Chapter Sixteen – Repeating Cycle

After the day of the Cultural Event, Ren seemed settled in acting as if there was nothing amiss and the other girls followed the hint, though during the next few days, although always polite, Ren was somehow as distant as she had been during the first days in the Academy.

The ones who hadn't been there in the occasion, such as Arisu, didn't understand it at first, but Isuzu pulled her sister aside and explained the situation. While Arisu didn't fully understand how this would change how Ren behaved (sure she didn't think they would see her any different, right?), she did see how this could affect her and said nothing. Since the other gods did the same, Isuzu suspected that they had talked about it as well…

Despite wanting to act as if what they had seen meant nothing, it was a little hard to not allow the image of those cracks in the flesh to come to mind each time they looked at Ren. Isuzu had the sensation it was the same with gods, at times almost sure she saw those scars reflecting in their eyes…

And she knew Ren was very much aware of it.

Arisu was sure Loki knew about Ren, but was pleased to see he never acted differently (bad) or ever mentioned anything about it (worse). It seemed he respected the mute agreement of just not talking of it…

Though Misaki wondered what had happened, she knew better than to ask and also had the sensation Ren had slept badly for the next nights. Three days after the Cultural Event, she had woken up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and had seen Ren sitting in the windowsill as she always did… Her eyes seemed lost in the night and thoughts as always, but there was something different in how they were lost. She had thought about asking if Ren was alright… And as if listening to her thoughts, Ren had looked at her. Merely looked, with no arrogance or challenge, but it would have been better if there was something of this sort in her gaze. Because whatever had lurked in her eyes then had been enough to make Misaki's body forget how to make her vocal chords work.

In the end, it seemed that the better thing to do was to give Ren her space. Yui would have liked to say something, but everything that came to her mind seemed to carry the possibility of being interpreted as somehow insensitive, so she kept her mouth shut while just being there for Ren, as if nothing had ever happened.

So eventually, after some days, the dark haired girl started to go back to being herself again.

And as such, for some days more, things transpired normally. Isuzu still reflected on that routine they had, as one wonders about certain aspects of life occasionally and had to admit, she was used now to going to class with gods, something she had thought she would never get used to, in her first days in the Academy…

How could something so abnormal eventually feel natural? It was a crazy thought, but it was true nonetheless. And she found herself somehow pleased when she reflected how their relationship with the gods had improved, if compared to how things had been in the start. Thinking about how Ren had phrased her question in the Cultural Event, she admitted that when she stopped to think about it, she still had doubts if they were to the point of calling each other "friends"… However, the relationships were a lot more positive and she caught herself thinking there were gods who she couldn't help but consider as such.

And in that morning, when they entered the classroom without Yui, there was clear concern in Apollon's eyes when they told them how Yui had a cold.

"She is not feeling very well, so she will take the day off"

It was a way of putting things, Arisu thought to herself. That morning, Yui's paleness was similar to a corpse and while the girl had insisted it was just caused by bad sleep and she would just need a cup of coffee, her harsh voice said otherwise.

Ren had at once placed her hand in Yui's forehead and in the side of her neck, as calm as ever. It had made Yui remember when she had practically carried Dionysus out of class when he had had his first experience with a hangover (despite this, she doubted the god would truly put wine aside for the rest of the year even if now he was susceptible to reacting to it like a human).

"You have a fever."

Then Isuzu had been on the case, insisting that Yui opened her mouth so she could take a look at her throat.

"If you're not feeling well, you should stay in bed" She had commented firmly and finally getting Yui to comply. Arisu just watched it with a shadow of smile, as she knew how useless it would of Yui to even try convincing her sister that there was no need of such if she decided otherwise. They could be the same age, but Isuzu tended to become almost maternal-like in situations involving health.

The other Hironezumi twin knew this due to first hand experiences. While Isuzu wasn't the type to go crazy over a paper cut or a simple sneeze, she also wasn't the type to push things aside or think a simple pill would heal everything and anything.

"You have a sore throat as well. It's not bad, but it can grow pus if you just ignore it. You may say it's nothing, but it can get worse, so go back to bed"

"But I'm fine! It's nothing serious…" Yui still tried, but the protest didn't convince anyone anymore, not when it was punctured by a cough that sounded anything but fine. "It must be some chill, no reason to miss class…"

"Girl, you have the chance to sit out Thoth's lecture for the day. Take it" Misaki said with a smile, waving her hand. "So don't worry, a day off won't kill ya"

"Give up, Yui" Arisu advised upon seeing her sister ready to insist again and, sure enough, Isuzu used the tone of voice she generally used with Arisu when her twin was being stubborn and pointed to Yui how Thoth himself could end up sending her back to their room when he saw her state, which would make even going to class absolutely pointless.

Melissa said he would pick up medicine in the infirmary, so they didn't have to worry about it and in the end, Yui sighed and accepted.

"She could be a doctor if she wanted to" Arisu thought while Misaki and Isuzu explained to the others how Yui had a cold and would probably be fine in a day or two as long as she rested.

Not that Isuzu (or her, for that matter) had thought about a career they wanted to pursue. Arisu had thought about the subject, of course, but nothing had come of it. Some people seemed to be sure of what they wanted to do with their lives since a small age or just have a "click" inside, an "eureka" of discovering their "call" or whatever the hell they wanted to call it.

She still hadn't anything like that that pointed towards what she wanted to be.

