Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

-MLK

■NATASHA■

Everything in my life feels so out of place. My mind keeps racing over past memories, trying to figure out what's real and what's fake. So far, I'm sure everything is fake... just like my identity.

My eyes feel numb, that and of course my throat too. My body is drained because of all the crying I've been doing. I cried for a long time, longer than usual to the point where I don't even think that there's any more water left in my system. I'm physically so tired that the world can be on fire and I'd honestly wouldn't do a damn thing about it.

It's been a total of three days since that day with Odessa. And ever since then, I've been hiding inside Torrin's room, well old room. Things have been super awkward between the two of us, but we're making it work... kinda.

A knock sounds at the door and I quickly, wipe away my tears. Torrin steps into the room, completely shirtless. Sweat drips down from his body, causing his skin to glisten. He walks towards my side of the bed, before sitting down. "You know, you gotta come out my room one of these days." He says, pushing my hair away from my face. My orange hair is slowly but surely getting longer. Torrin's big hand cups my cheek as he stares down at me. "Don't get me wrong, I'm okay with you sleeping on my bed with me... it's just your starting to smell."

My eyes narrowed at him, taking the pillow from underneath my head I throw it at him. He dodges it and the pillow hits the nearest wall. "Bitch." I curse.

Torrin's eyes widen. "This is heaven, you're not supposed to curse in here."

My eyes roll to the back of my head. "What are you doing in here, aren't you supposed to be training?" I ask. Zeus thought that it would be a good choice to have Torrin train the other Angels while he was here. It humored me how everyone hated that he was a fallen, but loved to use his help. There was also no room available for me, so that's why I'm crashing in his room. We made sure to keep two pillows in the middle of the bed, so neither of us would invade the other person's space.

Torrin shrugs. "I gave everyone a break." He pulls something out of his back pocket before handing it to me. It was a blood bag. "You've been in here for so long, that you've haven't eaten." I quickly take the blood bag from him, carefully making sure not to touch his hand. "I also wanted to know if you'd like to come out and adventure with me. I'll give you a grand tour and everything."

Placing the blood bag in my mouth, I squeeze it causing the blood to start flowing. My taste buds grow excited. This blood was different from what I've been drinking. "No, thank you. I'm not in the mood with dealing with any slick remarks that any Gods or Angels might have. Like imagine us walking around and one of them yell out, "You Brotherfucker!" It'll be embarrassing and then I'd have to rip that person throat out." I pause for a second, gulping down the rest of the blood. "Where'd you get this blood and who does it belong too?"

His eyebrows knit together. "No one will dare say a thing like that Natasha, they will answer to me if they do. Plus, they can't curse. And while we're on the subject, let's finally talk about this sibling thing." He says. "And the blood came from Zeus, it's his blood."

Pushing the blood bag away, my head lays back down on the pillow. "I don't want to talk about it Torrin, drop the subject."

"We have to talk about it." He states. "Sooner or later we have too."

I snap at him. "No, we don't!" My hand passes through my hair as I avoid his gaze. "Go be bipolar or something, I'm sick of dealing with this side of you."

Torrin looks at me confused. "This side of me?" He asks.

"Yes! This side of you, the one that cares and shows his emotions." I bite down on my lips. "The one who lets me see it clearly in his eyes that he wants to fuck me into oblivion, even though there's a big chance we may be related." Torrin's heart pounds fast in his chest. "The other side of you would never let me see that, he'd hurt like I'm hurting and wouldn't be so, so...nice. Stop making this so damn difficult."

Torrin doesn't say a thing at first, he takes his time trying to figure out what he wants to say. "The only reason why you're seeing this side of me is because you're hurting. And as crazy and weird as it sounds, for some odd reason I don't like seeing you hurt. It's fuckin torture watching you cry and be all depressed." He explains, standing up. "And for your information, if you keep up with this attitude, you will be seeing the other side of me. More frequently than usual."

