling against his skin making him want to soak his entire body in the water. The sun is still out and the area is secluded enough for him to quickly bathe without getting caught. Not that he thinks it will happen, since everyone else was doing their own thing anyways.

He takes off his other boot and reaches up to take off his shirt, the breeze that briefly hits him making him shiver. Fingers hook onto his pants and underwear, sliding them down his slender legs until they pool around his feet. He steps out of them, bending down to pick up the clothes so he can put them in a beat pile nearby. His gloves sitting snug at the top of the pile.

The traveler is so immersed as he slowly sinks down onto the water, that he doesn't hear a snap of a twig nearby. The sound of the waterfall masks the sound, making everything around fall on deaf ears. He sighs in content as the water surrounds him, his feet touching the rough bottom as the water comes up just above his waist.

A gasp comes out the blonde's lips as he remembers to unbraid his hair before he sinks his head in as well. Quickly untying it he turns around to put the tie somewhere he won't forget to get it from—and he finally notices a shadow of a person coming from one of the trees in the distance.

There he was, the alchemist Albedo with his sketchbook in his hands, his pencil moving quickly against the page and Aether feels almost self conscious when he realizes who he's sketching. Teal eyes meet golden in the next second, and the artist pauses as he's been caught.