Sagittarius' POV

Today during training, Lupus has been giving me a mean look the whole entire day. It bothered me. Not because I know she was mad at me. But because she should really get out of my damn face if she wants me to focus on this torture Acella brought upon me.

So far, I didn't like Lupus. Sure, she got us a mansion. Sure, she saved us from who she thinks wants to send us to hell. If anything, she was like a mother to us.

And I had horrible experiences with mothers.

She was nice, welcoming, and everything everyone ever wanted. I didn't want to give in to people like that.

Right now, Aries, Leo, and I were running. It was still raining outside which made everything worse. I didn't have a problem with mud or anything about the rain itself. I just always found rainy days to be bad days.

Aries, of course, ran faster than me and Leo. He was always an athlete. A show off, if I'm stating my own opinion. I loved that about him though. He always took those things as a challenge which makes me more convinced that he and Gem would be amazing together.

I always loved a great love story. I wasn't one to date, but I liked watching it from afar. Such as Capricorn and Libra who are literally making out every two seconds. That must be nice.

I was behind Aries, and Leo ran faster to keep his step in with me. "Hey, Sagi," he panted as we were both running. He had his voice low and ran from a distance so Acella wouldn't think we were talking.

"Yeah?" I ask, not noticing the burning muscles that were tender on my legs. I usually didn't notice things until I'm reminded I'm back in reality.

"Are my eyes weird?" he asks me in between pants.

I take a short glance at Leo, trying not to make any of the rain droplets get inside my eyes. They looked normal to me. Still brown and charming as always.

"Yeah. So weird," I joke with a chuckle. "Are you high or something?"

Leo scoffed and chuckled too. "No. I was just asking," he says, getting the fact that I was joking.

I don't know why he asked, but I decided to leave it alone. I didn't want Acella to yell at us if she catches us talking to each other. So I only ran faster, trying to think about something to numb the tenderness in my legs. Leo followed behind me, aware that I didn't want to be yelled at today.

The only thing I could think about was on how everybody was lying to me. Straight to my face. I knew I couldn't be upset about it, but I kind of was. Especially upset with Aries and Leo.

Flashback

A few nights ago, Ophiuchus came into my room. It was the same night I claimed to go to sleep. And I really was going to until I heard a knock on my window. I sighed. My legs were already tired from all the training we did that day.

I opened the window and Ophiuchus literally throws himself inside my room, his head first hitting the carpet.

All the sudden, I felt a huge emotion of rage. "What the hell, Ophi?!" I ask, managing to keep my voice down. He slowly stands up now, a few feet away from me so I didn't feel so short.

A few days before that, Ophiuchus came back to apologizd to everyone. Everyone immediately forgave him which was weird. Super weird. The fact Scorpio, Cancer, and Pisces all forgave him made it even weirder.

I wasn't stupid. I knew something was up with everyone when they all immediately forgave Ophiuchus. Aquarius and I talked about it that night before we went to sleep too. We forgave him that night, but that didn't mean we weren't so cautious. I'm not stupid.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" I ask him. Seeing that he didn't come through the door considering everyone "believed" him was sketchy enough. Whatever he was telling me was a secret he trusted me with.

He had his eyes shut closed. I would've thought he could've strained his eyelids just for shutting them so tightly. "I messed up. I messed up bad," he says, talking a bit too fast.

As I said before, I didn't fully forgive Ophiuchus like he thinks I did. In fact, I feel somewhat offended he would think I was so easy into trusting in that way. I only send him a confused look, waiting for him to spill whatever he needed to say.

"Okay," I say slowly, raising an eyebrow at the serpent-barrier. "What did you do?"

Ophiuchus was pacing in a circle now, tapping his lips with his index fingers. "I messed up," he repeated.

"What did you do?" I repeat back. I always hated repeating myself. I almost rose my voice a bit.

He stopped pacing and his eyes met mine, only to make me shivver a bit. "Sit," he tells me. "And please don't get mad at me."

"Just tell me," I say, growing impatient. Whatever he had to tell me was itching his skin with guilt. I know that exact feeling.

He closed his eyes again, trying to find a way to start his sentence. I was nothing but impatient. I was ready to know whatever he needed to say. So ready I was biting my tounge down to stop myself from rushing him.

"You have to promise not to be mad at me," he says again after a long pause.

I was eager enough. He knew that. I also hated making promises I knew I couldn't keep. I was a Fire Sign. I can't not get mad at things that just might tick me off. He also knew that.

I only said nothing in return and rose my eyebrow again, indicating that I wanted to know. Now.

