Xibalba shifted and stirred in bed; he had a bad feeling, like something bad was about to happen, and it manifested with bad dreams. Finally, he could take it no longer and managed to snap his eyes open, escaping from the haunting nightmare, but the feeling of dread didn't go away. His heart was drumming inside his chest and cold sweat trickled down his face; what the heck was wrong with him?! He couldn't stop thinking about La Muerte…

La Muerte!

Quickly slipping into his purple robe, Xibalba flew out of his chambers, through the corridors of his castle and into his wife's room. "La Muerte?!" his suspicions were confirmed when he saw she was not inside, but where could she have gone at this hour…? Oh, no. He had a feeling to where she could have gone, he had noticed how she glanced at the doors of the forbidden everytime she passed through the western hall, he could tell she had been dying of curiosity lately. He wouldn't be surprised if she had gone there at all.

Xibalba flew out of La Muerte's chamber and flew towards the western hall, beating his wings furiously as he scanned for the claw-marked doors; his suspicions were confirmed when he saw the door was open. Without time to hesitate to go into the room that caused him so much pain, he burst in and landed perfectly in the doorway. He found his wife passed out on the floor, just in front of…

"La Muerte!" Xibalba rushed to her side and tried to shake her awake. "La Muerte, are you okay?!" Weird. He thought he'd be angry at her for disobeying him and going into the forbidden room, but he wasn't; he was worried that she had been hurt or worse, there was a reason he had not allowed her to come in other than it being a hurtful place for him. It irradiated with negative energy, he never understood why, but ever since his mother passed the room started to overflow with dark powers; in his youth he attempted various times to discover why, he knew this type of energy was born from pain, negative emotions and overall fear, often in places where get tragedies occurred. But what could have happened here that it practically stank with dark energy?

Eventually he gave up, the room brought him too much painful memories, he could not bear to be in it any longer. He forbad any of his servants of ever opening it, and it remained sealed ever since. Looking up, Xibalba felt his heart break in two when he saw his beloved mother's portrait; even though he had not seen it in centuries, he never forgot how she looked like, he cherished her memory and held her close to his heart.

But for now, his wife was the only thing in his mind.

Carefully, Xibalba picked La Muerte up and carried her bridal style out of the room, giving one last, melancholic glance at the portrait, before closing the close shut. He slithered all the way back to his chambers, glancing down at La Muerte's unconscious body. He did not know what she had seen, which made him worry even more… Xibalba lifted his blankets and gently lay his wife down, covering her with the velvet blankets a few seconds later. He watched her for a while, before his wife shifted in bed.

La Muerte started to stir awake, her head aching lightly and cold sweat running down her face; how much time had passed? What had happened? Flashes of the past few hours went by. She recalled having dinner with Xibalba, then waiting until he went to sleep, coming to the secret room, a music box, the memories…. Oh, god. She had to get out of here before anyone found her, if Xibalba discovered that she had disobeyed him…

"You're awake."

La Muerte jumped when he heard his voice come out of nowhere, snapping her eyes open and realizing she was no longer in the forbidden room, nor her chambers. Her heart skipped a beat when realization came to her; she was in Xibalba's chambers. This could only mean… As she glanced around, her suspicions were confirmed when she found him standing next to him, looking down at her with a deep frown. She shivered.

"X-Xibalba, I…" La Muerte didn't know what to say, she nearly tried to hide underneath her covers, before her headache made her take a hand to her head. "What happened…?"

"I found you unconscious in the room I forbad you to go in." Xibalba simply said, his voice serious.

"I-I'm sorry if I disobeyed you… I only… I wanted to help you, but…" Damn it, she didn't know what she was saying. "Are you mad?"

She expect him to narrow his eyes and growl a 'what do you think?', but much to her surprise Xibalba only sighed and sat down on the edge of bed, his back turned on her. "No. I knew that eventually your curiosity would be too strong. Besides, what's done it's done, all that matters is that you're okay."

La Muerte recalled the visions, and trembled at the memory of the dragon. " When I was in there, I saw… I saw you with Zipacna, and a woman… and a black dragon, he was…"

The feathers on his wings bristled, and he dug his claws unto the mattress as he grit his teeth. "Lord Akrinok." Xibalba spat the name disdainfully, struggling to speak the next words. "My father…"

"Your f-father…"

"That room you went in was where he… I shut it away after he… died."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't." he growled. "He doesn't deserve it."

