*Song- Malibu, Miley Cyrus

And just look at that cutie (*.^)

'I was in love...'

Confessions of the Night sky

I'd persuaded Thanatos to allow me one more day on Earth, with my parents and friends, before we had to descend back to hell.

The events of mount Olympus were still fresh in our minds, Zeus' death still lingering in the air, not entirely freeing us from the shock or fear. I don't think up until that moment had we realised just how dangerously close to a civil war we really were.

We returned, our hearts heavy and our thoughts muddled. Sonya and Trita were extremely confused- having waited for us all that time in the lounge. We quickly made them forget everything and they went home with wide smiles, not knowing that I'd nearly escaped the clutches of some really pissed off vampires.

Or that an evil, ancient vampire was using them as leverage...

That night, Thanatos had hypnotised my parents to leave for dinner, so that we could be alone, and get back to showing each other just how scared we were to lose the other.

It was extremely intimate; slow and passionate at some stages and then rough and heavy at others. We spent the whole night under the white cover of my bed, demonstrating our love- at least; I hoped it was love for him.

He was still a little angry with me for running off, but after showing him what I could do with my apologetic mouth, he was much for willing to forgive and forget.The moonstone ring of Hera was still on my long finger, reminding us that we couldn't be as close as we dearly wanted.

When the moon passed through the clouds and our bodies were spent for the last time, I curled into him and let the rise and fall of his sweaty chest lull me to sleep. 

The fields of lavender were bright that night as I walked down a familiar path, but instead of heading towards the burnt out tree, where a small pocket-watch lay in the ash, I made my way to the tall mirrors.

Look for the golden mirror...

It's a weapon, that I know.

I stood in front of the glass, but still no reflection. That must be a clue.

"You know." Her voice was soft and sad. I turned to find her messy hair floating over her face; "I'm sorry about your son."

"Zeus... Dead?"

I nodded. The closer I stepped, the more she looked like a mirage. "Thank you for showing me the watch, but now I need to know what the golden mirror is." 

She looked startled as I said the name. She took a step back. I tried again, but with a gentler voice; "I don't want your son's death, or yours or anyone else's to be in vain. I need to find these people."

She nodded, but her eyes were blank and her mouth parted. She turned her eyes to the sky.

The storms.

"You warned me Zeus was in danger, didn't you? But I didn't get it... I thought he was the murderer."

Hecate's eyes were sad, but I tried again; "The watch; Cronus is involved somehow, but why did the watch stop at midnight? Is there some clue behind that time?"

Hecate's expression was pained; it's as if she wanted to speak, but something held her back. She looked weak and drained. Was this other dimension she was locked in fading? Or was her anchor in me deteriorating slowly?

We had to hurry- perhaps there was a way to bring her and Zeus back to us.

"Midnight..." I mumbled the word and paced around her, but Hecate shook her head numbly; the movement straining her. I furrowed my brows; "Not midnight? Um... ah..."

I paced some more, my feet moving swiftly across the green grass.

"What about the number twelve then?"

Hecate's eyes suddenly widened and she nodded once. My heart sped up and I smiled with genuine relief- one step at a time.

"Okay, so twelve... Twelve." I continued to pace, my mind blowing steam, "There are twelve main gods in the Pantheon- is that the clue? Is the killer one of the twelve? We know Hermes is part of them, but could there be someone else among them?"

Hecate suddenly screamed and doubled over with agony as she clutched her head I her hands. The shock of the sudden action forcing me back, but I quickly recovered and shot forward to help her up. She whimpered and nodded once.

I knew I had to finish up; she count take much more of this.

I had another very important clue, but I pushed slightly for one more thing, knowing this could hurt her, but I couldn't stop my curiosity; "The mirror, where is it?"

She bit her lip and pointed to the mirror behind me; "With her..." and then she looked up to the heavens.

I followed her gaze, but all I saw was a dark blue night sky.

"Who? I don't understand. All I see are stars and-" My voice got caught in my throat.

There it was.

The clue. The clue that evaded me for so long.

