AN- This was seen a VERY long time coming. I REALLY need to work on subtlety but, hey, I'm young. I have time to evolve from the glob of cells that happen to know how to type, which I am now, to something akin to… Rowling, Emerson and Grisham. And to explain…

Italics are memories or flashbacks depending on how you look at it.

Chapter 24: I've Held Your Hand Through All of These Years

Eros, god of love, paced the halls of the grand palace, as his wife, Psyche, was in the room giving birth to their second child. Divine or earthly, the anxiety of becoming a father still affected a man. Of course, he'd been through this before. His first child and daughter, Bliss, was busy, ignorant of the stress that burdened her father and mother.

"When's Mommy coming out, Daddy?" Bliss looked up with her big blue eyes. "We've been waiting so long already."

"I know, sweetheart, but Mommy has to make you a new baby brother or sister," Eros replied, patiently. Bliss nodded and resumed her playing with dolls though Eros knew that she would question him again sometime soon. He tilted his head and studied the features of his daughter, trying to distract him from the present situation. It never failed to amaze him how his features became feminine and placed on his daughter's face. Everything from the curly blond locks to the eyes the color of the skies were from his side of the family. Eros' eyes went to the door, hearing footsteps nearing it as the cries of his wife died away. He wondered briefly if his newborn child would have his or his beautiful wife's features and his answer was prompt.

The midwife stepped out and opened the door for Eros and he rushed past the maids to see his wife on the bed. Her long brown hair was matted with sweat and her olive skin was flushed with exertion but a peaceful smile graced her lips as she looked down at her child.

"It's another girl," Psyche murmured, feeling Eros' weight shift her bed. "You have another one to spoil, my love." Eros' smile was crooked and his fingertips gently grazed the brown fuzz of the baby girl's head.

"Three beautiful women to be surrounded by? I think I'm being spoiled and I think she'll take after you," Eros grinned, seeing the child blink up at him with brown eyes.

"Mommy?" Bliss called from the door. "Is that my new baby brother or sister?"

"Sister." Bliss crawled into the bed and almost immediately, the baby began to reach for the golden hair of Bliss' head as she leaned her head in to see the baby and Psyche had to gently push the hands down. The baby fussed again, trying to reach out for the new object but her mother just pushed her arm down again. The baby whimpered for a moment before trying to reach out for something past Bliss' head. Bliss turned to see what the baby was reaching for and the moment her head turned she felt a sharp tug.

"Mommy!" Bliss shrieked. Bliss jumped off the bed and rubbed the sore spot, glowering. "That wasn't very nice! Her name should be Trickari, nasty little sister."

"She's only just a baby, pure as first snow. She doesn't know any better," Eros explained, with slight amusement.

"Pure… Katriana… How about that as a name?" Psyche said, thinking out loud. "I like that name. Purity."

"I like it too," Eros agreed. "My new daughter, Katriana."

Katri looked back at Paris and, with all of the power she radiated moments before, now her eyes looked frightened. She took a step away from Paris, not knowing what to say. She brought a hand up to her lips, and started to nervously bite her thumbnail.

Paris was slowly and painfully fading. He looked at Katriana and he just wished that she would come over and comfort him in his last moments but the new revelation had him dumbstruck. She was what again? An immortal? Did that make her a goddess? No, she just said immortal and she had too much human blood for her to be in that higher divine pedestal. But yes, she was strong AND powerful and she said that she loved him. Paris groaned in pain. No, no more heavy thinking. Just damn it all to Hades. Immortal or not, she was still his Katriana.

"Papa, I don't want to take power over anything!" Katriana whined as her father pleaded for her to take a throne of some sort.

"Anything, Katri. ANYTHING. Be the goddess of bees for all I could possibly care but you need to take a throne to receive your full divinity. You are merely immortal now and you will be prone to a weakness to an element if you do not take a throne!"

"I'm fine just being immortal. It's not like I'm even going to die to whatever element the Fates choose me to be weak against. It'll just have the ability to hurt me. I stay by your side. I don't leave you. Can't you be happy with that?" Katriana reasoned.

"I don't want to see my daughter hurt!" Eros snapped. Katri slumped and took her father's hands as he sat down beside her on her bed.

"Papa, I'm NOT going to get hurt. Fire would be of so little consequence to me. I'm happy where I am. I'm fine. Why fix something that's not broken?"

Eros didn't say much anymore. One thing he didn't necessarily like about his wife and this particular daughter was their stubborn nature and how he could never seem to win against them so he just nodded and accepted it.

"Come here, you cow," he beckoned her towards him with his cleaner hand while the other clutched his wound. "I knew there was something strange about you." He forced a smile for her and she returned it when she sat back down beside him again on the cold marble.

"Strange, yes," she murmured.

"You're immortal now, are you?" She nodded. "Goddess of any sort?" She shook her head. "But your dad is, at least." Another nod. "Will you at least speak in syllables?"

