“Not happening. Go away, Hermes.”

“Nope.”

Annoyed, she turned to leave and found herself pinned against the cliff walls. “Dammit, Hermes!”

He gripped her arms so she couldn’t move and stepped in close so she was trapped. “Now listen, Thea. I know you were a bit drunk last night and you had your reasons; having to say goodbye to Shae twice couldn’t be easy. I wasn’t going to take advantage of you when you were - how do I put it? - a little fragile.”

She glared at him but he continued, “I won’t lie, I was tempted - but I’d hate myself as much as you probably hate yourself right now. So, I guess that means we need to decide.”

She stilled. “Decide what?”

He looked her in the eye. “Do we ignore what happened last night and pretend it never happened, or accept it for what it was and move on?”

Thea bit her lip, feeling breathless. “I don’t think I can ignore what happened last night. I may have been drunk but they were my real feelings. I know it will probably make things awkward between us but if you want to ignore it all, then I can do that.”

The grip on her arms subtly changed. “You don’t want to pretend?”

“No, not really.”

“You’re into me?”

She sighed. “Don’t be an arse about it Hermes –“

He stepped closer and her heart stuttered. “Yes or no, Peaches. You into me or not?”

“Bloody hell, yes! All right? Jeez –”

His hands moved from her arms to her waist and her breath hitched. “Good. And for the record? I don’t want to pretend either.”

She didn’t have time to register what he said as his lips came down on hers, his hands curling around her waist, pulling her against him. Her hands automatically came up to his chest. He didn’t give her time to argue, diving right in, and her senses were overthrown by everything that was him.

Her hands slowly moved up around his neck as he deepened the kiss, his tongue gently pushing past her lips. His mouth softly brushed against hers and she sighed, tasting traces of mint. There was no desperation in his kiss; only a burning need, one she felt deep in her own being. It was overpowering, claiming her as she felt a pool of heat building in her core.

He groaned as her tongue hesitantly brushed against his and she gasped, his hands lifting her up, pressing her into the cliff wall. Her legs came up and wrapped around his waist and his hands moved lower, curving around her thighs as his fingers pressed into her skin, sending shivers of pleasure coursing down her spine.

His smell of fresh air and soap filled her senses and her hand curled into his hair, the strands soft between her fingers. The sensation was mingled with that of her other hand, which slowly travelled downward, feeling the hard contours of his back. His muscles tightened as her hand ventured further south and he growled with pleasure, the sound reverberating through her and causing little bolts of desire to dance along her skin.

Her pulse quickened as his hands moved up her thighs, tightening in response to his touch –

“What the Hades do you two think you’re doing?”

Her head shot up and saw Charon’s boat floating down the river. Three souls sat in the boat, thankfully not looking at them. Their eyes were staring straight ahead, looking lost. Charon glared at them with indignant rage.

Her legs dropped, feet landing heavily on the ground and, cheeks flaming, she buried her head in Hermes chest.

He chuckled, his hand coming up to fold in her hair. “None of your business, Charon! Be about your business and we’ll be about ours.”

“Hermes!” she hissed.

He grinned, pressing a light kiss in her hair. Her eyes focused on a small hole in his shirt as she waited for the boat to pass by.

“No respect!” Charon snapped, waving his fist. “This is a place of business, not a place for your disgusting groping!”

“Oh god,” Thea groaned, burying deeper.

“I hope you say that later on.”

She smacked his chest and was satisfied when he grunted. “All right, not the time for joking. Come on.”

Grabbing her hand, he twined his fingers in hers and pulled her away. They walked away from Charon, who was still muttering about their little show, and Thea kept her head down. She’d never felt so mortified in her life. She didn’t do those type of things in public. Sure, she’d made out with Josh in the cinema but it was dark and no one could see them. Doing something like that in broad daylight where anyone could come across them was embarrassing.

Hermes tugged her hand gently. “There’s no need to be embarrassed, Thea. It was quite natural and hot. Mainly hot.”

“Shut up, Hermes.”

“No way –and anyway Charon’s seen it all before. He used to play around when he wasn’t so gross looking. I’m sure he’s even caught Hades and Persephone –“

“Lalalala, not listening right now!”

She tried to move her hands to cover her ears but Hermes refused to let go. They reached the Asphodel fields and he yanked her around, his other hand resting on her waist as they rose up and floated over the fields.

Suddenly feeling shy, she looked down, watching the field pass them by. The souls didn’t look up as they flew overhead and to distract herself, she wondered what they did all day. It would be a quiet existence, sitting in a field. Did they talk to others and make new friends?

