It’s much later,and I stare through the bedroom window at the starless sky. I have a good view from the bed.
I need to talk to you. I know you can hear me,I say to Hades in my mind. I’ve called on him three damn times tonight, and I haven’t heard back. I mean, I’ve been back two days, and he has yet to congratulate me on the win, right?
Such a wanker.
I close my eyes, placing my arm over them. Usually, sleep does come quickly, even though I’ll wake up pretty fast after seeing the faces of the dead. But tonight, even sleep doesn’t come.
All I can do is replay that dance…
I remove my arm from my eyes and create mist to fill the room. Turning onto my side, I slide my hand through it, watching as it takes on the form of two people.
Me and her…
Dancing…
I watch the figures dance, the echo of the song playing in my mind as I watch the figures dance across the room.
Fucking hell.
I close my eyes again when I feel it, the intense, heavypressure of his presence.
“Finally,” I drawl, as I feel his presence suck my energy from me. A little too fast, meaning he’s annoyed.
“Why do you keep summoning me like you’re the god?”he asks icily.
“I mean, I look more like a god than you, if you ask me,” I remark lightly.
He simply smirks sarcastically.“There’s more to becoming a god than good looks. A lot more, you should see Apophis.”
I snicker. “Snakeface would be pissed if he heard that.”
“I do not care if I offend him, so what do you want?”He remains in the shadows, his glowing eyes fixed on me.
I sit up slowly, running my fingers through my hair. “Well, I want something, or maybe two things.”
He’s silent, and I wait.“You always need something. And what do you plan to give to me in return?”he asks.
“What do you want?” I ask quietly.
There’s a tense pause, his darkness curling around the room.“Well, it depends on what you request from me. Do share. Perhaps this time you will ask for something for yourself and not someone else.”
He knows me well enough.
“See, the thing is, I need nothing. I’m good.” I shrug as I reach into my back pocket and take out my lighter and a packof cigarettes. It’s all I’m wearing, having discarded my shirt the moment I had entered the room earlier. “I’d offer you one, but you are literally a ball of smoke.”
He simply raises an eyebrow.“You’re stalling. What is it that you desire?”
“Something you took,” I say quietly, the soft click of my lighter sounding louder than it should as I flick it on and light my cigarette.
“From the hybrid you have taken a liking to,”he remarks emotionlessly.
I don’t bother looking at him as I take a drag on my cigarette. “She did what she did for us all. Yeah, we won that battle, but if she hadn’t made that deal with you, we wouldn’t have won.”
“Your duel with Helios was impressive. You did not embarrass me and proved I made the right choice in selecting you as my favoured… but I do agree, she was the strength behind you all.”
I smile faintly. The little know-it-all blond, who actually fucking does know it all.
“She was, so why should she have to pay that price for our security? She’s only seventeen. That’s a baby in your eyes, right? So, name your price. I want you to return her voice. Oh, and as you already probably know, she can still perform spells, so you taking her voice is pretty much useless.”
