So because of the outcry by some readers for me to add more of my own thoughts and experiences while writing the chapters, I've decided to do it a little differently than having to write a rather long and time-consuming 'Author's note' at the end of each chapter.

You can now find some of my thoughts and favourite quotes in the comment section, usually right next to the paragraph or line I'm trying to highlight or which I'm referring to.

Enjoy! Xx

'I have a feeling nothing will be the same ever again...'

Smothered with Cotton

Sixth week into the hunt

"More tea, Aurora?"

I wonder just how many servants they need to keep all those bushes trimmed? Gods, this place is dull. All these people do is sit around admiring themselves... No wonder human's think they're mythological.

"Aurora?"

I snapped my head around to smile up at the goddess of beauty. Aphrodite was waiting for my answer, a servant standing next to me with a small porcelain pitcher. It was steaming with hot tea. I shook my head; "No, thank you."

I placed my empty cup back down onto the table, pretending like I'd been listening to the strawberry-haired woman talk. I was trying hard to keep my mind locked in the large, golden decorated room.

The young man bowed and left the chamber, closing the doors gently. Aphrodite smiled; "Are you alright, dear? You seem to have dazed off there for a moment..."

"I'm fine, sorry. I was just thinking."

Her round eyes filled with understanding. She looked like she knew exactly what I was thinking about. "He's fine. I wouldn't worry about him."

My eyes snapped to hers; "What-"

"Thanatos has always been more than capable. I'm sure he's almost on his way home."

If only...

I nodded politely, my smile thin.

My sixth week on Mount Olympus was coming to an end, and we weren't any closer to getting to the point of things. For the past four weeks I'd been sucking up to Aphrodite like no body's business- going out for lunch with her in the gardens, talking endlessly about dresses and shoes and trying very hard not to get annoyed when she kept trying to subtly enquire about how talented Thanatos was in bed.

My nerves were shot, but even more so, my patience was nearly non-existent.

The Blood magic was growing easier by the day. I could now fully control Trita and Sonya when I chose to- of course, not without their consent, only ever to practice. They found it oddly exciting to watch. I tried not to let their naivety anger me. It wasn't their fault that they only saw the awe in magic; they were yet to experience the danger.

And hopefully never will...

As for my training to control gods, well... that was going well too, I suppose. It's just too bad that the only subject I could practice on was Apollo himself. He liked it of course, having me so close for an hour each day. I, however, didn't particularly take a liking to his constant advances.

By now it was easy to manipulate Ichor- the god's blood. I hadn't mastered it just yet, but my skill level would do for now. I was practically done with training. All that was left now was to wait for Thanatos to get home so I could ascend.

But of course, the last report we'd received from him didn't divulge much information. He really loathed having to report his progress to Apollo. I could see it in the way he wrote- messy, rushed and indifferent towards the recipient.

He'd get it done, but not for our king.

As for any messages from Thanatos personally- there were none. Any letters or messages I could receive here first went through Apollo, and he decided what he wanted to show to me and what he didn't.

Alexus and Samaria came to visit me about a week ago. We spent the day outside in the gardens, looking at the same trees, the same clouds and the same sun for what felt like the thousandth time. Of course, they didn't care. They were all too happy to see me and tell me all about what's been happening at the academy, how Alexus is piled with work from Hades and how Samaria couldn't stop gushing over this guy she'd met at a wine farm.

"Oh, Alba! He's so sexy! And he's even got dark hair like Thanatos! I think he's Greek too..."

I merely laughed and smiled. I don't think any man could ever attract her if he didn't have most of Thanatos' features. The poor girl was smitten and it often felt awkward for me to speak to her about him, knowing how she felt.

Alexus, however, had no issue changing the subject whenever Thanatos was mentioned. She clearly didn't like talking about him, that I knew, but lately I had started to wonder why more and more. Yes, their history wasn't too good, but this didn't feel like it matched.

In any case, the two girls were meant to visit me again today, but in a letter from Conrad I received this morning, he mentioned that Alexus was far too busy with work for the academy and that Samaria had a few errands to run for him before she left next week to go visit her family in Rome. I missed them all. It was odd not having them around to ask questions on my magic and casting.

