Written for fun, not profit, all characters (except Maya) property of Sherrilyn Kenyon.

"Acheron!" Artemis screamed. "I demand you release that disgusting mortal!"

Don't say or do anything, he cautioned Maya again before pulling reluctantly away. "Your manners are atrocious, Artemis," he said softly, still looking down at Maya with his heart in his eyes. Just the sight of it was enough to hold Maya immobile even without his warning. He caressed her face gently. "Don't you know not to intrude when people are busy?"

The overhead light shattered, showering them with glass. "How dare you!"

Acheron sighed and sat up, holding Maya and carefully keeping his body between her and the enraged goddess at all times. "Temper, temper," he chided, turning to look at Artemis at last only when Maya was safely hidden behind him.

Maya got her first glimpse of Artemis over Ash's shoulder. Tall and willowy with the kind of perfect beauty Maya had always envied, the goddess stood there trembling with rage, her hand outstretched as though she just itched to fling some kind of fatal weapon at the woman Ash so carefully shielded. Maya's eyes narrowed at the sight of her gauzy white peplos that revealed more than it covered.

Now why would she wear something like that to simply meet with the head of her Dark-Hunters? It was something one would wear for a lover!

You've guessed rightly, Acheron's weary voice whispered in her mind. That's why she'll stop at nothing to get rid of you—she has always considered me her property. There is more to this story, love, and I will gladly tell you everything, but don't stop trusting me now. Be as angry with me as you like once this danger to you has passed, all right?

Maya swallowed the questions and hurt. All right, she replied, placing her hand on his back to reassure him that she wasn't angry. He'd already saved her life once tonight and it looked like she would need him to do it again now. Now was not the time to get upset about his past love-life.

"You told me you had no mortal lover!" Artemis accused furiously.

"At the time I didn't," Ash replied calmly. "As you can see, things have changed. Now, was there something you needed or are you just here to bother me?"

Maya's eyes widened at his tone. Whatever was between him and Artemis, Acheron certainly didn't speak to her the same way he'd spoken to Archon! There was no awe and definitely no respect in his voice or his words.

It clearly irked Artemis. She glared at him and stomped her foot. Maya was strongly reminded of a toddler having a temper tantrum. "You were blocking me to be with her!" she cried, pointing at Maya angrily.

He shrugged. "And your point is?"

This time it was the mirror that shattered. "You forget to whom you speak!"

Maya felt the leashed power in him surge as the muscles of his back tightened beneath her hand. He stood slowly, a predator uncoiling from his perch, and took a step toward Artemis. "No," he said, his voice so low it sent a shiver down her spine. "You forget to whom you speak." He reached out and slapped her outstretched hand away. "I will not allow you to threaten her," he growled.

Maya fought not to gape in astonishment when the goddess actually stepped back as though intimidated by his anger. All right, so he'd told her he was a god-slayer, but it was something completely different to actually watch him face down a goddess and win.

Artemis changed tactics. She reached out a hand and slid it slowly up his arm and over his chest. "Acheron," she purred, "I will forgive you this little dalliance. You and I both know no mortal can hold you. You have… appetites… only I can satisfy. Haven't you thought of that?"

Rage burst through Maya at the sight of another woman's hands on Ash's body. Don't move! Ash commanded as she clenched her fists. Stay right where you are, Maya. Ignore her. She is but a minor nuisance that will be gone momentarily. "I will be fine," he said, taking the goddess's hand and lifting it from his body, holding it by the wrist as though it was a poisonous spider.

Artemis laughed. "We both know you won't," she said, a gloating note in her heavily accented voice. "We both know what will happen. It's close already, isn't it?" Ash didn't answer and she laughed again. "I'll be waiting when you call to me in need, Acheron. No one else would do for you what I do." She shot a venomous glare over his shoulder at Maya. "You can't survive on that."

