hereās the calendar- iāll also post the individual prompts day of for each!!
image id: the calendar for etherpod hype week. there are leaf decorations across the calendar. the prompts are, in order:
sunday, december 12: Phoebe & Dorothy or Snow
monday, december 13: Avery & The Meat Lady or Hot Cocoa
tuesday, december 14: May & June or Trees
wednesday, december 15: Avery & Irene or Soup
thursday, december 16: Phoebe & Holly or Library
friday, december 17: Aden & Carol or Day Off
saturday, december 18: Irene & Rose or Dancing
iāll reblog any work made during this week, so long as itās tagged heart of ether, etherpod, or etherpod hype week. you can also tag or dm me to make sure i see it!
[ID: three coloured sketches of Holly Murray from the Heart Of Ether podcast set against a soft green background. Holly is an east Asian woman with her black hair in a choppy pixie cut, she has a stylised tattoo of an owl on her left shoulder done in simple black lines. The first, and largest, drawing shows Holly standing casually. She wears a dark gray tank top, brown pants with a black belt and a green jacket with black accents slung off of one shoulder to expose her tattoo. Her hands are tucked into the pockets of her jacket and she looks off to the side with a suspicious expression.The second drawing is a simple bust showing a side profile of Holly, with her looking behind nervously. The final drawing shows Holly with Phoebe Wood (a darkskinned black woman with round glasses, a white collared shirt tucked into a purple skirt and her dark fluffy hair tied back in a ponytail). They embrace softly, touching their foreheads together. Phoebes far arm comes up around Holly's shoulder and neck, and her other arm cups the back of Holly's head as Holly's hand rests on her waist. Phoebe smiles softly with her eyes closed and Holly looks down at her with a tender expression. END ID]
haha holly youāre so cool pretty please donāt make me regret liking u so much please hahaha (ft a bonus phoebe bc i love her with all my heart and iām trying to figure out her design lol)
image id: a colored pencil sketch of irene gray and rosemary quinn. irene is an afrolatina with long hair up in a bun. she wears a black unitard and black ballet shoes. rose is a white blonde woman with short hair, dyed pink at the end. she wears a pale pink leotard, a bright pink tutu, bright pink toe shoes, and black tights. irene holds rose in a dip, while rose holds her arms out dramatically. the second image is the same as the first, but colored with colored pencils. end id.
cant believe hype week is over!! have some dramatic girls i love em
Ireneās investigation of the dirt monster leads her to unexpected places. A Mabel/Heart of Ether crossover, and spiritual sequel to Birds of a Feather, though it should be readable without having read that first.
on AO3
Irene knew that going back into the forest alone (not counting the phone in her hand, cracked but still recording just fine) was probably- no, definitely a terrible idea.
But Irene also knew that there had been more to that living pile of dirt and branches than a family of rabbits, no matter what Aden thought, and she wanted to prove it, to learn the truth of what lay within the forest.
She had her phone, she had her radio, she would be fine. Probably. Hopefully.
āSo, my big monster-hunting trek with Aden yesterday was... kind of a bust.ā Irene laughed a little to herself at that understatement. Aden probably thought she was crazy before, if he hadnāt already come to that conclusion.Ā āMaybe the problem was that two of us were there, and it didnāt want to show itself to both of us at once--strength in numbers and all that. Maybe I have to be alone to see it.ā
Irene clutched her phone tightly as she added,Ā āWell, Iām not entirely alone, am I? I have you, Rose. Iām recording this for you, after all, even if... if youāll probably never hear it.ā
A soft sigh emerged from Ireneās lips as she approached the spot where sheād seen the monster before.Ā āThe pile is still there, same as before. Doesnāt look like much right now, not when itās standing still. I can see how Aden thought it was just a rabbitās warren, though I still think... well, this should help me figure out the truth, one way or another.ā
Irene looked at the pile of dirt and branches for a moment before turning around, making a point of looking away from it.Ā āAden was right about one thing, though, staring at it probably isnāt going to help. I was looking away when it started moving before, so...ā
Irene waited for a moment, watching the trees shake in the breeze. The branches behind her rustled, the noise growing as she hesitated to look back.
āOkay, letās see. If it really is just a bunch of rabbits living in there, I swear-ā
Irene never got the chance to finish that sentence.
The ground underneath the branches moved and swelled, and Irene had to suppress her initial instinct to run away--sheād done that already, and it hadnāt gotten her any answers, only a series of new questions that remained unanswered. Instead, she watched the mass of dirt rise and writhe, moving slowly but steadily in her direction-
Until its movement suddenly because fast and steady, faster than Irene could manage to outrun (especially with her ankle still aching from the previous dayās fall), and this time, when the chase was over, Irene wasnāt the victor.