"And if you think about, I actually have to face the true third year of high school once things are done here…" The thought was somehow funny and she held a snicker to herself… For a moment, she wondered if she would dare to ask Thoth for guidance, like a vocational test or something, but she wasn't sure this would be a good idea. Or that Thoth would accept, for starters.

"Don't colds led to death from time to time?" Tsukito asked with his way that could be approaching a scientific subject as always, thought Misaki was almost sure his tone wasn't as distant as what she was used to.

"Hey, hey, easy there!" She replied at once before risking any of them to get more worried than it was needed. They probably knew that times had changed and human health had improved, but she would rather not risk it. "It's not like that"

"Some colds can develop into something serious if not treated and there are some that can be a risk to life" Apollon was the one that said it, with a seriousness that was most uncommon in him, at least as far as the girls knew. "But this is not the case of Fairy, right?"

Misaki blinked, remembering then how Apollon was also a god of medicine. Her surprise was how Takeru made no depreciative comment about how the weakness of human's health, just asking if the Weed would be alright by herself.

"It's nothing serious. Just let her sleep it off and rest" Isuzu carried on. Yes, she knew how she could get in such moments, but she wasn't going to freak out. "She just shouldn't come to class today"

"Luck her." Loki said almost in a dream-like way and Arisu knew he was probably either planning a prank based on that or thinking if he could use a similar excuse when he felt like cutting class without dealing with Thoth forcing a detention on him.

Arisu cast him a glare of warning that was replied with a smirk.

Thoth also accepted the justification for Yui's absence, just recalling that she better read the notes on the subject of the day less she wanted to be behind the rest of the class. It was the expected reaction for him and it caused no comments, so the god carried on with the class, starting to go on about the different laws of human's countries and the general concept of justice.

Misaki had to admit, she was relieved that her reprehension hadn't gone past a lecture and her punishment (not fun, but she could deal with it just fine), though the way Thoth had set off warning bells in her mind was still as fresh as a scar. At least he was treating her as always, even if the girl wasn't stupid enough to even consider the idea that he had forgot the whole deal (as much as she wanted him to).

She still remembered the pressure she had felt from him, which she definitely wanted to ignore and what had been underneath his questioning. There were things that just couldn't be completely translated into words and became weak, easy to misinterpret and to be taken in another way.

And as such, a deep wound could be mistaken by a paper cut.

"And why would you even try when you already know it will be a waste of time, right?" A voice that she knew far too well whispered in her mind, immediately making her try to focus on whatever Thoth was saying, without much success. Trying to drown that whisper, she wondered (and wished) what Hideki would be doing if he was here with her.

"Maybe he would get along with Apollon… Well, Apollon seems to get along with anyone, of course, but…" She liked them, sure and things seemed to be going well despite the few bumps along the way, but she had known Hideki for longer and could tell him things she couldn't tell others… She missed him, his smiles and how he talked about games…

She almost laughed to herself when she thought about Motoko Ayuzawa. They weren't friends, but she knew her because of her pure devotion to Kazuma Masahiro, who was what you would call one of the "princes" of the school. Great boyfriend material. Handsome with his black hair and blue eyes. Very intelligent. Always polite.

Motoko and some of her friends were his official fan club and had not a problem announcing that to whoever wanted to hear. Misaki didn't care much for it, but she seriously wondered what would happen if Masahiro started to date.

Chances were, the poor girl would be harassed.

Thing was, Misaki wondered what would happen if Motoko Ayuzawa was here. Chances were, each god would have his own fan club.

"So it's better that we're here instead of sending the gods to an actual human school."

"… So, to give an example, there is divergence about how some see death penalty. Which ones of you are in favor of such?"

The question snapped Misaki's distraction and kept her hand lowered. By looking around, she noticed the gods hadn't moved, so perhaps it had been more directed to the humans… Ren also remained perfectly still, though by now Misaki didn't know if she was expressing her opinion or, upon seeing this would lead to a debate, had decided to stay out of it. Both options were equally possible with her…

Arisu, however, had her hand high in the air. Isuzu lifted hers and backed her body in a clear sign that she would rather not say anything in the matter.

Thoth nodded.

"Your reasons?"

The whole class turned to the two girls.

"I think people can change." Misaki said slowly. In truth, she didn't like people looking at her like this and wasn't sure she would like to debate anything now, but went on even so. "We don't know if a murderer will tomorrow change his ways and become a better person, so I don't think we should take this chance away…"

Arisu rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Not everyone is willing to change, you know?" Seeing Misaki didn't answer, Arisu carried on. "I get that there are people who do deserve a second chance, but there are those who don't, too."

"But you don't know that." Misaki looked around and shrugged. "I agree that there are people who don't change, but how can we be sure? And think about it, kill people who killed people to show that killing people is wrong?"

"Look, I'm not saying death penalty is something good, but there are those that do things so horrible that there is nothing else to do for society's sake. It doesn't mean I like it, but…"

"So killing is alright as long as it's done by the government?" Misaki asked as soon as Arisu stopped talking. She could see her point of course, but to her, death penalty was just wrong. "Plus, the justice system isn't all perfect. There is the risk of sending someone innocent to die." She had seen news of people who had spent years in jail for crimes they hadn't committed, what if those people had been sent to death? There was no way to do anything for the injustice if they had been killed.

Arisu considered that. Meanwhile none of the gods seemed to want to say anything… Of course. In the ages when they bothered to punish mortals, they never had doubts of their crimes and often made punishments worse than death with a mere wish.

