When wilt thou save the people?

- Ebenezer Elliot, "The People's Anthem" -

Not once since she had been led into her small shrine, she had desired to be able to see.

Not even when she was certain that the place was beautiful, that the song of the flowing breeze when dancing over the meadow was the promise of a sea of green washing the borders of the small circular temple again and again... a temple made of the softest marble..., and that the deep roar that the wind sometimes brought - wind tasting of salt and moist and weeds - was the endless chant of the sea crashing against the foundations of the island; not even then, had she desired to be able to replace the sight her mind portrayed for the one the world offered her.

Sea, and meadows, and temple and island would never be more beautiful than the tapestry of lights and shadows that hid behind her pupilless eyes. The sounds and songs of nature she loved so much only increased that beauty, making the pattern vibrate, swirl and change. The visions behind her eyes were ever changing, ever evolving... ever different. Not even the colours remained the same... The small yet bright threads of the meadows would turn from deep green, to emerald, to deep blue... and bright yellow when the sun was shinning over them... Her temple, so hard and soft would fail to compete with the silvery mist she saw in her mind, strengthen not by the heavy marble stones, but by the very heart of Ortygia... an Island that oozed sheer power from its ageless core, an Island that in her mind's eye... looked just like the night sky....

Inhabited by angels. Broken, twisted, torn apart angels that kept bleeding and crying and suffering while sinking in their despair, yet ever-refusing any offer for redemption. They knew they were disgraced... they knew of their impending doom... they knew, that behind the seeress' eyes, they were dying threads. Bright and so desperate in their burning that Fate couldn't but act against them, hating their defiance, their stubborn pride in their suffering.

" Melaenis, show me thy wish... " Voice breaking the sounds of the night, hands darting forward and perturbing the silvery mist... intoxicating fumes changing in figure and burning into life, unseen by their slave and mistress yet never unfelt.

Fate in the shape of a golden crowned woman.

A Goddess, powerful and ancient as the titans themselves, merciless and deadly and terrible as only Love could be.

Fire and Gold made her hair, rosy ivory were her limbs... and every beating heart on Earth lay in her eyes. No thread remained away from her, no fate was untouched by her dart-like fingers.

Love.

Descending on everything and everyone with Her promises and secrets and bliss.

Cursing them all.

" Show me thy dream " Her breath was warm but felt cold compared to the warmth of the fumes that kept clouding her mind and enhancing her perception of what was and would be. Beads of sweat gathered on her brow, the nape of her neck grew moist. She licked her dry lips.

Embraced Heat she knew by heart.

" Show me thy wish " Hands traced imaginary symbols, arms stretched towards the heavens, unwanted sighs called for the Gods' attention.

And they listened. They always did.

The faint lights that surrounded her grew too bright to see. Humid marble greeted her knees when she fell, the pain echoing in the back of her mind. But she was not there.

She was listening. To the thousand little voices that muttered their nightly prayers, that confessed their daily sins. To the screaming Cosmos of the secret world that hid behind the Veils. Hundreds of colours surrounded her, hundreds of feelings made their way into her heart.

Yet she kept seeking the one that interested her, even when the others brought tears to her eyes and made her body quiver and twist, even when she knew that if she stopped... that if she were to listen -and answer- to some of them, she might save them... she went on.

There was no time, that wasn't her task.

All she had to do... was watch what others could not.

And then, only then, when her back had remained turned to both cursed and blessed, was when They allowed her to feel Them.

Bright stars that burned around Twelve paths.

" Melaenis " A question, a call, a decision. And once again, they listened and she was before Her. Before the Dark One, with Her ever-burning cosmo and Her ever-beating eyes. With uncountable threads... uncountable souls... attached to Her heart.

Oddly enough, She was singing. Words of old with an older meaning escaped Her wine-red lips, and the threads that hung from Her stirred. Another line, another reaction. The threads began to change colours, to darken... To leave the remaining paths and focus only on the Goddess made of Gold.

The song grew stronger.

The threads grew closer, dancing around Love, enveloping Her completely.

Desiring Her with no end.

The song grew stronger

The threads broke free from the other gods' contact and everything dyed a deep red. They were bleeding, but they did not mind. They were with Love, in Love, being Loved... even when they were dying, they did not care. After all, Love was the best reason to die for.

The seeress felt like screaming but knew it would be useless. What she was witnessing was nothing but the uncertain future, something she knew could not trust and could not change.

Melaenis' Wish.

" Show me thy future "

And the world shifted around her once again. The threads had disappeared, the paths were gone. Only Love remained, standing alone on a sea of blood, with crimson tears staining Her golden cheeks.

Bright eyes fixed on the seeress, turned even brighter by the pain that escaped from them. They could not see, they could not understand... they would not blame.

Love beat Her chest with Her rosy hands and fell on Her knees, a bundle of Gold and Light and Shadows and everything that was Human.

A demand?

A plea.

" I don't know " the seeress answered, but Love could not listen.

So Love screamed and sunk her hands into the crimson sea...

... and pulled.

This time the seeress' voice rose next to Love's, the latter screaming out of despair, the first one shrieking in horror.

Night hung limply from Her foster-sister's grasp, Love's fingers tight around a neck that was too pale, too still to be alive. And the form the seeress had always seen as a woman made of light and darkness where the stars and the moon found home, was nothing but a morbid shadow, a parody of the one she loved and cherished above all others.

With each demand, the hold around Night's neck tightened, witch each demand, the horror in the seeress grew. But she did not stop the trance. She had to see it all. She had to.

It didn't take long for Night's neck to break, Her corpse looking so much like a broken puppet... like a doll. Ragged and twisted and in so many pieces...

But Love did not see, did not care, and in Her despair kept shaking Her, kept drowning an already dead body in a sea of red.

Dead eyes rolled in their place and fixed on Love, dead hands reached to return the embrace around Love's neck. And dead lips opened and breathed into life.

And Night's body tore apart, revealing Darkness too great to stand, too terrible and hungry and vengeful to stop... Darkness that fed on Night's body and devoured the horrified Love before She could escape. Darkness that stretched and expanded, covering it all... destroying it all and moving so close to the seeress... towards her... whispering a prayer the seeress knew well.

" Enough! "

The seeress took her hands to her eyes and dug her fingers into them, her voice rising over the Darkness'.

" ENOUGH!!! "

Darkness smiled and shook Her head.

And devoured her.

" Thea.... "

Pentesilea was shaking, still a prey of her vision even when it had already ended. Cold sweat ran over her body, making her thin tunic stick to her body as a second skin.

" Thea... "

But Her Goddess could not listen, could she? She was dying -or was dead already- in a place that she could not reach.

" Thea... "

The sweet and intoxicating scent of the fumes was overpowered by another scent, also sweet yet nauseating, which came from a sticky liquid under her face.

Blood?

No. She would have noticed if something had happened to her body.

Her own vomit.

Could be. Probably was. It wasn't the first time her visions revolted her and made her body retaliate. She could force herself to witness them, but she could not make her body accept them.

" Thea.... "

After all, she was only Human.

She sighed. Then sobbed. And finally cried, curling up her body and hiding her head between her arms.

" Thea... I beg of you "

But Artemis could not do that for her.

Artemis was...

".... dying, bleeding, drowning... drowning... drowning.... Thea!!! " And the last word was her despair, and her pain, and the result of her never-ending visions.

Yet She would not.

Would She?

Even when her mind was divided, when her mind was still a prey of what she had seen, she could hear light steps approaching...

"... Thea? "

The steps stopped for a second, but whoever it was did not leave. She could smell it in the air, a faint scent of sandalwood and soil.

" Who is it? " she asked meekly, trying to sit upright yet failing. So weak...

She heard breath catching. She heard the steps reassuming their march towards her.

Blind eyes tried to find a shape amongst the shadows and failed. It was then when she ignited her cosmo.

And Ortygia burnt to life in the shape of a thousand cosmos, and her shrine was once again made of silver... and the presence approaching her took shape... first of black and crimson energy... so angry and violent and all the same beautiful and magnificent... and then of a seven-headed monster she knew like few did.

Pentesilea sighed and stopped her cosmo from burning, the world turning black once again. Her body lost its stiffness and her eyelids covered her silver orbs.

The steps grew closer and then stopped, just to be followed by the rustle of silk, which sounded oddly musical to the seeress' ears, as the presence knelt by her side.

Warm fingers reached for her cheek, following her cheekbones softly. She let them do so, welcoming the feeling of their knowing caress.

" I fear to ask what you saw this time... " A cold, deep yet utterly enticing voice whispered those words as lean arms gathered her in their hold as if she were a child, " I fear your visions when they leave you like this "

She hid her face against a neck that was soft and burning, placing her arms around it as she allowed the welcomed intruder to take her away from the spot where the Island spoke to her, and into her shrine.

" My weakness when handling them has nothing to do with their meaning. There is nothing to fear from the Future " she muttered. The intruder chuckled darkly.

" Then I should ask? "

The breeze had stopped. Pentesilea figured they had already reached the centre of the temple. Arms shifted her to accommodate her weight before they started descending some steps. The centre indeed, and the stairs that sunk into the earth and towards her chambers.

" Nothing stops you from doing that "

They got to the rooms.

" Would you answer if I did? "

" ... "

A soft mattress and thick covers replaced the warmth of the arms that had held her when the intruder left her in her bed. Her hand reached for him, closing around a thin, pulsating wrist.

" Thank you, Narcissus "

Long fingers stroke her own wrist lightly, sliding downwards to hold her hand. The touch was silky, feather-like... so unlike her own.

" Don't mention it "

Voice deceivingly warm, yet so easy to believe in. So easy to follow...

Pentesilea let him go and shifted on her bed. The shudders had mellowed, fading away next to the remnants of her vision. It was always so, her mind would always push what the Gods showed her into the depths of her psyche. It was the only way of surviving... that and...

She started, letting out a surprised cry when the wet cloth was pressed against her forehead.

'' Sorry. Too hot? ''

She shook her head.

" Too cold? "

Perfect, as everything he was, as everything he did.

" Somewhat comforting. As expected "

A faint smile crept over her lips, knowing that under his mask, Narcissus had mimicked it.

" Is there anything you don't expect? "

" Not really "

A game for most that she felt the need to start. A necessity for them that she had no shame to ask for.