Her phone flew out of her hand, falling unceremoniously to the forest floor and shattering; Irene winced at the sight of it, even as the ground pulled her under. Aden was right, she should have backed up all of her recordings, but, well, it was too late now.
The earth engulfed her, and soon Irene was falling and falling and falling, with thickly-packed dirt on all sides of her, no sign of when her fall was going to end-
Until it suddenly did, leaving her on... was that a wood floor?
The landing wasnāt as bad as Irene had feared, but then, that wasnāt saying much. At least she was still conscious at the end of it all. At least she was able to get up afterwards, even if it made her muscles groan.
āI... I donāt know where I am now. Under the dirt, somewhere, it pulled me in, but it- it looks just like someoneās house, with light streaming through all the cracks in the walls. And symbols. Lots of weird symbols all over the walls... maybe Valencia would recognize them all, but I sure donāt.ā Irene laughed at that, a sharp ugly laugh.
āI donāt know why Iām still talking to you. Even if my phoneās still working somewhere, thereās no way it could hear me from down here... it wonāt have any of this, itāll just seem like I... disappeared.ā
Irene paused for a moment as the words sank in.
āIs that what happened to you, Rose? One mishap, one run-in with the wrong monster, and then youāre gone forever? Do they even have monsters like that in Seattle?ā Irene made herself laugh, though she wasnāt feeling it.
āI donāt know what these symbols mean, I was kind of hoping one of them would look like a rose, that I could take that as some sort of- of cosmic sign or whatever, but no such luck. There is a rabbit, though, made of white light, shining through the wood. Follow the white rabbit, right? Like in Alice in Wonderland? Itās as good a plan as any, I figure.ā
The rabbit symbols were all facing the same way, so Irene wandered in that direction, examining the area around her as she walked. The walls looked like those of an old wooden house, but some of them were leaking water through the seams, while others had--was that a deer there, hiding in the walls?
Whatever this was, it was definitely not a normal house, even if it might have looked that way at a glance.
The first door is the door of stone.
Out of nowhere, a wall of stone appeared in front of Irene--a wall of stone that, upon closer examination, she recognized.
āOh, itās--remember that park by our house that closed after sunset, or said it did, with the gate and those big stone walls? I can- I can see the mark you made here, Rose, from that time you stepped wrong when we were breaking in, and that one chunk of rock came off, and you sprained your ankle getting down after... what is that doing here?ā
Irene shook her head.Ā āDoesnāt matter, I suppose. What matters is, thereās something engraved on it now, and I know that wasnāt there before. It says...ā
āMy first is in fire, in frenzy and fame,
My last is in knowledge, in kindness, in knack.
A silence is central to knowing my name,
An absence once heard within learning or lack.
My whole is a term used for calling oneās kin,
And calling us, too, if you dare to begin.ā
Irene let out a long sigh.Ā āChrist, itās a riddle. I donāt know what I was expecting, but it wasnāt a goddamned riddle-ā
A deep breath, slowly exhaled, then another.Ā āItās fine, I can do this, I can handle this. Letās see. Fire, frenzy, fame--all start with F, so it must be a word starting with that... and ending with K, then? Though two of those are silent Ks, good thing this was written out so I could see them... maybe thatās what that wholeĀ āsilence is centralā thing is about, a, a silent letter in the center of the word?ā
Irene started pacing back and forth, though her eyes remained fixed on the wall.Ā āStarts with F, ends in K, silent letter somewhere in there probably... unless itās a word that means silence or something instead...Ā āan absence once heard within learning or lackā... a silent L, maybe, or, or theyāve both got the letter A too I guess?Ā āCalling oneās kinā...Ā ācalling us tooā... itād be a lot easier if I knew who thisĀ āusā was in the first place...ā
Irene ran one finger against the cold stone of the wall as she paced.Ā āF, L, K... throw a vowel in there, you get falk, felk, filk, folk, fulk... Folk, is that it? Calling oneās kin, like, folks... or, or maybe theĀ āusā is supposed to be the fair folk, from old-timey folklore, or something?ā
The door rumbled before disappearing as abruptly as it had appeared in the first place, and Irene stepped forward into the space it had been occupying, continuing to head in the direction that the rabbit symbols were facing.
āOkay. See, I said I could handle it, right? There you go. Riddle: handled.ā
Not long after, though, another wall appeared, this one made of darkened brick.
