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The sun beamed down on the lake, its rays glinting off of the rippling water. It sparkled and shimmered in the sunlight, with little fish swimming around in its depths.
The two sat on the small hill of a shore, watching as their paper boats floated down the stream. The light breeze carried a sweet scent of flowers as they laughed and talked together, their minds free from the burden of everyday troubles.
“Oh, I just remembered,” Aether suddenly said. Albedo watched as he gently pushed the little paper boat towards the rest of the flock, peacefully floating nearby. “Let me,” and with that, he took one of the many pieces of paper they had prepared. “Wanna show you something.”
Aether creased the paper into a symmetrical diamond shape, folding one side down, the other up. Then, he began to crease the triangle sections together, slowly but surely creating a triangular-shaped head and wings.
Next, he carefully folded the wings inward, taking some time to make sure all of the creases were made precisely — more or less. Albedo couldn't help but smile a little at the sight of such determination to do everything right. He was just as curious to see the result.
And it was done after Aether tucked in the top corners to create a beak and tail feathers for the bird. A lovely white paper crane, its wings outstretched as if ready to take flight.
“Origami, is it?..” Albedo commented softly, admiring the little bird.
“Yeah. Learned this back in Inazuma,” Aether replied, a drop of pride seeping into his voice as he held his fragile creation. “Can't do a lot, but I do remember some of it. The local kids are still better at this than me, though.”
“I would assume it's because the famous Traveler barely favors doing paperwork,” Albedo let out a small huff. Aether rolled his eyes, but his smile widened nonetheless. “I'd love to see what else you can create.”
He placed the crane near himself and took another piece of paper.
“...Give me a couple of minutes. Or more.”
This one started with a square as well. After folding it several times, Aether formed a yet crude-looking preform of the body. He continued a bit slower, seemingly unsure of how to proceed. His brows furrowed slightly, as it usually happened when he felt confused — something Albedo had learned a long time ago. Eventually, he seemed to have figured it out — that, or he was awfully good at improvising. A split tail was formed, then was the wings’ turn; Aether worked on each side until they were both symmetrical, perfect enough. Finally, he folded the head and beak, and it was done. A miniature swallow.
His next creation was, perhaps, the most confusing to watch. It required quite a lot of creases, and took a while. A square, then a triangle, some kind of a cone; only towards the end it gained a resemblance of four pointed legs and a tail, then Aether gave it a relatively long neck, and, finally, a head with a thin horn. It was a unicorn.
This one Aether held most pridefully.
“That's the most difficult one I can do,” he chuckled, showing off different sides of it.
Albedo smiled at Aether's accomplishment, admiring the details of his work. He shifted closer and gently ran his fingers over the creases and folds of the unicorn, tracing them lightly. The one-horned horse came alive under his touch in a matter of seconds. The crane and the swallow followed short after.
Aether blinked, taking a deep, awestruck breath. The paper birds leaped into the air, one after the other, while the small unicorn jumped down Aether’s palm to run through the grass nearby. Amazed, Aether watched them without looking away for even a second. In turn, it was Aether's sincere reaction Albedo found most captivating; his ability to still get those sparks of wonder in his eyes, even though he had witnessed dozens of worlds and had seen stuff Albedo couldn't even begin to think of, was incredibly precious.
The paper creatures soon ran out of time, getting progressively more weary and still. Aether reached his hands out, and, at first, Albedo didn't even understand why — but then, as both birds landed on his palms, he realized: Aether was making sure they have a safe place to land, that they don't get hurt, even though they were merely paper to begin with. A sense of utterly pleasant, familiar warmth spread out through his body.
Oh, the luck to have met this beautiful, beautiful man.
As the birds fell into a quiet slumber, so did the one-horned horse. It settled down next to Albedo.
Aether noticed, of course.
“It seems he liked you more,” he said under his breath, the softest look in his amber eyes. “It was wonderful, Albedo.”
“It is but a simple trick,” Albedo replied, picking the unmoving unicorn up from the ground. It awakened some kind of a distant emotion in him, one that he couldn't name. “I can teach you, if you wish. And you'd teach me this Inazumian art in exchange.”
Aether's smile was warm. He, as a whole, was warm.
“Deal,” he chuckled, taking yet another piece of paper. “Well, I'd suggest you start with—”