"Well, I'm not saying everyone deserves it and yes, there are criminals who can change and… Fight to be better people, make up for what they did, I don't know." This was a point Arisu had not thought about, but if she stopped to think, yes, there were people who, after been released, actually tried to do something to atone for their past. It didn't change the past, but there was value in it.

On the other hand, there were also those who served their sentences and once released, just hurt others once again.

"But think about those that are, without a shadow of doubt, guilty. Think about rapists or people who torture others… Think about people like… Like Gacy or Dahmer and the things they did. I think this deserves a lot more than going to prison"

"Isn't it loss of freedom way worse than loss of life?" Misaki insisted. Despite the heat growing in her voice, this wasn't a full discussion. At least not yet, but her mind was too taken by arguments and how she felt about it to consider anything else. It wasn't even as if they were trying to change each other's mind, if either she or Arisu stopped to think about it "Who are we to judge who deserves life or who doesn't?"

"Oh, please, not that!" Arisu lifted her hand in interruption. That argument, for her, didn't hold water in the slightest. "Look, if someone kills another in the brutal ways you see sometimes in the news, then I wouldn't say they deserve to stay alive. Plus, what if they escape, are released or kill someone in prison? You need to be sure they won't hurt anyone ever again and, I'm sorry, but sometimes the only way to do this is by killing them…"

"If we support killing, even if they are criminals, doesn't that makes us somehow similar to them?"

"Isn't it better to be sure that they won't ever harm anyone else again?"

Both went quiet. The whole class just watched and the gods were actually interested. Oh, the concept of justice and punishment was not alien to them, but with those arguments and the nature of what was being discussed, it felt almost as such. They weren't used to question themselves when they decided to punish mortals. What Arisu and Misaki discussed wasn't only death penalty, as underneath there was also a discussion of how to measure justice… It would be easy if things could truly be put in a physical scale, so there was no excess or lack of punishment, but the exact measurement.

Misaki sighed, the silence somehow calming her nerves that she hadn't even realized had heated up. Arisu, to her surprise, smiled a little and shrugged.

"Well, can't we just agree that doing justice is not always easy?"

Thoth still went on about how their debate of now showed how humans had different views and how this could affect matters, also on why some places had death penalty where others hadn't. In the end, the whole class had to write an assignment of their thoughts on the subject and to justify their position.

XxX

Though some gods wanted to check on Yui as soon as the classes were over, there was an agreement that it would be better to let her sleep as much as she wanted and needed. In the attempt of helping, some of them (and Misaki had to make an effort to not look at Loki then) could end up just causing agitation.

"Well, he could try making her feel better, but I bet he would just tire her even more" Arisu reflected for a moment in an almost instinctual level as she crosses the pool. It was with no surprise that she verified that Takeru had reached the other side first.

"You seem to be improving" He admitted with a nod, arms crossed on his chest. "Not bad for someone who looked more like a drowning rat at the beginning"

"Hey, I told you it has been a while since my last classes" Arisu retorted, holding a smile and also the wish of giving him a friendly punch in his shoulder when the need came to her nerves.

Since when had such friendly gestures, normal to her, had started to appear with him?

"Big deal" The god replied with little care, slithering in the water, more naturally than a dolphin and a smirk. "There are things you just don't forget once you learn. Like walking"

"Porcupine, if I didn't know any better" Her smile, in reply, had some reservation before she realized it. Since the Cultural Event and how Takeru had acted, the question human/gods was stronger in her mind and haunted her more than normal, no matter how much effort she put into ignoring it. Almost as if the day had ripped apart a gauze to expose a wound that could no longer be hidden. "I would say you want to annoy me"

The god just raised his eyebrows in an unreadable expression, making she roll her eyes while trying to not think about his eyes when she had followed him out of the room, after what Loki had said…

"C'mon, stop that…"

At the end of the day, he had pulled her aside and asked almost brusquely if her hand was hurting. She couldn't exactly lie with the forming bruise, but assured him how it was nothing, to which Takeru had almost immediately nodded and said that he had just asked because he didn't know how much the shackles limited his physical strength and how humans got hurt so easily… Then muttered something about how, even though it was an accident, it was dishonorable to hit someone like that.

Arisu had the impression that by "like that" he meant out of a battlefield.

She hadn't even cared about the comment, aware that he truly didn't mean to hurt her and confirming once again that it didn't matter, pretending to not notice that the god seemed to be truly upset over it.

The slap hadn't affected her, what had was his state, the same thing that had worked to shake her own doubts about him and the others in a way that felt more upsetting than before… She never forgot that Takeru didn't care about humans (at times wondering even if he hated them), however it was getting complicated to stop that from affecting her in a personal level, ceasing to be a generic question as she realized that day.

To put in simple terms, she was caring more and more about the answer she might get if she started to actually discuss this with the gods.

"Are you going to daydream or do you plan to keep swimming?" The god had approached her without her noticing it.

"Look, you can't say a thing about how I swim" She replied with the instinct of someone pulled back to the reality, from deep thoughts and not wanting anyone to notice. "I learned with human teachers, remember?"

And proceed to start swimming away from in until starting a crawl style. Takeru followed, but didn't turn once they reached the other side, on the contrary, he muttered almost to himself.

"So, she will be alright?"

Arisu turned to him. He had the same way of when he had spoken of her about hitting her hand, trying to keep a controlled expression that didn't allow any true emotion to be shown, though Arisu noticed something bothered and unsure in his eyes as the corners of his mouth twisted slightly. Even when she confirmed, not needing to ask to know he meant Yui, Takeru didn't seem satisfied.