ā...I jinxed it, didnāt I? Of course. Of course we werenāt done with the riddles. Thatād be too easy. Alright, what do we have here...ā
āMy first is a pronoun, assumed when untold,
That rhymes with another thatās hidden behind.
My second is beauty man coaxed to unfold,
A thing once created for others to find.
I live in your insides, in shadow and bone,
Yet I carry tidings of love when Iām shown.ā
Another deep sigh.Ā āAlright, uh. pronouns. Weāve got I, me, you, he, she, they... āassumed when untoldā could be a lot of those, really... But rhyming youāve just got he, she, me... I guess some people use he as the default? Unless itās not a pronouns itās rhyming with, but Iām not sure what elseĀ āanother thatās hidden behindā could be... so, starting with he, maybe?ā
āāBeauty man coaxed to unfoldā... nope, not getting that bit, though Iām guessing itās another word. So, two words, first one is he...Ā āI live in your insidesā, ick... wait,Ā ātidings of loveā... hearts are inside of us, but theyāre symbols of love... He, art- art is beauty... Is that it? Heart?ā
Again, the wall rumbled and fell away, and Irene walked forward.
This time, though, the corridor ended not in front of another wall, but in front of a door.
The third door is the door of nature.
āIs that my office door? Sure looks the part, though itās a pretty generic-looking door I guess, just plain wood... and, yup, weāve got another riddle:ā
āI once went above, heading towards the sky,
But also am found growing close to the ground.
As past becomes present, no longer I fly,
And much has been made of my nameās simple sound.
One lost but not found, one here and yet far,
I know that you seek me, wherever you are.ā
āThese just keep getting tougher, donāt they?ā Irene shook her head with a shaky laugh.Ā āāPast becomes presentā... so it, it used to fly, to go upwards, but it doesnāt anymore? And now itās near the ground?Ā āSimple soundā, so probably a short word...ā
Irene leaned against the wooden door, letting out a long breath as she looked at the carved letters.Ā āI bet youāre better at riddles than I am, Rose. You always did like wordplay and such, youād probably have this figured out in a heartbeat...ā
A beat, and then it clicked.Ā āWait- Rose. Rose as in rising, but past tense, grows near the ground,Ā āa rose by any other nameā...Ā āOne lost but not found, one here and yet farā... I am seeking you, Rose. I always will. Is that you, Rose? Are you the answer?ā
The door squeaked open, and Irene saw a chaotic scene unfolding behind it.
It looked like there was a party of some sort going on there. Music, lights, all the stops pulled out. But a lot of the guests looked far from your usual party-goers, and some of them didnāt even look human...
Irene took a few tentative steps forward, but she didnāt even notice the door closing behind her.
No, what she noticed was a familiar face chatting with two extravagantly-dressed woman Irene didnāt know, a face that made Ireneās heart ache and yet also made it whole again.
āRose?ā
āIrene!ā
Roseās embrace was warm and firm and right, and Irene never wanted it to end.
[ID: a coloured sketch of agents June and May from The Heart of Ether podcast, posing as if for a photo. May is a black man with his dark hair cut short, wearing a suit and a deadpan expression. June is a white man with freckles and strawberry blond hair pulled back in a short ponytail. Heās leaning against Agent May with a small smile on his face, his tongue sticking out and one hand around Mays shoulders, making a peace sign: END ID]
what- what if we both worked for a shady organization that dealt with the supernatural and were sent to investigate this really weird town together even though weāre basically polar opposites in every way but we gradually started to bond over the course of a few episodes,, haha,,, jk,,,, unless,,,,,
anyways s2 of the heart of ether is really good and more ppl should listen to it thank you for coming to my ted talk.
[ID: a full colour drawing of Rosemary Quinn from the Heart Of Ether podcast. Rose is a young Latina woman, short with a slightly chubby build, big hazel eyes, and thick, wavy dyed-blond hair thatās cut to her shoulders in a fluffy bob. She wears a pale pink dress with a flower pattern on it, a brown jacket with simple, colourful embroidery on the shoulders, cuffs, neckline and hem, with red sneakers that have little designs painted all over them. She wears a pale red ribbon tied in a bow on the top of her head. Rose is drawn in a sitting pose, with her legs tucked under her. She sits at a three-quarter angle with her head turned slightly to face the camera, her far hand nervously raised to her chest and her near one resting by her legs. She looks back with a nervous, almost fearful expression. END ID]
pov: you attempt to ask me something but just i start sobbing incoherently about rosemary quinn. you leave. i am still crying.
(plain colour and lineart only versions under the cut bc i was really proud of this piece lol)