Torrin goes to open the door, but I quickly stop him. "Mane clauserunt." I chant, causing the door to shut. Using my speed, I glide next to Torrin, standing right in front of him. "You didn't deny it."

"Deny what?" He asks, staring deeply into my eyes.

My head tilts slightly. "That you're thinking about me in intimate ways." Grabbing a hold of his hand, Torrin gulps. His Adam's apple moving upwards. "Deep, deep, deep down in that cold heart of yours, you feel something for me."

He closes his eyes, shaking his head. Letting go of my hands, he cups my cheeks then slowly moves his hand down to my neck. Grabbing onto it forcefully, he slams me up against the wall. "Stop this Natasha." Torrin looks away for a moment. "It's not right and you know it." Licking his lips, he let's go of me. "Come on, go take a shower so I can show you around."

"Fine." Taking a few steps away from him, I turn my back towards him. My hands grab onto the belt of the golden colored robe before untying it. The robe falls off my body and hits the tile floor softly. The cold air hits my skin, sending chills down my spine. Looking over my shoulders, I let out a breath. "Life sure is one twisted thing. It always finds a way to bite us in the ass." Not waiting for him to respond, I walk away, going into the bathroom. Shutting the door and turning on the water to the shower, my head leans against the wall.

Zeus's blood still lingers in my mouth, which somehow disappoints me. Sure his blood tasted good at first, but now it makes me want to throw up. It seems the only blood that I'm craving is Torrin's. The blood coursing through his veins is intoxicating. The smell is so strong, that I'm surprised I haven't jumped him yet.

Stepping into the shower, the hot water soothes my aching muscles, the steam from the shower is so thick and it fills the air as I wash away everything that's happened this week. Torrin's scent catches my nose, he's standing behind the closed door, his heart beats at a steady pace. He's having a mental battle with himself, deciding if he should open the door or not. He lets out a sigh, before walking away.

Taking in a deep breath, my razor sharp fangs come out. Lifting up my left hand I sink my teeth into my flesh, sweet blood flows into me, causing my eyes to shut for a moment. Because of the blood bond between Torrin and me, his blood runs deep in my veins also.  The sweet, savory taste makes me moan.

My mind fades into dullness and everything turns into a foggy illusion.

After a couple of minutes go by, my fangs desert back into my gums. Blood and water mix together, going down the drain. Once I've had enough and I'm clean, I step out the shower and dry myself off. Wanting my hair to be put in a bun, I chant the words, "Sursum capillum." Walking into the bedroom, a white and gold dress lays on the bed. "He couldn't just find me a t-shirt and some jeans," I say out loud, rolling eyes to the back of my head. There wasn't any bra on the bed, but there was a pair of panties. "Was it seriously so hard to hard to find a bra?" My tits aren't even that big.

Walking out of the room and down the hall, I'm greeted by many people. "Natasha, glad you could join us." Zeus's voice booms. He looks like he's getting better, though you can still see the bags under his eyes.

Hera takes his hand into hers, placing a kiss down on it. She looks up at me, smiling, but it doesn't reach her eyes. "So nice of you to join us."

"Now, now Hera that wouldn't be jealousy I sense coming from you." A rich voice says. The man the voice belongs to comes to Hera's side. Not waiting for her to respond, he looks at me smirking. "You must be the beautiful Natasha. I'm Apollo." He says walking up to me. Taking my hand he kisses it, his warm lips make me shutter. "It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance." His dark eyes never leave mine. "Father, how long are you letting her stay for?"

Zeus glances over at his son. "She leaves tomorrow to finish her mission."

Apollo's smirk widens. "Surely I can assist her." His nose is straight and aquiline, his lips made perfectly.  Apollo's emerald eyes stare into mine, his shaggy black hair stopping just beneath his shoulders.

"That won't be necessary," Torrins says, appearing from behind me. His voice sounds ruff like he's annoyed. "I'm already assisting her." He says looking Apollo straight in the eyes. If the two of them wanted each other dead, their looks sure would be the murder weapon. I'm sensing some animosity towards them...  a lot of it.