Maya didn't look away, ignoring Ash's directive not to look at Artemis. She glared right back, refusing to back down. Let that bitch know she wasn't dealing with some delicate little flower—Maya was both ready and able to fight for her man, and goddess or not, she wouldn't stand idly by while another woman tried to take him.

Artemis gave her a cold little smile. "How cute," she said with mock-sweetness. "You've taught your pet to attack. I wonder what else you've trained it to do."

"Enough!" Ash snapped, raising his own hand just as Artemis had. "Get out before I forget myself and hurt you."

The goddess pouted prettily and stepped forward, trying to force his outstretched fingers to brush her barely-covered breast. He moved his hand so that it caught her in the center of the chest instead and shoved her back. "Get out," he repeated coldly. "I'm not interested. To tell you the truth, I haven't been interested in about ten thousand years."

Artemis only smiled and fluttered her lashes. "I'll be waiting," she said. Then her face turned cold and hard as stone. "And Acheron, when you call me, be prepared to crawl like the slave you are." With that she vanished.

"Shameless, arrogant bitch!" Maya snapped at the spot where Artemis had been.

Ash laughed as he turned back to her. His laughter surprised him. Maya could do that to him, make him happy no matter what. "You just had to say it, didn't you?"

She jumped off the bed and crossed her arms over her chest. "How could you put up with that attitude for so long?" she demanded as she paced angrily. "Showing up here dressed like a whore on a corner, expecting you to jump at the crook of her finger!"

Acheron caught her in mid-stride and swung her around. "Ah, Maya, you delight me," he grinned. "And to think, I thought to protect you from her!"

She glared. "I'd like five minutes alone with her," she growled. "That woman seriously needs her ass kicked. Your pet indeed!"

He silenced her with a kiss. When she was breathless and clinging to him he lowered her to her feet, letting her slide down the length of his body before her feet touched the floor. "My beloved," he murmured. "My world."

She hugged him tight. They stood like that for several minutes before she lifted her head. "All right, so tell me," she said, tracing her fingers down his cheek. "Not about being her lover—I'm not stupid, I figured that out. Tell me about the rest."

He sighed. He didn't want to admit Artemis had been right about anything but he couldn't ignore the bitter truth of her words. He lifted Maya in his arms and carried her to the love-seat beside the window. "I want you to know I haven't been with her since meeting you," he said, trying to put off the moment when he would have to tell her. "Not since you broke down the gates." He wanted to bury his face in her hair so he wouldn't have to see her expression, but she deserved to look into his eyes while he told her this. She'd accepted everything else about him—he only prayed she could accept this, too.

Maya kissed his cheek. "I know," she murmured. Then she smiled at his hesitation. "Let me try to make this easier for you, Ash. I've noticed that you don't eat. She talked about appetites. I'm pretty smart for a mere mortal," she added when he looked stunned. "Now can you tell me?"

He sighed and kissed the tip of her nose. "You're incredible, not just pretty smart," he said. "Do you believe me when I tell you that I am not a vampire?"

She nodded without hesitation. "If those things that attacked me tonight were vampires, then yes, I believe you're not a vampire," she said. "Are you telling me you live on human blood, Ash?"

"No," he said, shaking his head and holding her eyes. "Not human blood, Maya."

Her eyes widened. "Oh boy," she breathed. "You—you take her blood?"

He nodded. "If I go too long without feeding, I lose all emotions. Every trace of compassion, any ability to be kind or gentle. That is what she referred to."

Maya had gone pale but she laughed unexpectedly. "You can't tell me you get any of that from her. I'd think she'd poison you instead."

Ash looked deeply into her eyes, searching for hysteria. He didn't see it, but still, this was nothing like the reaction he expected. "Maya, do you understand what I'm saying?" he asked softly. "She was right. I will have to call her eventually. She is the only one willing to supply me with what I need. If I don't…"

Maya looked up at him, her smile turning sad. "It's all right, Ash," she whispered. "I always knew I couldn't keep you, even when I thought you were just a normal man who happened to be psychic. I've never allowed myself to hope for it. You're just too far beyond my reach." She rested her forehead against his chest. "Don't be sorry," she added, obviously feeling it in his mind. "Every minute with you is worth any pain that comes in the end."

