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Not going to class. Divine stuff to take care of. See you later.
Nia would probably appreciate a longer explanation, but it's all I have time to scribble down for a magnet-taped note to the refrigerator before my invisible god whisks me out of the room, and I find myself following him out of Dark Rose House.
It's just minutes after dawn, and there's still only a shimmer of sunlight in a sky that blushes softly in pastel shades. The air is quiet and cold, and because I still only have my nightgown under my coat, I start to worry if I might end up transforming into an icicle, no magic required. I'm about to bury my hands inside its pockets when the god pulls me close, and I'm surprised and secretly tickled pink. His invisible warmth envelopes me, and I snuggle closer with a little sigh.
Better?
I only trust myself to nod, fearing that if I speak I'll end up betraying myself when my voice turns all breathless and giddy. Although a part of me is still cynically convinced that this...this thing I have with my god will only lead to heartbreak, it's not like I have any choice. He's already gotten under my skin, and I'm no masochist. I've already had a taste of how it is to be without him, and it's an experience I'd rather not repeat.
Just a little farther, moraki mou.
A shroud of mist blocks my view of what kind of farther the god is talking about, and apprehension skitters down my spine when I realize we're heading to the southwest edge of the school. This part of Rosethorne isn't just strictly off-limits. It's also supposedly haunted, and I find myself gulping when I realize the god intends for us to walk straight through the thick, eerie-looking fog. A mist is never just a mist in the Post-3rd world, but just as I consider asking the god if we could perhaps take another path, it's also the same time he asks—-
Afraid, little bird?
I'm almost thankful for the teasing note in the god's soundless voice. It's just the distraction I need to make my fear wane as my hackles rise, and up goes my chin as I say without hesitation, "Of course...not!"
I end up shrieking the last word as the god suddenly yanks me past the shroud of mist, and just as I'm about to freak out and start yelling at him—-
Oh!
A startled laugh escapes me when butterflies with luminous flapping wings of varying colors catch my eye. My surroundings are as enchanting as they're familiar - a sky that's more pink than blue, a moon that shyly peeks from behind lavender-colored clouds, and trees that tower like crooked guardians watching over its mortal charges.
I turn to the god (or at least where I assume he's standing), exclaiming, "I can't believe we're actually here, and I'm not dreaming!"
This place is ours alone, and you can visit it anytime you like from now on.
The mist knows who to allow in and who to keep away.
The sheer beauty of the place makes me tug my hand free of the god's hold so I can better explore my surroundings. Butterflies flock closer as soon as I take my first step, and it eventually dawns on me that they're only willing to come close because I'm no longer next to my god.
"Am I right in thinking that the butterflies sense your presence?"
Yes.
The god suddenly materializes into a beast next to me, and I nearly jump back. "You startled me!"
The beast grins at me, and the look is so terrifying it's almost cuter than cute, and I can't help but laugh and throw my arms around its neck.
You appear remarkably affectionate right now, moraki mou.
"Only because you're in this form," I say with a grin. "It's just like cuddling a pet."
I wonder if you will still think the same when I make love to you in this form.
My arms loosen in an instant, and the beast releases a rumbling sound that's almost like a laugh.
I take a wary step back and eye its massive form with trepidation. "You're joking, right?"
Am I?
"That isn't funny—-" My voice breaks off, and I find myself scowling as a thought crosses my mind.
What is it, moraki mou?
"I still don't know your name," I remind him archly, "and I need something to call you with."
You can call me anything you want.
"Shit."
The beast growls, and I laughingly remind him, "You said anything's fine."
Anything that would not make me want to bite you.
I purse my lips and pretend to seriously consider my options. "How about Beast?"
More snarling, and I bite back a smile even as I do start wondering. What is the best way to call him? I hear girls my age use words like 'babe', 'baby', and 'bae' all the time, but it just doesn't feel right to use any of those for someone like my god. Maybe, since he already often addresses me in Greek, I can do the same thing?
I'm sorry about this, moraki mou.
The apology startles me out of my thoughts, and I find myself staring straight into eyes of gold and blue that are grim and brooding. "I'm not complaining—-"
Even if you do, you have every right to do so.
The beast nudges my shoulder until I realize he's asking me to sit down, and he settles next to me soon after on the cold, hard ground.
I can only ask for your patience, little bird.
I have existed far longer than most of the gods you have read of.
My age is such that it is almost pointless to count, and in the passage of time,
I have become immune to the sight of crumbling empires and entire cities buried under molten stone.
Although his words portray a frightening picture of power on the surface, all I can think about at that moment is how hard it must've been for him, to bear such sights for countless millennia, and his next words prove it.
Time and time again, man revealed himself to be fickle and weak, selfish and cruel.
Such words might have made another girl hesitate, but all it does is make me curl up against his massive flanks so the god can feel the warmth of my skin and hear how my heart is beating for him.
"It's all water under the bridge now. Stop letting it get to you—-"
I knew of the prophecy even before you were born.
But because I was an arrogant fool, I simply dismissed their words as drivel...
And you ended up paying the price for it.
Pulling back, I muster the courage to take hold of the beast's head and turn its gaze towards me. "Look at me. Do I look like I'm still blaming you for anything?"
A haunted look further darkens the beast's gaze, and my heart aches for it.
Can you not see what I'm getting at?
Even now, even knowing that the prophecy has come true—-
My breath catches. Is the god saying...he's fallen for me?