"How did she even get sick?"

The question sounded simple enough, but Arisu knew he was actually referring at how you would expect Zeus to not allow such things to happen in a divine-like environment. At the same time, even so, Arisu blinked as this question would (despite all the circumstances), be more expected from a child and not a being that had lived through millennia and millennia… Then again, considering how he (well, as most of them save perhaps for Apollon and Tsukito) had seemed somewhat impressed when Thoth had given some notes about how diseases actually attacked the human's organisms and how some severe diseases destroyed the body…

"Well, good for them they never watched House or something like that" But it was almost fun to imagine how they would have reacted… While a part of them imagined them freaking out and assuming Yui had actually a dangerous disease that would claim her life and was merely presenting itself as something so simple, she knew that this wouldn't actually be the case.

The knowledge of what they were never left, but at times… At times they almost felt humans to her, almost like boys of her age.

"Those things just happen from time to time…" She shrugged, adding carefully. "You… You guys never get sick, right?"

Takeru looked at her in silence and slowly nodded. No. No, at least not in normal circumstances and even in their current predicament, it wouldn't be quite easy to happen. Tsukito had once fainted, but he had been pushing himself for days.

"Even with those shackles… We're more resistant than you" He said almost not realizing it, adding in a murmur. "Even in our… Natural state, sometimes we can be hurt. But a cut that for us means nothing may be dead to humans" Before he had never cared for human weakness (not only physical), as it was just a fact of nature, like scorpions being dangerous and dogs having four legs. His despise for the whole race ended up using certain details to increase the emotion.

Before, he wouldn't have had any trouble saying so, but couldn't just use the same terms with Arisu, who frowned.

"I think I've heard somewhere about Horus being poisoned or something like that… And Aphrodite being hurt in the war of Troy…" She wasn't sure, it had been in the beginning of the year when she and the others had searched for information about the gods in the library. This idea made her wonder if it didn't mean that even those deities had their weaknesses… Rare and unreachable to humans, of course, but…

Or maybe she just wanted to find something that would approach them, that wouldn't leave them as such distant beings that their physiology was almost alien… Something that would make them more reachable as living beings…

"It may be so, I don't know about the Egyptians" The sea god confessed, shaking his head, his blue hair falling in his golden eyes. "It also depends of where we're from. My brother and I are different from Apollon, Dionysus or Hades, for example… Some things are different, such as how our abilities work"

At this Arisu was frankly curious. How did their organisms work, when it came down to their powers? Did it depend too of their "domain", for lack of a better term?

Still this question was pushed to the end of her mind to give way to the principal subject and how he had commented he wasn't like Apollon, regarding organism.

Her mind involuntarily remembered how sometimes it was said that some people in different countries were more resistant to cold or how some organisms are more susceptible to certain diseases or allergies, but decided against expression the comparison.

Since he didn't like humans, she didn't think he would appreciate it.

"Look, later we can check on Yui. She will probably be better" She tried to say in a cheerful way, since he seemed to be somewhat worried despite all the explanations. There was something else here, Arisu was sure, but she didn't know what…

"I mean, it is just a cold…"

Takeru didn't let her finish.

"I forget it" He growled suddenly. "At times, I forget how you… Fuck, I don't know! It's just… It's just weird when there's someone missing. And I hate that!"

Arisu hesitated, her mind stopping for a moment…

So, a weak thought of a baby started to be born, along with a perception that, perhaps due for being so obvious, had been ignored for most of the time when they had gotten used to the Academy… And why this simple cold had bothered Takeru more than it would be normal.

"We won't stay like this forever… At the end of the year, life goes on… We will grow up, grow old and die. And you and the others will go on… Existing and existing…" When she thought about going back home, her mind didn't touch what would happen after it. She could still meet Yui, Ren and Misaki… And if they lived in another city, they still had emails and could visit each other from time to time.

But what about the gods?

She didn't know. Could they still keep in touch, somehow?

Suddenly, the thought became unpleasant…

Trying to get free of it, Arisu studied Takeru… Could it be that he was bothered by the girls' mortality or bothered that he was worried (or the better thing next to it) with a human, whose life would end eventually anyway and whose span of time was probably what that of a butterfly was to them?

In her actual state, the words of how they would die almost came to her, with Arisu stopping them in the last second before her vocal chords produced any sound, not feeling like having this conversation.

She took a deep breath. Her throat was dry.

"She will be better soon" How a thing so simple as a mere cold had caused a conversation and thoughts such as those? Or… Or had such things been always there, just waiting for a crack to use as passage to take their place in reality? If it hadn't been a cold, it would have been anything else that could be an opportunity.

She remembered when Yui had almost drowned. Heh… Hades was surely one who didn't forget, for once, about how things would end up. It wasn't that dying someday bothered Arisu, it was how things were…

Death wasn't the problem. The farewell was.

"And we still have the year ahead, I mean, we're just now getting to the end of October, so…" Blabbering now. As if that would expulse the bitter sensation, convince it to leave. The worst part was that she was confused now, unsure of what had actually caused this reaction.

It should be simple.

It was not.

By Takeru's expression, he was feeling something far too similar and shook his head slowly.

"Even so… Sometimes, it's like I forgot, even if I didn't… How you guys are humans" And also some details of their predicament. Perhaps due to how the fear of being caged forever stood out so much more and the coexistence also played its part. Once you got used to certain things, you could end up ignoring others.