He sighed again getting the message. "I'm in deep shit, Sagittarius," he tells me. I found it weird how his British accident would say my full name like that. Nobody really says it like that except for Scorpio and sometimes Capricorn.

"Go on," I say, crossing my arms and finally taking a seat on the edge of my bed now.

Ophiuchus had trouble talking to people. I noticed that. I understood why. He went a thousand years without having anybody to talk to. That thought always made me feel so miserable and sorry for him. A thousand years was more than a lifetime. And I couldn't imagine a whole lifetime without having anybody to go to.

"Before you do get mad at me, I only did it because I didn't want to go back to hell," he rambles.

That statement made my mind click. The only people who were willing to send him to hell were the Water Signs and Lupus. This had to have something to do with why they forgave him. I know it did.

That click made me realize exactly what he did. Instead of calling him out for it, I wanted to hear him say it himself. I knew he didn't want to which was the only reason I did.

He was fidgeting with the ring on his finger now, knowing that I want him to continue with the story. "Um, that night when you guys all got home, right? The night after I accidentally tried poisoning the Water Signs-"

"Accidentally?" I ask, blood boiling at the careless, innocent word.

He sighed at that. "I know. I'm sorry. But that was a mistake," he tells me, closing his eyes, bracing for what was to come next. "But I made a bigger one."

"On to the story," I hastenly ask.

He just kept fidgeting with the ring on his finger I didn't know where he got from. "Remember how nobody wanted to side with me after that, right? Including yourself."

I nodded my head. I remember that pretty well, actually.

"Well," he paused, "I sort of got inside while everyone was sleeping."

He left me with a small cliffhanger there. My eyes widened, anxious to hear more.

"And, um, I put a spell on everybody that night... to defend me," he says, not making any contact with me.

My eyes burned with a small spark of fire. I only remained silent to hear more.

"B-but I didn't spell you! I swear. I didn't spell Aquarius either, just everybody else―"

"What. The. Fuck," I say, almost yelling. I had to make sure I took a deep breath in between each word. I was furious. More than furious. It made complete sense.

"I thought it was a good idea at the time, but it's not-"

"No fucking shit, Ophiuchus!" I finally yell out. I take a deep breath afterwards, hoping I wasn't completely loud.

The room was quiet now, stinging with silence which I hated. God, so much fuel was built up in me I wanted to burn the whole entire mansion down.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I ask, coming back to a normal voice. It's not like I should yell so loud anyway. Everyone forgave Ophiuchus. Or appeared to seem that way.

"I tried making it right, I swear-"

"Don't give me that bullshit," I scoff, turning myself away from the guy.

The thing about this concersation was that I felt guilty. More than guilty. I was mad and irritated with myself more than anything. Because of me, everybody else had to suffer whatever the guy I thought I could trust has done to them. I was angry at myself than him.

"I swear. I tried," he says, growing irritated at my response.

"How?" I ask him with another eyebrow raised.

He started fidgeting with the ring again as he looked down at it too. "I tried undoing what I did. I promise, I did. I tried doing it two nights after-"

"Nice. So it took you two whole nights to make you realize how guilty you should've felt. I would've thought you'd have enough time for yourself to find out quickly given that you seem to have all the time in the world without being bothered," I snap.

"But Sagittarius," he says, "I really did try. And I really do feel bad about it. I wouldn't have tried keeping it as a secret from you if I didn't want to be a better person."

I shake my head. "That doesn't fucking matter. What matters now is that everyone else is under your damn spell because you had to think about yourself."

"You think the first time I got into hell was when I thought about myself?" he asks me, giving me a complex and hurt look.

I didn't know about Ophiuchus' past. That was something he didn't talk bout. I couldn't find it in books either, so he was just a mystery all over. I don't know why he got himself into hell.

"You can't blame me for wanting to put myself first for once if it means I'm going back there again," he says.

I only remained quiet. I didn't know what he was saying was bullshit or not, but I didn't care right now. Sure, he trusts me, but he was never ready to talk about his past. I sure as hell wasn't ready to tell Aries and Leo about mine although they're the main ones I trust in.

Not even Gemini. And it's all because of her snooping through my car that pushed me back even more. I didn't blame her though. I could only blame myself.

"Doesn't matter," I repeat, "everyone's still under your spell."

Ophiuchus stopped fidgeting with his ring. "No, no, no, that's the main reason I'm in deep shit, Sagittarius. They're already cured from that curse."

I finally make eye contact again with the british man. So much went through my head now. If that was true, why didn't they tell me? Or Aquarius what he did. Plus, everyone's acting completely normal as if they weren't cured.