They always knew what to say when I felt too exhausted.

Sonya and Trita were coping well enough- both missed their men, but for now there was nothing we could do but wait. Trimorphe was getting edgy being cooped up in the same room the whole day. She missed the gardens and the lake of Thanatos' palace. I tried to spend as much time with her as possible, but after training all day, trying to get information from Aphrodite and keeping Athena at bay and away from Ares, I was exhausted when I got back to my chamber.

A dull, dreary existence...

I felt my bones ache to get back home- to breathe easy again.

I checked the sky quickly; it was nearly dusk. My escape time. I couldn't handle another story about face oils or the right colour to wear for your skin tone. "Well, I must be leaving... It's getting late."

I stood up from the plush, pink chair, but Aphrodite's timid voice stopped me from taking another step; "Wait- I-"

I waited for her to continue speaking. She glanced down in thought, her lip tucked in between her teeth. I furrowed my brows.

The more time I spent with her, the more it was obvious that Aphrodite was not as confident in herself as she'd like people to think. She had great self-esteem, but it was sometimes over-shadowed by her doubts. She was awful at making rash decisions.

"Aphrodite?"

She glanced up with wide eyes, almost forgetting I was there. "Sorry, I um... Could you stay a while longer?"

I nodded slowly and sat back down, but my eyes remained on her face, questioning the odd agitation in her voice.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes..." She smiled widely, but it lacked happiness. I knew then that all my effort was not going to be for naught. She was ready to talk. I might not even need to push for the information.

"So..." She smiled up with false cheer. Something in her mood had shifted suddenly. It was almost like she'd realised that her time for hiding behind her clothes and jewels was coming to an end. "How is your training coming along? I hear from Artemis that you're nearly done."

"I am done, actually, I just need to finalise a few more things with Conrad before the ascension, but other than that, it's finally time." I grinned with delight, some genuine warmth seeping through. I was happy to finally be able to talk about something I found interesting. There was only so much false interest I could generate in a day.

Aphrodite smiled brightly, her white teeth glistening; "I'm so happy to hear that! You deserve to be among us."

I nodded and whispered a 'thank you'. She paused, her smile cracking; "Well... No, you don't."

I eyed her with a glimmer of apprehension, but didn't jump to conclusion. She didn't seem to mean it in malice.

"You're better than us, to be honest. You're too kind."

I sensed her mood change back to self-doubt. She was clearly debating with herself over something. Something she didn't want me to see, but I was more observant than that.

Her eyes lifted with surprise as I spoke; "You don't give yourself enough credit. To be frank, I've always felt very welcome here." It was true. Most of the gods were rather generous and polite. "Of course, there are always exceptions..." I chuckled, my eyes drifting down to the rug.

Aphrodite nodded, her eyes filling with a sliver of conviction. I watched as it grew. Something I'd said had struck a nerve.

"Do you love him?"

It was an unexpected question, but I knew who she meant. I nodded, my eyes sincere; "More than anything."

She furrowed her brows; "Even yourself?"

I wanted to laugh. "So much more. He's..." I paused and tried to find the right words, "Thanatos is my life."

She nodded, as if expecting that answer. I waited for some show of recognition on her face, but she just stared down at the ground in thought. I pursed my lips and tried to enquire, but she spoke up in a soft voice, breaking the silence; "I don't think I'll ever love anyone more than I love myself."

I didn't really know what to say, but I saw the opening immediately. She didn't love Ares. Not like I thought she did. At least not anymore.

Perfect.

"Aphrodite, you-"

"He did it."

The room fell silent.

I didn't dare move a muscle, afraid this was some sort of trick, but from the broken look in her eyes, I gathered that it was nothing more than a hurt woman trying to piece back her heart.

"Ares did it." Her whisper was almost inaudible. Luckily, I already knew what she was going to say. I nodded my head.

The mood of the room changed from friendly, but underlying questioning to a darkened mess of realisation.