She felt the mattress giving in under his weight when he sat by her side and moved to make him some room.

" Nothing at all? ''

The tone in his voice had not changed, keeping that knowing hint in it, that certainty that only an overpowering sense of being above his kind could grant him.

Most persons would stop the game there. Most persons would not see what lay behind his voice...

" I expect you to touch me "

Fingers burned on her cheek, their touch so soft, so... fleeting, yet already having her at their mercy, already closing the wounds the vision had left in her mind and making her think of something else...

" And what you expect to happen... does it always come true? "

She sat up and reached for the back of his head, her fingers closing around silky hair and pulling him closer.

" I expect you to fuck me "

He laughed once again, his breath warm against her neck.

" You haven't answered my question "

Pentesilea let out a delighted gasp when he got hold of her wrists and pushed her away from him. She tried to break free and laughed when he wouldn't let her.

" Be still "

So low it could have been a whisper, so overpowering that it could only be a command.

" You know the answer... " she said playfully, her breath catching in her throat when hearing a metal click on the floor, which was soon followed by the murmur of clothes falling.

He straddled her waist in a swift moment that caught her off guard and leaned over her, feverish hands finding their way under her clothes with ease. She arched her back under his touch and closed her hands on the pillows by her side, knowing by experience that she would need to cling to something... anything... to withstand him.

" I do...? " He could have been talking to Melaenis herself, so calmed and controlled was his breathing. Pentesilea would have believed it too, that Narcissus did not want anything from her, that he was only following the game for her sake. But she knew he was dying in the inside, burning so high that he needed to do this to her to calm his hunger. She could tell it by his desperate touch, by the enticing caress of his hardness against her stomach. She could tell it by his overpowering Cosmo.

" Always " The words were ice coming from her lips, ice that made him stop and try to look into her silver orbs for the full meaning of her answer. But there was nothing to see.

" That is your answer "

For a second, a single fraction of time... she thought he would leave her. That he would move away from her, would stand up and leave.

Leave her alone with her ghosts, her visions... the voices... terrible, godly voices...

But then his legs forced hers apart and he settled between them, pure fire begging for redemption in her arms, pure fire willing to burn all the pain that the whispers of the gods brought her.

She took one of her hands to his face, glad to feel the warmth of his skin instead of the coldness of the broken mask he usually wore, and pulled him closer. He laughed once again, in a mischievous, almost childlike way, and kissed her softly, lips barely brushing at first.

So soft...

Until he bit her lower lip and made her whimper, just to run his tongue over it seconds after and make her moan.

So hard...

" Always " she repeated as she gave in to those kisses made of pain and pleasure over and over again. It was an assault she could not win, she could not defend herself of. Between the hidden promises in his kisses and the despair and hunger in his touch as his hands claimed possession of every curve and angle of her body, Pentesilea knew she was fighting a battle in which she could not win.

She was... at his mercy...

And she knew it and had known it since the first time they had slept together. His passion and the pleasure he could give her had been the only balm able to mellow the presence of the visions, her only chance to keep her sanity. The other road... the decision of giving in to the visions completely, of turning into nothing but their servant... was something she was not willing to thread. Her mind she would not yield. So she accepted his embraces without question, without love, without feelings except that of need, and let him do with her what he pleased. Let him take her... for she knew that he would make her feel, that he would worship her body long enough for her to face the cruelty of the divine messages with a cold heart and a rational mind.

It was a fair exchange, that she would yield to his embraces because pleasure was the only thing strong enough to keep her sane, and that he would take her to satisfy his body's cravings because she, from all the inhabitants of the island...

" I... can't see... you " she let out between strangled moans, lifting her hips to press them against his throbbing manhood.

It was so simple, so... clear for them. She needed sensations and he needed sex. Loveless sex, deprived of feelings to the point that their rare meetings had turned into nothing but a search for pleasure... into a ritual, in which she gave everything and he took all that he could, until leaving nothing.

" But you can feel me " he purred in her ear, his breath caressing her exposed neck. She gasped when one of his hands travelled to her lower body, her legs spreading further apart in anticipation, " Can't you? "

She wanted to tell him that she was strong enough to withstand his curse, that, if she were to see him and love him for that, she would not die. She wanted to tell him that, if he wanted, she could take as much as she gave and free him like he freed her.

But she said nothing and nodded instead, her brows knitting together at the feeling of the welcomed intrusion, her legs immediately closing around his waist to pull him deeper into her.

He was as merciless as she had hoped him to be, seeking her every moan, her every scream, with a passion that she could not match.

And only then, when her hands were tight around the bed-sheets and her body was possessed for the sake of mere possession, the vision started to lose its strength... the unconquerable fatality that had made it strong... and it began to crumble.

First around the edges...

She cried out, suddenly breathless, her mind focussing only on the feeling of her body tightening, clenching around him... and finally subsiding in a wave of pleasure that felt as if her whole body was dissolving... melting...

It was then when the very heart of her vision.... its core... lost its shape... and it mattered no more. Not while he rocked her with every thrust, not while her body was lifted and crushed by pleasure over and over again.

He gave in to his own pleasure then, knowing that he had kept his part of the deal and the moment to claim for his own had come. Caresses turned brief, kisses vanished and the fire within turned pure white.

And he dissolved into that fire, and let it burn him, giving to his body what his body had desired.

He collapsed by her side, panting heavily, his breath almost as lost as hers, and allowed a name that was not of the woman by his side to escape his lips. A whispered reminder of what could have been... an end to the ritual.

Narcissus hid his face against the pillow and smiled impishly, tempted to stretch his cosmo beyond the boundaries of the island, beyond the sea that surrounded it and into a mortal's soul, to let him know what he had done... to caress his mind as much as he had caressed Pentesilea's body. It was a temptation he knew wouldn't give in to, but the thought was too delightful, too sweet, as to let it go that promptly.

But it was just a dream, and there was no place for dreams in Ortygia. He rolled on his back to face his lover instead and drink on the sight of her naked body, finding so much beauty in her glistening skin, in the way her chest rose and fell with every breath, in the way her sweat gathered on the curves of her muscles. An amazon's body, strong and powerful.

And for a brief moment, while the dim light shifted over her ebony skin, it was also beautiful. Wrapped with the kind of beauty -true and unblemished beauty - that lasted a single second and was so overpowering that nothing could be done except marvel at it and wonder how such rapture could exist.

So different to his own; forced, violent... extreme... so perfect that it made him inhuman. So perfect that only their goddess... their defeated queen... had looked upon it. For the rest he wore the mask. And for his lover...

He knew that for her he was nothing but a shadow... Cosmo at most, whenever she would scan him... but never something else.

That was why he fucked her. That was why he did not use the mask around her. Because she could not see him.

But she could see the world they live in ... she could see the future and the events that would come to pass. And that he wanted to know.

In the sake of his curse.

" Pentesilea... " he said, sitting up languidly, " ... what was it this time? "

She smiled, satiated and strong once again. Strong enough to face the vision as if it were nothing but a nightmare. Her hand reached for his cheek, caressing it softly. He let her, used to her flawless perception.

After all, she was like him... one of the Nine... Blessed and cursed and so perfect that they could be nothing but monsters.

" Everything " she began, her voice sounding slightly amused, only to turn deadly seconds after " I saw Mors, Narcissus, I saw Nyx " She shifted on the bed, turning her back on him and reaching for the covers. "No matter what we do, She won't be able to withstand that... she is... doomed... and as the Goddess she is... she will take the world with her ''

Narcissus frowned slightly, used to Pentesilea's cryptic way of talking. The world... that included Melaenis... that included Love... and as long as Love were to die, he could allow the end of the world... he could allow their Goddess' death.

He had to. That was his sole reason for being. His revenge on a goddess that punished his pride to the extent of bonding him into the cycles so tightly and helplessly as to suffer again and again over a sin he had not committed, over a sin he had no way to fight back. His fingers traced his own face idly, used to the flawless perfection of his skin. He was tempted to sink his nails on his cheeks... but it wasn't something he hadn't tried before. Slashing and digging until blood was all he could feel on his face. Wishing to mar his face, to break free of his curse by getting rid of his face, of his fine features, meant to mark him forever.

The wounds always healed overnight. No matter how deep he made them, no matter if he used his own cosmo against himself, the sun would always welcomed him untouched.

Perfect.

Cursed.

He sighed. " I see... "

Pentesilea arched her silver eyebrows, then laughed. " An absolutely untrue statement, Hydrus. You don't see a thing. Fortunately. My knowledge on your hands would be disastrous... "

" And you still tell me what you see? "

" I like disasters. We are in dire need of one of them right now, and I fear our twisted Harpy will be the one to bring it... She is so selfish... the only disaster she will bring is for herself... but... "

" What? "

" But selfishness is not always wrong... and selfish reasons can bring the disaster I long for. I hate what I see, I really do... but someone has to see it... and if it has to be me, I want to see it to completion "

Narcissus' mind raced next to her words, trying to measure how far he could go. How much he was willing to give.

His only desire was destroying Melaenis, no matter who might stand in his way.

No matter what.

But...

There was always going to be that single scream... Artemis' cry of despair at the sight of what her world had turned into, a cry of rejection and sorrow... a stab imbedded deeply into their souls. Days had gone by, and never had the island been less hers and more of Melaenis... but that scream had fulfilled its job, had made Artemis' return... her sacrifice... worthwhile. They were hers once again, her preys... her children... her own.

And even when he was only there to destroy the reason of his curse, even when he only followed the Huntress because she would always oppose Love...

Even then, when his reasons were selfish, when they had nothing to do with her, when she knew that much about him and had accepted him anyway... even then, he was hers.

" For that we need time "

Words that cut the silence, words made of ice.... sickles growing closer to their necks.

" What will you do, Hydrus? " Fear in the seeress' voice. She was unleashing a monster... humanity's most inhuman creature... their most perfect child.

" I will give us that. Your disaster " he savoured the words, getting off the bed and reaching for his clothes. Finally, his fingers closed around the broken mask on the floor. Edged and broken yet the same feeling that Artemis' voice had proclaimed lived in that piece of metal, voiced by another soul. " Melaenis will have her double-edged sword in the shape of my hands. She will have the monster she created so thoughtlessly " Narcissus put on the mask, finding its presence so intrusive... he had never got used to it, but he found that fair. To feel that it did not belong made the punishment sweeter.