It still doesn't make a difference. I am still unable to reveal myself to you because—-
I press my fingers against the beast's lips, and its soundless words come to an abrupt halt. "I get it. I really get it."
Do you really?
"You're telling me you're halfway to falling in love with me—-"
That is not the point—-
"Even as you're still unable to trust me."
A ragged sound fills my mind, and I quickly shake my head to let the god know I'm far from hurt. "Silly, silly beast."
The sound quickly turns into a growl, and I can't help giggling. "It's true!"
Take care, moraki mou. Countless beings have died for far less graver offenses.
"Whoever those countless beings are, I'm sure they deserved it, and more importantly—-" I smile into the beast's eyes. "You won't ever be able to hurt me. You love me, remember?"
Surprise flickers in its gaze, and I struggle to keep myself from laughing. Silly, silly beast indeed.
You are taking this far better than I imagined, moraki mou.
I make a face. "Just goes to show you should spend less time trying to get in my pants and more time getting to know me."
The beast's body rock with silent mirth, and I wrinkle my nose at it. "I'm serious, you know. If only you took the time to get to know me just a little bit better, then you would've realized from the start all you had to do was be honest with me. That's it."
That's truly it? You are not angry that...
"You don't trust me?"
Are you?
"I only had my biological parents' deaths to make me distrust the divine," I point out, "while you had thousands of years to distrust humanity."
You are being very rational about this.
"Well, duh."
Duh?
I throw my hands up and grumble, "Are you really going to make me spell it out loud?"
I truly do not understand—-
Grrr!
"I'm saying I have no choice," I mutter under my breath. "Of course I need to be rational about this because I want things to work between us and mmph—-"
The beast disappears, and the next thing I know I'm being pushed to lie against my back as an invisible mouth crushes mine in a blazing-hot kiss. I moan in surrender, my brain shutting down as his tongue thrusts inside of my mouth.
Every stroke of his tongue drives me wild, but when my body instinctively arches up, his fingers tighten around my waist to keep me down.
Be mindful of your wound, moraki mou.
I can barely concentrate on his words, with his tongue still exploring my mouth. I want the kiss to go on forever, and it's this need that drives my hands to move on its own, my fingers digging into the unseeable panes of his back.
Suck on my tongue, my love.
A whimper spills past my lips, but I'm not sure if it's because of what he's commanded to do...or how he's just called me. And when I think about it again - My love! He just called me my love! - I feel even more lightheaded, and I whimper anew even as I tentatively do his bidding.
I suck hesitantly at first, but then I hear the god's rough growl in my mind, and blood rushes to my head with a feminine sort of thrill. It's the first real sound I've ever heard from him, and knowing that I've caused the god to make any kind of noise when I'm not supposed to hear such a thing at all—-
My fingers dig deeper into his muscles as I start sucking harder on his tongue, and pleasure bursts inside of me as I'm rewarded with another growl.
Little troublemaker...do you think I am not aware of what you're trying to do?
A little laugh escapes me, but it quickly turns into a gasp when the god wrenches his mouth off mine, and not even a second has passed when I suddenly feel his large, strong hands parting my legs open. My breath hitches as I feel his hands push both my coat and nightgown up to my waist, and cold air begins to tease the inner side of my legs.
The way his gaze devours me is mortifying and exciting at the same time, but the thought of resisting doesn't even cross my mind when I finally feel his fingers skimming over the scrap of silk that's covering my core.
He pulls them down oh so carefully, and so, so very slowly that I'm a shuddering wreck by the time he tosses my underwear aside. All of this is so new to me, but when a mixture of shyness and instinct makes me try bending down to cover my flesh, the god captures my hands and gives my fingers a punishing little nip.
"Ouch!"
That should teach you. Never cover what's mine, moraki mou.
He lets go of my hands, and this time I can only tremble in acute self-consciousness as I feel the god start pushing my legs further apart. I'm practically spread-eagled, and I feel so terribly exposed that I can feel myself start to blush...all...over.
The god chuckles, and I gasp out loud as his breath tickles the inner folds of my core. It's only at that moment I realize how close his head is to my womanhood, and the thought makes me react instinctively. I reach blindly for his head, but the moment my fingers manage to grip the silky locks of his hair, it's also at that moment his head bends down and I feel his tongue slowly tracing the lines of my folds.
I moan and shudder—-
Remember your wound.
"Then don't kiss me there!"
What is it you humans say? Just lie back and think of England?
"That only applies when you're Brit—-aaah!"
My grip on his head tightens instinctively as I feel his tongue thrust inside my womanhood.
Sweet. Greek. Heavens.
The god starts tongue-fucking me, harder and faster until all I can do is moan and tremble. My world begins to spin faster and faster with every forceful thrust of his tongue, and it spins even faster when I glance down my body.
I can see my legs parted wide open, but even though I feel every hot, wet stroke of the god's tongue, there's nothing - there's absolutely nothing visible, and the surrealness of it has me panting. The reality of a divinely invisible head muff-diving between my legs is weird and fucked up, but it also makes the pleasure inside of me intensify to the point it becomes agonizing and excruciating in a way that I never want to end.
I try my best to control myself, but when the god also starts teasing my clit with his thumb, I end up clawing his back, and oh sweet Greek heavens, to hell with my wound—-
My body arches as I reach my peak, and as I start to shudder and cum, it's then I find myself crying out a word I have never used before—-
"Kyrios."
It's the Greek term for 'master', and it's what my heart has decided to call my god while I wait for him to trust me with his name.