He remembered when he had started to train with Yui. He had honestly been surprised that she had dared to fight him for starters and a seed of respect had started there for her as a fellow swordsman. Just that. In the actual training, he had been sure that she would give up soon and not only for being unable to keep up with him (after all, shackled or not, he was still superior).

Not only had she persisted as the trainings had been actually more fun now he had company…

Then that accident had happened. He remembered seeing her falling, losing her senses and how past and present had become one for a moment. When he held Yui then, his first thought was how light she was… He knew he could break her skull with a mere slap… Like others could twist her body into another shape or shatter her bones by just wishing it.

Humans were weak. They caused him nothing but despise and digust.

In that moment, he had just been able to think how fragile she was.

And this thought came to him once again when he accidentally slapped Arisu's hand. Their lives were like candlelight, it took nothing to be extinguished… Even when he tried to remember how he hated humans, somehow he couldn't apply those concepts to them anymore.

Takeru couldn't honestly remember the last time he had had a positive thought or even cared about a human before coming to the Academy… Unknowing to Arisu, he also wasn't sure of how things were now or what those girls meant. And this confusion was enervating.

"Is that bad?" Arisu's words had come almost as a whisper.

Takeru looked at her for a brief moment, not saying anything and not allowing any sort of answer to touch his facial muscles. Arisu lowered her gaze as she hadn't meant to sound as if pressuring him for answers.

"Why don't you like humans? Does that include us? How do you see us?"

She wouldn't ask. Takeru had said he would tell her someday and that had been enough. She didn't like when others pressured her and refused to do the same, no mattering how this question felt in her nerves.

Throwing her body ahead of him in the water and swimming a little, she merely turned her head to him.

"Hey… C'mon" And gave a small smile of challenge. "Let's try again. You said it yourself we're here to swim. Plus, I still want to win against you"

After a second of silence, Takeru's strong laugh echoed as he advanced in the waters with the wild smile she was used to by now.

"Dreaming is good and it's free"

XxX

How many times do we only realize the passage of time when comparing dates? It was what Isuzu thought at the moment.

"October already… Who would know?" It wasn't even close of the end of school year, but when she thought about how they were already in the second semester, she couldn't help but to be a little surprised. When she had first arrived, she had thought the year would feel a lot longer and the days would drag on and on… Now that she was used to things, time seemed to go by fast.

Strange, but not unpleasant.

Her mind went to the celebrations of Christmas back home, but she decided she didn't want to think about them, even if she used to get excited for them. This, however, would be the first Christmas she would spend away from her parents. And they always had their own family traditions, too…

Isuzu wasn't even sure they would celebrate anything here in the Academy.

It was a delicate matter, as it always is when it comes down to particular beliefs. The girls had already talked about it among themselves even if they had no desire of bringing such things up with those deities that had, ages ago, had temples build in their honor.

She and Arisu believed in God, but didn't follow any religion in particular. Yui was Buddhist, Misaki was Atheist and Ren was Catholic.

The conversation had been just that, as they all agreed in the "live and let live". What did it matter in what they believed, if basically all religions were about being kind to each other, respecting and being a good person? Isuzu had no idea if this year was having some effect in the other's beliefs, but she had spent a good time wondering about it until she had found peace with herself.

In the end, she still believed. Even the Greek back in those days mentioned an "Unknown God" or something. In a way or another, meeting Balder, Apollon or any of the others had had no impact in what she believed… It had been a shock, sure and also opened her eyes to how humans, actually, didn't know anything about the reality of the world.

Fascinating, sure. And also frightening.

"Hi, Isuzu!" A known voice called her when she crossed the patio to her practice area with her bow and she waved back to Balder, who approached. There was no signal of Apollon and she wondered if he was at the Student Council with Tsukito and Misaki as he did sometimes (well, he was the President).

"Hi there. Where's Apollon?"

"He went to visit Yui" The Nordic replied at once, with the smile that was so natural of him. "Since he is a god of medicine, he insisted he could do something to help"

Isuzu nodded. It made sense, after all. Even with those shackles, Apollon had medicinal knowledge, so perhaps he could fix her some herbs to help. She also remembered Arisu telling how he had been able to use a bit of his powers of prophecy in the beginning of the year, so maybe...

She wondered what they thought of it. No doubt medicine had improved a lot since the time they still cared about how humans conducted their lives… Looking at Balder, she couldn't help to be curious. He always seemed calm and in good mood, it was hard to imagine him growing bitter towards humanity and keeping his distance.

Suddenly the blonde looked behind, noticing the small group of spirits that was approaching the court, with identical smiles. Before Isuzu could understand what was happening, there was warmth wrapping her hand and she was being pulled.

Her legs started to run, trying to keep up with Balder's rhythm as they crossed the garden until he stopped in one of the more wooded areas, glancing around to be sure the spirits had not noticed him. No signal of them. Well, they probably hadn't seen him and it wasn't like they were quite intelligent.

He turned to Isuzu, who was catching her breathe, some strands of hair falling across her face.

"I'm sorry for this" He spoke seriously as he hadn't meant to surprise her, but it was better to get away from those spirits as soon as they came close and sighed. "It isn't always that they appear, but when they do, it's impossible to play…"

And he wouldn't have been able to talk with Isuzu either.

The girl knew well what he was talking about. In the occasions those damn things appeared, it was common that they stayed staring from afar, which eventually became disturbing due to their empty gazes. An alive crowd would be easier to deal with… And when they were in a certain number such as those of now, they approached and kept asking Balder to teach them how to play, threw empty praise to his technique…

She and Apollon used to do their best to sent them away, to Balder's relief.