" She will have my fealty, and Artemis... she will have her life "

Pentesilea tried to read the weight his words would have in the future, feeling suddenly cold and vulnerable. The balance was still there... distorted and about to snap, as it had always been... but it was there. She snuggled against the bed, sinking in the heap of pillows that were scattered everywhere. The scent of what they had done was still in the air, but her heart could not believe that the man she had lain with was the same one that was speaking now, detached and so far away of any feeling... so unreal, even for her proving Cosmo.

So willing to sell his soul for a cause he did not believe in.

He stopped at the doorway before climbing the stairs, his eyes fixing on the ebony warrior on the bed. On his lover. The old feeling returned; the knowledge that neither she nor her visions would ever be able to withstand him. No one would.

" Till your disaster claims us all "

She did not want to climb the steps.

Marin looked up and cursed under her mask, her eyes travelling to her destination. The white temple looked deceptive enough, smaller than Aries and Taurus, its walls less ornate. If one looked behind it, glimpses of the architectural magnificence that Cancer was could be caught.

Yet even when the rest of the temples were more imposing, larger... breath-taking, the councillor would have preferred to enter any of them in exchange of being able to avoid this particular one.

Even the x-shaped Cancer.

But her fears and wishes were unimportant compared to those of her Goddess', and before she could notice, she was already climbing the steps with a self-assurance that she doubted would be able to maintain when facing the owner of the Temple.

The owners.

There was no one outside, yet that did not surprise her. The danger was inside.

Just where she had been asked to go.

She stared at the carved figure on the right wall, mimicked to perfection on the left one. The only design that graced the temple.

The only mark -only yet proof enough- that she was standing at the entrance of the third house.

" Gemini " she whispered under her breath, fingers tracing the marble. Sanctuary's most perfect weapon, their ultimate defence.

The place everyone feared and silently worshipped. The House of the Traitors.

The House of the Twins.

For an instant, she doubted the wisdom of her decision of climbing on her own. Aiolia would have been more than willing to escort her - if she had told him where she was heading in the first place. But for some reason, she had wanted to do this by herself.

She wanted to do this.

But Athena had not ordered any Gold Saint to take care of this, She had asked her, a former silver saint... a warrior no longer wearing a cloth, but forever bonded to the piece of metal that had hidden her face since her childhood.

A warrior She trusted, a warrior that would not disappoint Her, no matter the fear and doubts that ailed her.

" Gemini " she repeated, this time louder, leaving the carved wall and heading to the entrance, releasing her cosmo as she walked, dark blue energy surrounding her cloaked body.

The backlash was terrible. If the other houses counted with their imposing facades to bring fear and respect in their enemies' hearts, Gemini had its inhabitants' cosmos entwined with every marble stone, with the very foundations of the temple. Gemini exuded power, not physically, but in a level that felt almost... spiritual...

It made her feel as if she were committing a sacrilege by entering the temple. As if she were defying the Gods.

The voice spoke right to her soul, the same soft, understanding voice that had been able to turn Sanctuary against its Goddess... a voice to follow

Another voice, similar... yet so different. The softness was gone, replaced by a teasing edge, almost playful... daring... the voice of someone that had risked the world in a whim... a voice to fall for.

The clear ringing of laughter reached her ears.

I shall not fear

They were waiting for her at the centre of the temple, Saga standing regally with his kind gaze fixed on her, Kanon leaning against one of the pillars, eyes closed and smirking impishly.

Human Gods.

The best Sanctuary had to offer.

She thanked the Goddess for her mask, knowing that despite her training, despite her coldness, she would have found it difficult to face them without it. The mask was her shield, her weapon. The mask was the only face the world should see. Blank and emotionless. Inhuman.

Fearless

Even of them.

" This is an unexpected visit, Marin "

Kanon opened his eyes, storms dancing inside of them. His smirk widened '' Who said she is visiting? Maybe all she wants is to walk through our temple. Something of her... interest lies above "

Saga arched one of his delicate eyebrows, giving a sidelong glance to his brother to later return his attention to the woman before him.

She shivered when sensing him through her cosmo, shivered at the well-known fatherly speech, at the way he called her by her name. She shivered because she knew that the one who was speaking to her was a murderer, a liar... a traitor... but still...

He was still the Kyoko. At least in her mind. And in the mind of every single saint that had got his or her cloth during his reign. In the mind of all that had served him. He was still their Father.

A broken, punished Father who no one would ever obey and everyone would ever fear, but the only Father they had.

" Athena asks for your presence at the Temple. Both of you "she finally said, ignoring Kanon's teasing remark and Saga's concern.

" Don't tell me... " Kanon began, moving away from the pillar and walking towards his brother, '' ... that this has something to do with her sisters' doings? "

" I am amazed. I thought your self-imposed seclusion kept you safe from Sanctuary's rumours "

Kanon looked at her with half-closed eyes, the dark lashes obscuring their clarity. The smile was still on his face, yet no longer teasing, but amused. " Rumours fly fast over here. Peace turns Saints into chatter-boxes... specially Gold Saints. They are hopeless "

" Kanon... " Saga placed his hand on his brother's shoulder, shaking his head ever so slightly, '' This is not the time for pleasantries "

His twin glared at him " It's time to climb? "

Saga nodded.

And then, just as Marin had expected, Saga's cosmo burned into life, and the real inhabitant of the Gemini Temple... the golden, cursed and powerful inhabitant... was summoned. And just as it had done years before, it embraced its wearer... the one that seduced it first... and came to life.

The Gemini Cloth had returned to its rightful owner... which made Marin understand what Kanon had meant by they. Gemini was his brother's again. For an instant, she wondered why had he not fought over it. After all, the same cloth had also -and would also- embraced him.

Or maybe that was the very reason why he had not made his claim. Gemini was theirs, no matter to which of them it answered.

If she tried hard enough, her cosmo could even feel the way the Cloth's power seemed to stretch beyond its metallic body to embrace the other twin, the one that had loved it in the name of his brother.

" We will see Her "

Marin nodded at Saga, drinking on the sight of the Gold Cloth around his body. Perfect weapons, the twins were, graceful and beautiful and so extremely powerful that it made her wonder how such beings could be nothing but mortals. Their identical physical beauty, the slender yet strong bodies, the palely golden skin and cascade of blue hair already made them outstanding... something any God would desire to possess, something no mortal would dare to touch and would worship instead. Yet Beauty was not the only thing that lived in them. Their minds were bright... cunning... and their power... their power had no match, not now that they were together and fighting for the same cause...

They were, Marin thought as she led them outside, the effigy of what a Saint had to be. The model from which all of them should be carved and should strain to turn into.

And as every soul in Sanctuary remembered and would never forget, they were also their greatest enemies.

For an instant, Saori wondered if what she was going to do was correct; the sudden reality of it all catching her off guard. She wondered if her decision was somehow unlawful.... unjust. A part of her that she refused to recognise as her conscience was telling her that her course of action wasn't the one that was expected of her. That it wasn't the one that had been bargained for. Shields should be clashing; swords should be rising. Screams of outrage should be escaping from her pouted lips.

Actions should be taking place... not that silent... that cunning, almost treacherous... waiting.

But as she watched the people reunited around her, the Saints -her own, her children, her warriors- that had suffered so much and gained so little, she knew that her choice was already made and she would not take a step backwards.

Unjust or not, she would not start a war that was not hers. She would not waste the lives of those that trusted her.

At least not in vain.

After all... Sanctuary was safe. The only sin committed against her wasn't really such... no matter how much she wanted to think the opposite. She had learned to accept that in the weeks that followed Tatsumi's death and Artemis' departure... and fall. Melaenis had planned her strategy well... she had taken the life of a mortal... an unclaimed mortal of no importance to the gods... to any of them, and Athena, powerful and wise and just... extremely just Athena, had no reason to start a war against Love over that. Regardless of how Saori felt on the matter.

Yet... if war were what she wanted... she could start it over Artemis. To help the one that had helped her once, and pay off the debt that was over her shoulders. That was what her conscience kept marking as a duty... as something she should... had to... do.

But Artemis had not asked for help, and she was not planning on offering it. Already she had turn blind eyes to the fact that Cygnus had left Sanctuary in order to take care of the Huntress, and she was not willing to make more concessions.

That was probably the reason why she had summoned them. The reason behind the decision that seemed so wise and appropriate to her mind, yet so unfair and somehow disloyal to her heart.

" My Saints"

Identical faces looked at her with love and devotion in their eyes. Traitors, Saori screamed in her mind, a shout that she knew was echoed in both Marin's and Dohko's heads, her advisors and witnesses. Swords, Athena whispered to herself. Scythes.

Her Kyoko and her Councillor agreed with her, even when she had had no need to ask them what they thought. Though they weren't pleased with her choice of pawns, that much she could tell by the stiffness of Marin's body and the way Dohko's masked face would not turn from the kneeling duo.

" Saga... Kanon... " She savoured the names, the slight tingling that they brought to her spine. The little remnants of fear, a feeling they had taught her well, and she had made them feel in return " I have a mission for you... a quest of sorts " she began, her eyes reading into theirs, trying to catch any glimpse of possible rejection. There was none.

It was slightly frightening, that they, the ones that had betrayed her... the twins... would look so much like the perfect warriors... that they would be... so much what she expected in her followers.

Maybe that was why she had let them live and accepted them back in her ranks. If they were able to do what they did to her, she could barely imagine what they would do to her enemies.

No, Athena did not have to imagine. She had witnessed it. And there was no Specter left to tell.

" You won't be alone, even when you will be in charge. A lower Saint will go with you "

She smiled at Kanon's slight smirk, knowing what they would feel when she brought that up.

" They will not be there to watch you, yet I find their presence will be... useful and necessary. In both cases " This time she had puzzled them, of that she was sure. The Goddess in her was pleased... and the mortal... the mortal was getting a strange pleasure at the knowledge that she could make them wonder... that she could have the ones that had tried to kill her on their knees and at her feet.

" I want you to be my eyes, my ears... and my voice " she added, motioning Dohko to walk forward. The Kyoko obeyed, and spread his hands before the twins, offering each one of them a golden ring, carved with the figure of an owl.

