Syn

All that mattered was her.

Queen used to want a nice house, dogs, a nice garden, and me. Without the Underworld, I could finally give that to her, and maybe, just maybe...that was what was written in the stars for us. Not this. I could see myself waking up next to her, the sunlight pouring in from the shutters as I watched her wake up. I heard her laugh echo in my head. One full of pure happiness and joy.

We could have a good life.

We'd raise Saint, take him to school every day, and remind him not to kill anybody...He would give us hell as a teenager, I was sure, but he'd make us proud.

It was a mundane life. More human than I'd ever imagined for myself before, but it brought a smile to my face. I had a family now. A true one. So long as they were with me it didn't matter if I was sitting on a throne or a porch.

Queen returned my smile and a part of me thought she had somehow read my mind and agreed.

But then she started clapping her hands, and the sound jolted me back to reality and the cheering around me.

"Syn," I heard him say. I turned to him and my eyes stopped on his raised hand. "You will remain our King."

What?

I almost shot up from the chair out of surprise, but the pure shock of it all had me glued to the seat. I genuinely thought I had lost the throne. Everything in me was preparing for a life without it. It was going to take me a second to snap back.

"Are we done here then?" I heard Drake speak up.

"Not quite," the warlock spoke up. "I do have a condition that comes with my decision."

A condition?

I let out a deep breath. Of course, there was a catch. "What is it?"

"You are to rule alongside Queen."

Queen and I glanced at one another. Was that it? Because that was easy. I had already planned to do that once we got married. I looked back at him and nodded. "Okay."

"The two of you are engaged to be married, correct?" He asked.

"Yes." I nodded.

"I'd like for the both of you to wed within the next month and complete the Underworld's bonding ritual. If you agree to the terms, my vote will remain."

If it were just my feelings I had to consider, I would have done it all tomorrow. But we just had this conversation. She opened up and admitted that the idea of having a wedding scared her and I understood her. Our first one was traumatic for her on so many levels.

I died.

Then our daughter's life was taken.

I told her we had time...

How could I turn around and force one month on her?

Not to mention the ritual becoming a term. Even though I wanted to do it and she said yes, I couldn't accept it. It was a serious commitment and there was no going back. There would be no more breaks or her disappearing somewhere where I couldn't find her, she'd be mine. Completely. And I'd be hers.

I wanted her to think about it.

That was why this wasn't going to work.

I spoke up first, "I don't think—"

"We agree to the terms," Queen spoke up for me and I turned to her, surprised. "We'll get married and we will do the ritual."

We will?

I tilted my head in her direction and she shrugged a shoulder to say, why not? I furrowed my brows. What did you mean 'why not'?

"Then it's settled," the warlock said. "Please send us the invitations to the wedding. We'd love to attend."

Queen gave him a bright smile and nodded. "Of course."

"Then that wraps up the night for us." He placed his hands together before turning to my father whose eyes were glued to the candle on the table. "Lucifer, I know you have questions. Feel free to reach out to me and arrange a time for us to meet."

My father nodded, picking up the glass of water on the table.

Then the warlock turned to me. "I will be seeing you." With that, he waved his hand and disappeared into thin air.

Everyone else began to dismiss themselves afterward and the old human who voted for me looked around in confusion. "Are we not going to eat? I am hungry." He coughed. Everyone on his side walked out of the door and he sighed, straightening his cane to the floor.

"We can go eat somewhere else, Grandpa," Joshua, the current Human district leader stood up from his chair and walked over to the old man. Grandpa? He helped him stand up from the seat and I stood up in turn.

I took a few steps toward them and nodded. "Thank you both for your votes," I said, genuinely appreciative.

They both looked up at me and the old man spoke up first. "Thank us by being the leader you were in here tonight. Have that same passion for our world."

I nodded. "Yes, sir."

His grandfather pat my shoulder as they walked past me and Joshua gave me a nod. Thank fuck for humans. I never imagined myself ever thinking that before, but they saved me tonight. I was indebted.

"Do I get a thank you as well?" A voice said.

I turned around to see Drake standing arms crossed and I sighed. "I guess you do. Although, I am very surprised you voted for me."

"Why would you be?" He asked. "If your father were to be reinstated I'd be out of a job."

I nodded slowly. "Fair enough."

