Chloe fiddled with the ribbon of Lois' present.

"What are you so scared of? You used to swim in Crater Lake in polka red bikinis. It's only a small piece of fabric."

Probably very small. And it wasn't Lois, or even Clark, that would see her in it, but Oliver. Her mind was still reeling from Carter's revelations. She'd spent the better part of her afternoon looking into lore and myths from the Ancient Egypt and found several variants of the story, but at the base, it was always Khufu and Shayera, cursed to love and lose each other for eternity. She did believe he'd told them the truth. Which meant the other part of his tale might also be true.

Her heart thumping, Chloe pulled her sweater over her head.

"Come on, Chloe, the water's amazing!"

Chloe. She was Chloe, just Chloe. Unremarkable, stubborn to a fault, and too smart for her own good, fascinated by heroes and doomed to fall for one… Chloe tied the sash of her robe and headed outside.

Oliver was doing laps, a tanned, slick shadow just under the surface of the water. He resurfaced near her end of the pool and moved to rest his arms on the sun-bleached stones before he jerked them off. "Hot."

He splashed water there, as if he was trying to cool it down sufficiently for her to step on it. Pearls of water clung to his hair to drop into his eyes. Oliver rubbed them off in annoyance then smiled at her, clearly pleased with his handy work.

Chloe sucked in a breath. Water rivulets highlighted the taut definition of his collarbone and pecs. The water reached somewhere above his navel, so she thankfully—annoyingly— was deprived of the rest of his washboard abs and the V that disappeared into his swim trunks. She consoled herself with admiring the way his biceps flexed when he retook his position on the pool' side.

Chloe managed to redirect her gaze to his face and tried not to blush at the widened grin. He was gorgeous and he knew it. The only thing she could do was roll her eyes, grateful he didn't bait her with yet another of his "admiring the view" comment.

She concentrated on the knot at her waist while she walked to the opposite side of the pool where a series of small steps were carved to facilitate entrance. For once in her life, she regretted not following Lois when she had decided to take some Burlesque dance lessons. It would have taught her how be a bit more graceful undressing. Maybe. Being the focal point of Oliver's attention made her fingers fumble.

Finally Chloe managed to untangle the sash and discarded her robe on a lounging chair before she stepped down into the water. The cold lapped at her thighs, then her belly. Goosebumps erupted on her skin at once, making her suddenly very aware her swimsuit wasn't padded so Oliver had a perfect view on her pebbled breasts. She plunged her hands in the water to stop herself from covering her chest.

The man in question sent water slosh her way to get her attention. "No bikini?"

"It's not my birthday yet," Chloe shot back. "Disappointed?"

She held her head high and let him stare. The one-piece suit hugged her figure like a wet glove. A small U between her breasts gave a teasing edge to the scoop neckline. The high leg and 3/4 Brazilian cut covered her bottom and left the rest of her back completely bare. It was simple with a discreet sexy flare she liked and she felt good in it.

Oliver made a little spin with his finger to signal her to turn. Chloe tried very much to look unaffected as she complied. When she was facing him again, she swore his gaze was darker than usual and her bravado started to crumble.

"Nope. Not disappointed in the slightest." He smirked. "Midnight green looks really good on you. I like it."

It matched her eyes, she knew, worked better than black on her pale skin. Chloe licked her lips. "I thought you would."

His gaze zeroed on her mouth. The water around her suddenly felt cooler on her skin. She regretted baiting him for half a second. The next, she was sputtering water after he'd slapped a wave in her direction. "Oliver!"

Her offended screech started a pursuit through the pool, him fleeing, her chasing. At some point, she caught his ankle by sheer luck and pulled. Oliver gulped a mouthful of water and set for revenge.

They raced each other, Chloe sneaking off his grasp like an otter at first, until his stamina overpowered hers and Oliver could put his longer reach to good use. He dunked her more than once until she conceded victory, wet, breathless and free.

Chloe pedaled toward her entry point and sat on the stairs to rest. Oliver did another back and forth in freestyle before he joined her with a happy grin that matched the one she knew lit her face. With the afternoon ebbing away, the sun had retreated behind the house, so their little corner of the terrace was casted in long welcoming shadows.

"That was fun…"

Oliver flicked her nose. "Yeap. But I won."

"I let you win."

"You're sure about that?"

He supported his weight on one hand above her, shoulder flexing. The other moved underwater toward her other side. Her mouth dried. Chloe nibbled on her bottom lip, suddenly nervous. Oliver's gaze narrowed. The hand about to box her in came out of water to free the tortured flesh from her teeth. Wet fingertips traced on her jaw as he cupped her cheek. His palm cooled her skin for barely a second before she felt her insides sizzle and flare.

Her eyes flipped down to his mouth involuntarily. She felt breathless again, unsure kissing him was a good idea, and completely sure not kissing him was out of question.