Hermes tilted her chin up, interrupting her. “Don’t be shy, Thea,” he spoke softly.

“I’m not, I’m just thinking –“

His fingers moved from her chin, curling around her nape of her neck. “You are. You can’t even look me in the eye.”

To prove him wrong, she met his gaze, but her cheeks flushed immediately and she glanced away again. He chuckled and held her chin. “I’m not going to apologise for being caught like that. I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.”

That caught her attention. “How long?”

He grinned. “Since I saw you in that black dress, the night you had your date with the Detective. Your legs have been burned into my brain since.”

“Really?” she asked breathlessly.

“You have no idea,” he muttered, his hand moving from her waist and up her back.

She smiled, silently thanking Shae for making her buy that dress as Hermes resumed where he’d left off while they flew over the Asphodel Fields.

*                             *                             *                             *                             *

The afternoon passed quietly. Still reeling from the events of that morning, Thea spent her time back in the forest with Persephone, who was more than intrigued by her sudden change in mood.

“That must have been some walk,” she commented, watching Thea make a flower bloom.

“It was a good walk. I said I needed fresh air and it worked.”

Persephone sat in front of her, unable to contain herself any longer, and grabbed her shoulders. “What happened?”

Thea sighed in frustration; she was just getting the hang of making the flowers bloom. “I told you, I went for a walk –“

“No, it’s not that. You came back in a good mood and even Hades was commenting earlier that Hermes seemed happier. Something happened between you two and I want to know what.”

Thea looked at the dirt, flushing, and Persephone squealed. “I knew it! Something did happen! Tell me now!”

“All right, I will! Stop trying to rip my shoulders off first, though!”

“Oh, sorry,” Persephone removed her hands. “My excitement got the better of me. Tell me now, though!”

“Nothing happened,” she mumbled. “We just talked and sorted some things out. Ow!”

Persephone hit her arm and Thea forgot how strong she was. “That’s the boring version! I want the juicy one! I’m going to keep hitting you until you spit it all out too!”

Rolling her eyes, she told Persephone what had happened by the Acheron River and had to cover her ears as Persephone started squealing and dancing around her. “It’s about time! I’m so happy!”

“Can we talk about something else now?” she muttered.

Persephone dropped back in front of her. “Why don’t you want to talk about it? We should be celebrating! You and Hermes, finally together.”

“I don’t really know if we’re together,” she said awkwardly.

“Then what would you call it?”

“I don’t know! We haven’t really discussed it yet.”

“Ah, been spending your time together this morning in other ways, huh?”

“No!”

“Oh you can’t lie to me, the flush of your cheeks says it all!”

“What’s wrong with her cheek?” They both shrieked and spun around. Artemis leaned against a tree, smirking at their reaction. “She looks fine to me, Persephone.”

“Artemis!” Persephone recovered quickly and jumped at her. Artemis grimaced and patted her back awkwardly.

“Nice to see you, too.”

“What are you doing here? Hades didn’t tell me he’d given you permission to come back down here?”

“It’s a one time offer. Said I have to remain in the palace - no going out in the fields.”

“Why would you want to go out there?” Thea asked.

“To hunt,” she said simply.

“But there’s only souls out there…”

“I’d only hunt the bad ones.”

Persephone winced. “She tried it once before. Hades wasn’t impressed; he kicked her out and she hasn’t been allowed back in since.”

“Why did he let you back in now?”

“Came to see Hermes and see how your training is going. See if you’ve stuffed up yet.”

“Artemis!” Persephone snapped. “That’s not very nice.”

She shrugged. “Yeah, sorry. I know she’s all right; Hermes said so and he seems happier than usual, which must mean she isn’t a bitch like Lissandre.”

“Uh…thanks?”

“Don’t mention it.”

Persephone beamed. “I can tell you why Hermes has been happier –“

“Persephone, please…”

“Shut up, Thea, and focus on your training.” Artemis glared at her. “You were saying, Persephone?”

Thea groaned as Persephone gushed to Artemis about the developments of this morning. She tried to shut them out but Persephone had a very loud voice.

“Well,” Artemis grinned once Persephone had finished. “If he’s happy then I can’t complain.” She tapped Thea on the shoulder. “You hurt him though and I’ll kill you.”

“Understood,” she said weakly.

Persephone stood up. “Come on, let’s go inside and get ready for dinner. We have to celebrate!”

“You guys go in, I want to keep going.” Thea waved them away.

“All right, don’t train too hard!”