" Take them, they are for you " She nodded in approval when they followed her order. " Now, to the task itself... Saga... "

The wearer of Gemini met her gaze squarely, the angelic kindness that graced his face pleasing her. " I want you to take a message to Poseidon. Ophiuchus shall be your guide "

She caught the way Kanon narrowed his eyes at the appointment she was giving his brother. " She knows the way... Dohko will tell you what I want you to discuss with him, and I expect you to come with an answer that will please me. Poseidon will like your manners as much as I do... and your looks will remind him who won the war "

Kanon smiled at her when she spoke to his cosmo, the teasing smile that so opposed his brother's kindness letting her know that he understood and approved.

" Will you take this task, Gemini Saga? "

He vowed solemnly. " Of course, my lady "

" I wonder if your brother will take the one I will offer him... " she added softly, smiling tenderly, almost motherly at Kanon.

" Your task will be to watch and listen, Gemini Kanon... your task will be to go to Ortygia and ask Melaenis what are her plans when it comes to Sanctuary. I want to know if she is a threat "

" Chameleon will go with you. Men are not welcomed in the island unless a woman is with them, and I fear most of the activities there will be forbidden to you even if you manage to enter the Island "

" Will you fulfil this task, Gemini Kanon? "

Once again, the nod and the solemn vow.

::: I trust you will not disappoint me :::

The rush was there... the doubt about what the future would make of her choice. How would they act... how would they deal with the fact that she was giving them the freedom to betray her once again. A quest, she had told them, to play the part of mediators on what was to come and save Sanctuary from more bloodshed. A test in reality. To see if they were hers, if they would die if she were to lose, if they would fall with her if the odds were against her.

Or if it seemed they were. The mortal Goddess unconsciously caressed the edge of her rod, her fingers following the golden circle that crowned it.

Victory was with her. And by the acceptance in the twins' eyes, she was sure they knew that.

No matter who were to rise against her. She would conquer them all...

Dohko watched the twins as they left, once again led by Marin, just as they had entered. He wondered what kind of game Athena was playing. She had not asked for his advice on this, she had not even told him what were her plans, and he had had to find them out by himself when she asked him to find a craft-man to make the rings. Messengers' rings... diplomats'...

That had been surprise enough... yet to see her appointing Saga and Kanon to that task was even more unexpected.

He had not thought she would take a decision so suddenly, considering the state she had arrived in after her trip to Japan. Something had broken inside of her there, and he was unable to pinpoint what.

Something in her smile... had changed. Had made her ancient out of a sudden...

And he was sure that she had not healed yet. He could see it in the darkness of her eyes, in the feelings that sometimes seem to scream through them.

It was probably as hard for her to accept what she was doing as it was for him to understand it. She was sending traitors to the task in which she needed her most loyal servants... and she was ignoring the Huntress.

Dohko looked at her through his golden mask, wishing he could ease her pain and brush away the tiredness from her eyes. It was in times like this that he felt his age... when he was able to look at his Goddess and feel that she was so young... too young to have such a weight over her shoulders.

The fate of humanity was a heavy burden.

Yet he knew that no one but her had what it took to handle suck task.

Her eyes met his gaze, and he knew he was shuddering. It was if she were able to read right into his mind... No... Into his soul.

" Speak to me, Dohko " she said, resting her head against the soft velvet of her throne. He wondered if she knew how regal she looked. Just like a queen of old.

" I don't know what do you want me to say, my lady "

" That you think that I am making a mistake. That I should send others... Seiya, perhaps. Shiryu " A smile graced her lips, " I want to know all the little doubts that are in your head. After all, I always trust you with my own "

" I do not doubt you, my lady "

" Saori "

".... excuse me? "

Anger flashed in her eyes as she stood up, her wide white skirt dancing around her in a sea of silk. " Saori. I want to be called like that right now. Do humour me, my Kyoko " There was a teasing edge in her voice that caught him off guard. Indeed something had broken inside of her... and whatever that was, it had given her a confidence that he did not remember she had in her from the last conversation they had had on their own.

" I... can't do that "

She sighed and rubbed her temples. Yes, she was tired.

" Then call me Athena. You can do that, can't you? "

He nodded.

" Good... now speak. I won't ask again "

" ... you are taking risks, my la-... Athena "

" Am I? "

Dohko thought about brushing her cosmo with his own, but knew that it would not only be futile, but also rude. What had changed? She was still the same wise girl with a heart too big for her own sake...

But that girl would be still suffering for her butler's death. That girl would hate Ortygia with a passion, and would be taking Artemis under her wing.

Unless all those feelings were inside...

Humanity did not become the Gods, and the girl was human, even when her soul was not.

" Maybe I am... but it's worthy, don't you think? "

" The twins are loyal... but I don't know if they are ready for the task you asked them to fulfil "

" That's just another reason to see if they can fulfil it " Saori stated, walking towards the mirror that had once been Saga's nightmare.

For a second, his mind returned to the gemini... to the one first loved by the Cloth... how had Saga felt when kneeling in the place where he had once stood? How had he felt when seeing all he had desired in the hands of its true owner?

Probably just like Kanon felt when seeing his brother wearing the Cloth.

" They are... unpredictable right now "

" But we have oracles, don't we? Psychics? They can watch their actions from here. Besides... " she traced the contour of her face on the reflection on the mirror. It was a lovely face, beautiful. It was the face of someone worth protecting and dying for. " I know what I am asking from them " she turned around to face his masked face, the dark pools of her eyes threatening to see all that he was, all that he could be.

" The change of peacekeeper is something that goes beyond our borders. It is something that matters to all of us, and that it could affect all of us. I need to know what will Poseidon's position be on this matter. I need to know where he stands, what he will do and who will he turn against. Saga will remind him that he should not stand against me, while Shaina's presence will make Saga's not offensive "

" Saga is not the one that worries me... "

" Nothing should worry you, Dohko " she said lowly, voice thickening with... regret? No, not that. Never regret, not on Wisdom's lips. " Not even Kanon "

He sighed and took his hand to his mask. Cool and soft.... and so inhumane. " The twins are faithful, it is not in them that my worries lay... " he began, his fingers playing with the edges of the gold mask, " It's been only two weeks, my Lady, and you haven't said a word " He clasped the mask and removed it swiftly, letting it rest on his hands " ... It's over you that I am worried about "

" Over me...? " she stared at him oddly, as if savouring the thought " Over Athena! " she snapped violently, her small hands closing tightly by her sides, '' That's your lady, and everyone should call Her that way! She's the one you fight for, she's the one you live for, she's the one you die for!! Not me! Never me!! Whenever all of you look at me you see Her, the statue, the cold, unmoving giant! " she returned her attention to the reflection on the mirror, reaching for it with trembling fingers " Never this....frail little thing ... Always the giant... never the vessel..." she pressed her hand against the mirror, the reflection mimicking all her movements " Because the vessel does not matter "

Dohko covered his eyes when the mirror shattered, his last vision being of his goddess standing among a thousand little sparks. When he looked again, she had not moved and remained still, eyes fixed on the place where her reflection had been, oblivious of the little cuts on the palm of her hand.

" I don't matter " she muttered, taking her hand to her heart.

" My lady... " Dohko whispered, walking to her side. She did not stop him when he took her hand and began to clean the blood with his tunic's sleeve. " I am sorry "

Saori tilted her head, eyeing him carefully. " What for? There is nothing you should feel sorry about. This is something I must accept... I must accept that all of you will die eventually for the Goddess I represent, I must accept that many of you already did ". She smiled sadly " I must accept that Tatsumi died for Her and that I cannot avenge him because his life, in the eyes of the Gods, equals the life of Artemis' beast... I must accept that even when Pegasus cannot live without me... without Saori... he will never dare to commit the heresy of loving Athena and will fall for someone else instead "

She moved her hand away from his hold and caressed his cheek lightly. " Don't look at me that way, Dohko. You know I am right. I must understand that, and only then I will be able to lead Sanctuary properly. My decision to send the twins to the realms was my first action towards this. Accepting that my life will always be tainted with blood was the reason. And trying to stop that blood from being from the ones I love is my goal "

Saori walked away from him, reassuming her regal composure. " Do not fear, my Kyoko. I will become the Giant you all want and listen to my mind... yet I will always temper that decision with what my heart... this vessel's heart... dictates. I will use the power these hands hold in what I should... and as I want "

She sat on her throne, meeting his gaze squarely, her dark eyes shinning full of love and danger. Dohko could feel his knees going weak at the sight of her, of his Human Goddess, suddenly so powerful and aloof as she had been vulnerable and in need seconds before.

" Now sit by my side, my Kyoko, and tell me all that I should know. Tell me how Shunrei is, tell me how my saints are, tell me what do you advice my next move to be " she said, smiling softly, offering him a truce and pushing all her pain inside.

" ...And call me as you please outside this temple, but between these walls... you will call me Saori "

Into nothing but lies

How could they expect him to understand that which he could not feel?

He was a warrior. No, he was more than that. He was a Saint. Seeing the world their way would only interfere with his duty... with that which he had promised to protect. Turning his back to that which he did not need made him stronger, and his strength was what Athena valued.

If She had wanted hearts, She would have surrounded Herself by sentimental fools instead of murderers.

And the rest of the Gods would have shred Her into pieces.

The only beating heart on Sanctuary had to be Hers. Her followers... had to be carved on ice.

Because the Love of a Goddess was enough to warm the world. Yet Their hatred could only be withstood through ice.

Had to do that. Had to. Had to. Regardless of the burning flame that threatened to incinerate everything he believed in, he had to remain aloof. Above. If not, he would be a lie.

But he already was one, wasn't he? How could he worsen a sin as deep as his own?

And there was no place for redemption.

" Don't say that... " he thought out loud, rubbing his temples forcefully. " Don't make me look inside myself " Camus leaned forward and rested his forehead against one of the pillars of his temple.

" Stop... torturing me "

Oh, he could. He could see it whenever he was around him. He could see it in the way he talked to him, in the way he looked at him. That was why he had to ignore it. Because he knew... And accepting that would mean to take a stand...

And he so wanted to ignore the logical choice and take the path that he had forbidden to himself... So better to remain blind, oblivious. Anything, as long as he could still pretend.

A question asked thrice, and never answered. First by his trainee, then by a Goddess... and lastly by his friend... or the closest thing he could have to a friend.