"You're lying," I bluntly state.

Ophiuchus shook his head. "No, I swear, I'm not. Bloody hell, I broke in again to undo what I did, but they already were cured from that."

Nice to know he can break into our house so often and easily.

"And only one person can undo my spell," he says, walking closer to me now. "Lupus."

I squint my eyes at the brunette. "So Lupus can undo your spells?" I ask.

He nodded. "She basically created this world. She can undo anything." This information, I already know.

"So why didn't Aries or Leo tell me what you did to them?" I ask him.

Ophiuchus shrugged his shoulders. "I-I don't know. I have nothing to do with that. I promise you."

I felt a bit hurt if we're being honest here. Aries and Leo are the two people I've ever met that I can trust with anything. We tell each other everything. Almost everything. I would've figured that even if they thought I was in danger from Ophiuchus, they would've told me.

But then again, who was I to feel upset? It's not like I tell them everything anyway. Somethings were better left unsaid, and I learned that from mommy dearest. I knew I couldn't get mad at them, so I didn't.

"I'm still mad at you for spelling my friends," I say, realizing the main reason I needed a blame.

"I know. And I understand that, Sag. But I'm trying to be a better person, I promise you. I wouldn't be here exposing myself if it meant that I didn't," he says.

And he was right. He wouldn't be here if he felt like he wanted to improve himself. I could turn my back on him anytime now, and yet he's risking to tell me about what he recently did. I found all of it sincere.

"I know," I sigh, becoming calm now. Shit, he's here to be better. He has nobody to go to, so why would he lie now?

"Thanks for telling me about it. Even though I could now go against you," I say gratefully.

"I just trust you," he says.

I bit the inside of my cheek. Only one thing has been on my mind after all of this. "Why did you spare Aquarius too?" I managed to ask.

It didn't mke sense to me. I understood why me. I just didn't jnderstand for Aquarius. He doesn't even know her as well as he knows me. I didn't know if it was a game, or if he simply just forgot to spell her.

His eyes were alert. I could feel a whole new stimulant from his aura  as his jaw clenched too. "She just...reminds me of somebody," he bluntly says. I can tell he was internally regretting what he was saying.

I nod my head. Then my eyes avert to the ring on his finger. "Was it someone like your wife?" I ask him.

He sees me looking at the ring on his finger and hides it with his other hand. "Fiancé," he corrected.

My eyebrows furrowed. "So Aquarius reminds you of your fiancé?"

He sighs, now ready to change the subject. I'm surprised he didn't. "Yeah. Personality is the same."

I click my tounge. "And what happened to your fiancé?"

He shrugged. "Dead."

My eyes widened. Well, that was beyond as blunt as it can get.

"Sorry," I quickly say, looking at my lap now.

He waved a dismissive hand. "It's okay. It's in the past," he says, sounding as if it's alright. I knew he didn't mean it. If it was alright, he wouldn't have had the ring on his finger as a reminder of her.

"But Sagittarius, I really am in deep shit now," he tells me once again back on the topic we were before.

I shake my head. "I promise, I won't let them say anything," I say.

"No, not the zodiacs. Lupus. She knows I'm here now. I'm pretty sure she hates me more than Scorpio does," he says.

And that means a lot. Scorpio really hates Ophiuchus because of the rumors.

"So that's why training has been harder on us," I say, thinking out loud. "She's ready to get rid of you so suddenly."

"Exactly," Ophiuchus says, pacing in a circle again.

"If she wants you gone so bad, why can't she just do it herself?" I ask.

"Because she physically can't. She doesn't have that much power to do so. Believe it or not, only the twelve of you do."

Well, shit.

I twittle with my thumbs now. I didn't know what to do about that. If Lupus wanted him gone so bad, she was going to try her best to make that happen.

I look back at Ophiuchus who was fidgeting with his ring and pacing in a circle again. "Ophi," I say. He immediately stop and look at me, eyes filled with worry.

"Ophi, you have to promise me you will not hurt any of my friends again," I say, making sure I was being heard.

He immediately nod his head. "I swear. God, I promise I won't. I don't want to hurt any of you, I'm so sorry that I did-"

"Then you're forgiven," I say.

His eyes widened. "Just like that?" he asks.

"Just like that," I reassure. "Don't think I can automatically trust you yet. But for now, I am trusting that you will not hurt any of my friends. Got it?"

He nods his hed again. "Crystal clear," he says. "Thank you."

"Yeah, don't worry about it," I say. "Do not make me regret it."