Persephone walked away. Artemis watched Thea for a few moments before turning and following. The flowers were getting easier to create and Thea tried to make a row of them. So far, she could only make white petunias, but it was an improvement. She made a circle around herself, smiling at the beauty she’d created.

Reaching out, she touched a petal. It felt cool and smooth between her fingertips and she closed her eyes, happy she was finally getting it right. It wouldn’t take much longer before she could move onto fire and then it was just dealing with Cronos. After that, she’d be free. She paused, opening her eyes and staring at the flower.

Would Hermes still want be interested in her once this was all over? She’d go back to her normal life and he’d go back to whatever it was he did for the Gods. What if he got bored with her?

A hand touched the nape of her neck and she jumped, hands flying up. “It’s all right, Thea. What were you thinking about?” Hermes crouched beside her. “I was calling your name but you were far away.”

“Sorry, I was just thinking about what I will do when this is all over.”

He sat beside her, pulling her hand into his. “What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. Go back to my life, back to waitressing. I still need to make a living.”

“The Gods would reward you for what you’re doing for us, Thea.”

“I don’t need a reward or payment. Although being left alone would be nice.”

Hermes stilled. “You don’t want us around after all this?”

She smiled at the worry in his voice, her fears answered in his own. She nudged his shoulder. “Not all the Gods. There’s a few I wouldn’t mind keeping around.”

Hermes lips brushed her knuckles and she lost focus. “Am I included in that list?”

“You’re there – near the bottom of the list.”

He bit her knuckle and she laughed. “What do I have to do to get to the top of that list?”

“Hmm, we’ll see.”

Chuckling, he leaned over and kissed her softly. “I look forward to finding out. Come on.” He pulled her to her feet and grabbed her hand. He turned and cursed. “Jeez, Artemis, make some noise would you?”

Thea’s face flamed. Artemis watched them calmly. “I’m just checking to make sure it’s legit. She seems to genuinely care for you, so I’m happy with that.”

“Thanks,” he ground out. “You can go now.”

“No, that’s all right. She can stay.” Thea said. Hermes glared at her and she grinned.

“Here, Hermes.” Artemis threw his staff and he caught it. “Hephaestus said if you break it again, he will break you.”

“Duly noted.” Hermes wrapped his arm around Thea’s waist and pulled her along.

Artemis rolled her eyes. “Disgusting.”

Thea grinned as Artemis stalked ahead and Hermes leaned down, whispering in her ear. “Should we go and play fetch with Cerberus later?”

“I heard that, Hermes!”

“It was just a joke,” he called out.

“It better be or Hades will break you first, then me, then Hephaestus and then me again.”

“Yes, Mum.”

Artemis stiffened. “Don’t call me that! Does Zeus know about you and Thea yet?”

“Not yet.”

Artemis spun around at the gates, her blond hair flying. “Can I tell him? Please? I want to see the look on his face when he realises he’s missed his chance again.”

“No way,” Hermes argued, “I’m telling him. He needs to know that she is off limits.”

“Ah, she is right here!” Thea snapped, elbowing Hermes. “I don’t care who tells who, as long as he doesn’t try anything. Anyway, at the rate Persephone is talking about this, everyone will know by tomorrow.”

“Damn, I forgot about Persephone,” Hermes muttered.

They walked into the dining hall and took their seats. Artemis sat next to Thea and Hermes went and sat next to Persephone.

Persephone beamed. “Good, you all made it. Isn’t this lovely? So many people for dinner, it feels like a party!”

Hades remained quiet, his eyes on Artemis who was getting more annoyed by the second. “You can stop the staring Hades. I won’t go out into the fields on my own –“

“You won’t go out there, period. I find out you have and you will never set foot in my realm again. Understand?”

Thea felt the power coming off him and a sliver of fear slid up her spine. It was a dark power and it frightened her.

“Yes, Hades, I understand.” Artemis rolled her eyes, unaffected. “I’ll stick to your palace and be bored. Thank the Gods I’m heading back in the morning.”

“You really only came to drop off Hermes’ staff?” Thea asked.

“That’s right. Hephaestus was moaning like a little bitch about having to track him down so he could give him his staff so I took it for him. Anything to make him shut up!”

“That’s not very nice Artemis,” Persephone chided.

“You didn’t have to listen to him,” she muttered.

Thea felt Hades gaze on her and hesitantly met his gaze. He glanced at Hermes before looking back at her and a small smile lifted the corners of his mouth. Her face reddened, realising what he was thinking about, and she lowered her head, fiddling with her food.