He sighed, taking a quick look around before nodding his head. "Well, I'll be off then. Till the next meeting, I suppose." He turned to walk away and I cleared my throat.

"Wait," I said.

"Hm?" He turned back.

"Thank you."

"For what?" He asked me. "I've done a lot for you."

"All of it."

"You are welcome," he said. "Is that all?"

There was so much more to talk about but this wasn't necessarily the place. "That is all."

He turned toward the door and I turned my attention back to Queen who was lost in conversation with Hades and D. I was a bit jealous that they managed to get to her before I did after everything.

I heard footsteps approaching me and I turned to see Drake again. His arms were crossed as he looked at me, a twisted expression on his face. Ugly bastard. "What do you want?"

"There is something I should say to you."

I nodded. "Then say it."

"I don't think I want to."

"Then don't."

"I'm not like you," he finally said. "I'm a man. I can admit when I'm wrong."

Okay..."Good for you."

"I want to apologize," he said.

My face turned into one of both confusion and bewilderment as I looked at him. "For what?"

"I've been unfair to you." What? "After that little encounter with your son...It gave me the strength to do some thinking. Enough thinking to where I was able to go into the room you were staying and go through your computer— you should install some type of security software, by the way. You made it too easy—"

"You hacked my computer?" I snapped.

"Hacked is hardly the word," he said. "As unguarded as you left it, all I had to do was open it. Needless to say, I did find the email conversation between you and a Mario...?" He looked up at the ceiling in thought. "For years I've wondered why my family was even at the palace...I didn't realize what was happening to you...and that you were a child.

"I am angry at you and I'm not sure if it's something that can ever be helped and I am sorry for that. But I understand what happened, I just—" He ran his hands down his face and let out a tired sigh. "I've become a man that I'm not in this entire thing. I thought you were the monster all this time...but it turns out my family may have been a part of your nightmare. I apologize on behalf of their souls in addition to mine."

I was stunned by his apology. Nobody had ever apologized to me for that night, in any way. It was unexpected, but at the same time, it was unwarranted. He was innocent. "You don't need to apologize to me, Drake. It's in the past. And I know I unintentionally took an innocent life away from you. I am sorry for that."

He nodded. "You don't owe me an apology...but thank you. For giving me one."

We both stood there awkwardly afterward for a few moments before I cleared my throat and held a hand out. "Friends?"

I cringed the second the word left my mouth and I tried to hide the reaction from my face. He sent a disgusted look to my hand, his arms still crossed as he shook his head. "No, absolutely n—" He caught himself and forced a poor excuse of a smile on his face. "I mean...baby steps. Goodbye."

I dropped my hand and he turned around, this time walking right out the door.

Oh, well. Nobody could say I didn't try. I put my all into it.

I looked back at the table opposite to me to see my mother and father talking. There was no point in me even going over there to say something. They hadn't been with me for a long time...but tonight definitely showed that they were against me.

"The Underworld misses you," I heard Hades say to Queen as I approached the three.

I didn't miss him and D's intertwined hands and I raised my brows and nodded. Finally. I didn't know how they finally decided to make it work, but all that matters is that they did. Dimitri had been through a lot already. They both deserved to be happy.

"I haven't been gone that long, have I?" Queen responded and I wrapped my arms around her waist. She looked up at me, smiling before her body relaxed into my hold. Her fingers rested on my forearm as she gave them a shy smile and I looked up at the pair.

"It's been a while." Hades laughed. "No one has felt the time more than that one right there." He gestured toward me. He would know. He had received the brunt of a lot of my frustrations. When he looked at me, he gave me a curt nod. "How are you doing?"

I knew he was referring to the drugs. I didn't want to get into too much detail here, but I nodded and settled on, "Better." It was going to be an uphill battle, but I hadn't exactly had the time to miss the drugs. I had switched them out for something more addicting. I buried my head into Queen's head and inhaled, her sweet scent putting me at ease. I heard her laugh in embarrassment, nudging my arm and I exhaled before looking back at them.

D observed me, amusement in her eyes before she spoke up. "It's nice to see you happy for once. It's a good change."

"Don't get too used to it," I told her. "She doesn't come with me to the office and you are still very bad at your job."

Her smile dropped. "I didn't miss you."