" Because... " he closed his eyes, trying to stand on their place, trying to see what it would be like to collide against himself time and again.

It was harsh, so harsh...

'' Because... "

" Because... " he frowned and hit the pillar with his bare hand, the marble giving in under his touch. If stone could shatter so easily... he did not want to think about how his fist might have felt like against Hyoga's skin.

" ... because... " He hit again, small shards driven inside his skin painfully with the hit. But pain was something he wanted to welcome. Anything to make him stop thinking. Stop feeling.

He was Aquarius', and Aquarius' alone, he could live without any other responsibility, he could live being only that. He had lived being nothing but that. A sword made of Ice for a Goddess to wield.

But that wasn't living, was it?

That was...

Worse than dying

" I don't know... " he muttered, sliding to his knees. He rested his hands on the floor and fixed his eyes on them.

" A Saint is above petty feelings. If a Saint were to allow himself to feel, he would be nothing but a Man "

" But a Saint, as a Man ... cannot but sin "

Yet only a Man turned Saint could manage to make his Sin his reason to fight. His reason to be.

" Goddess... " he growled, rubbing his eyes. He wished he could tell that to Hyoga. And to Isaac... Isaac would have loved to hear that...

'' But you already knew, didn't you? '' Camus pondered. Hyoga was risking all he believed in because of that. And Isaac... he had died with that knowledge.

Just as he had done.

He should have stayed like that, dead to everyone yet alive to himself.

That should have been his end. To be given life in the moment of his death was the perfect finale for an existence devoid of everything that made him human. To be Man, and die without having to live that way... in a way he did not know how.

But the Gods were capricious beings. Twisted creatures that adored irony... and loved him. And in their selfishness, they had to forbid him the end he had lived for.

In the name of Love.

" What do you expect from me? " he asked to an invisible audience, '' What I am supposed to do with your gift now? "

" All I need to know... " Camus whispered, standing up and looking around his temple's hall. It was a beautiful place, this... tomb of his.

" ... is why. The reason behind the flame '' He lifted his arms and closed his hands over his head. The elation in his Cosmo followed, yet this time it was caused by nothing but himself, but his own wishes and desires. Soon, his aura was burning around him, golden and powerful as it had always been. His Cloth's cosmo resonated with his own, bringing a faint smile to his lips. It would always love him. His child, his own.

Frost started to cover the ground around him, expanding towards the pillars and the walls.

Just as it had looked that day, when dusk was starting and his life was ending with it. Just as it had looked like when he faced his student and tried to kill him -would have killed him-, unless he gave him proofs that he was a Saint worthy of that title.

" Why did you wake up my heart? " he growled, focusing his Cosmo around his hands. His body, deprived of the Golden Cloth to protect him, was starting to feel the cold. If he, a Gold Saint, could feel it despite his Cosmo... a Bronze Saint would probably die from it.

Yet if Hyoga had withstood it, so would he.

" What do I do with it now??! " He fixed his eyes on the place where he had once stood ready to kill the person he had died for, and began to move his arms forward.

" Make me understand... " His Cosmo flared, Gold being the only colour inside the perfectly white temple, " ... why do I care??! "

Camus released his hold around his Cosmo, letting the monster he usually kept in chains get loose.

" Aurora Execution "

Speed had been her gift, and she had abused it since her birth. It had served her to escape... and to stalk. No matter how blessed or powerful her preys, none of them could hope to get away from her.

Because she was the fastest creature on Earth.

The Gods had decreed so, and what the Gods, the ones that looked at them in awe and wonder, gave to a mortal, was a gift... unique and impossible to surpass.

And Atalanta knew that she was gifted, she had known so since the moment of her birth, so many years ago, and had been the first thing she remembered in her rebirth. That she could move like the wind and run with the wolves.

That she could strike like lightning.

She had known... that her speed had no match.

Yet her speed... her God-given gift... was not enough to help the one she loved the most.

Gods were generous... but also unforgiving.

And it was their anger the one her sister now felt, their searing, heart-breaking vengeance. Because even when they knew their Goddess was a cornered traitor, they also knew that she had been the one to bless them... and now they had to pay for scorning her.

But her sister could not see that. All she could do was weep and cry and complain about how Artemis had lied.

" I'll kill her. For you I will do it '' Atalanta looked over her shoulder at the hunched blonde standing against the furthest corner of her sister's shrine, hating the hunger in those eyes. Hating their devotion.

" And you think you can take her down, Egeria? " Atalanta laughed bitterly, '' She is not Dictina... she won't offer you her neck for you to drink from it again " She turned around to face the older woman, " Besides, who knows what her blood will do to you now, my little cursed one "

" Fuck you, Atalanta " Egeria growled, her claw-like fingers twitching in the shadows.

" Fuck yourself, Harpy " she cooed, "No one else will be willing to do so "

Before she could shift her stance, Egeria was already dashing towards her, her claws reaching for her throat. But she was blessed, enough to be able to avoid the razor-sharp fingers of her fellow guardian and reach for her legs, her own hands closing around the Harpy's ankles and pushing forward, making her fall on her back with a shriek.

" Damn bitch... " Egeria growled, fire shinning in her eyes as she got up, " Damn you! "

Once again, the Harpy dashed, once again she was avoided. But her hunger -unquenched hunger - gave her an edge that the Serpent did not consider.

It gave her a chance. And the moment Atalanta got on her knees to avoid her right hand, Egeria took it, her left hand grabbing Atalanta's red hair and lifting her off the ground.

" Now who lost all her bravado? " Egeria whispered softly, her fuchsia eyes searching inside Atalanta's crimson gaze.

The Serpent did not answer and stretched her arm over her head to strike Egeria's instead, her cosmo starting to gather around her -cool and watery as much as the harpy's was made of heat and fire.

" You two, stop it! "

" Stop it... please "

They both released the other at the same time, ashamed at their own behaviour. They were the Guardian's first line of attack, honed warriors lethal due to their anger and speed. Unbeatable... yet human. And as such, they had human weaknesses.

In the shape of a small, skinny girl.

... it would mean that the only one it avoids... is me

" Forgive me " Egeria mumbled, the sweetness returning to her voice. It was strange, how a woman that was so near to being a monster, could have the voice of an angel.

" I... I don't want you to fight " the girl said, walking to Atalanta's side, " Please? ''

She smiled and nodded, unable to do anything else.

The girl beamed, hugging her tightly with her skinny arms. Atalanta sighed and patted her head with feigned reluctance.

" It's good to see you smile once again, Iphigeneia " she whispered, kissing her softly on her forehead.

The smile turned sad out of a sudden, the girl taking her hand to the wound on her cheek. No matter how hard they had tried, it had not healed...

" It's been too long for it to remain, hasn't it? " Iphigeneia thought out loud, brushing the swollen wound. " ... and now it's pestering... If I had been able to retrieve the arrow... "

" I will get it "

The youngest guardian tilted her head and waved her hand in the air to dismiss the subject.

" You know we can't enter the inner temple without Artemis, you silly "

Egeria smiled sweetly, just like an angel, with golden curls cascading over her shoulders, beautiful bright eyes staring at the world with a natural tenderness...

" Then I will make her let us in "

...and the most twisted parody of a hand resting on her chest to seal her promise.

" ... she shouldn't have attacked me like that to start with... " Iphigeneia said, hiding her face against her sister's chest. " ... she loves us, she can't... hurt us like this... "

Atalanta sighed, cupping her sister's face in her hands and forcing her to look up. Tears were welling in her hazel eyes, making them look dim and sad... a look so strange in her usually merry little sister. Only once she had seen that look in her, and she did not want to look back at the reasons that had provoked it. The past was behind them now, all they could do was look forward and march into whatever Fate had decided for them.

" She never loved us, my dear " she whispered, kissing her tears away, " She never cared "

Iphigeneia frowned, surprised at her sister's behaviour. Atalanta was not a person to show affection, let alone in such a caring way... almost as if she shared her pain, her burden.

" That's why... " Atalanta went on, her crimson eyes following the path of her fingers as she felt the wound on her sister's cheek, "... she made you this "

" All she did was secure her death " Egeria said matter-of-factly, running her twisted fingers through her gold-like mane. Atalanta felt tempted to tease her once again by the simple way her mind worked - the harpy always solved things with her kill them all philosophy -, but there was something in the certainty in which the blonde had said those words, so much between a statement and a promise, that made her hold her peace.

" But I don't want her to die, Eria! " Iphigeneia cried out, moving away from her sister and slumping on the marble tripod that served her as throne. " I want her to learn, to understand that we want the best for her "

" Speak for yourself, sister "

Atalanta could try her best at playing good sister to Iphigeneia, the goddess knew she owed her that much, yet she would not agree with every single nonsense that came out her pretty lips.

Iphigeneia tilted her head in thought, her hair falling messily over her eyes at the movement, " You know, you should work on your anger, Atalanta. It would do you good " She beamed. " I can help you if you want "

" Keep dreaming, Iphi " she retorted, frowning. Iphigeneia's idea of help usually involved rather painful methods that led to nowhere. Besides, she did not want to be rid of her anger, her anger was what was keeping her in the right track, what was showing her the way.

For she could understand that love did not exist in Ortygia, but she could not forgive the one that had, once, made her doubt that.

Iphigeneia pouted, looking at Egeria with distress in her hazel eyes.

" Everyone is so messed up here... No one understands me "

The Harpy smiled softly, walking to her side, " I do " she said devotedly, sitting on the floor by her side and resting her head on the girl's lap, " I understand "

" I know you do " Iphigeneia answered, stroking the woman's hair idly. Then she narrowed her eyes, once again thoughtful, " But you are insane, Eria, you don't count "

" Doesn't that tell us something? " Atalanta added, trying to ignore the bond between her sister, the innocent Monoceros, and Egeria, the heartless Harpy. Seeing them like that, the small girl petting the twisted woman as if she were nothing but her pet, was nothing but a reminder of what they truly were.

Monsters.

All nine of them, perfect monsters following an even more monstrous goddess.

But the thought was still there, the knowledge that they were too unstable, too... marred... as to be led by anyone but their Alpheia.

How could Love expect to understand them? How could she see the power she was trying to tame?