Artemis passed her some wine. “Here, drink up.”

Her face blanched. “Oh no, thank you. I still haven’t recovered properly from the last time I drank this stuff.”

“Pff, weak.” Artemis took the goblet and sculled its contents in one shot. Thea stared at her. How could a woman who looked so feminine be such a man? Of all the Gods seated at the table, Artemis was the one that scared her the most; even Hades scary dark power seemed nice in comparison to her.

A foot nudged hers and she looked across the table. Hermes grinned, drinking his own wine, and she gave him a small smile before looking back at her food. Persephone giggled and Thea felt the stares. This was the most awkward dinner she’d ever been to.

“So,” Hades said calmly. “What news of Cronos?”

Thea sent him a grateful smile and his head moved subtly.

Artemis poured some more wine. “We’ve been tracking his movements across Greece. He seems to be sticking to that area, as if he’s plotting something. There’s still some guys down in Saint Arlington but I’ve got some guys on their tail. If they do anything suspicious, I’ll be the first to know.”

“What about that disturbance on Mount Olympus?” Thea asked. “Was it anything to be concerned about?”

Artemis frowned. “I don’t know. By the time we checked it out, everything had returned to normal. They said there were earthquakes in the area but we didn’t find any disturbances.”

“At this point we think it was the Titans testing our response time,” Hermes cut in. “They wanted to see how long it would take us to get to a possible attack.”

“But they can’t get onto Olympus, right? I mean, the shackles are stopping Cronos, aren’t they?”

“What do shackles have to do with anything?” Artemis asked. Thea explained about Lissandre and the shackles.

When she mentioned her soul being attached to them, Hermes inhaled sharply and she winced. She forgot she hadn’t told him that little piece of information yet.

“So that’s why Cronos wants to kill you,” Artemis murmured. “Certainly explains why he’s been so determined.”

“Yeah.” She avoided Hermes gaze.

“Don’t worry,” Artemis said calmly. “I won’t let him kill you. I might have let him kill Lissandre back in the day but you’re not too bad so I’ll protect you.”

“Um, thanks…”

“No worries.”

Dinner was a quiet affair after that and Thea kept her eyes on her food, knowing Hermes was pissed. When it was time to sleep, Thea slipped away quietly as Artemis started arguing with Hermes about a Games of Thrones episode. She was surprised Artemis even watched television. In her mind she just hunted down everything she could. It seemed like that was all she thought about.

Walking up the stairs she made it her door and stumbled as she was pushed inside. Hermes shut the door behind them.

“Hermes, what the hell?”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he demanded.

“I was going to - I just forgot. Everything started happening and it slipped my mind, okay?” she said defensively.

“This is something I need to know, Thea.”

“I know!” she snapped. “Forgive me for freaking out and letting it slipping my bloody mind! It’s not like I have so many other things I need to think about!”

He fell silent for a moment. “You still should have told me.”

“I just explained why I didn’t; are you even listening to me?” She turned around and started walking to the window. “The soul thing doesn’t matter anyway; Hades said he can’t take it back.”

Arms wrapped around her and she tried to fight him off but he was too strong for her. His lips brushed her shoulder. “Why can’t he take it back?”

“He said it’s beyond his power. Even if he could, he said he wouldn’t because it was the only thing stopping Cronos from getting back into Olympus, and even though it annoys me, I can see his point.”

Hermes arms tightened around her. “I can see where he was coming from. I don’t like it though. We won’t have to go back to the mortal realm for a little bit longer, at least. After this, we have to go and meet Apollo.”

She nodded. “I’m nearly finished with Persephone, I think. I’ve got most of the basics down so we should be able to leave in a couple of days.”

“Damn,” he muttered, his nose brushing along her hairline.

“What?”

“When we go to Olympus, there’s a high chance we’ll run into Zeus. You need to make sure you aren’t left alone.”

“Artemis said she’d look out for me.”

“Yeah, but she can’t go against Zeus.”

“And you can?” she murmured, distracted by his lips near her ear.

“No, but if he knows you’re mine, he’ll do what he can to try and take you away from me. You can go against him though; remember that. We’re the ones that need you, not the other way around.”

“I’ll remember.”

“So,” he murmured. “Do you want to go to bed?”

She pulled away from him and started pushing him toward the door. “I do, but I can handle that myself, thanks.”

“What, are you being serious?”

“Deadly serious.”