"Oh, my is that a love triangle I sense." A high pitch voice says, coming into view. It was a girl, she looks to be a teenager. She resembles Zeus a lot, I'm guessing she is his daughter. Her long midnight hair hangs down over her shoulders front and back. And just like Apollo, she has the most beautiful emerald eyes. "Father, can I please be excused now?"

Zeus eyes her for a moment, before shaking his head yes. "You may go Pandia, but be back before the fire goes out."

From the look on Hera's face, you can tell she isn't happy about this. "She's too young to be going out at this time."

Pandia glares at Hera. "No offense Hera, but both my father and mother thinks it's fine for me to go out at this time." My eyes widen at the way Pandia speaks. Everyone knows that Zeus has many mistresses and Pandia is basically rubbing it in her face.

Anger marks Hera's features. "I'm gonna go before I do something I regret." She says walking away.

Before Zeus can go after her, Torrin decides to speak. "I'm taking Natasha outside." He says.

Zeus turns around, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "Are you asking me or telling me?" He lets out a humorless chuckle. "Cause it sounds like you're telling me."

Torrin takes my arm. "That's because I am telling you." Before Zeus can utter another word, Torrin walks us both out the room, not even daring to spare Zeus a glance. When we're a great distance away from him, Torrin let's go of my arm. "He gets under my skin, him and that pussy he calls a son." Opening a golden door, we both walk outside.

"You must really hate them," I say, following him. We walk beside each other, our feet moving at the same pace. The scenery changes the closer we get away from the house.

Torrin looks down at me. "Hate doesn't even begin to describe it." He clears his throat. "This particular place we are in right now is called the garden of Elissa. She built the garden by herself because she wanted to prove herself to Zeus. When she did prove herself, she decided to live on the moon."

"What do you mean she lives in the moon?" I ask, staring at the beautiful garden. The trees line the grass in their wooden boxes. In the center, there is a large pond as big as a lake with flowering lily pads and a wooden bridge that cross the middle. The flowers lay scattered on the grass, they shine at the light of the sun. Small turtles climb out from their hiding place and the bunnies hop around the pound. "This place is beautiful," I whisper.

"That it is." He says looking directly at me. "Elissa loved living here, it's just she wanted a place of her own. So she killed herself, then went to the moon." I look at him confused and he only chuckles, his lips twitching upwards. "I know it sounds confusing, but it's really what happened."

I chuckle slightly. "That's... interesting." Wrapping my arms around myself, we continue walking. "This place seem perfect. What’s one downside of living in a place like this?"

"Peace." Torrin scratches the back of his head. "People are often misled that heaven is a peaceful place, it is but the people aren't. It's like they live off the drama and unholy things that happen. They're the exact opposite of what they're supposed to be." He looks away from me. "When I was an angel I use to live off it as well, hence the reason why Hera and I slept together. I was so pissed at Zeus and I knew that me sleeping with Hera would hurt him."

"Sometimes when we're angry we do things in the moment that may seem good, but is actually one hell of a bad idea. It's normal, we all do it. I've done it plenty of time." I playfully bump him. "Yiska, my best friend, destroyed my favorite diamond ring and no matter how much spells I did, the ring never got fixed it. And with me being so angry at him, I slept with his girlfriend at the time. He forgave me of course, but I knew deep down it hurt him and it hurt me knowing that I had hurt him."

"That's intense." He says.

My eyes land on his bare chest. "You ever heard of a shirt?"

He smirks. "You ever heard of a bra?"

I smile, showing off my white teeth. "Touche."

"Do you want to go flying?" Torrin asks.

"Sure." Without another word, Torrin quickly grabs me by the waist and pulls me towards him. In an instant, feathers come out from his back, his long silken black gleam, wings erect. His wings slam upward and when they come back down, in a flash of black-silver we are off the ground and away. I let out a chuckle. "I'm never getting use to that."