Inside Monoceros' shrine, the delicate white temple whose floor was dyed a deep red from the constant sacrifices Artemis had demanded, stood three of the greatest powers of Ortygia. Their berserker, their huntress and their inquisitor. A madwoman, a whore and a child. Atalanta wondered if Melaenis knew what she was doing, playing with people like them... She had to know. She was a Goddess after all

She was Love, and that was enough for Atalanta. The source of all Love could not deprive her of it. The source of all Love had to spare at least a single thought on her.

Yet she did not know if that was going to be enough for their Harpy and their Monoceros, that fleeting... sense of being...

" Love has no logic... love has no reason... love rules us all "

The red-head frowned slightly, turning her attention to the gate of the temple. From all people, she had not expected to see her there. She had not expected she would leave the White Temple and mingle with the mere warriors. There was a time in which she might have had... a time in which there were no differences between any of them... But those times were gone.

And all that was left... was anger.

" What brings you to the asshole of the world? " she purred, bowing theatrically at the delicate woman that was entering the temple. " I hope you did not come just to read my mind, High Priestess? "

Beautiful. That was the first thing that came across Atalanta's mind, even when contempt was in her heart. If Beauty existed somewhere in Ortygia, it was in that woman, in her delicacy and demure demeanour. But that beauty had somehow dimmed, even when the attitude remained the same.

Dictina did not answer, walking straight past Atalanta and towards Egeria and Iphigeneia with that regal elegance that was natural in her.

Iphigeneia smiled at her, blushing slightly.

Egeria grinned. Like a cat, she stretched before standing up, her movements seeming grotesque due to the malformation of her back, and then lowered her head and bowed as falsely as Atalanta had.

" Looking for more, my lady? " the Harpy asked coyly, running one of her twisted fingers over her perfect lips.

" I was never told if I am a good kisser or not... but I do know that I am able to take anyone's breath away "

Iphigeneia giggled at Egeria's words, covering her mouth with her hand to hide her wide smile.

But she didn't smile for long.

It took a single second and then it was over, but it was enough to silence them all. Iphigeneia shrieked, Egeria cursed and Atalanta backed away, glad that she was not the centre of their High Priestess' anger. For Dictina could be beautiful, but as any creature of the Island, she was also lethal.

First Egeria was mocking her, then Dictina... their Eridanus... stopped looking at Iphigeneia and glanced at the Harpy. Just... glanced. Before her cosmo pushed the blonde against the wall, the marble trembling under her weight.

It was a warning hit, something usual in their daily conversations. They had found that angering one another was a way of ignoring reality, and they needed that, all nine of them. But the fact that she, their High Priestess, had been the one to give it... had changed it all.

Because she had the Traitor's blood in her, and with her cosmo burning around her, playing with her flowing hair, once lilac, now midnight black, she couldn't but remind them of Her.

They were conscious that it wasn't the same person, they were conscious that, physically, Dictina and Artemis were complete opposites... but for that single second, she was able to confuse them and mess with their minds.

Until the second was over and Dictina had returned to her composed self, and them to their disobedience.

" It still refuses to heal, doesn't it? " she whispered, kneeling by Iphigeneia's side. Her violet eyes were fixed on the wound, inspecting it with an analytic gleam.

" The arrow was poisoned " Atalanta offered, still uncomfortable around Dictina.

" Oh, but it would be " An imperceptible smile spread on the High Priestess' delicate lips, " After all, our Unicorn faced Artemis. She faced the one that taught us all we know "

" It sounds as if you were praising her, Dictina " Atalanta growled, hating the darkness in her hair, hating the way she addressed them... just as her sister would have.

And you don't want our love

Violet eyes met crimson squarely, " I am "

She returned her attention to Iphigeneia, resting one of her lean hands over her cheek. " Stay still "

Iphigeneia nodded, keeping her eyes fixed on the High Priestess' hand.

" Midnight Boon "

Egeria growled and Atalanta cursed inwardly when hearing those words, taken aback. That was their Goddess'...

... technique. All of them had felt it at least once, when wounded during training. Artemis' healing skills honed through her cosmo and reaching their very souls... to make them whole again.

" It is a High Priestess' duty to be able to heal the warriors of her Goddess " Dictina said calmly, letting her cosmo mingle with the girl's in the small space between her hand and her cheek. " But even then... " she moved her hand away, revealing the wound in the same state that it had been before " The High Priestess will never be able to undo that which the Goddess decreed " She lowered her eyes and fixed them on a lock of her hair, " The High Priestess will never be able to take the place of her Goddess "

" Then we'll take her to Melaenis " Egeria said in defiance, still rubbing her back due to Dictina's warning, " Our Goddess will be able to heal her "

" No, she won't " Atalanta rolled her eyes when Egeria growled at her, " Melaenis is not a healing Goddess. She is beyond creating or destroying... she is just... Love "

" Then... you did it on purpose " the Harpy walked the distance between her and Dictina " Why did you take so long to come here in the first place?! Atalanta and I have been taking care of her for the last few weeks, when it was your duty to heal her! You wanted the wound to pester, didn't you? "

" Of course I didn't, Egeria. The time is irrelevant. I can't heal that which Artemis destroyed "

" You are her sister, for Artemis' sake! "

Dictina smiled at the mention of her sister's name. In the end, when anger ruled them, they couldn't but return to Her. Egeria did not seem pleased by the little trick her unconscious played on her, though, and neither did Atalanta. Iphigeneia was just oblivious to everything, whining like a dog at the pain of her wound. A wound that had started as nothing but a scratch on her cheek but was now growing, deepening...

Because they had scorned their God.

" And you are Her warriors. Yet that does not make you Her, does it? "

Egeria frowned and closed her hand on Dictina's shoulder. " Two weeks have gone by since the incident. You should have come here earlier, you would have healed her when the wound was still fresh... "

Dictina fixed her eyes on the Harpy's clawed hand. " I am sorry " she began, getting up and pushing Egeria's hand away with a shrug, " But I was too busy. Lord Eros demanded my presence at the White Temple. The place where I should be right now, considering my skills have proved useless "

" ... whore "

Dictina stopped on her track. " What did you say, Atalanta? "

" I called your name, that's all. Your sister did not mind it when I called her like that, why would you? After all, you are... less than her "

Yet to Atalanta's surprise, all Dictina did was sigh. A painful sigh, slow... and full of pity.

" You never understood, did you? " she began, turning to face her. " You... from all people... " Dictina walked to her side and placed her hand on her shoulder to lean closer " You see... my sister... our Goddess... did not mind all those times that you called her a whore... because she loves you and she would never... never... consider an insult to be called anything... that those she loves are themselves "

" Liar " she let out painfully, taking a step back just to find the cold marble walls against her back.

" Oh, you wish that, don't you? Like all of us... you want to be able to let the guilt remain on Her, when it is on us... but don't worry " Dictina hugged her softly and rested her chin on her shoulder, so much like a lover would do, '' I am not her '' she whispered '' but I, for all of you, will act like her... because that I know how to do... I am... her sister after all. That way, I will remind you of your mistakes, of your guilt. I'll be the effigy of your sins and whenever you look at me, at this puppet of a God I can't but love, you will remember that the ones that led us here... are ourselves. I will do that, because I can't love you my dearest Serpent... but I love Her "

" Let go of me, you bitch! " Atalanta shrieked, pushing her away. Dictina obeyed, giving her a look so full of pity that it made her want to cry.

" You are mad, Dictina. Mad and a traitor, just like your sister "

" Just like all of you "

" Don't compare yourself to me " Atalanta said through clenched teeth.

" Oh, I will not " the High Priestess answered, walking towards the temple's gate " Because even when I might have sold my body, I will never sell my soul "

" You can't leave yet! You still have to heal her! " demanded Egeria.

" I don't want to put a leash around your neck, my dearest Harpy. But I will if you don't leave me any other choice "

" Who the hell do you think you are talking to? "

" To my sister in arms, to my fellow guardian, to the one I used to see as a friend. I can't heal her, no matter how many times I try. Iphigeneia understands that, why can't you? "

" Because... you... " Egeria looked away, ashamed, " You are our High Priestess "

" But I am not your Goddess. And I doubt I can be called High Priestess anymore, at least not Artemis', and definitely not Melaenis'... but still... " she looked at the blonde warrior and smiled, " I'll do my best. If I can't heal her, I'll try to calm her pain. Is that fair? "

" Of course it is! " Iphigeneia cried out, returning her attention to the conversation now that her wound was the topic, " This thing hurts! "

" If she holds no grudge against you, then neither do I " Egeria let out, shrugging.

" Atalanta? "

The red-head remained still, refusing to meet Eridanus' eyes. How had she dared to play with her in such a way? To lie to her about the subject that mattered her the most? How had she dared to say that Artemis loved her, when all she had got from her were hate and lies?

" So be it " Dictina said, sadness softening her statuesque face.

- Ovid, Metamorphoses -

He felt the cosmo surge at Aquarius, the coldness spreading throughout his temple, just as it was spreading over the rest of the Houses.

Shura and Aphrodite were probably cursing the existence of the Ice Saints.

And if things had been different... if nothing - the treason, the war against Hades, the whole loss and gain of things he never thought would find amiss - had happened, he would probably be doing the same. Cursing Camus for his ice-based cosmo, for being the cause of his cold-about-to-happen.

They had always said it, if any Gold Saint ever got pneumonia, they would all know who to blame.

Yet... things weren't different, Saga had betrayed Athena, Camus had died under Hyoga's hands, Hades had risen just as he had later fallen, and he, Scorpio Milo, had lost it all before he had been able to appreciate it... just to get things back again. His life, his world, his...

No, not that. That he would never have, he was certain of that. But he could still dream and even... even hope.

They were Saints of Hope after all.

So as the cold increased and snow began to fall over the Houses, he decided that the time for cursing and thinking nothing would ever happen was over. He decided that all the laters in the world were useless, and that if he were to believe in them once again...

... then he wouldn't but lose it all over again. And he wouldn't let that happen. He would not commit the same mistake twice.

It was with that thought in his mind that he left his temple, nothing but a shadow, a lonesome figure covered in a heavy cloak to withstand the cold, wandering through the stairs that joined the two houses that separated his from Aquarius.

He paid no heed to Sagittarius. He hadn't done so in the past, and now that the place had turned into some sort of holy ground for all the trainees, the dying ground of the hero they all worshipped and aspired to be like, he was not planning to change his ways and start following the flock.