"Oh. Oh yes," she blushed.

"And Maia was Psyche?"

"No. She... Maia was me," she confessed. "I knew it would be better if I took care of you as an adult so I stayed one but I also knew you needed a friend so I recreated myself to grow WITH you as well."

"He won't survive with simply you as company, my dear," Psyche murmured, watching over the sleeping child with her daughter, the very first night Paris had found a friend.

"I know…"

"So what are you doing to do?"

"Just simply recreate myself. Not a problem."

"That'll take too much energy. You wouldn't last very long," Psyche reasoned. "Half of your personality will disappear entirely, and will need to be redeveloped. After acquiring three hundred years of wisdom, you'll just let sympathy for a little boy literally overrun your being?"

"Mother, I have all eternity to regain that wisdom. This mortal has only so many years of childhood. I had you and Papa to give me something this boy deserves. Do you really think one man's lifetime will be of any consequence to me?"

"But," Psyche began. The mother bit her lip, wishing that she didn't have a bad feeling about this. "This much devotion also requires you to vow to never leave his side regardless of the circumstances. If he were to ever hurt you, you would still be bound to him."

"Mother, what could possibly happen?"

"All right, Katriana," Psyche sighed. "Just be careful."

Who knew that she would fall in love with him and he would hurt her beyond measure but she would still be there, cradling him as he faded away?

"You're making my head spin, Katri," Paris cringed.

"Sorry." Her eyes went down to his wound and she put her hand on his, holding it. She started to cry again. "Alex, it won't stop bleeding. Even if I could… I think there's poison," she sobbed.

"Can't you..."

The doors blasted open and Oenone ran inside to see Katri holding Paris' hand as he was fading.

"So it's true?" Oenone giggled, evilly. "The arrogant prince has finally taken the fruits of the seeds he's sown."

"Oenone," Katriana said, her voice lowering dangerously again.

"And look at dear Princess, all heartbroken," Oenone smiled and turned to Paris again. "You ungrateful brat. I saved you from Rauko and Ceorl and you wouldn't even give me the time of day. I hope you burn in Hades, Paris."

"Oenone, you have the healing elixir. Give it to me," Katri ordered standing up and getting nearer to the nymph.

"This elixir, princess?" Oenone took a silver vial from her cloak. "Well, I'm sorry but I'd rather watch the show." She replaced the vial into the pocket before Katri made a lunge for her.

"I will not let him die!" Katri yelled. "Now give it to me!" Oenone ran, placing one of the marble columns between her and Katri.

"No! He deserves this. I won't let him have it," Oenone snapped.

"By Zeus, give me that vial," Katri threatened and for a moment, Oenone's haughty smile froze on her face. This wasn't the first time Katri had threatened to use her grandfather against Oenone.

Katriana could feel it. Acacius was holding her to his chest while Briseis had her hand in her own. She was crying and hurt and it was all because of him, but she still cared. She still foolishly loved him and, minutes after breaking her heart; she would protect him yet again.

Oenone was trying to use her powers to get her way with Paris but Katri wouldn't have that. If anyone were attune enough to hear the sound, they would have heard a silent scream carrying out over the Aegean Sea to Mount Olympus, where her grandfather heard.

"Grandfather, Oenone's trying to hurt Alexander!" Katri thought, squeezing her eyes shut and focusing.

"Warn her first, my beautiful granddaughter," Zeus replied. "If she does not heed to it, then I will do as you ask."


Katri's thoughts returned to the nymph, about to caress the mortal boy's shoulder.

"Let him go," Katri growled. Oenone froze, though she smiled haughtily. She was about to continue anyway when Katri spoke again. "By Zeus, Oenone, you shall be struck down if you do not let him go." And knowing the power Katri could call upon, Oenone retreated.

This time, however, whatever the consequences, knowing Paris died this way would be worth it. No one will ever dare not bend to Oenone's will.

"No," Oenone answered and fled out of the temple through the doors, disappearing into the chaos and shadows of the outside. Katriana wanted to run after her but as she reached the end of the corridor she heard Paris.

"Katri," he called. "Katri, don't leave me."

"No," Katri whispered. She ran to his side, her tears starting to fall unchecked.

"Little spoiled arrogant prince," Paris babbled. "I really am getting what I deserve, aren't I?"

"Don't say that," she shook her head. "Please, Alexander, please, don't fade from me now." Her arms cradled his head and torso and right before her eyes, she could see his skin turning to a pale blue against the marble he leaned against. The poison was starting to react to his blood.

"Couldn't YOU heal me?"

"I can't. I don't have that power," she sobbed. "But if I did, Zeus, no! Please! I love you too much, Alexander. Don't leave me now."

