Cosmic Aeons

Frosty sunset (4)

Elyssa threw a glance at me.
„I‘m sorry if that sounds depressing, I‘m…just so concerned about him…I‘ve been trying to tell him to watch out because of his fragile soul, but…he just won‘t listen…“, she added quietly. „He only told me that after I pried enough…“, I said.
Elyssa sighed...again.
This was clearly bothering her.
„Of course he would“, she replied, „it would just make him seem too human to admit he‘s not doing well for once…I guess his ego is just too big…“ Elyssa narrowed her eyes.
„You really seem to care about him…“, I concluded.
Elyssa smiled nervously. „Of course I care about him! He‘s my brother! Just because he behaves like a jerk doesn‘t mean he is one…“, she explained, „or at least that‘s what Mona always says…“
Another new name.
„…Mona?“, I repeated curiosly.
Elyssa was back to smiling. „She takes care of us whenever she has time. She‘s really important in Heaven since she‘s the head of defense…“, she replied, „…but whenever Aeon notices she‘s looking after him too much, he persists that he doesn‘t need a babysitter…“ She frowned.
He seems like the type that really wants to be taken seriously...
„Occasionally, she is a bit overprotective, but…“, she begun, „…she‘s the closest thing we‘ve had to a mother in a long time…“
Elyssa paused. „Either he‘s hateful because Mom isn‘t here or he‘s hateful because he‘s…dead“, she added hesitantly, „I‘m sure you‘ve gotten a taste of that already…“
I shuddered.
Too many times already.
„If he‘s harsh towards you, don‘t take it personally“, she added, „he treats everyone in almost the same way…Even though that doesn‘t mean he thinks about everyone in the same way…“
The only thing I could imagine he would think about me would be that I look weird and that I am annoying because of my excessive amount of nervousity.
Elyssa glanced at me. „Although I have been hearing him talk about you a lot recently“, she continued hesitantly, „maybe you can make him open up a little more…“
Why would he talk about me?
That question again.
I nervously averted my eyes.
Was she trying to motivate me to get closer to him? She seemed awfully focused on that…
Elyssa shook her head. „I don‘t want to put too much pressure on you“, she claimed with a smile, „anyways, I have to go now…It was nice talking to you.“
She waved at me, then turned around and left.
I slowly climbed down from the tree to the ground.
Elyssa‘s words wouldn‘t leave me alone.
Still lost in thought, I started walking and before I knew it, I was out of the courtyard and back inside the house.
When I suddenly felt the air around me getting colder, I stopped.
I saw Aeon standing inside the hallway looking out the window.
I stared at him for a few seconds, contemplating if I should talk to him, but that issue was solved for me when Aeon glanced in my direction, flinched and turned around to me.
His expression was a mix between anger, annoyance, surprise…and some other stuff I couldn‘ t decipher.
„What are YOU doing here?! Stop following me! I don‘t want anything to do with you!“, he shouted.
It seemed his reaction was mostly caused by his emotions, not by any thought or sense.
I was still caught off guard by his hostility though and took a step back while I shivered.
I successfully stopped myself from tearing up.
Well, for a second my vision got blurry, so I guess it depends on what‘s defined as „successful“.
When seeing my reaction, Aeon crossed his arms and sighed, averting his eyes a little.
„S…sorry, I didn‘t mean to scare you…“, he claimed hesitantly.
I exhaled and tried to stop shaking.
Aeon glanced at me.
„I didn‘t realize you were there until a few moments ago…I guess reflex set in…sorry“, he added quietly.
Shouting at someone that you want them gone is what you do reflexively? That's concerning.
He looked back out the window while asking: „Do you need something?“
„N-no, I was just curios what you were doing…“, I explained nervously. I paused for a second while something in the back of my mind started annoying me.
„…Did you…die because half of your soul was replaced with another person‘s…?“, I asked quietly.
Aeon abruptly turned his head towards me and stared me down while narrowing his eyes. „You met Elyssa, didn‘t you“, he asked in a stinging tone. I nodded nervously.
Aeon tensed. „That…fucking bitch…“, he whispered quietly.
Wow, that's no reason to just suddenly start swearing...
He paused while the air around him got thicker and thicker and was starting to crackle with tension.
He glanced at me.
I couldn‘t look past all of the anger inside his eyes.
„Forget whatever she said“, he demanded threateningly, „she likes spewing a bunch of bullshit to make people feel sentimental. She‘s someone who‘s only interested in people when she can use them for her benefit.“
I didn't necessarily get that impression from her...
Aeon averted his eyes and sighed.
I could tell he didn‘t like Elyssa very much. Or maybe he was just pissed at her because of something at the moment.
Siblings tend to have quarrels with one another after all...I knew that even without having any.
„Anyways, I have to go now. And don‘t annoy me with stupid questions like that ever again. It‘s best you just stay away from me…permanently“, he added quietly, then he turned around and left.
I wouldn‘t be surprised if his last few sentences were a desperate attempt to make me stay away from him.
Because of how much he was telling me off, I knew that I shouldn‘t get attached to him, but it almost seemed as if, because he was trying to get rid of me, I wanted to get closer to him.
But getting attached to someone who doesn‘t treat you well will most likely drag you through the mud.

The next time we talked was after training, even though it was obvious he was trying to leave before I stopped him. „Wait!“, I said loudly while running over to him. Aeon grunted but stopped. „What is it?“, he asked in a slightly aggressive tone. „I... want to ask you something“, I replied quietly. „If it‘s the same question as last time, I‘m not answering it“, he added in an annoyed tone. „N-no, it‘s a different question…“, I said. Aeon crossed his arms and said: „Fine…Shoot.“ „Is it true that you were kidnapped?“, I asked hesitantly. Aeon averted his eyes. „That‘s true…“, he answered quietly. „And that was the reason your mom disappeared?“, I pried. Aeon tensed, then he nodded. „Were you held hostage in the same place?“, I continued. Aeon looked like he had been stung by a sword that had just been forged. He exhaled. „No“, he answered nervously. I stopped for a moment. „So…you were kidnapped by different people?“, I asked curiosly. Aeon turned his head away. „I can‘t say“, he replied. I blinked a couple of times. „You don‘t want to tell me?“, I pried further. Aeon sighed again while glancing at me. „No, what I mean is that I don‘t know“, he explained quietly. I stared at him for a few seconds. „…So…you don‘t want to talk about your soul or your mom“, I concluded. Aeon abruptly turned his head towards me. „I never said that!“, he countered nervously. „I said that I don‘t know much about Amaris…“ „But you‘re hiding something“, I replied, „of course you have to know about Amaris! She‘s your mother…!“ I paused. Aeon averted his eyes again. „I‘d understand that if you had never met your Mother but…“, I added, „…something‘s telling me you must‘ve been pretty close with your Mother…“ Aeon didn‘t reply. „I don‘t know anything about my parents…I don‘t even know if I have any…“, I admitted nervously. I felt Aeon‘s gaze wandering over to me. He was quiet for a moment until he asked: „…You…don‘t know anything about your parents?“ I looked at him. He seemed surprised. „…No…The first time I remember being conscious, I woke up in a lab, then I got out of that lab and got kidnapped by…“, I begun before I realized that talking about that might not be such a great idea. „Do you get it now?“, Aeon asked, breaking the silence. I threw a confused look his way. „Do you get why I don‘t tell you some things?“, he asked, „there‘s some things you don‘t tell me and there‘s some things I don‘t tell you. Maybe it‘s better that way.“ He looked at me for a few seconds before turning around and leaving, again. I stared after him. Was he just looking for an excuse so he could keep his secrets?