They were warriors fighting for a cause that depended solely on their beliefs. On their trust.

And as all the causes that were based on said reasons, they needed martyrs to support it.

Aioros had served the job beautifully, both saving their goddess when she was nothing but a babe, and dying in the process.

It was for the perfection in which he had followed his role that he respected him. If he looked back to his training days, a few memories would appear of the young Sagittarius, teaching Aiolia about the basics of cosmo, but none could compare to the fame that had grown around him after his death.

So it was his death that Milo regarded with a certain grade of admiration, and that just wasn't enough as to have him praying and flaring his cosmo whenever he would enter the empty temple.

Dead heroes needed no prayers, no incense and stupid protocol. Death was the gift for those that dared to fight against fate and succeeded, and Milo was not going to waste his breath in useless chanting. Specially not when the source of his night-walking stood higher in the path to the Kyoko's Temple.

Sagittarius was nothing to him but a change of scenery in the monotony of the path of stairs.

Though he did miss the protection of its marble walls when he reached the exist. The freezing wind he could handle, but he was certain that the snow wasn't a good sign. And that it would probably gain him a cold.

He tightened his hold around his cloak and went on climbing, his eyes fixed on Capricorn as if it were an oasis in the middle of the desert.

This time, he did ask for permission to enter. His love towards Shura was not greater than the one he held for Aioros, but he was the living owner of the Temple of Capricorn, and that led to a certain dose of protocol. Specially considering Shura's devotion towards the little rules that held their beloved Sanctuary together.

Milo grinned, running his fingers through his hair, " Shouldn't flare my cosmo and think at the same time, should I? "

He couldn't but laugh at the anger hidden under those words. Shura was not one for friendly flirting, but was wonderful at irony, and sometimes both things could get awfully close. Specially when Milo was around to lead meanings exactly where he wanted to take them.

Milo laughed, walking into the temple. Pristine to the point of reminding Scorpio of a hospital. Even when he was conscious that he was inside a battle ground... the dying place of so many souls since the cycles had started... it was probably the only house that was not stained with blood, that did not show its sins on its marble floor.

Capricorn was harsh... that was its fame and its truth. And Shura was the epitome of that quality.

They were warriors, it was in their nature to kill and destroy without mercy, without pity, without shame. What they were brought different feelings in each of them, but none could lecture the other about what was right or what was wrong. Specially not him... Yet... he couldn't but feel a slight apprehension towards the way Shura handled his opponents. Even Deathmask made more sense to him, seemed more merciful, adorning his temple with the heads of the vanquished and warning those that dared to defy him.

Shura warned none, welcoming all in the purity of his temple.

Making them feel relieved once they were through it. Just to jump on their necks without even giving them the chance to defend themselves. Ruthless.

" ... I am not cruel to start with? "

Shura couldn't but laugh when Milo followed his voice and found him. Sultriness and sensuality were the things he had been expecting, the things that he always related to the annoying Scorpio. But seeing him completely covered in a thick worn-out cloak, his nose red due to the cold, somehow unbalanced the mental picture he had expected to be wandering through his temple.

" I don't like the cold " Milo grumbled. He should have known that Shura would be waiting for him by the statue of Athena. He loved that piece of rock.

Not only block-headed, but a predictable fanatical to boot...

" ... that's somehow of an irony... "

" Fate was never on our side " Scorpio shrugged, his eyes wandering towards the exit of the temple.

" Camus is even more cruel, though "

Milo met Shura's steel-like gaze, frowning slightly in puzzlement at the indiscretion.

" You talked to him? " he asked, eyeing the golden glow around the capricorn saint with suspicion.

" I can't. My... business is in Cancer. Each one of us chooses how to atone for our sins "

The scorpio saint nodded in understanding, accepting what Shura was willing to tell him and asking for no more. Deathmask regaining his cloth had left a sour taste in all of their mouths, and he had expected that the self-punishing capricorn would take the matter into his own hands.

" It must be hard to keep your cosmo entwined with that damned schizo "

Shura threw his head backwards, his eyes fixing on the ones of the statue. " Not really. We share a common sin... Pisces, Cancer... and my beloved Capricorn " He met his gaze, his thin lips curling up in a teasing smile " Besides, who knows what the bastard would do without me? Without a leash he is able to start knocking on Gemini's gate and who knows what would happen next? "

They both knew. Dead Cancer.

" Deathmask is getting the good samaritan out of you? "

" A flaw we both share, Milo, albeit the difference in reasons " Shura shrugged, leaning against the statue. " Though I wonder who is the luckiest. Deathmask does not hide that he would cut my throat the moment he gets the chance to do so.... yet your Aquarius...he will break you and you won't even notice "

" He is not mine, Shura... and as far as I am concern, we are all broken "

" You are probably right... yet still... if you are so certain about this... " Shura burned his cosmo higher. The temperature was lowering and the cold was starting to affect him " ... why are you losing your time with me instead of walking to the next temple? "

" You know I hate capricorn smart-asses? "

Shura chuckled, running his fingers through his midnight hair. " I love you too, Scorpio "

" It's unfair... the price we had to pay for our sins... " Shura thought out loud, violet eyes shinning behind unruly black strands. " Foolish us, believing death would save us from being punished when our sins were committed against the Gods themselves... " he lifted his gaze and fixed his eyes on Milo, " And now Camus lost control... must be a sign of sorts... Deathmask keeps talking about that. Signs... " he rubbed his temples, his mind returning to the x-shaped temple, to the words he had exchanged with its owner.

" Get out of here, Milo, go and see what you fear so much "

A shudder ran through the scorpio saint's spine at Shura's words, anger pooling inside his turquoise eyes.

" I do not fear an- "

" Remember the house in which you are standing. It is in me to observe, and by Athena, you are easy to read, Scorpio. Now leave... what you'll find will be worse than what you expect " The capricorn saint's voice was soft and sympathetic, the usual edge mellowed under something that Milo couldn't quite point out. " I have my own cross to bear... " Shura added lowly, moving away from the statue and walking pass Milo, his eyes fixed on the floor " ... having my cosmo entwined with Deathmask is not hard... but being in his head... hearing that same damn phrase over and over again... " he stopped, the words escaping his lips like venom, " ...'power is justice'... brings... so many memories... "

Milo watched as the dark-haired saint lost himself in the shadows of the temple, his tall, blade-like figured disappearing in the dim twilight that flowed over the hall. He knew that Shura's words hid no betrayal, no treachery, as his devotion was meant for Athena and Athena alone. So he took those words as what they had been, a warning, and turned towards the exit of the temple, knowing that Capricorn was no longer welcoming him. Fear kicked in once again... fear and anger and the sudden desire to turn on his heels and return to his temple, let Camus go to him, ask his help. Let him need him now that he was the one without control.

He took a step forward, damning it all, himself, Camus, Capricorn and all the Gods. Aquarius was waiting for him.

... need me so much...

Snow welcomed him when he was out of Capricorn, falling soft and faint over his head.

He sneezed and cursed Camus for making things so damn hard.

" In the end... " he whispered, frowning slightly when realising that Aquarius was blocking all external Cosmos. If the damn goat was a block-headed smart-ass, the water-carrier was plain blind.

" ... it is I the one that has to come to terms with that which I once lost... and have now found "

Milo's heart was pounding, he could even hear it in his ears, hear the pulsating rhythm of his blood.

Shura was right, it was more than what he could bear.

The whiteness of the temple... the perfectly frozen walls, the shimmering floor... the coldness that threatened to numb his senses and freeze his blood... were the same.

He had tried to run towards the hall, but the same coldness that told him to hurry was stopping him, his lungs hurting like hell whenever he breathed the dry, chilling air.

He had expected to find Camus' anger, not his... despair.

For what other reason could have forced him to return to that day?

" Just don't do anything stupid... " he begged lowly, teeth clattering, " By Athena, don't do anything... "

He slipped, his knees meeting the icy floor with a thud. He cursed, his eyes growing humid. " It will be my fault "

" Camus... " he tried to scream, but his voice came weak and squeaky, " Dammit... Camus! "

His voice was louder this time, loud enough to be heard through the temple... he should be able to hear him...

But he did not answer, even when he waited. All he could hear was the wind blowing against the ice, playing a ghostly music that made him shudder.

He tried to use his cosmo again, but all he met was a barrier.

At least that meant he was still alive. If he could block him, then he had to be.

So he could kill him himself for doing that.

" Damn bastard " he growled, almost marching towards the hall of the temple, " bastard, bastard, bastard... "

Fear and relief washed over him when he reached his destination.

For he was there. Standing and frozen... as frozen as the day he lost him.

" Camus... " he muttered, walking towards him with trembling legs, waiting for him to fall to the ground, lifeless and with frozen tears on his cheek -tears of which he would never know the reason -.

But Camus' eyes noticed him and fixed on him, dark blue shards colder than the ice itself.

Colder yet alive.

" Milo... "

The scorpio saint stopped, never his name sounding so distant... so inhuman. An old children song played suddenly in his mind, the sound of the swirling wind against the ice reminding him of its tune.

"... you'll catch a cold "

He stared at him with his mouth open, totally disarmed.

" A cold...? How... " he frowned, anger growing within him, " How can you speak about that now?!! What the hell did you do? What the hell do you think you are doing? "

The expression on Camus' face did not change, his eyes were still cold and impassive, and yet the only thing that showed he was human and not a statue carved in ice.

" You are starting to sound like a christian, blaming hell for everything... " he muttered.

Milo looked at his lips as he spoke, bluish and trembling due to the cold. So dark compared to his frost-covered skin...

" What is the matter with you? "

Camus lowered his head, ice crystals falling from his hair and eyelashes. " I wanted to know "

Milo tilted his head, puzzled. But then he followed Camus' eyes to the pillar before them, covered by thick blocks of ice. And he understood.

" ...Hyoga stood? "

He had expected that the name would bring some kind of reaction in Camus. He was wrong.

" It must have been hard. I tried to think about my own master... and I couldn't see the problem. I felt nothing... but I was wrong, Milo " he closed his eyes, " I was thinking in a matter of status. But it wasn't about status. It was not the fact that I was his master the one that made my test difficult. The problem was... "

" He felt what I felt... the only difference being that I forced him to kill me... because I did not want to kill him myself "

Camus took a step backwards, his movements seeming clumsy and forced due to the numbness of his limbs. .