"You're not shocked." She sighed and closed her eyes as if accepting something deep down had really toppled over and shattered inside her; "You know. You all knew."

"Yes." I kept my eyes on her face, watching her slump in her chair.

"He's gone too far this time."She suddenly looked up in realisation, her hands lifting from the armrests; "But I had nothing to do with anything! I swear! I-"

"It's alright, Aphrodite!" I waved to her to stop stressing. Quickly I stood up and pulled a chair closer to hers. I sat down and grabbed her hands, my eyes filled with sympathy; "Why now? Why tell me now?"

"Call it an attack of conscience? I don't know..." She leaned back a bit to shake her head at me; "I knew. I should've ratted him out before Zeus-" She stopped herself. "Before it went too far, but I was scared. I am scared."

"Of him?"

"Of course." She shot me a look; "If he knew I was talking to you right now... I don't even want to think of what he'd do."

I glanced towards the closed doors. The room was quiet as her nervous eyes glanced towards the window. "Aphrodite, I promise you, nothing will happen to you."

"You don't know him like I do." Her eyes sent a chill down my spine. It was no secret that Ares was no god to be playing games with. We were all on thin ice; especially when he had a weapon that could kill immortals. "He's gotten so crazed ever since..." Her voice faded.

I titled my head; "Since?"

"Since he went to Tartarus about two years ago. I think Cronus got to him somehow, offered him something. Made some sort of deal."

I nodded my head- we'd suspected that already. What a deadly combination of partners.

"Did you know Hermes was involved?"

"What?" Her eyes snapped open in shock.

Dammit. I shouldn't have said that.

"I suspected him, but I never thought it might actually be true..." Her eyes drifted down in surprise, but then shot back up to mine; "Where is he?"

"That doesn't matter." There was a chance, however slim, that Aphrodite was acting for the sake of fooling us into believing her so Ares could get information. I wasn't about to risk more information. "Do you know if anyone else is involved somehow?"

She sighed and bit her lip, dropping her eyes in nervousness. I felt her brain working on a thought, but she just wouldn't budge from it, until finally, she gave in; "What does it matter! He'll kill me anyway if he found out I confessed to you."

I licked my lips, eager to hear what she had to say; "I don't know exactly who it is, but it's someone with considerable power. I've heard him mention them before, but never who or what they are. I do know, however, that they occasionally meet at an old fortress located near the East of Hades' palace."

A couple of names sprang to mind, but none I wanted to believe had anything to do with all of this. Then again- this may be a clever lie. I nodded; my mind hot with questions.

"Do you have any idea as to where he keeps the sickle?"

"No..." She shook her head in defeat; "He hides it too well. I've tried to look for it myself, but it's definitely not in his chamber, nor do I think it's on Mount Olympus. He's cleverer than to keep it here."

"Thank you..." I squeezed her hand softly; "I know this is hard for you, but we can fix all of this."

She nodded, but didn't smile; "I have a feeling nothing will be the same ever again."

She wasn't wrong.

"What happened that made you so... scared?"

Aphrodite looked up into my eyes, her face filled with a child-like alarm, like she'd just woken from a disturbing dream. I clenched onto her hand.

"Perhaps it's because someone finally wanted to listen to what I had to say..." She smiled up at me, but it faded quickly; "Or perhaps..."

I kept her hand in mine, encouraging her to not be afraid. This poor woman was taught her whole life that her beauty meant everything and that her inner strength wouldn't account for anything. Aphrodite looked towards the window, her eyes filling with a certain fire I'd hoped I could reignite in her.

I knew there was more to her than superficial power.

"Last night he said it was almost time to cleanse the realm. Personally, I'd prefer it if men stopped trying to pretend like they loved you, and instead admitted they're incapable of love all together..."

Barrios' POV

The cavern was dark and filled with even darker tunnels, all leading somewhere or another.

Thanatos led us down the main pathway, careful not to slip on the wet moss that covered the ground. Small waterfalls fell from the sky, creating a weak stream in between two sections of the cave. Some light shined through a crack in the top of the ceiling. This place was massive.