"You won't," he says a bit too fast.

I could tell he was nervous. I couldn't tell if it was somewhat his anxiety or his inner thoughts about something else. So far, I'm trusting he wouldn't hurt any of us. Why would he if he knows we could send his ass to hell anytime we'd like?

Ophiuchus' eyes widened again like a little kid in a candy store. "You know that little talkative, pretty athlete girl, right?"

I chuckle at all the correct adjectices of Gemini. "Gem. Yeah. What about her?" I ask.

He paused for a quick moment. "She can read minds. The night when you and Aquarius forgave me, she accidentally spoke in mine," he says.

"And I kind of sort of only spelled you and Aquarius so that she wasn't able to read in both of your minds," he tells me, instantly regretting saying it.

My face deadpanned. "What?!" I ask.

"I only did it because I didn't want you two to hate me. I'm willing to undo it now-"

"Actually," I say, putting a finger up, pausing him in the middle of his sentence. "I don't want you to."

He gave me a confused look. "Really? Sagittarius, I spelled you, I swear I can undo it if it means I'm a step closer to gain your trust."

"No," I say. I had a plan now. "You don't need to."

"Is this a test?" he asks.

I shake my head. "For you, no, it's not." My eyes avert to meet his eyes now which were filled with confusion and regret. "If Gemini can't read my mind, she's going to continue to think that I don't know you told me the truth," I explain.

He gives me a weird look. "You can tell her I told you, Sagittarius. I feel guilty about it."

"No," I deny again. "If they think that I don't know about it, I can simply see who can tell me what happened first. That way, I know who to trust and who not to trust."

Ophiuchus groaned and moaned. "Pardon me, but that's the most idiotic plan you've ever made."

I scoff. "It's the only plan you heard me make."

He smiles. "Well, then, nice to know you're completely idiotic," he teases.

I frown. "What are you still doing here?" I ask.

He shrugged. "Confessing a sin."

"I'm not God," I say, rolling my eyes.

"No, but you are my friend."

"Kind of," I say, pointing a stern finger at him. "You did something completely stupid. Something unforgettable, but you tried making it right before it went totally out of hand. We're not completely friends...yet."

He nodded his head as he comprehended my words. "So should I just leave now?" he asks, gesturing his thumb to my window.

I nodded my head. "Yeah, I think that's a good idea."

He nodded his head again and was ready to climb down from my window.

"I might see you sometime this week," I smirk at the man.

Ophiuchus only sent me a smirk back and left through my window. I turn to my door now, bolt down the stairs, and find someone to try and skip training with me the next day.

*End of flashback*

"Okay, Fire Signs! Hurry up! Run, run run!!!" Acella yells at us, her mouth as wide a whole orange could fit in it.

Aries was still before me and Leo. I run faster, tired of hearing the blonde coach yelling and pushing us. Leo kept his pace behind me, continuously glancing to his side where the Air, Earth, and Water Signs were.

When Aries, Leo, and I all made it to where Acella was, we were all breathing heavily. I swear, not even my nostrils could contain as much air as I needed. We were all panting as Acella shouted at us.

"Leo, get up!" Acella says, smacking Leo's head.

Leo immediately rubbed his head. "I was standing!" he defended himself.

"Not straight enough," she says, getting up in his face. Leo stood as straight as he could, his spine standing on a 180° angle.

I immediately do the same, hoping she wouldn't get onto me about it. I hated this. I hated Acella's methods. It all made zero sense to me. All we did was run, get hit, and get yelled at. There were even times she tried pissing us off on purpose where our impulsivity almost sets the whole backyard on fire.

I look over to the Water Signs. Esther wasn't even pissed with Pisces for skipping with me yesterday. She was an awesome and chill coach. She was more about peace than being so destructive. The only thing about that was that it also seemed like no fun.

Cancer was better at her powers. Maybe even better than Pisces if I would've first guessed. Scorpio still struggled and groaned during most of it.

What a pussy.

"Are you really getting distracted during practice? You think that's a good idea? Pushing my buttons," Acella seethed as we both came face to face. She was so close to me I could smell the mint gum she always chewed from her mouth.

I didn't say anything, hoping she would walk anywhere else but closer to my face. It made me pissed. Any attitude of sassiness pissed me off more than anything. I almost rolled my eyes at her until I caught myself.

Acella took the no response as a signal to turn around and walk to where she was. I finally rolled my eyes at the blonde, getting the initial angst out of my system.

"Today, I want you three to do what we did last time the three of you were here," she says, specifically looking at me.