"You called me Alexander," he murmured smiling. "I missed hearing that name so badly. So many years, I've heard it and when you stopped, it was like someone tore a piece of me off and…" Paris caught Katri's face in his hand. She saw a fog lift from his eyes and she knew something changed or returned to how it was before magick interfered. "I... I remember us and, oh gods, I remember!" His hand stroked her cheek and that simple gesture made him gasp for more breath. He was almost gone.

"You do?" Inside her mind, she called to her father, her mother, her grandparents; ANYONE who might have had the ability to save Paris but no one answered her plea for help. All the voices in her head that had kept her company when she had refused to remain living on Mt. Olympus were gone. They were all probably too busy watching the destruction of Troy. "Alex, don't die now. Please."

"I should have told you that I love you back then but my marriage to Helen complicated things so much. But I did love you and I wish I had told you but I did, didn't I? At the docks. I don't know why. How could I forget you? When I left, when we kissed each other, I remember telling you." His brow furrowed in confusion, remembering something long forgotten as his thumb stroked her cheek, his own tears falling not only from his pain but also for the pain that he realized Katriana must have felt in the years he had done stupid things. "I'm so sorry. I never meant for all this to happen. If I had just told you what I felt, if only I remember telling you what I felt, this wouldn't have happened. Please realize that I would never have dreamt of hurting you. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry you went through all this."

"Then it wasn't just a dream? You REALLY loved me?" Katriana choked and he nodded. "Then, you CAN'T leave me. Mortality is so stupid. Just please, fight it awhile, Alex. My papa will come soon and he'll heal you back." He shook his head.

"A kiss goodbye, my Katri? One kiss that doesn't end with us fighting or regretting," he asked. Her fingers intertwined with his and he smiled at her though it pained him to even breathe. He knew that the poison in the arrows was now reaching the parts he needed most. "Just one last kiss, my Katriana. My immortal?" Her lips leaned forward to meet his and her eyes shut tight when she tasted his sweet taste but the sweetness turned salty as her tears mingled into their kiss. She felt his lips move against hers and sighed at the warmth, then the warm breeze left Paris for one last time and the salty taste turned bitter when Katri retreated away. Her eyes looked into his and for once, the light that used to show through the brown orbs was gone.

"Alexander," she cracked. Her sobs were tearing through in her body and she was shaking like mad. "Alexander. Please don't leave now." He didn't answer, though. His eyes just stared blankly into the high vaulted ceiling, not seeing anything at all. Katriana's hand reached up and slipped his eyelids closed as her cries increased in intensity. She grabbed for the arrow she removed from his chest and held the head to her wrist.

"If you won't return, then I'll follow you," she sobbed. She took the sharp tip of the blade and gently pushed into her skin.

It didn't even break through to cause a bead of blood to seep out.

As desperately as she wanted that blade to slice through her skin and cut her veins open... As much as she needed her blood to flow through her wrist and into the open air like life itself draining from her body, it would never happen. Not for her. Immortality was preventing her from ever seeing Hades through the eyes of the dead.

And as painful as it would have been to die that way, she felt the pain a hundred times over, knowing she could do nothing to follow her love and that all she could do was wait.

Review Responses to Anonymous Reviews. (If you left a signed review you should have gotten one in your email because I replied wth the new reply feature)

Gaby – A happy ending? Hmmmmm I wonder if I really should but you know I LOVE happy endings too... wink wink. And I never got to say that I was flattered that you put up through this story straight through in two days... with eyes pained by the end. THAT was defnitely apreciated and I wanted to say Thank you.

Robyn Lesko – Thank you for the praise. Needless to say that I actually blushed when I read it... Actually it continually makes me blush because I read it long ago and just re-read it just now for the review responses. :-) Thank you very much.

onelostdream – ah you're my frying pan buddy! Hahahhaha I missed that ramble! Anyways... I do love going with canon with my own OC twists. Many people would consider it Mary-Sue but writing for me has always been for the relief of my inner giggling ditz, not so I can be writing the next great American novel or something to that thread. If you've read my other stories then you'll see I have a thing going with how I like to keep to the original plot and sometimes even the original lines just with an added character. Shrug. Thanks for the comment again. I do love em!

Gayle Carling – You are definitely entitled to you honest opinions. Thank you for the comments about improving literary skill and about the little far-fetched idea about Aphrodite. I actually am with you about the latter. However I couldn't figure out how to have Aphrodite involved any other way. I'm ALWAYS open to suggestions so suggest away please. I 'm actually a bit afraid of how people will react to the end of this story too... cringe.

Miyuyux33 --- I'm going by your email since your name was basically part of the praise. About that last part in chapter 22? I was sort of experimenting with some literary devices. Hahhahaha It was like abstract thoughts. Basically think of it like you were a mind reader going through a crowd in Troy. There's talk about war but life HAS to keep going so there's stuff that ISN'T about the war as well. Thank you for the review again.