"Don't worry… At least it's not that frequent, right?" She made an attempt at smiling, as she never could think about a way of comforting him. Balder still looked at her in second before nodding.

"I honestly don't know how it is with them" More appropriately, how they worked. Oh, he knew that Zeus had limited himself to just fill them with some human instincts, so they have less individuality than a worm… His personal theory was that when they were in groups such as those, wandering aimlessly through the school and came near enough, they were drawn to his aura of God of Light, moths to a flame.

Strangely, none of the girls seemed to be affected in the slightest. At first some of them watched him with clear curiosity, perhaps able to feel something deep in their nerves. And even in the moments his aura clearly brushed against their senses, the effect was small… Balder knew it had nothing to do with his shackle, there wasn't how to stop that, might as well try to change the color of a bird without altering the outer appearance.

Strange…

He watched as Isuzu straightened herself and put the wild strands behind her ear, turning her eyes to him again and tilting her head to the side.

"Balder?" She called in a low voice. The god merely smiled at her and she pointed behind him with her eyes, a thin smile coming to her face. Balder turned slowly, noticing a small thing coming down the tree with quick movements of small paws.

The god saw Isuzu's eyes on the little animal with interest and smiled at her, lifting his hand to his shoulder. The hazel squirrel made its way to his hand as if it was his pet and sat here, muzzle shivering as it scented the air in the direction of the god.

"Animals seem to like you too" The girl whispered, as if not wanting to break a spell and making no movement towards Balder, not wanting to scare the squirrel. It was no secret there were such animals in the garden. She and the others still went to star gaze with Hades at times and once, Isuzu had actually seen a doe and its fawn.

Without saying anything, the God made a gesture for her to come closer. Honestly, he did prefer animals to those spirits… And to humans in general as well, but he wouldn't ever say such a thing to her. He didn't want to offend her like that…

The squirrel turned its head to Isuzu when she moved, eyes two black drops.

"Here…" Balder whispered to her, his face leaning close as he held her hand and slowly moved it to the animal. Usually, his aura calmed them especially if they kept contact, so while the squirrel watched Isuzu, it made no movement to get away when Balder gently placed her fingers on its back.

The squirrel turned the head again, sniffing as if wondering if they had food. Isuzu almost exclaimed in surprised, she had never been so close to a squirrel like this before. Balder's hand was over hers as she scratched the brown fur.

The animal still played a little with the end of Balder's sleeve before rushing to his shoulder, gaining a little laugh from Isuzu.

"How come they always get so close of you?" Nothing of the sort happened with the other gods.

"It's because of my aura" He explained while lifting his hand to the squirrel again and placing it near the tree. The animal went back, rushed up and disappeared between the branches. "As the God of Light, animals feel calm near me." It wasn't just that, but a brief explanation was the better thing to offer in the moment and Isuzu accepted it.

He still gazed at the branches over their heads for a while, as the sunlight dripped between leaves and slithered to them, the light playing around with colors. With a sudden impulse in his mind, he turned to Isuzu.

"Why don't we ignore our clubs today?"

"Ah?"

"Well, it will be a little bothersome if the spirits come back. Why don't we just… How do you say again?" He wondered out loud for a moment, before his blue eyes went back to hold hers. "Skip it?"

Isuzu hesitated. Not due to fear of reprimands, but more out of surprise as she hadn't expected this.

"C'mon, Isuzu. Just this time" He insisted with a soft tone as he leaned in order to keep his eyes in the same height as hers, his head tilted to the side in expectation. And yet, despite his tone and posture, his eyes were somewhat serious.

Well… No reason why not, right?

"Sure."

Balder seemed pleased and the two went to take a look at the flowers Ren and Dionysus had planted in the gardens.

XxX

"Thanks, Apollon…" Yui's voice was still hoarse as she placed the cup in the small stand at the side of bed, still feeling the taste of herbal mix that Apollon had made for her and that, according to him, was very efficient against colds and also could help with her fever. Yui had never drunk anything like that, though it wasn't unpleasant to the taste.

The closer she had ever had before had been an herbal tea.

Most part of her morning had been spent sleeping after she had taken a pill, having woken up a little ago and remaining in bed reading until she had heard a light knock in the door. She had thought it was some of the girls not wanting to just barge in (Misaki had left a couple of minutes ago and both had shared smiles when she commented how Thoth had commented that Yui shouldn't stay behind the class. He really was perfect for the role of a strict teacher), but it was Apollon who had also talked with her a little about the debate between Misaki and Arisu.

While he had watched her drink the mix, Apollon had been quiet. With the passing of decades, more than humans could understand about time, the observations he made regarding humans had created concepts in his minds that had become as unbreakable as the simple laws of the universe, such as the hollow of space or the existence of gravity.

As such, they were also a fence, preventing the entrance of any thought that didn't collaborate to what had become a belief when the subject was human's nature.

Acts, however, are hard to ignore. It wasn't possible to just dismiss them or take them down with arguments, even if he had tried to justify the actions he saw or admit them as an exception… It still wasn't enough.

Yui… And the others… They were different from what he expected of humans. Not that there was despise under his smile, not even in the beginning of the year, but he was in this Academy for a reason as much as Hades or Takeru. As such, he had actually tried to rationalize their behavior especially when it entered in collapse against his most negative thoughts about humans… He truly had liked them from start and appreciated their company…

And slowly, this mere appreciation had become something more solid inside him… Then, there were moments such as this when his perception suddenly sharpened and everything came to his mind at once. The sensation it caused was almost as if he had forgot they were just humans and only now recalled the fact with a shock.

