Cancer's heart
Deathmask strolled through the streets of Asgard, humming contendedly. Night had fallen, and a star-strewn canvas stretched out high his right hand, he held a leather pouch filled with money. He kept throwing it a few inches into the air and catching it again; the gesture of a man who knew he had won a lot of money.
Aphrodite, Gold Saint of Pisces, followed him on the heels. The azure-haired man was dressed in a pink blouse and white trousers. Not exactly what Deathmask would've worn, but he had to admit that the clothes appeared to suit his friend.
„So, what do you intend to do with so much money?", the Pisces Saint asked.
„Oh, I'll think of something, don't you worry", Deathmask replied in his usual cocky demeanor.
But as he kept walking, that cockiness slowly faded from him.
Before, he would not have hesitated to spend the money for every luxury it could buy. And that had been kinda the intent when he had joined some card players back in the tavern. And for a while, he had enjoyed the winning streak he had been riding on. But when he had kept playing even though he had won more than enough to sustain him and Aphrodite, he had known something was off.
To his surprise, he had found back at the card table that his thoughts had wandered constantly to a certain brown-haired flower seller.
,Helena…'
Meeting her had changed something in Deathmask. It had been subtle at first, but now that the Cancer Saint thought about it, everything seemed obvious.
He stared at the purse in his hand.
Before, he wouldn't even have considered in his dreams to give away anything for free. Especially not money. Now, however, as odd as it was, he felt uneasy at the thought of spending all that money only for himself. Again he thought of Helena, who was working so hard just to feed herself and her three younger siblings, who were still too young to work themselves.
And for the first time since he had woken in Asgard, Deathmask wondered: Was there actually a reason he had been brought back to life? A question he would have never asked in his old life. Had coming back to life changed him so much? At first, Deathmask had intended to enjoy this second chance to its fullest. He had intended to keep out of any god and fighting business. Had wanted to gather as much luxury as possible to keep living comfortably.
„Hn!"
The Cancer Saint stopped dead in his tracks. With a clear certainty he had seldom felt before, he now knew what to do with the money. He would just keep enough to pay their room for three days. The rest, however…
„Yo, Aphrodite. Why don't you go on sightseeing on your own for a bit? I… have some business to attend to, but I'll join you shortly."
The Piscean lifted an eyebrow, but said nothing. Deathmask found that he was glad about it. He really didn't want to talk about Helena yet, before he was certain of his feelings.
„As you wish. See you in a bit, then."
„Yeah."
Deathmask watched his friend leave. As soon as Aphrodite had vanished around a corner, he started running, trying to find the most direct route to Helena's house. A few minutes later, too long in his opinion, he reached it.
For a moment, he stared at the wooden door. Then at the pouch in his hand. After taking a deep breath, he took out the coins he needed, then walked up to the door and laid the pouch on the ground in front of it. A few knocks on the door, then he ran away and hid behind a corner.
From his hiding place, he saw the door opening. One of Helena's brothers popped out his head. Looked around in confusion. Then he finally found the purse on the ground. With a cry of joy, he picked it up and vanished back in the house.
Deathmask grinned, content. And when he imagined Helena's happy reaction, he couldn't help but smile.
The Cancer Saint buried his hands in his pockets, then, whistling a tune, he walked off in search for Aphrodite.
He would have never imagined it. But giving away that money made him feel… good. Better than he would have ever guessed he'd feel after giving something away for free. And even more surprising, he felt actually happy imagining Helena's glad smile.
Perhaps… perhaps there was still some good left in this crab's shrivelled heart.