"Huh?"

"Remember these?"

La Muerte shivered when Xibalba removed his robe, exposing his back and his scars. "What do they have to do with-?" realization hit her, recalling how Akrinok had dragged him away by the wings, but she never got to see what he did to his son. She could imagine it, judging by the scars.

"They were the only thing I received from him…"

The castle echoed with muffled screams.

Xibalba bit hard into the gag between his teeth (to prevent him from biting his tongue off) when his father's whip-like tail came into contact with his back, his eyes closed shut as tears rolled down his cheeks, his screams locked inside his throat. His arms were pinned at the sides by shadowy energy, as well as his wings to expose his back. Emilio couldn't bear to watch, and he had to leave the throne room (also in part because their master ordered them to), leading a weeping Regina away.

When his punishment was over, Xibalba's back was a bloody mess of injuries, as his arms and wings were finally released and he fell to the ground. The godling was sobbing uncontrollably, his tears falling unto the obsidian floor.

"Let this be a lesson, boy." Akrinok frowned at his son without a bit of compassion. "Tears are a sign of weakness. If I ever see you crying again, I'll whip you even harder than before, understood?"

"Y-Yes…" Xibalba sobbed after removing the rag from his mouth. He screamed when his father pressed his large talon against his fresh wounds.

"I said, do you understand?!" the dragon growled.

"Yes, Father!" Xibalba yelled in pain, starting to sob yet again when his father lifted his talon.

"Good." Akrinok glanced at the doors. "EMILIO!"

The lizard almost immediately ran in, accompanied by Roberto. "W-What is it, My Lord?" he stuttered.

"Take the boy away and treat his back, the sight repulses me."

"Y-Yes, My Lord."

Xibalba stiffened when Emilio and Roberto picked him up as carefully as they could and carried him out, not before giving his father a hateful, fearful and teary glance as he went back to his throne…

"I hated him until the day he died." Xibalba was looking down, struggling to keep his composure at the feeling of old wounds opening up in his heart. "I received no affection from him, only cruel treatment and harsh words. I spent many nights wishing he'd die, until he did."

La Muerte didn't know what to say as she heard his tale, and stared at the scars. She felt sorry for him, before something else rang a bell. "And your mother?"

Almost immediately at the mention of his mother, Xibalba's anger subsided and gave place to sorrow and melancholy as he sighed, bracing himself and closing his eyes. "She was very much unlike him. She was the only person I ever truly loved. I remember she was very loving and caring, she'd come to my room when I had a nightmare to comfort me, she hugged and kissed me, but she was not strong enough to defy my father. She was often a victim of his abuses too..."

Both Xibalba and Zipacna snuggled deeply against their mother's embrace as she hummed their favorite lullaby o lull them to sleep, often stroking their heads with her tender hand. Xibalba yawned and rested his head against his mother's chest, smiling drowsily. "I love you, mama."

Selena smiled at her youngest son as she planted a small kiss on his forehead. "I love you too, sweetie."

But their moment of bliss and calm was interrupted when the floor started to tremble.

Selena barely had time to hide her children in her closet, before closing the doors just as Akrinok stomped in, a look of lust and anger in his eyes. Zipacna pulled his little brother closer and wrapped him in his wings; Xibalba was crying, he had no idea what was going on, but he could tell his mother was suffering, and it frightened him. He couldn't see what happened when his brother covered his eyes, but he trembled at the sound of his mother's screams and pleas.

La Muerte's eyes swelled up with tears, she truly had no idea of what to say. She couldn't imagine how he must have felt everytime he saw his mother being a victim of his father's abuses. Speaking of which… "What.. What happened to your mother?"

Xibalba stiffened. "She…" his eyes were swelling up with tears, damn it. "She died when I was five, but… I never knew how… Father said she got ill, but even then I had the feeling he was responsible for her death. When she died my whole world became a living hell…"

By then, La Muerte had sat up in bed and placed a hand on Xibalba's shoulder. "Xibalba…"

"I was left alone with Father, I suffered under his cruelty for ten years, until he died when I turned fifteen, in a duel with another God. I did not cry nor mourn for him. I did not shed a single tear, because I knew he didn't deserve it. When he died I didn't have anyone else in the world, I was all-alone, so I chose to shut myself away. Caring for others hurt, so I chose not to care for anyone at all."