Those were not the best terms to describe it, but it is always complicated to force complex emotions inside the weak limitations that are words.

Perhaps because this was one of those moments that he ended up muttering, almost not realizing.

"You are different…"

Yui blinked as she tilted her head to the side, not sure if he meant this as a good or bad thing.

"Apollon?"

The Sun god was abnormally quiet as he stared at her for a brief moment. The cheerfulness was not there anymore and Yui almost couldn't bear to look in his eyes, not when they seemed to hold the infinite inside them.

She opted for holding his hand, trying to transmit that he could say anything that he wanted and gave a gently smile. Apollon felt not only the touch, but the meaning behind it… Once again she was acting like that, going against what he believed… He had heard the human saying that the eyes are the windows of the soul and inwardly wondered if humans had took time to think about what it entitled.

Because Yui, with her sincerity, was almost exposing her heart and soul with a child-like innocence. He wondered if she would do the same if she fully understood things as he did… And he honestly would rather never have the answer. This way of hers was both painfully tragic and beautiful…

Yui knew how whatever he had in mind had to be related to what he thought of humans. And though she had thought about it and recalled many times that despite his behavior, was there as a student as much as Hades or Loki, Yui took a deep breath with caution so he wouldn't take notice. Apollon was her friend, she could no longer think of him as anything else, but at the same time she had no idea of what to expect.

Apollon felt her warmth, spreading under his skin due to her touch though it was a simple normal reaction for gods and humans alike. His mouth was dry… He felt like trusting her and telling her… He didn't want to lie, neither did he want to offend her, but his feelings regarding humans were not quite simple… He wouldn't say that gods were perfect, though they often liked to forget this detail, but even so…

Yui didn't say anything, she merely kept seated in her bed with that soft gaze.

Apollon knew there were things that neither she nor the other girls understood… He vaguely remembered Heraclitus saying that gods were immortal humans and humans were mortal gods… In a sense, he had been right. But like humans had their flaws, gods had theirs. And being the way they were, their flaws could be…

Sure, many gods would never admit such a thing. His own father, for example… Gods could be dark just like humans. And once again, Apollon wished that none of those girls would ever see this side of them… In the times he thought of it, he admitted that he very much disliked the idea of causing them fear.

He knew Misaki, back in the Cultural Event, had feared them for a moment… But it hadn't been in a personal level and it was a natural thing to occur.

"When…" He started, unsure for a moment before going on. "When I was worshipped… People often asked us for things. And many times, they forgot to thank us" Which in itself was such an offense that many gods would then punish the mortals in question.

Yui nodded. She had read myths about it and knew that mortals also asked for justice (speaking of the subject of today's class). After all, Apollon himself had killed many of Achilles' army due to a request of his priest.

"It was… It was bothersome. I mean, we were listening to them and we helped them, but afterwards they were so drunk in their happiness that they acted as if they would have achieved whatever they desired without us" The silence of Yui made it easier to fill the air with his own words and the bitterness in the sound slowly became clearer. All that had been a long time ago and it wasn't often, but those were the small seeds that had eventually became part of his feelings.

The girl said nothing, knowing it was better to let Apollon find his path to express himself. Some people could have considered this a petty reason, but this wasn't the same as lending money to a friend or some other small thing. They were talking about divine favors and she had already understood how such offenses couldn't be taken lightly by the deities. In a matter of speaking, it was a wound in their honors.

"I didn't care much at first…" He actually liked to help mortals, frequently watching them from Olympus and admiring how they found values in such short lives. "But there were times when… When I approached them, I could see how they just wanted to ask me for some blessing. I could understand that, but there were times when it felt like they only worshipped me in order to get things when they asked"

He thought back on his mortal lovers, though it had been more than millenniums since he had taken a mortal... His affairs back in Ancient Greece never ended well and even those that came afterwards didn't last… Many had died, sometimes in his arms, others had left him…

Apollon remembered Cassandra, who he had loved with all his heart. She had asked for the gift of prophecy and he had granted so, only for her to leave him without a care… In his anger, moved by his pain, he had cursed her.

"Back then it still didn't bother me so much… Even after the… Even after the fall of Greece" And it had been a dark time to all of the Greek deities, even if they didn't need their prayers to exist. "I kept watching over humans. And how they approached it other only keeping in mind what they could gain."

A whimper was kept in the depth of Yui's throat when Apollon's grip tightened enough to hurt as she felt him shivering, trying to control those emotions that had been accumulating over ages and ages and ages. His eyes flashed with emotions so quickly that she had no chance of discerning them separately.

Somehow noticing it, Apollon relaxed his hand enough to give her space to take hers from him. She did not.

"I thought back on the times when I was worshipped. I couldn't just be there for mortals to ask things. My existence couldn't be just that… I tried to remember how there were humans who tried to be good, but what was the point? They were the ones who ended up being used… They were moved by nothing but self interest…" Even if he had tried to keep in mind how not all humans were like this, evil deeds have a way of standing out. He could remember more of the atrocities of the Holocaust than of the Germans who had risked their own lives to help others who were suffering.

A sigh run over his body, his shoulders feel heavy with the weariness of ages seeing humans hurt each other, use each other and remembering all the times he had been called by a mortal only because he wanted something. Cities were born from nothing and fell, societies were formed and destroyed… But that cycle of abuse never ended. It was just a big play, changing only faces and names.