“But we just –“

“We just decided to take this relationship – are we calling this a relationship?” she asked and he nodded. “Right, we’ve only just taken it to the next level and you’re already trying to sleep with me? Do you see me as that easy?”

“Well, yeah – no wait, wait! I was joking!”

She kept pushing him, using air to help her move him toward the door. “Sorry, but joke or not, you just lost any chance.”

“Oh, come on – there was a chance?”

She opened the door and shoved him out, poking out her tongue. “Idiot. Of course there was a chance. Good night.”

She shut the door and heard him on the other side, muttering. Changing into her shift, she crawled into bed, feeling stupidly happy as she drifted off to sleep.

*                             *                             *                             *                             *

She was in her apartment again. Everything was silent, save for the clock she heard on the wall, ticking away. Sitting up on her bed, she looked around.

Why was she here?

Looking around, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She got up, walking out into her living room. The sun shone through the window, rays of light drifting across the table. Something felt wrong; everything felt too still. Normally she would have heard noise coming from her neighbours or from outside, but there was nothing.

Walking past the table, she looked around, heart beating painfully against her chest.

“Hello?” she called nervously, wishing she had a weapon with her.

Stopping in front of her T.V, she looked around. No one seemed to be there. Maybe she was here because she missed her home. Sighing, she looked into the T.V, seeing her silhouette, and froze. Her silhouette wasn’t the only one in the reflection.

She felt his presence and spun around.

Cronos smiled. “Hello, my dear.”

His hand wrapped around her throat and she choked on her scream. Once again, her powers were useless and she scratched at his arms, trying to fight him off. She felt metal bands on his wrists and her eyes widened.

He brushed her hair from her face and she shuddered. “Those shackles are getting rather painful, my dear. You are the only thing stopping them from coming off. Why don’t you help me?”

“No,” she rasped.

His grip tightened and she panicked as darkness started creeping into the corners of her eyes. She remember Hermes’ words about how to escape. She had to die in her dream. Reaching up, she dug her thumbs into Cronos’ eyes and he roared, dropping her.

She scrambled into the kitchen, opening her utensil drawer and searching for a weapon. Finally finding it, she spun around, knife in hand.

Cronos walked around the kitchen island. Eyes flashing dangerously. “You think a little knife will hurt me, silly girl?”

She took a deep breath, bracing herself for what she was about to do. “It’s not you I’m trying to hurt.”

Raising the knife, she turned it and buried it in her chest. Pain exploded throughout her body and Cronos shouted, “No!”

The world melted and she slipped back to darkness.

*                             *                             *                             *                             *

Eyes shooting open, she gasped, hand reaching for the knife in her chest. It wasn’t there and she rubbed the skin a few times, scared she hadn’t found it. Her breath frosted in the air and she turned her head. The room was frozen again.

“Shit.”

Slipping on the ice, she managed to shake the frost off her clothes and slip them on. The door took a bit more to open - she used warm water. After a few moments, it opened with a groan. Pulling it shut, she snuck downstairs.

Light was seeping through the windows and she guessed it was early morning. Searching the lower levels, she found Hades in a small room near the dining hall. He took in her dishevelled state with a raised eyebrow. “What happened?”

“Cronos attacked me in my dream last night.”

His eyes darkened. “Are you hurt?”

“No, I mean I had to kill myself to get out of the dream but I’m fine. My room is another matter though.”

She explained about the ice and he nodded. “Don’t worry, I will deal with it. It’s nothing to be upset about.”

“Okay, I’m sorry –“

“Don’t apologise. As long as you’re safe, everything is fine.”

“Okay.”

“Have you told Hermes?”

“No, I don’t want him to worry. Do you think I should tell him?”

“It’s up to you, Thea. I wouldn’t suggest keeping secrets from him though.”

She thought of Lissandre and nodded. “You’re right. Do you know if he’s up yet?”

“I believe so.”

“I’ll go and find him then. Thank you, Hades.”

“Take care of yourself, Thea.”

She slipped out the door and jumped. Hermes leaned against a pillar, arms crossed. “What happened?”

“How long have you been standing there?” she asked nervously.

“Not long. What happened, Peaches?”

She bit her lip. Walking forward, she grabbed his hand. “Come on, I have to tell you about the dream I had.” 

_____________________________________________

A/N - Hi all, I just want to say thank you to everyone who has been reading Forsaken Deity, as of last night the story has passed 100k reads! So exciting. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I've been struggling with the next one so I hope I can have it ready by next Friday. Work has been busy so I don't have much time to edit. I'll keep you updated if anything changes. 

Hope you all enjoy the chapter!