I exhale sharply. "Seriously? Again?" I absentmindedly say.

"Yes, again," Acella says. I was surprised she didn't get into any attitude with me.

"But I don't know how to be angry," Leo says, his hand raising as he did.

"If I smack you in the head, I bet you'll get angry," Aries jokes, settling a smirk on his face. Leo rolled his eyes at him.

"Aries and Sagittarius," Acella tells, immediately catching out attention once again. "You two seem to get angry quickly. So I'm not too upset with you guys for having anger issues."

I turn to Aries who also looked at me. "Anger issues?" I mouth with a confused look on my face. Aries simply shrugs his shoulders.

"And Leo," the blonde walks up to Leo who was still standing completely straight. "You had a perfect life, huh?"

Leo grins and nods his head. "I mean, I wouldn't say perfect, but don't let that stop you from saying that." I roll my eyes and silently laugh at his behavior.

"Well, how about I tell you that now, in this world, your life isn't gonna be so perfect. Because if you don't train, if you don't try to stand your ground and get angry for once and just wuss out, you're gonna be dead. And you're going to die alone, cold and bloody. So if I have to make you miserable for the rest of your life to get your power to work, trust me, sweetheart, I will," Acella threatens while poking a strong finger to his chest, nearly knocking him down. Though I wasn't sure if it was a threat or some kind of coaching at this point. Leo's grin immediately turned into a frown.

It was official. I hated her.

"Now let me see you wussies get angry!" Acella claps her hands together, now having a smile on her face.

"Is it just me, or was football coaching back on earth much helpful back then?" Aries asks me, turning away from Acella. I shrug my shoulders at him.

"Let's start with Leo first," Acella starts, walking over to Leo. "Can you two try to get him mad?"

"You could switch out his shampoo bottle with hair dye," Aries suggests.

"Are you kidding? He'll think he'll look great with any hair color," I remind him. "We should switch it out with Nair."

"I would know the difference, Sagittarius. Nair smells like a dying goat and my shampoo smells like oranges," Leo tells me. Ah, right.

"You guys are pussies," Acella tells us, waving a dismissive hand at us. "You guys need to go deeper than shampoo bottles. What do you love most, Leo?"

"Me."

"What else do you love most?"

"My personality."

"Okay, but is there anything actually meaningful to you?"

"Yeah."

"So what is it?"

"Me."

Acella's face turned into a deep frown before wacking Leo in the head. "I can't with this fool." She walks back toward Aries and me. I hear Leo silently whisper "what a bitch" under his breath while aggressively rubbing his head.

Before Acella could tell Aries and I what to do next, we heard a whistle from afar. I could see Leo flinching at the sound which wasn't all too loud.

"Zodiacs," Lupus calls, gesturing all of us toward her direction. "So for now, that's all for today."

My muscles were still burning and sore, and the rain didn't help at all as the droplet's pressure pounded on me.

"So everyone, can leave. I have a few things to do, so no dinner at my house today," she smiles politely.

Acella blows her whistle, causing Leo to flinch again. What's up with him and his flinching today?

"Finally! So who's cooking at our house tonight?" Pisces asks, being the first to walk inside the house.

"I can," Aries suggests, swooping next to Gemini.

"I think someone else should cook today," Gemini suggests.

Aries raises an eyebrow at her. "Why?"

"Because...you should relax today! Hasn't Acella been pushing you all day?" Gemini answers, wiping the rain from her eyes.

"In other words, she doesn't want you to because you can't fucking cook, Aries," Taurus answers, also walking inside with the rest of them.

I shake my head and watch Aries and Gemini from afar. "They would actually be great together. What do you think, Leo?" I ask, turning to my best friend.

Only when I did, I noticed something a little strange. He seemed to be lost in space and his nails were replaced with...claws?

When he realized my expression, he instantly put his hands behind his back and nod. "Oh, yeah. Aries and Gem? Yeah."

"What the fuck is that?" I ask, trying to take his hand from behind his back.

He dodged it, keeping both tied behind him. He nervously chuckled a bit. "What's what?"

Growing tired of his childishness, I grab his arm and snatch his hand over to me and see his claws closely. They were sharp. And long. "Woah," was all I could say. "When did you get that?"

Leo snatches his hand back and puts it behind his back. "What? My nails grow long for a guy."

My face deadpans. "You're lying to me." How many times was he going to lie to me, I wonder.

Leo sighs and rolls his eyes. "Okay, I just found them out yesterday. Not a big deal."

"Not a big deal? That's so fucking cool! You can, like, slice my fruit with that. Or break into the mall with one of those things!" I say excitedly.

