My Heart Belongs to You

Chapter 2- Friction


Twenty minutes later, Emilio was leading her down the hall. The dress of her choice was a two-piece dress made of baroque damask fabric, with fully lined bodice. It was of a silverish gray green color, with golden front and trimmed golden swirls and leaves on the golden fabric, with similar designs colored a dark shade of green on the green parts. She had managed to hide the puff of her eyes from having cried for so long with makeup, but she wasn't sure if Xibalba would notice anyway. Her dark hair was combed, and tied with a black ribbon, but other than that her lovely waves looked pretty on their own accord.

When they came to a great room with no doors, Emilio motioned for the Goddess to take a look. "This is the Dining Hall, My Lady."

La Muerte had to admit, the castle may be scary, but the Dining Hall could be called the warmest room it contained. It had a great chandelier with lit candles of normal fire, and a cackling fireplace at one side, with a row of windows with dark curtains at the other. In the middle of the room was a long table, with a chair at one end, another at the side next to it, and various types of food on top of it, whose smell let her know it was recently prepared, but she was astounded by the quantity. Xibalba didn't expect her to eat all of this, did he?!

"I will be taking my leave, My Lady." Emilio bowed his head lightly. "My Lord will be joining you shortly."

What wonderful manners, he made her come down and he wasn't ready. Still, La Muerte glanced down at Emilio with a smile. "Gracias, Emilio."

Once again surprised by her kindness, the lizard made his way out of the Dining Hall. When she was alone, La Muerte couldn't resist the delicious aroma of the food and approached the table to see what foods were served. The first thing she noted was that the food was not Mexican, rather, it seemed the majority of it was of European origin. The menu included an array of roasted meat and fish dishes such as venison, wild boar, salmon and pike, candied fruit and cheeses, savory and sweet tarts and pastries like pies and cakes, and much to her surprise there were even exotic birds like swans and peacocks, roasted over a fire and adorned with the feathers, potage and much more meals that she didn't recognize.

"So you came."

La Muerte jumped at the familiar voice, and huffed in annoyance. "Don't you know it's rude to startle people from behind?"

Xibalba chuckled as he revealed himself, walking into the Dining Hall with one hand behind his back, the other clutching his trusty dual-headed snake staff. "Where's your sense of humor, my dear?"

"I didn't imagine you had, My Lord."

He chose to ignore that remark and instead approached her to take a look at her. "You look radiant tonight, La Muerte." He took her hand and planted a kiss on the back of it.

"Thank you, My Lord." She replied curtly, sliding her hand off his hold.

"There's no need for formalities, dear La Muerte. We are husband and wife now, you may call me Xibalba." He motioned for the chair. "Shall we take a seat?"

La Muerte didn't protest any further as she headed towards the chair. Xibalba pulled back the chair for her to sit, before taking a seat himself, placing his staff aside temporally. Once seated, they served themselves, but since La Muerte didn't really know much about these foreign foods, Xibalba had to explain to her what they were and served her what she asked for. She was content with a few vegetables, some steamed salmon and a slice of cheese with a berry tart. Xibalba, on the other hand, had a big appetite; he served himself pieces of venison and boar, slices of cheese, a small chocolate cake, and even a leg of swan.

All the while, while eating, Xibalba couldn't remove his gaze off his lovely wife; she was pretty, with a beautiful body and stunning curves. His pupils were set on his meal, but the 'eyes' on the skull pupils were looking right at her, watching as her soft hands delicately grabbed the fork and knife and took small pieces of food into her mouth, while gently wiping her ruby red lips with the napkin every now and then. Oh, how he wanted to taste her! To touch her! As she reached out her hand for a piece of bread, he pretended he didn't notice she was taking her hand to the basket and reached out his own to take a piece of bread, 'accidentally' touching her tiny hand with his own gloved, large one. It was very soft, and warm. La Muerte instinctively withdrew her hand, and her cheeks turned red in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, My-" she quickly corrected herself. "…Xibalba."

"Don't worry, my dear, you can take as much bread as you'd like." The dark god said gently, before glancing at her plate. "I see you don't have much appetite."

"I'm not used to eating as much as you. Do you actually eat all of this?"

"As much as I'd like to, even I have my limits on how much I consume."

"Then what do you do with all this food?"

"Well, my servants need to eat too, don't they?"

La Muerte suddenly yelped in surprise and dropped her fork on the plate when she felt something brushing at her skirt. Pulling back on her chair, she caught a glimpse of fur and bones underneath the table.

"Oops. I almost forgot." Xibalba took a sip from his wine before glancing beneath the table. "Get out of there, you two!"

Two four-legged figures emerged from under the table and snuck to the sides, glancing at their master with raised ears. La Muerte examined them; two skeletal wolves, with black bones and spiky fur, and green body, as well as two sharp and furry tails. They reminded her of the dogs in the Land of the Remembered, but much more darker and scarier. Xibalba looked back at her. "La Muerte, these are Garra and Colmillo, my prized hounds. Don't worry if you feel something brushing at your feet beneath the table, they tend to rest down there." He threw a peacock leg at Garra and a venison thigh at Colmillo, which the wolves devoured avidly.