When she saw how much he was trying not to cry, struggling to contain his tears, La Muerte felt her own becoming glossy. She was now completely certain Xibalba was not a monster, he had gone through so much, she couldn't imagine having no one else in the world… Until she recalled he did have one family left.

"What about Zipacna?"

Again, Xibalba stiffened, but his eyes showed more hurt and betrayal than anger. "Him? He abandoned me." Once more he dug his claws into his mattress, nearly to the point of tearing through it. "Mother was dead, I had not even assimilated it, and what did he do? He just left, without any explanation, without a word! He left me alone!" Finally, he stood up and slithered towards his wall, clenching his fists. "And on top of that, he comes back saying he wants to 'start over'! He expected me to simply forget he left me alone to withstand Akrinok's horrible temper and cruelty!"

"But have you ever thought of talking with him-?"

"I CAN'T!"

La Muerte nearly jumped when out of sudden her husband punched the wall, creating a crack in it; Xibalba took a deep breath and sighed, his eyes closed shut. "I can't… I cannot even look at him, everytime I see him I remember what I went through because he was not there for me. I remember how he forsook me, he didn't care what would happen to me, he only thought about himself!" He couldn't do anything now as he felt the tears trickling down his cheeks, overwhelmed by the years of repressing his pain and sorrow forcing their way out, despite his attempts to regain his composure. He froze when he felt a tender hand on his shoulder, and turned around to find himself staring into La Muerte's compassionate golden eyes.

La Muerte couldn't stand to see him sad any longer, and decided she had to do something, she wanted to let him know he could count on her, and that she would be there for him when he needed. When Xibalba turned around to look at her, she saw his eyes were glossy, and expressed great sorrow and pain. Smiling lightly, La Muerte gingerly wiped the dark god's tears with her fingers, before placing her hand on his cheek, tip-toeing so she could kiss his cheek. Xibalba was frozen in bewilderment when he felt the beautiful goddess's lips come into contact with his tarry skin. They reminded him so much of his mother's kisses. Finally he could take it no longer and he wrapped his arms around La Muerte, pulling her closer and his wings shivering as he wrapped them around her, closing his eyes shut as the tears continued to flow. La Muerte was taken aback for a few seconds before she returned the embrace, running her hand down his back and touching the base of his wingbone.

"There, there, it's okay…" she cooed. "Let it all out…"

Xibalba did not reply, he just continued to weep for a few minutes, giving small sobs, pulling his wife as close as he could, refusing to let her go. The warmth of her embrace, the sweetness of her voice and her kind nature reminded him so much… Something inside him shifted, he felt a great weight being lifted off his chest. It wasn't long before they both pulled back; Xibalba finally managed to stop his tears, and calm down completely; when he looked at her, La Muerte noted a change in him. The darkness she once saw in his eyes once gone, and now there was a shine to them that let her know he would not be the same.

Xibalba gathered every bit of strength in his body to smile at his wife, gingerly touching her cheek with his hand.

"La Muerte, I…" he didn't know what to say. He wanted to thanks her, for listening for him, for not judging him, but he couldn't find the words. Much to his surprise, La Muerte shushed him by placing a finger on his lips.

"It's okay, Xibalba. I'm glad you are feeling better now."

"You know… I'm starting to…" he stopped himself. "I think…"

"Yes?"

"… I... I'm exhausted over what happened. How about you, my dear? Are you still dizzy?"

"No, I'm feeling better, thanks for asking…" La Muerte had the feeling that was not what he meant to say, but chose not to push it. "Would you like something?"

"No, no, I'll be okay."

Nodding, La Muerte headed towards his doorway, but before walking out to leave for her own room she glanced back at him with a smile. "Buenas noches, Xibalba."

He returned the smile. "Buenas noches, La Muerte."

After his wife closed the door, Xibalba sighed, returning to bed. As he tucked back into his pillows and covers, his feathers bristling and shifting, while he stared at the ceiling of his canopy for a few minutes, before sleepiness overcame him and he returned into Orpheus's realm. Some time later, his lips unconsciously curved upwards into a smile.

For the first time in centuries, he could sleep peacefully.