"Sagittarius, stop," he replies. He sounded so serious. He never sounds serious. My excitement aura suddenly left when I realized his wasn't there.

"What? You just got your main power which is super cool, it's not like you got your first period or something."

This time, Leo laughed and shook his head at me, causing my happiness to enter once again.

"Hey, does my eyes look weird?" He asks the same question he did before. They were still brown and normal.

"Nope. What? Did you have, like, some red eyes that could shoot lasers? That'd be extra cool!"

He shakes his head. "Nope. More like cat eyes."

"Lame."

"But don't tell anybody. Only you and Virgo know about it."

I whip my head over to him to make sure I heard correctly. "I'm sorry? Virgo knows? How did she get to know before I did?"

"It was an accident. It happened while I was with her last night."

"You were with her last night?" I ask. "Or were you with her last night?" I say in a different tone and wiggling my brows.

"Ew, gross."

"Aren't you the one who flirts with her?"

"Yeah, but..."

"But what?" I push him to say what he was going to say.

He shakes his head once again. "Nothing. I need to shower. Or soap. The rain seems to be warmer due to Capricorn's three hour long showers."

Which was true. Capricorn always took all the hot water. We should really plan on handcuffing him to his bed so he can't get up so earlier to beat us to it.

A few minutes later, we were all approaching our mansion. I wondered why it always rained so hard these past few days. It was like the cloud couldn't run out of enough tears to fall.

When we all entered the house, Cancer immediately takes her shoes off and pour all the water sitting in there on the floor. It was like her shoes were flooded. "Sometimes I fucking hate rain," she groans, walking her way upstairs towards the shower.

I slightly giggle. "Aren't you a Water Sign?"

"Yeah, but..." Cancer decided to not finish her sentence. Instead, she left the answer on a cliffhanger and stomped upstairs.

"She okay?" Scorpio asks, seeming most concerned and looking at Pisces. The long haired brunette shrugged his shoulders.

Gemini, on the other hand, stretched her arms over her head and placed her wet body on the couch. It was in evident that Capricorn was going to say anything about it.

"Gemini!" I hear Capricorn already yelling at her.

Gemini got more comfortable and placed her hands behind the back of her head. "Yeah?" she asks with a smirk, knowingly pissing Capricorn off.

"You're wet! Get off the couch!" he orders.

"Why? It'll dry up."

"Get. Off. The. Couch."

"Libra, your boyfriend is bullying me again," Gem jokes, looking at the short brunette who seemed to just be tired of both of their voices.

"Again?" Aries asks, squinting his eyes at Cap.

"Capricorn, this is the fourth time today," Gemini groans.

"Cap," Libra says, putting a hand on his shoulder while relaxing his nerve by a single touch. "First of all, Gemini doesn't listen to you, so give up. Secondly, you are being kind of bossy. And thirdly, the couch is going to dry."

Capricorn sighed and rolled his eyes a bit before smiling at his girlfriend.

"Yeah, Cappy," Gemini teases with her smirk still plastered on her face.

"Shut the fuck up before I throw a boulder to your head," Capricorn threatens, already losing his cool.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, boulders, wet couch, who cares? There's too much talking going on. And move your feet Gem," Aries mocks, pushing Gemini's feet off the couch and sitting beside her.

Sometimes I didn't know if they had anything going on or if Aries was that obsessive to be around her. But it seemed like Gemini liked him being around her also. Instead of a smirk, she gave Aries a big grin, and he smirked at her this time.

I also noticed Pisces watching. He has liked Gem for what seemed like forever and claimed he didn't anymore. Everyone in the mansion lies.

Many of the others seem to raid the kitchen, and I couldn't decide if I wanted to sleep or eat. Kind of wanted to do both. I see Aquarius walking upstairs to her room or maybe for a shower. I took this as a chance to finally talk to her.

"Aqua," I say, catching her attention. She immediately looked back. "We need to talk."

Aquarius nodded her head while giving me a confused look. "Okay, sure? What is it?" She was standing right in front of her bedroom door.

I hesitantly was answering the question. She looked eager to figure out what I was trying to say. "Not in here," I finally tell her, turning the knob behind her.

Aquarius strolls inside and I walk behind her. I made sure there was no one in the hallway and closed the door and locked it.

Aqua was already on her bed and her brows rose. "Look, Sag, if you're here to confess your love to me, I'll let you know I'm flattered, but―"

"Aquarius, I didn't even say anything." Her and Leo definitely weren't so different from each other.

A slight blush was on her cheeks. "Okay, so what is it?"