"No, Maya," Ash said, his voice quiet but firm as steel as he laid his cheek on her head. "We will find another way. I will not resign myself to losing you!"

A crack like thunder split the air but Maya didn't even look up this time. "Is this a bedroom or Grand Central Station?" she groaned.

But Acheron had gone rigid. Maya looked up and saw Archon standing not five feet from them, looking down at them with an expression of intense disappointment. "Oh!" she gasped, scooting quickly off Ash's lap to sit beside him, feeling like a teenager whose father had caught her necking with her boyfriend.

He smiled at her, but his eyes were still disapproving. "Are you two ever going to figure it out?" he said sternly. "Honestly, Acheron. I expected better of you."

Ash's mouth opened but he didn't speak. He seemed to be struggling for his voice. Maya squeezed his arm and answered for him. "It's been a long day," she said. She didn't know quite how to speak to a god, but she couldn't think of any title to call him that made any sort of sense. Sire? My Lord? Your Godship? "Um, can you give me a hint?" She nudged Ash with an elbow surreptitiously, wishing he'd help out. "I am just a mortal, you know, and not too smart about all these supernatural god things."

Archon's eyes twinkled and he looked amused at her reply as he waved a hand. An armchair appeared from the nothingness and he sat down, seeming completely at ease. "And that's the key to everything, Maya," he said. "Do you not remember that I promised to bestow any gift you choose in thanks for giving me life again?"

Maya blinked. She had forgotten. "Oops," she said. Clearly now was the time to choose her gift, but she had no idea what to ask for. She looked back at Acheron in confusion. "I don't know how to do this, Ash. Help me out!"

But Ash was looking at Archon with sudden hope. "Can you lift this from me?" he asked.

Archon rolled his eyes and sat forward. "You have your reward," he said coolly. "This is for Maya. Look at me, little one." Maya forced herself to meet those blazing eyes. "Now, think. Do you want to stay with this man?"

She nodded at once. "More than anything."

"But he needs divine sustenance," Archon said. "Correct?"

Maya's heart constricted. She had just started to hope that there was a way for them. "He'll have to return to that vile goddess no matter what," she said sadly.

Archon made a sound of impatience. "Unless he found another goddess to supply him," he said. His eyes were intense, boring into hers. "Think, Maya!"

And suddenly she knew. Her jaw dropped. "You mean—you can't mean me?"

Archon smiled and sat back. "Is there any problem you have that this wouldn't solve?" he replied. "You are mortal, your beloved is ageless. You are human while he has need of the divine. As a mortal, Artemis could crush you the moment he leaves your side—and I promise you she would—but as a goddess, you would have the power to fight back." He spread his hands. "Problems solved, Maya."

Acheron sat still as a stone, not even responding to her mental appeals for his advice. She found his hand and squeezed tightly, trying to get his attention. "What about—would I be able to have children?" she asked hesitantly.

Archon nodded. "Yes, you would be able to have all the children you want," he said. "Your children would be immortal unless they chose to give it up."

Maya's mind spun. Help me, Ash! she pleaded in his mind. I don't know what to ask. You know how to deal with gods. Talk to me!

Archon smiled as though hearing her silent plea. "I think he doesn't want to sway your choice," he said gently. "He is afraid his emotions will color your decision." She stared up at him, at his completely blank face. He didn't meet her eyes or change expression, just sat there staring at the god, and she knew Archon was right. Ash was leaving her to make this critical decision alone.

She didn't want him to. She looked back at Archon. who was smiling approvingly at Ash. "It's not easy for him, Maya," he said. "He won't ask you to take this despite the yearning of his heart. He would have you happy above all, even if it is without him."