No wonder Sybaris had been able to evade us for so long.

"Barrios." Hypnos indicated for me to stop. I did as he asked and halted my feet, stopping in the dead-centre of the path. The lighter-haired brother pointed to a gap in the wall. I narrowed my eyes.

A spike.

I glanced down and my eyes caught the sight of a thin, sliver wire.

"A trap." I said loudly, so the men behind me could hear. They nodded, avoiding the way I went and instead followed in Thanatos' footsteps. I glanced towards Hypnos; "Thank you."

"Keep your eyes open. There will be more."

I nodded and followed my master's brother as we descended down towards the blackened hole in the ground. The cavern dipped into the Earth, ripping away fresh air and replacing it with a stale, pungent musk.

We walked on in silence, every now and then a reaper would point out a trap and we'd delicately avoid it. Thanatos stayed in the front, keeping his eye on the path we were heading down. Crossroads opened up ahead.

Thanatos turned towards the small group of men with Hypnos and I at the very rear of the party. His voice was deep and self-assured as he spoke. "Hypnos, take Barrios and four men down left. We'll meet back here tomorrow, same time."

Hypnos nodded his head and indicated with his head for us to follow him. As he passed his brother, he gave his arm a hard squeeze. Thanatos nodded, his expression grim and determined.

I knew it would be a long track. This cavern was intensely massive. And Sybaris could be hiding anywhere. Waiting for us.

"When you find her- you know what to do."

Hypnos nodded to his brother, his mouth set in a sombre line. I lit the fire in my hand brighter, the darkness becoming suffocating. You could still hear the slight trickle of the water falling down, but all the light from outside was now replaced with a cold, black abyss.

I wasn't particularly proficient in magic; the only craft I knew somewhat of was Earth and Astronomical magic, the easiest two to learn. From it I could control fire and some air particles, but I haven't yet learnt how to control water or earth. As a reaper, my speciality was hand-to-hand combat. My preferred weapon- my bronze sword.

Hypnos, however, was a master in magic, just like his twin.

I'd always looked up to them both. They've always been everything I've wanted to be- resilient, powerful and loyal to those around them. Thanatos might have been our master, but he never treated us poorly. He was always more than happy to stand up for us.

Being a reaper meant being part of a rather large 'family'. You formed a bond with your comrades unlike any other. You'd die for your duty, for your friends and for what you believed in.

It wasn't hard to think there was anything missing from a life like that- especially when my human life had been so painfully unfair, but then Sonya come along and...

Well, I couldn't quite remember just how soft a woman's hands were.

It was... so warm too.

I could tell Hypnos felt this strange new pain too. A pain you couldn't help but be thankful for. And then of course there was Thanatos, who felt this pain tenfold.

I might have slowly fallen for Sonya, and Hypnos might gradually be falling for Trita, but Thanatos had nose-dived straight into the deep end a while ago, and he was now trying very hard to keep his head above cold water.

I couldn't even begin to image what he must feel like. The most important thing in his world was the subject of so much hurt and had to temporarily live in a world filled with betrayal and danger, while he was here, trying hard to 'fix' things for those exact people who were ripping at his happiness.

He was more controlled than I gave him credit for. The man was a walking time-bomb, but he never showed it. All there was to do right now was work.

I turned my head back slightly and we dipped down further into the abyss, some reapers chuckling at the prospect of finding Sybaris already dead from her own traps. My eye caught Thanatos as he let his men walk first, preferring to lead from the back, in order for them to be safer in case of an ambush.

The fire licked at his dark complexion while his eyes drifted towards the entrance. Something deep inside of me creaked as I watched his heavy head hang slightly, falling towards his chest in exhaustion. And then, just as quickly as his moment of weakness washed over him, he tucked his chin back up and followed after his men with new conviction.

I think he knew. He knew things we could never comprehend and I had the horrid feeling that Thanatos suspected something awful...

He blended into the darkness and soon, was nothing but a memory.

And we are officially half-way with the updates on book 3! (^.^)

*Song- Nomads of the White desert, AC Origins

NEXT UPDATE- 11th of January