I sit on the bed just about a foot away from her, and she seemed to not care knowing that we were both soaking wet from the rain. "It's about Ophiuchus," I tell her.

Aquarius scoffs and shakes her head. "Yeah, well, I still don't fully trust him. It's ridiculous how everyone else magically does, and he wins everyone back."

I chuckle at the word 'magically.' She has no idea.

"That's because he spelled them, Aqua."

I guess I said it casually. Too casually that Aquarius found it as a joke. "No, but seriously―"

"I'm serious too. That's exactly why I needed to come talk to you," I tell her. Her face was as emotionless as a rock. I don't think she was buying it. Yet.

"Look, Ophi came to see me a few days ago. And believe it or not, he's really good at sneaking in the house. Then he was telling me how he screwed up and spelled everyone to be his little bitch, so that night when he came to apologize, nobody could fight it," I start.

Aquarius blinked a couple of times, and I think she was starting to believe my story. A look of terror and worry spread across her face. "E-everybody? But I felt completely fine," she stammers.

"Everybody except you and me," I announce.

Now her face morphed into a look of confusion. "You and me? I guess I'd understand why he'd spare you, but why me?"

Even though I knew the answer, I was sure it wasn't the best time to freak her out and compare her to Ophi's dead fiancé. So I shrug my shoulders. "He probably forgot," I lie.

Everyone in the mansion lies.

"Forgot? How the hell do you forget eleven zodiacs?" she asked. Luckily the question was more rhetorical to herself rather than asking me. "What the actual fuck," she whispers.

"The only time he did spell us was so that Gem couldn't talk into our minds about him. Yeah, she's a mind reader, it kind of freaked me out too," I shiver.

Aquarius rose a brow and scoff. "Well if Gem could read minds, that's probably the only thing I would thank him for." I nod my head in agreement. "So why did he tell you all of that?"

"Because he tried to undo it out of guilt, but it was already undone. He believes Lupus undid it. I don't know how she knew, but she rose the spell off of them," I explain to her.

Aquarius' eyes squinted. I couldn't tell what she was feeling right now. "So all of them are cured from the spell?"

I nod my head.

"So why hasn't anyone told me before? I didn't hear anything from Libra, Cap, or Taurus," she shakes her head.

I shake my head. "That part, I don't know. No one's told me about it except for Ophi."

This time, Aqua shook her head. "Nope. I trust the eleven of you more than I trust that Ophiuchus guy. How do you know he's telling the truth?"

"I don't know, I just know it."

"That's not good enough, Sagi."

"I can't explain it, but I know he's telling the truth."

"He's dangerous. We need to get rid of him," she says, standing up.

"He's human!" I stand up also, slightly disappointing myself realizing I wasn't exactly as tall as she was.

"None of us are really human, Sagittarius," she tells me. "We're not ordinary. Neither is he. Why are you trying to defend someone who has all the power and is a deceiving little snake?"

My tongue got lodged in my throat as I didn't know how to speak. I didn't know what to say. There was no logic into any of it. I knew that. But I also knew that there was no way I couldn't let him go back to hell. Nobody deserves that fate.

"I don't know. I just have...a feeling."

I didn't feel like Ophi was all too bad. Sure he almost poisoned the Water Signs, tempted on destroying all twelve of us, and spelled all twelve of us right under our noses...

Okay, maybe he is all that bad. And I didn't know how to explain it, but I just knew there was a big part of him that tried to adjust everything. The guy literally came from hell and back. Any normal person would've done anything for themselves if it meant to not go back ever.

Aquarius didn't say anything, and I haven't realized she hasn't until her lips forced into the shape of an O. I give her a look of confusion. "What?"

"I get it now," Aquarius' voice was close to a whisper. I heard her perfectly clear.

"Get what?" I ask in a normal volume voice.

Aquarius grabs my arm and pulls me with her to the other side of the room. She had books and drawings and pens and paper. If she was going to do some exorcist shit on me, I was about to make a run for it.

"What's this shit?" I ask, stepping away from the brunette who was starting to scare me.

"Research. On Ophiuchus," Aquarius answers, looking through the thick book with tons of bookmarks in them. "Taurus and I have been doing research on him ever since we got here. It's nice to know who we're up against."

"Or not against," I mumble, letting her know that I refuse to send Ophi back. "And since when did Taurus read?"

She looks at me for a split second before chuckling and flipping through her book. "He doesn't read. He's just a good listener and actually a pretty great problem solver whenever I get frustrated on the metaphors and shit."