My eyes slowly lowered to hers; "That's it, isn't it... You changed the dawn to a night sky. The sky was first light, and now- now its night."

I clearly understood who I had to go see.

"Nyx."

The goddess of the night- and Thanatos and Hypnos' estranged mother...

Oh, this should be fun.

I stood over her with a hot cup of tea in my hand. She didn't like coffee, but I knew she appreciated a good cup of strong tea in the mornings.

I watched as her eyes fluttered slightly and my heart followed.

I was in love.

More than I could bear.

I wanted nothing more than to just tell her- to scream it aloud, but I'd taken my time to make it perfect. The moment when I would tell her, would be faultless. This feeling inside of me was bubbling, like it kept growing now that I wasn't forcing a lid down onto it anymore.

I'd planned on taking her down to the beach, to her favourite spot, and at sunset, her favourite time of the day. I'd wanted to surprise her with a gift, but I had no idea what to get her.

Flowers seemed too little, and I'd already gotten her some the day she'd finished with her Earth and Astronomical magic. Taking her out to dinner again didn't sound romantic enough. And that's when I realised a gift wouldn't matter.

All she wanted was my love- and I'd give her every last drop of it.

I needed her to see how much I cared.

Aurora's eyes flickered open; "Hey... What's this?"

I smiled at her confusion as she limply sat up in her bed. I placed the cup of tea in her hands and sat down in front of her on the soft mattress. She sniffed and smiled; "I thought I might return the favour for all the coffees you've brought me."

Aurora smiled and took a sip; "Hmm... Wow, not too bad."

I smirked and leaned onto the bed with my elbow; "I'm in the wrong trade. I should be a professional tea-maker."

She giggled; "Yes, 'Thanatos, the god of delicious tea' does have a menacing ring to it."

I leaned in to press my lips against hers, the want of her touch too great to ignore.

She sighed into my mouth and I felt my resolve crack. I wanted to tell her now, to grab her and whisper it to her over and over, but I held back. My thin wire of control and patience stretched as she eyed me over the brim of the cup.

"Thank you for letting me stay a bit longer."

"We make decisions together, and I only want you to be happy. And safe." I gave her a pointed look and she smiled sheepishly; "Sorry about that, again. I won't do it ever again, promise."

"I believe you..." I kissed her head. I did believe her. I know her intentions were never to hurt me; she would give her life for me. I didn't agree with it, obviously, but I wasn't blind to her unending love.

Aurora smiled into her cup as she took a sip. I watched her lips, my own moving slowly; "So what do you have planned for today?"

She put the cup down on the bedside table and leaned back into plush pillows; "I want to spend some time with my parents today, and then tonight I'll be with Sonya and Trita."

"So long as I can have you for about an hour at dusk."

Aurora lifted an eyebrow; "What do you have planned, Mr. Whatever-your-surname-is?"

I chuckled; "It's a surprise, but I promise it doesn't involve flying reptiles of any sort."

She laughed wholeheartedly and patted the open space next to her; "Before we start this day, care to show me how the king of the Underworld treats his queen. I need to know these things before I commit, you know..."

I scoffed as I grabbed her and swung her over me; she squealed in delight.

"Like you have a choice..."

The sun was setting, and so was my time on Earth.

I didn't know when I'd see my parents or my friends again after today- perhaps only after the killer is caught, but I knew I'd make it through this tough time.

His strong hand was leading me along the beach. We walked side by side, laughing, joking and just talking about anything and everything. There wasn't much he didn't know about me by now- my childhood, my favourite Barbie growing up, my odd obsession with Lego's when I was in freshman year, the subjects I hated, the teachers I loved, the books I've read and even the way lemon trees reminded me of my late grandmother.

There wasn't much I didn't know about him either- the books he's read, the way he used to tell stories to his youngest siblings, the way he and Poseidon used to raid the palace's kitchen before big feasts, the time he nearly burnt down his mother's entire temple when she hit Hypnos for being too kind to mortals and I even knew how he'd gotten his tattoo.