"It gets easier when you do it a lot," Torrin says, looking up at the sky.

"Where are we going?" I ask.

"To see the solstice." He answers, flying faster. Looking down, my eyes widen at the number of people under us. When we reach an empty space, Torrin lands us on the ground. "It's staring." He says, pointing ahead.

Turning around, my mouth drops because of what I'm seeing. The sun dips below the horizon, the fleeting colors of dusk begin to fade away. The charcoal-black rocks circle around small pools of water, causing the water to flow steadily. Hundreds of sparkling souls appear near the sun, their bodies soar across the sky. The clouds are being sliced by vast, beautiful wings. "What is this? What do you guys call this?"

Torrin slugs his arm over my shoulders, making sure to not put his full body weight on me. "It's called a solstice, it only happens when there's a new batch of angels born." He points at the sky. "These guys here have just earned their wings, so they are finally welcomed to come inside." The sun finally goes down and the souls that were in the sky disappears. A yawn stifles past my mouth. "Come on, let's get you to bed."

I quickly shake my head no. "No, let's stay here. I'm not sleepy." I say, trying not to yawn again.

Torrin smirks. "You're a creature, Natasha when you are in the land of Zeus the sun is what gives you energy. The night is literally made to weaken you when you're here." He sticks out his hand for me. "Come on, let's go."

Huffing, I take his hand. "Stupid night."

"On second thought, why don't you just use your speed to get us to bed." He suggests.

I nod. "You're right, I'll get us there faster. Flying will only slow us down." I tease.

Torrin rolls his eyes. "Oh please, flying will only get us there faster."

"Whatever you say, Torrin." Smirking, I place my hands around his torso, before speeding off in the direction of his room. Not even twenty seconds later, we make it to his room, landing right on the giant king size bed. "This bed is the best," I say, moving to my side of the bed.

"I know, it's one of the few things I miss about this place," Torrin says, fixing the pillow barrier. He hides his face in the white comforter.

Releasing a high sigh, my feet kicks his knee. "You wanna do me a favor?"

Torrin picks up his head, staring at me sleepily. "What is it?" He mumbles.

"Give me a foot massage." Before he can protest, I interrupt him. "I'll give you one too."

"You promise you won't try anything?" He asks.

Holding out my Pinky, I start to wiggle it."Pinky promise that I won't try anything."

He looks at me confused. "What the hell is a pinky promise?"

I gasp, covering my mouth. "You don't know what a pinky promise is?" He shakes his head no. "Okay so basically if you make a promise to someone, you have to pinky promise so that they know it's a real promise."

Torrin looks at me flatly. "That's stupid."

Glaring at him, my eyebrow raises. "It's not stupid, plus it's the thought that counts."

Torrin pinches the bridge of his nose. "Fine." He connects his pinky with mine, staring at me. "Can we get this massage thing over with."

"Mmh." We both sit up and give each other our feet. Holding the heel of my foot in one hand, Torrin fist the other hand and runs his knuckles from my heel to toes. He repeats the action several times, which makes me close my eyes. I copy his movement. "You're really good at this."

"So are you, even though you're only copying me." Grasping my foot in both hands, he uses his thumb to draw circles up and down the soles.

A moan slips past my lips, causing my eyes to fly open. Torrin instantly stops. "I'm sorry, that came out of nowhere."

He closes his eyes, shaking his head. "Don't do it again." Squeezing my foot between his hand. He holds the heel with one hand and gently grasp and tug each toe with the other. Trying my best not to moan again, I bite down on my lips as we continue messaging each other. My mind drifts imaging Torrin's hands in other places, places that really need him right now.

Shaking my head at the thoughts, I pull my feet away from him. "Alright, I'm done. Let's go to sleep." Not waiting for him to say anything, I shut the lights and pull the sheets over my head. "Goodnight Torrin."

"Goodnight Natasha." He says after a moment goes by. Eventually, we both fall asleep in the awkward silence.

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