Her hand traced the bunched muscles on his shoulder, the other fist in the water to secure an inexistant hold in the coming storm.

"You called?"

Oliver cussed against her cheek. "Yeah, two hours ago…"

Chloe giggled. His eyes stayed on hers a second longer for a silent promise, before Oliver retreated to face the newcomer. "Zee. Great timing."

"Of course. In my profession, timing is everything."

The beautiful brunette laughed at the disgruntled Oliver then her violet eyes twinkled as they settled on Chloe. "Chloe! It's so good to see you!"

"Hi Zatanna. Thank you for coming."

"It sounded urgent."

This time, Oliver growled. Zatanna winked at Chloe, clearly not sorry she'd interrupted. "So? What can I do for you two?"

"Well…"

"Oliver, maybe we should get out of the pool and get dressed first?"

Oliver looked about to refuse but he seemed to think the better of it and rose to his full height. Chloe stared as water cascaded all over him while he exited the pool less than two feet from her, Apollo and Poseidon wrapped in one glorious, half-naked tanned body.

Chloe glimpsed at Zatanna and found her staring to. Any woman with a pulse would. Some unknown cat sputtered in the pit of her stomach. All a sudden it was hard remembering that the Mistress of Magic had a thing for Gotham's brooding prince, and that the Dark Knight had a thing for her too.

Then Oliver toweled the sheen of water off his back and she panicked. "I… I'll be right but a minute, I mean I'll be right here. I… A minute. Sorry, I just need a minute."

Chloe fled to her room. Her birthmark was on Oliver. She'd seen him shirtless less than 24h ago and it wasn't there. How was it possible? They hadn't…

The petite blonde sat abruptly on her bed, uncaring if she soddened the expensive bedding. "You forgot your robe."

"Thanks."

She tried to smile at Zatanna and didn't quite manage it.

"What's wrong, Chloe?"

"Oliver…"

She swallowed. Zatanna grinned.

"Nothing seems wrong with Oliver. Unless you wished I had come in a little later?"

Chloe groaned. "Oh please, not you, too…"

"Darling, your auras are so incandescent it's a miracle you don't put the world on fire."

Chloe gaped. "You can see auras?"

The brunette shrugged, fingering the delicate woodwork of the dresser. "It's a new development."

"Does this new development have to do with Bruce?"

Zatanna laughed. "It has to do more with Bruce's offspring, I would say." Chloe brightened in glee but before she could hug her pregnant friend, Zatanna lifted a hand. "I'm not here to talk about me, am I?"

Chloe's heart sank again to the pit of her stomach. Unable to find the words to explain, she turned to point at the small tattoo on her hip. Shock wrote itself all over the magician's face.

"Well… Well, I can't say I was expecting this."

"Do you… Do you know what this is?"

"I do. Does Oliver?"

"Yes but—"

She buried her face in her hands. Zatanna brushed her wet hair back. "It's not a bad thing Chloe…"

"Not a bad thing? The only names I'd heard about on this stupid list died violently or alone! How can this not be a bad thing? How can I know for sure what I'm feeling is real, and not something I think I should feel? That I didn't enslave him against his will? What about free will?"

The beautiful brunette rose an elegant eyebrow. "Magic can't create Love, Chloe, it doesn't work that way."

Chloe snorted. "Love. Right. Always bring in the big guns to explain why my life is such a mess." She closed her eyes before tears fell. "Sorry. It's a lot to take in at once. I'll just hop in the shower to rinse the chlorine and dress. Five minutes."

"Of course."

Once she stepped in the shower, Chloe realized she would need more than five minutes to collect herself. Her heart summersaulted widely in her chest and made her queasy. She grabbed her shampoo and collapsed on the tiled floor. Chloe let water poured over her hunkered form for a moment before she crawled back so she could lather her hair then returned under the cascade.

She'd almost kissed him. She wanted him to kiss her. She wanted to know what it was like to be with him, not just in a daydream but for real. Because they both wanted it. Be careful what you wished for, lest you get it… It was her fault. She'd begged him to take her here to meet with Carter and now he was cursed. Tears mixed with the water cascading over her.

Water continued to pound while she sobbed. When she exhausted all her tears, Chloe stood on uncertain legs. She shut down the water and exited the stall to wrap herself in one of the bath towels. She stared at her reflection in the mirror. The woman that looked back had vibrant green eyes and a sunburn on her nose.

She wasn't a lost Egyptian Princess, or a woman for whom men fought a ten-year war. She was Chloe Sullivan. Lois Lane's cousin. Best friend of an alien. The quiet one who watched locked away in her tower. Not the proud heroine, or the princess who got swept off her feet by the dashing hero. She'd accepted that. Falling in love because Fate dictated it wasn't in the books. So she was going to fix it.