I smiled. The feeling was mutual. "Sure. Anyway." I glanced down at Queen. "Do the two of you mind if I steal her? It's getting late."

"No problem at all," Hades said. "We're actually heading out now. We'll see you Monday?"

"Yes, you will." I nodded. The break was nice, but it was time to get back to work. We said our goodbyes to them and they headed to the door. Behind them, I watched my parents slip out and I let out a disappointed sigh.

I probably wouldn't have even talked to them if they tried to approach me, but them not even trying at all...it made me wonder when in their mind I had stopped being their son.

"You okay?"

I looked back down at Queen and nodded on instinct. When she tilted her head questioning me, I sighed. "Maybe I'm not," I said, glancing back at the door. Seeing as we were the only ones left, I relaxed and leaned against the edge of the table. I buried my hands in my pocket, thoughts floating through my mind nonstop.

"I just never imagined myself fighting my father over this. I tell myself that what he feels about me doesn't matter...but it kind of hurts, sometimes. Before I met Xavier, it was us against the world. Now it feels like he's joined the world's side. And I'm alone again."

Queen stepped in front of me and placed a hand on my cheek and I smiled a bit. I didn't want to bore her with my thoughts and useless feelings, but her eyes urged me to continue. To open up a little bit. And I felt safe doing so.

I felt my eyes well up and I laughed a little, lowering my head. "Am I crazy to miss them a little bit?" I asked, referring to my mom and dad and she shook her head. "When you were in that cabin, they were there. With James, too. I was a dick, as always, but they were supportive for the most part. I thought that after that--" I sighed. "I thought that we could fix our relationship. Somewhat. But ten days of power has him betraying me like this again.

"And my mother, she's her own fucking person, but God forbid she ever speaks up for anything that concerns me. All she knows is loyalty to the men in her life and that loyalty skipped over her son." The words were bitter and despite how angry I was, I couldn't fully mean it. I ran a hand through my hair and corrected myself to Queen. "I'm sorry. I don't want you to hate her. She's not a bad person."

It was difficult to admit that with how insane she drove me, but she had a hard life. Julius sunk his claws into her before she was old enough to truly understand that there were monsters in this world. He kept her locked up in that palace until he was tired of her. The only reason she had a baby was to stay alive. I was sure she loved me in her own way, but she wasn't ready to be a mother.

She did try though. I just wasn't exactly sure when she stopped. I couldn't help but wonder if it was because of me. Children were the easiest of us to love. I wasn't exactly a normal child, but was I that bad?

"I don't hate anyone responsible for you being here." She looked into my eyes and I immediately softened under her gaze. "Without them, I wouldn't have you. I wish they were better to you and that you got along now, but that's not to say that won't change in the future. You guys could still fix things. You have an eternity to do it."

I shook my head. "I don't think so. There's just too much history. Maybe this is truly for the best."

"You know you don't mean that," she told me. "I know everything is coming at you all at once right now. But one day, you will look back and not even remember why you're upset. It may be in a week or a hundred years, but it will happen," she assured me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders.

She looked up at the ceiling and blew out a breath. "You are...extraterrestrial," she whispered, looking back at me. "Watching you is a spectacle and just being near you is electrifying. You are a treasure, truly. If they choose to miss out on it, that is their loss. You have so many other people who love you, Syn. You didn't do anything wrong. Any care or love they've withheld from you is from a problem within themselves, not you."

I looked at her for a few long moments and my eyes watered. I couldn't let myself believe it, but she was saying similar things so often that it was beginning to seep in. Just a little bit. Even if I didn't fully believe it, that sparkle she got in her eyes when she talked about me was enough to shut me up. I loved seeing it and I loved her.

It solidified in me then that I was going to love this woman every single day for the rest of eternity. No matter what, and no matter how hard. If she suddenly became the one and only person in the world who cared for me, I'd have more love in a second than most people wished for in their entire lifetime.

I felt a pain shoot up my arm at that moment and I winced stretching it. "Are you okay?" She asked me.

I smiled, rubbing the aching on my wrist. "Yes. It's just a little strain. Are you hungry?"

"A little," she said. "Why?"

"We should eat. This is a restaurant after all—"

"Can we go somewhere else?" Her eyes immediately lit up.

"Where?"

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