"I would never be happy without him," she said at once. She squeezed his hand again and this time his fingers tightened around hers. I don't want to make this decision alone, she told him silently. I can't do this alone. Of the two of us, you're the only one who knows how to do this kind of thing. I don't know what to ask. Please, Ash!

The silence stretched out. Ask if your soul would be your own, his voice said softly in her mind a long minute later, and the relief that surged through her was overwhelming. She desperately needed his advice. Ask where you would live.

Archon still smiled at him. "Not on Olympus," he said, answering the unspoken question. "You know of Katoteros, Acheron. I have taken part of it for my own. Basi already has a palace there. It will be the home of the Atlantean gods, and Maya's home should she wish it. And I am not like Artemis, demanding souls for immortality. Maya's divinity would be a gift. Her soul would remain her own."

Maya looked back at the god in cautious hope. "Could I make Artemis give him his soul back?" she asked hesitantly.

Archon sighed. "No one can force another to relinquish a soul," he said. "I am sorry, Maya. But as a goddess, you would have a far more advantageous position from which to bargain with her."

"No," Acheron said, breaking his silence for the first time. "You will not bargain with Artemis for anything, and especially not for me. I will not have you put yourself in that viper's debt."

Maya bit her lip, her mind whirling. Archon waited patiently, allowing her ample time to think it over. "I could come back here to visit?" she asked. "I wouldn't be stuck in this Kato-place for all eternity?"

Archon laughed. "Of course. I am offering you a gift, Maya, not a prison," he said. "You are right to be cautious and I want you to ask all the questions your heart desires. But no trap awaits you, little one. I do not give with one hand and take with the other."

She shivered as the thought of actually being a goddess—a real goddess!—burst across her brain. It sounded too good to be true. "Are there drawbacks?" she asked.

Archon tapped his finger on his chin, thinking about his answer. "Well, you would only be able to stay in the mortal realm for one cycle of the moon at a time without returning to Katoteros, at least briefly. Gods cannot live indefinitely here. Let's see, you could also bring mortals to visit you there, but likewise they could not live there. Oh, and you would never die, so you wouldn't have the opportunity to visit the afterlife." He thought for a moment more. "I think that covers everything."

She gaped at him. "Really?" she asked. It was hard for her to believe those were the only restrictions.

Archon laughed again. "It's good to be a god, Maya," he said. "There are very few restrictions on us. On some of us there are none but the ones we place on ourselves."

Maya thought he looked at Acheron pointedly when he said that last. She glanced up at him again, at that emotionless mask he wore. "Am I missing anything?" she asked him softly. "Help me, Ash. I don't want to make a mistake."

He closed his eyes. If you want this, make sure you get eternal youth with eternal life, he replied after a long moment, and although the tone of his mental voice was almost completely dry, she detected the faintest trace of hope and desperate longing there. She knew then that he'd closed his eyes to keep her from seeing it reflected in them. Ask when you would have to retire to Katoteros, how long you would have to stay before you could come back.

She looked at Archon, assuming he'd heard every word. He smiled and inclined his head, acknowledging that he had. "Of course you will receive eternal youth," he said. "As well as the ability to alter your appearance in any way that pleases you. You would be required to go to Katoteros after your transformation. You might wish to stay to supervise the construction of your dwelling there, but should you wish to return, you would be able to do so come dawn."

Maya shivered at the decision she was about to make. But she hesitated as the most important consideration suddenly occurred to her. "And Acheron could stay with me always?" she asked. "Or would he be bound by the one month time limit too?"

Archon looked strangely at Acheron at that. "Haven't you told her?" he asked.

Ash opened his eyes and looked at Archon, obviously confused. "I have told her everything, but none of it impacts that time limit."

Archon shook his head. Maya stared at him. The god actually looked amazed. "Do you not know?" he murmured as though to himself. He stared piercingly at Acheron. "By the stars, you don't," he said, his eyes widening. "I was certain you knew. After all you've done, how could you not?"