It came to a point when he would rather not look anymore. As terrible as that sounded, it came a time when you couldn't even be touched anymore, you were merely bored.

Despite it all, it was in his eyes and the sound of his voice untouched by time that Yui understood what he meant. And seeing this, Apollon would probably remember the time he was worshipped as a time when he was used. Given value by humans merely based in what he could give them and out of fear… Even if it wasn't exactly like this, seeing how humans acted with each other would taint the memories with enough time.

This was something that Yui understood quite well… The evil that people did were like black drops against a white sheet and over the time, they spread in the fabric as much as they could. And then, after a while, only the black existed.

And if people could feel the despair of seeing this black or the pain of being used that seems to last no matter what or a lack of purpose… How would it be for someone such as Apollon?

The blonde god now had his eyes on his hand, still over hers as he spoke more to himself, decades being transcribed in few words.

"The more I watched humans, the more I wanted to look away" His tone held no more bitterness, dominated by exhaustion and as such revealing all the sunrises and sunsets. By this time, he was like a bored child merely staring at a colony of ants that is destroyed by other ants. And the comparison was not far off in the end. "I didn't even care anymore to what they did or didn't. What did it affect me, anyway?"

To put it simply, nothing. Not in a personal level. Truth was, he had despised humans and by the time he had been bought here, he was past even that… He had been truly excited, sure, but this reaction was more caused by how he had never done anything of this sort before. And he truly cared about whether or not they managed to go home and had been upset at seeing his father involving even other gods and forced them to abide to his wishes…

Those were things he wouldn't say, though. He didn't want to risk hurting Yui's feelings even if he tried to assure her how she and the others had worked their way to actually reach his heart, despite all the concepts he had build.

When he gazed at her, he discovered that it didn't matter because she had deduced it. Strangely enough, the girl didn't seem offended and still watched him with serenity and something that Apollon took a minute to see that was a sad comprehension.

He had thought she might argue with him, perhaps present arguments that would try to tear down all that he had said…

Once more, she surprised him.

"Apollon… There are really a lot of people like this" It wasn't a fact that could be denied, as sad as it was, but trying to do so would be foolishness. After what she had heard, Yui wasn't sure that what she had to offer wouldn't end up being useless words though the point wasn't that. There are moments a friend needs not comfort, but someone who will listen and comprehend. And that was what she tried to do. "You try to be gentle, try to open your heart to them and you get lied to, manipulated, used… People pretend to be your friend and if something bad happens, they merely leave you"

The god watched her.

"Yui?" He whispered and as much as this was such a fact to him, it bothered Apollon to think Yui had experienced it.

"At times" She confirmed the question that didn't need to be made. "Of course it hurts…" She shrugged with a sigh. The subject wasn't her, she just wanted to express how his feelings weren't incomprehensible or unjustified. Apollon had a silent inquiry in his expression that confused her for a moment, until the girl understood he wanted to know how this hadn't made her into a bitter person. It was usually how such things went.

"Sometimes you want to get away of everyone because you fear being hurt again…" Her case wasn't at all like his, time made everything different. Even if he was a human like her, it would still be different because people felt things and were affected by events differently.

"I don't know about the purpose of life or such things. I'm just a human… And… I don't know also why some people are like that." Maybe even they didn't know. Maybe they just didn't care. Who knew? But she did understand why it had pushed Apollon away from humans, why it had hurt him like it obvious had over the years.

But there was one thing that she did know.

"I like Apollon for Apollon, not by what you can do. And it's the same with the others."

Simple words, but the god felt somewhat lighter upon hearing them for he knew it was true. It confused him, but it was true… A small smile made its way to his face.

In the end, despite what might come in the future, he didn't know if he would be completely able to let go of those concepts he carried inside…

But he could honestly say he was truly happy for ever meeting Yui and those other humans.

Ana: Whew… At least the new chapter. I'm so sorry, college took a lot of my time…

Thoth: Always the same excuse…

Ana: I spent my day translating this and it's four in the morning, so if there is a mistake there somewhere, I'm sorry.

DeathGoddesses: You be assured that many of the gods are noticing that some of the girls have their own issues with life and they are getting curious, but it won't be quite easy to find out.

Misaki: There are things we just don't like to talk about, like everyone… So… I mean… Well, we're here to help the gods, right? So there is no need for them to know much about us, right?

Ana: Try telling them that…

Snoot-the-Boop: Hi there! I'm so sorry it took this long to update and that Tsukito didn't appear. About Ren… Well, who knows?

Ren: Can we please forget about this?

Ana: You know very well it's not possible. Why don't you just go ahead and tell them how you…

Ren: I strongly advise you to keep your mouth shut…

Ana: Eventually you will find out. And yes, Tsukito is slowly giving a try at seeing things in a different way.

Tsukito: I assume the better way to improve my performance as a "human" student is to attempt seeing things as they do, as much as it bothers me.

Ana: Try being technical all you want, truth is, the human representatives are slowly breaking the concepts they held on for so long, so they get naturally confused and curious. And YES! I was aiming for this, trying to make them really unnerving.

Balder: I would like it more if they weren't affected by me…

Ana: Zeus didn't even care to think about it. But since a building such as that would feel weird with only some students, he decided to create a better scenario with the spirits… Needless to say, it was not a good idea.

Arisu: Needless to say, he fucked up.

CrystalVixen93: Thanks a lot! I hope the chapter was worth the wait!