The smile on her face from just talking about him was wide and genuine. He wasn't even in the room and I could tell she was in a much positive mood.

"Do you like him?" I bluntly ask.

Aquarius looks at me again before looking through the book again. She shrugs her shoulders. "I don't know. And it doesn't really matter because I found it!"

She placed the book in between us and had a paragraph highlighted blue that she pointed to. "This is the story about the Scorpion and the Snake."

"I thought the original was about the frog and a snake."

"Yeah, but here it isn't. But you know how that one goes, right? Well, in this one, the scorpion feels in competition with the snake. They're both vicious, poisonous animals. Reminds you of someone, right?"

"Scorpio and Ophi," I grumble, rolling my eyes at the sudden realization.

"They're always at each other's throats, along with the other Water Signs, Cancer and Pisces, because Scorpio is one of them. It's almost like a loyalty pack. Like how you, Aries, and Leo get along so well."

"Okay?" I answer, trying to wrap everything in my head.

"So Scorpio and Ophiuchus are kind of destined to hate each other. Ophiuchus is only connected to you and Scorpio, so these things are destined to happen. Ophiuchus hates Scorpio because it's just how the stars played it out to be. You and Ophiuchus, however, have a stronger bond. You're pretty much destined to even be the only one who likes him."

I groan and roll my eyes. "So I'm his little bitch, huh?"

"Technically, he's yours," she announces, causing my annoyed face to a more confused one. "You're an archer, Sagittarius. Which means bows and arrows, hunting, camping, hiking, you name it. And along with hunting and camping, a story always have to involve a snake in the woods," she tells me, scrolling through more pages.

"Ophiuchus," I sigh.

"Exactly! Only the snake doesn't bite and kill the hunter. Instead, it helps him. Or her," she says, gesturing a hand to me before finally finding her page. "Archers use snake venom for the tip of their arrow to kill their prey faster and easier. That way, instead of leaving injured, they're dead for good."

"So I'm a killer?"

"Yeah. And top of the food chain too. Only humans are really capable of winning battles. But don't let that get to your head. When Leo turns to a lion and you wimp out, you could die in seconds. You just have the upper hand, really."

I smirk to myself. "Cool."

"So Ophiuchus is basically your little bitch. He helps you in return of you not killing him. Makes sense?"

"Just like now," I say in realization of how it all connects to right now. "And what about the rest of you guys?"

Aquarius shakes her head and closes her book. "I'm not really sure. I know we're not connected to him, but I do know there's a reason as the 13th zodiac sign having all of our powers. And he didn't even have to steal them from us."

"Maybe we stole his. He was technically the first since he was born centuries ago. Is it possible for that to happen?"

Aquarius shrugs her shoulders. "I'm not sure." That was all she said, leaving me hopeless into finding out about anything else.

"Do you know anything on Lupus?" I randomly ask out of the blue. "Ophi says she's the only one that can undo his spells, but she's not even half as powerful as we are anymore. She knows he's here now and that's why she's been training us harder."

Aquarius clicks her younger before speaking. "Well, yeah. But that's because Lupus used all her power to get away from earth and create a better world for people like us."

"Okay, but why can she only undo Ophi's curses? That seems a bit sketchy, right?" I ask.

"I really don't know, Sagi. All I know is that Lupus wanted Ophiuchus gone. Not even that. She wanted him to suffer in hell, only causing Ophiuchus to fear her. And I'm guessing with all the hiding he's been doing, she really does terrify him. Maybe it's all an act of vulnerability," Aquarius tells me, scratching the back of her still wet head.

I still had so many questions. So many things to say, but didn't blurt. Instead, I nod my head as if I understood everything. "Yeah, okay," I tell her. "Makes sense. Thanks so much, Aqua. Oh, and dont tell anybody about this conversation."

Aquarius gave me a warm and gorgeous smile. "Of course. Night, Sagi."

"Night."

When I left her room, I couldn't stop but think more about what we talked about. From downstairs, I heard more of Capricorn and Gemini arguing with Aries mocking Capricorn to purposely make Gem laugh. Libra seemed to calm Cap down, but the two troublemakers rose his temper again when she did so. Leo seemed to annoy Virgo some more today, and I could tell because of her loud fusses. Pisces was yelling at Scorpio for almost drowning him today in practice because his powers pretty much suck.

But none of that was louder than my thoughts. Aquarius believed that Ophiuchus was terrified of Lupus. But when thinking about it some more, I knew it was the exact opposite. The more time I had to think about it, the more I came to the conclusion.

Lupus was more terrified of Ophiuchus.