Chapter 40

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA THE TROUBLE I HAD TO GO THROUGH TO FIND THAT SINGER?" Lory ranted at the female sitting casually in his office. "A bird? Really?"

She glanced up at him from the sofa. "Would you have preferred that I turn him into a sculpture?" She asked, casually examining her nails. "He tried to kidnap me. He tried to bind me with handcuffs at school." She groused. "At least it was a unique one that would be easily stand out in Japan." She pouted.

Lory sighed in exasperation. "I know he's been nothing, but trouble, but you just can't go doing what you did. I'm very disappointed. I never expected you to do something like this Aoidḗ. Maybe your sisters, but certainly not you. What is going on with you?" He asked softly.

"Should I start from the beginning Father? He treated me as a servant. He has done nothing, but physically, emotionally, and mentally abuse me my entire mortal existence. He used me. He took advantage of me. He abused me, and said hateful things to me. Am I to just sit meekly and allow him to continue?" She demanded.

Lory sighed once again. "No my Sweet, but you can't just go doling out punishments like that. What if someone actually saw you?"

She scoffed. "You wiped his memory, right? Not a problem."

He laughed. "No, I did not. His punishment would have been worthless if I had."

She gave him a shocked look. "Wh-What? What if he tells someone?"

Zeus smirked and waved his hand dismissively. "Who's going to believe him? If anything they'll take him to see a psychiatrist." He chuckled.

She frowned a little. "His manager has the sight..."

He looked at her a little shocked, then relaxed. "Well, perhaps it will serve as warning to both of them then. I'm sure between the two of them, at least one should have the common sense not to trifle with the gods." He smirked. "Besides, if word got out and people believed them, it would only serve to strengthen our position in their hearts and minds." He reminded her.

She sighed and nodded in agreement. That had been the case recently. The festivities did bring them more true followers and she could definitely feel the surge of power flowing through her from it.

Sho sat on the sofa in his manager's apartment, fuming. "I knew she was some kind of freak. Who can do things like that? She will not get away with it! I will make sure the world knows that she's an evil, soul-sucking, shape-shifting demon."

Aki walked in on the last part and cuffed him on the back of the head. "You will do no such thing..."

"OW! Why did you do that Shoko-san?" He complained, rubbing the back of his head.

She snorted in derision. "Because, you're an idiot. Kyoko-chan is not a demon, and she is someone you most certainly should not piss off. Not if you want to continue in the entertainment world with any talent to speak of." She warned.

Sho narrowed his eyes at her and scowled. "What do you know that you aren't telling me Shoko?"

She shook her head and sighed as she made her way to the kitchen to grab a beer from the refrigerator. She popped the top and took a deep drink, then sighed. "Have you not noticed that your abilities with music somewhat changes when you've been around her? It... it gets better." She gave him a pointed look.

"Pfft... Of course it does! She's my muse!" He told her in a nonsensical tone.

She rolled her eyes. "Sho... Think about what you just said. A muse... She's not A MUSE... She is THE MUSE... She is the Goddess of Music and you are going out of your way to piss her off! Did you not hear the name that Reino called her? He called her Aoidḗ. That is the name of the Greek goddess of Song and Tune. Do you know what that means?" She ranted as she paced back and forth in her living room, waving her hand around for emphasis.

Sho furrowed his brow. "That's not possible... They aren't real. There is no such thing."

Aki laughed at him. "You are well more than entitled to believe what you wish, but I will warn you to stop antagonizing her, unless you enjoy living off of a diet of worms and small insects. And just so you know, I don't do bird lice." She smirked with an eyebrow cocked, and went to her bathroom to take a nice long soak in her bathtub. She decided that he needed time to think about what was going on. He needed to take into consideration the consequences of his actions, both past and future.

After what had happened in the parking garage and the lecture she'd received from Zeus regarding her punishment towards Sho, she really didn't want to face her most important man this evening. She wanted more time to clear her mind and gather her thoughts.

The insecure Kuon part of Deimos, sat quietly in the room contemplating the garbage that spewed out of that vermin's mouth before she'd transformed him. He had to admit, the child had a point. As a mortal, she had been raised with him, she had even grown to love him. Could she still harbor a tiny sliver of that emotion for that parasite and that's why she was so offended by him? Sho most certainly had never done any of the things that he had been guilty of. Just about any modern mortal would probably be more suitable for her at this point. Well, perhaps most gods that didn't share his heritage would probably be.

He couldn't help, but think he was a bad influence on her. Aoidḗ had never been the one to pass judgment on a mortal like that. It had always been her following along with what her sisters had devised when it came to turning them into birds, stone, or a variety of other creatures. Not once did it occur to him, that Sho was the one mortal that had been able to press all the right buttons and send her over the edge. He didn't know how the boy kept stalking her. He didn't really know exactly how Sho had ended their relationship/friendship by telling her honestly what he thought of her. That behavior and treatment, would have pushed even the meekest of goddesses over the edge of her own patience. Sho should've considered himself fortunate that Zeus decided to take pity on him. Well, perhaps not. Turning him back only left him open to commit to more idiocies, and have more interesting and delightful ways for her to punish and torture him in the future.

Wow, this was not what he'd expected when he lost all hope and patience, when he'd heard her fussing over her phone and cursing that mortal ass for calling her and her father for changing him back, yet again. Here he was, with her delicious little thighs, naked against his bare waist and him beneath her. He was stunned. He'd never known her to be so aggressive and he was reveling in it. His discomfort caused by the tightening of his leather pants was proof positive of that.

She had him perfectly pinned to the bed, sitting on him in such a way that pinned his center of gravity with her pert little derrière, and his arms firmly beneath her shins. The only movement he was able to accomplish, was to allow his fingers to gently touch and caress her leather-clad calves and ankles. If he glanced just right, he could catch a glimpse of the black lace that covered that perfect little spot of heaven that he still hadn't been able to sample yet as a mortal; although, he had come pretty close on Olympus after the celebration. Certainly they'd made out, did some heavy petting, but he'd hadn't had the time in this mortal visage to take what was by all rights his.

Instantly Kyoko's/Aoidḗ's world spun, and she found their positions reversed. She looked up in stunned silence at the face that promised a full night of sinful pleasure.

"It would seem my little songbird has revealed herself to be a bird of prey." He purred as he brought his face closer to her neck, and deeply inhaled her scent, causing her to shiver in anticipation.