It was a deal he'd made with Hypnos- as brothers, to never leave each other's side. His was a scorpion, he was the fighter. Hypnos was a pair of scales; he was the peace-keeper.

I scanned the beach and noticed we were heading towards my favourite spot where the sand was white and soft and the beach bowed up, creating a small hump over the ocean.

"You remembered..."

Thanatos smiled and pressed my hand tighter; "It's hard to forget when you want to come here every day."

I laughed in only the way he could make me laugh. The sun was setting and the orange sky look surreal against his dark, tanned skin.

There was a time I wanted him to leave me alone; that felt so far away now. There was a time, I remember, when I wanted his touch no where near me, but even back then- how could I deny the way he made me light up?

"I'm glad you never gave up on trying to drag me back with you." I softly said as I stared at his profile contrasted against the burning sky. 

He turned his eyes to mine; red, like the setting sun. "So am I."

We stopped and he pulled me down to sit with him. The sand was white and soft, my feet dipping in to feel it against my skin. This was where I wanted to spend all my days- right here, with him by my side.

Thanatos' voice was filled with sincerity, his mask slipping away like melting ice. "I'm sorry for all the pain I caused you back then."

"We all make mistakes." My tone was soft. I leaned against his shoulder and watched the sun hover over the horizon.

Tomorrow brought uncertainty, fear and perhaps pain, but today... Today I would forget those emotions existed.

Today there was only love and trust, and happiness.

Thanatos pecked my head tenderly and retracted his arm from my shoulder. I tilted my head back and lifted my eyes to him. He suddenly looked nervous.

That was strange- he never looked nervous.

"Aurora..."

I felt my heart speed up as he spoke, but I mentally scolded it to return back to its normal pace. There was no need to get so thrilled. This could be bad news, but I knew in my gut that it wasn't.

"You know me fairly well by now, right?"

I raised a brow; "More than you know yourself, yes."

He chuckled, but I could see his nervousness increase; "And you know I would never lie to you, or hide anything from you."

I nodded, my voice deciding to leave me.

He smiled gently down at me, with truthful eyes; "I don't like hiding things from you."

I frowned; "Thanatos...?"

"Aurora," Thanatos leaned in and his expression turned serious. "I've never been as honest with anyone in my life the way I am with you." 

I opened my mouth to question his sudden odd expression, but he continued, as if a floodgate had opened and there was no way of stopping the words from tumbling out; "I'm a fool. You deserve every ounce of my honestly. But before I can give you that, I had to be honest with myself first."

What he was going to say, I had no idea.

Thanatos smiled down at the sand and lifted his eyes up to admire the descending sun. He looked surreal. I knew he didn't belong to this world, but having him so close, being able to reach out my hand and touch him- it was unfathomable. Like a work of art within my grasp.

"Aurora..." He said my name again, like it was his salvation; the reason he prayed. 

My curiosity was on fire; my hand itching to pull his eyes to mine to see what was barely afloat in those dark red oceans. He turned his head to mine, answering my pleas. They burned a hole through me, his eyes like I'd never seen them before.

I went through every scenario in my head as to what he wanted to tell me.

Every single thought passed my mind.

Every.
Single.
One.

But not the right one...

"I love you."

My heart stopped and I swear, it wasn't going to start up again, ever.

I sat still.

The waves broke on the shore, lapping up the foam and the sand, but neither of us moved a muscle. 

Did he just...?

Thanatos raised his brow and a smirk crawled up his lips; "Close your mouth, you might swallow a fly."

"I love you too."

His smirk dropped.

We stared at each other for what felt like the longest moment in my life and still I didn't want it to ever end. Something passed between us- a promise. It didn't have any words attached, only raw emotion. Emotion I could never hope to replicate or replace. 

His whisper was made from pure relief; "Thank God."

Our lips crashed with desire and the sun dipped down to give us some privacy as we sealed our unspoken promise.

Favourite chapter- hands down (^.^)

Yes, I managed to change the model's eyes to red to see what it would look like as Thanatos' and hot damn... Red eyes should be a thing (*0*)  

One more chapter to go!