" I stained his hands to keep mine clean, Milo "

He smiled then, the same smile that Milo had found on his frozen body and had failed to understand, and allowed his legs to fail him under him.

But the cold floor did not meet his body this time, but a pair of warm - burning - arms did.

" You are a stupid bastard, Camus " he growled, taking his cloak off his shoulders and placing it around Camus'.

" A selfish, raving bastard "

A cold hand reach for his forehead, making him start.

" ...you'll catch a cold " Camus muttered, leaning against Milo for support while trying to return him the cloak.

The scorpio saint rolled his eyes, stopping his vain efforts to take off the cloak and trying to find Camus' pulse under the frost-covered sleeves.

Slower than expected... but it could have been worse.

" I'll take you outside " he said, placing one of his arms over his shoulders. " Damn stupid Aquarius... "

" You like calling me names, don't you? " he asked softly, allowing Milo to lead him through the circular temple, " You should call me monster... that's what I am. Horrible, horrible monster... "

" This is not the time " Milo replied, more worried about getting the ice saint out of the temple than listening to his coldness-induced ravings.

" But later is always too late... " Camus whispered lowly, resting his head absently on Milo's shoulder, frozen strands of bluish hair brushing Scorpio's cheeks.

(... I won't let that happen again... )

" Start by giving me a good reason why I shouldn't kick your sorry ass to pulp for this stunt "

The ice saint chuckled, too tired to argue. He wondered if Milo would understand, if it would make sense to him... It should. After all, he already knew.

" Because... "

" ... I am freezing. You can do anything to my ass outside, but get me some warm air first "

Milo lifted one of his eyebrows.

" Anything except what you are thinking right now, Scorpio "

" And what could I be thinking about, my dearest Aquarius? "

Camus did not doubt.

" Sex "

Turquoise eyes fixed on the frost-covered man, surprise shinning in them. Surprise and fear. Flirting had always been his arena, and with Camus he had always kept it in a friendly level, doubting anything else would ever come from it, knowing nothing else would ever come from it, all his jokes, all his games, being ignored to the point of not even being acknowledged ...

But now...

Camus was stating that he knew what he wanted from him.

" ... why did you do it? "

And he wasn't ready for that.

" I thought you said we would speak about it later "

" ... later is always too late "

The ice saint smiled, looking upwards. The frozen ceiling met the pitch-black sky. " You say that just because we are already outside "

Milo chuckled, helping Camus to sit against the temple's walls. Without his cosmo to lower the temperature, the warm, sleepy air of Greece was starting to roam over the Houses once again. " Does that mean that I get your ass? "

" Gutter-minded Scorpio... " he said through trembling lips. His body's warmth was starting to melt the frost against his skin and the cold water was making him shiver. Suddenly the worn-out cloak felt like the closest thing to heaven.

" You offered " Milo replied sitting next to him, slightly burning his cosmo to keep them warm.

Camus took his legs to his chest and rested his chin on his knees " ...I did, didn't I? "

" Camus... "

He looked at him through tired yet triumphant eyes " You wanted to know why "

" ... yes "

" Because I did not know "

Milo arched one of his eyebrows.

" What didn't you know? "

" Why I care "

" Why everything changed after he... "

" You tried to kill yourself for Hyoga?! "

Camus looked at him, startled and yet not really surprised by the venom escaping those words. .

" I did not try to kill myself, you fool! Do you think I don't know how to control my own power? "

" ... you failed before "

" What? "

" You failed before! "

Anger replaced the coldness. It was good.... at least Milo now knew that something burned behind those glacier-like eyes.

" I did not fail " The certainty in which those words were spoken was frightening.

" Then why- "

Camus narrowed his eyes and placed his hand over Milo's mouth.

" I ... did ... not ... fail "

" It was war, and I attacked with all my might "

" Knowing that his own might would overpass my own "

" Knowing that I wouldn't kill him "

He moved his hand away, suddenly missing the warmth of the skin underneath it, and collapsed against the wall once again. " I did not fail because all I wanted was for him to live. " He looked upwards. The Moon was barely visible in the dark sky. " And he did "

Milo looked at him through narrowed eyes, at the man he thought he knew better than no one, the glacial, distant, heartless Aquarius. His friend, or that was what he had thought once, when his every action was to see if something burned behind that icy facade.

" I guess that I was mistaken... " he muttered lowly, running his fingers through his hair " what I feel for her is different than what you feel for him... " Milo chuckled darkly. " It was just a fight, not different from the one I presented to him. Just that... and yet... "

" I wanted to stand on his feet just once... to understand, Milo. It was you that told me that things weren't as easy as they seemed, and I had to understand why... "

" Why what? " he laughed " Why do you care? " Milo stood up, " You don't care, Camus. You act, you always did. You don't feel but sometimes you act as if you did. Just like you are doing now, acting as if this little stunt of yours would change everything. You will never see because you blinded yourself to that, Aquarius "

He gave him ten seconds. Ten seconds to make up his mind and speak up. Ten seconds to tell him that he was wrong in his assumptions.

Yet Camus remained still, a cloaked figure covered in frost and wet clothes, someone that looked so perfect and all the same so human that Milo couldn't but wish to stretch his arms towards that perfectly flawed humanity.

But he knew better than that. He knew... that he would end up frozen by the coldness of Camus' soul if he were to try.

" Coward " Milo growled, turning his back on Camus. Cold, wet fingers closed around his wrist, forbidding him to leave. He had forgotten how strong Camus was.

" You... you are right. I can't see... that's why... " Milo heard him sigh, having to use all his will power not to turn to look into his eyes as he said those words " I had to do this. To learn "

Milo tried to keep the pain from leaving his throat " Learn? "

Camus narrowed his eyes, tempted to tighten his hold around Milo's wrist to force him to face him. To see the fire that burned inside of him, to read in it what was he feeling.

That fire... had always marvelled him.

Maybe it was because of that... because he knew how important that fire was for himself... that he had the need to end it.

Because he cared.

But wasn't ready to accept it.

" Why do I hurt him so much "

He did not stop Milo from breaking free from his hold, knowing that was what he had wanted in the first place.

" Get some dry clothes. You might have started a cold among the Gold Saints, but you are still able to save yourself from it " Milo muttered, rubbing his fingers over his wrist. Camus' fingers had left a thin layer of frost around it. " You can leave the cloak by my temple's gate when you are done with it " he added before leaving, unable to stand Camus' reasons any longer, his teasing and his stops.

Camus smiled faintly, his blue eyes fixed on Milo's tall, slender figure as he descended the steps towards Capricorn.

" I needed to know... " he whispered to himself, resting his head on his knees, " why do I hurt you all "

- Ian Dury, What a Waste -

He hated her and she knew that. She had been the one to curse him and he had reminded her of it since her first day at Ortygia.

He hated her, and she could see that there was nothing he would desire most than killing her. It was in his movements, in his cosmo, and she was certain, that under his mask, inside those eyes he insisted on hiding, that same desire burnt like a flame.

That was why Melaenis had agreed to see him. Because being requested by someone that wanted so little from her was too tempting... too... puzzling.

" Take your mask off " she whispered playfully, leaning forward on her golden throne.

" No "

" I don't like masks, not when they are covering something beautiful... " she pouted, her green eyes glittering mischievously. Just a gust of her cosmo would be able to break it... a tiny surge... enough to remind him who was in charge, who he should kneel at...

" We all have something we hate " he replied coyly, a half-smile forming on his lips, visible through the missing part of the mask.

" Hate is just another passionate feeling, another form of love " Melaenis returned the smile, pushing his heavy locks over her shoulder.

" And because we hate, we mortals have no other choice but to ask the Gods for a favour "

" Any God? "

" The greatest of them all "

She frowned slightly, her delicate eyebrows knotting together.

But she would notice if his words weren't sincere, she would notice which one of the twelve was the most important to him.

And all she could see was herself, all she could see was the truth.

" And why should I listen? You've ignored me for many years, my dear "

Another smile. " Because to get a divine favour, a mortal has to make offerings. And I have one for you, my lady "

" Will it please me? "

" Maybe " he replied, getting on his knees before her, head bent, masked eyes fixed on the ground... completely at her mercy. " I am offering you my loyalty, my lady... my queen "

" And what... " she asked, extending her hand towards him, " will this loyalty cost me? "

He took her hand, soft lips brushing against the golden skin with reverence.

" Only a small favour. Grant me that and you will have my fealty, sworn by that which you find fit "

" If you betray me... you'll be a traitor. No excuses will save you from my wrath "

" It is not in my plans to betray you "

The look in her green eyes soften. She could read his desires and hatred and every single passionate feeling that burned in his soul.

None of them showed that his words weren't sincere.

" Tell me what you want "

" I know... that the Traitor lives... and I know where she is, and how weak she is. All I want is to be the one sent to finish her off. I want that single pleasure, that single task. Grant me that, my queen, and you will have my loyalty "

She caught him by the chin, forcing him to look at her. " You would actually kill her for me... " her long, delicate fingers traced the red whirls painted on the grey mask. Once again the temptation to remove it was there, tugging at the back of her mind. He would not stop her this time, not after placing himself at her mercy.

She released him.

" I like your offering " Melaenis cooed, " Your loyalty in exchange of being allowed to bring me her head... that's a pleasure most of your fellow guardians would love to be given... "

" But none have something to give you in exchange, no one but me "

" I accept your offering, Narcissus "

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Derre's blah blah: DAMN! This chapter took me centuries to finish O_O, so sorry for the delay! I will try to keep the updates monthly from now on ^_^. As you could see, this chapter was mostly Sanctuary-related (opposing the previous chap, which was very Ortygia-oriented) , and it was a nice change as it allowed me to play with characters I hadn't had the chance to delve into before. As usual, I demand c&c!

Oh, and before I forget, this chapter goes to Vane, who asked to have dedicated new chapters of on-going fics for her b-day, and to all the mighty readers who were nice and patient despite the huge gap between the date in which the 11^th chapter was finished, and this one.

Well, I guess that's all. Will be back with chap 13 soon!

Luv to everyone, expect the unexpected, and always be naughty! (btw, silly trivia... but TFoaG is already 353 pages long O_O ... and 8 chapters are still missing *faints* poor poor fingers of mine...)