"You could have told me before, you know!" La Muerte snapped gently, going back to her chair.

"I could have." Xibalba replied, taking a slice of gamonedo cheese into his mouth and licking his lips to relish the taste. "But you look cute when you're scared."

Oh, how she wanted to drive her fork into his face to erase that smug grin on it! But she simply tightened her grip on the utensil and continued with her meal, trying to look calm but failing to do so.

"My apologies if my castle doesn't look… welcoming. I haven't had any guests these past centuries."

"I can tell." La Muerte thought to herself, before speaking. "It's comfortable enough." She took a sip of wine, though this brand was a bit sourer than the one she was used to, and she gagged internally.

"I hope you will find your new quarters comfortable enough, my dear. You are free to explore the castle, but there's a door in the western hall that is strictly off limits."

"What's in the-?"

"It's forbidden!"

La Muerte jumped when Xibalba's tone became dark and angry, and he stabbed his chocolate cake with the fork, his teeth turning to fangs. Guessing it was a touchy subject, she decided not to question him further lest she wanted to meet his darker side sooner. Xibalba realized he had lost control, and withdrew the fork from the cake.

"My apologies, my dear."

"Don't worry. It's your castle, after all; you have all the rights to keep certain rooms from foreigners."

"Do not call yourself a foreigner, La Muerte. You are my wife, this castle is as yours as it is mine."

She shifted awkwardly in her seat, placing her napkin on the table. "I've lost my appetite, My Lord." As she rose up from the chair, she noted Xibalba was about to stand up as well to help her up. "No, please, I can get to my room by myself, thank you very much." There was a bit of dryness in her voice. "Buenas noches."

Xibalba watched her leave the dining hall with an air of elegance and dignity he'd never see in a woman before. The dress she was wearing was a bit baggy and it didn't let him glance at her curves, but she still looked attractive. Just a few more days of sweet-talking and flirting to lower her guard, and then he'd make her his. He'd taste her, strip her virginity from her, and when he got bored of her, maybe he'd keep her around for his needs. After all, a woman couldn't be such a troublemaker.

La Muerte, meanwhile, crossed the doors into her room, into her 'sanctuary' on this prison. She locked her door to make sure she wouldn't have any inopportune visitors to remove her dress, and slip into her pink nightgown. She had to admit, while Xibalba might be a barbarian in the battlefield (in general, actually), he was quite the gentleman when he wanted to. But she knew better than to lower her guard; she was smart, which was a trait that she got from her dearly departed mother. She wouldn't let him touch her, even if it was the last thing she did. La Muerte climbed unto bed-which was surprisingly soft and comfortable, and lay down, her head resting on the pillows stuffed with swan feathers and pulling the dark covers over her body to protect herself from the cold.

It took her a few minutes to fall asleep.


The next morning-she assumed it was morning, because there was no way to tell the time of the day down here-, she awoke and found herself still in this place, though she had hoped everything had been a nightmare. Sighing, La Muerte stood from bed and found a small bowl of water with some purple hand towels next to them; La Muerte wondered how the lizards had come to leave it if she had locked her door, but she guessed they knew how to open these doors. The Goddess dipped her hands into the cool water and formed a 'scoop' with her hands to wash her face, and then gently wiped the dripping water with the towels, before heading towards her bathroom. To her surprise, her bathtub was already filled with warm water and bubbles. She was actually impressed that Xibalba's servants were able to get into her room and get these things ready before she woke up, but she had to admit it was sweet on their part. Sliding her sleeping gown and underwear off her body, she stepped into the bathtub and wiped her body with a sponge, feeling refreshed at the water.

But why did she always feel watched?

As soon as he opened his eyes that morning, Xibalba wanted to take a peek at his wife to see if she was 'doing all right'. Unbeknown to La Muerte, his castle had many secret passages that often led from one room to another, the one that led to the passage behind her mirror in her bathroom was casually behind one of his bookshelves in his chambers. He walked down the dark passage, the candles in his armor and crown illuminating the way, until he was in front of the small window to the bathroom that was her mirror. From this side he could see what was going on in the bathroom, but from the other side it was nothing more than a normal mirror.

As soon as his skull pupils set on La Muerte, he couldn't help but gape in delight.

She was truly the definition of beauty now that she was undressed; how her body was gracefully curved, how her long flowing dark hair glistened from the water and the bubbles caught in it like fishes in a net. What he wouldn't give to consummate his union with this exquisite creature, but he had given his word to her father. He was cruel, a cheater, a murderer some say, but he was a man of his word, as much as sometimes he disliked it.

La Muerte couldn't stand the sensation of being watched anymore and she finally climbed out of the bathtub and grabbed a towel to wrap around her body while she found something to wear. Half an hour later, she was dressed in her usual red dress and sombrero. She wasn't sure what to do now, the Land of the Forgotten was not like the Land of the Remembered, there were no fiestas nor music nor any form of entertainment that she could think of. Sure, Xibalba gave her permission to explore around his castle (except for the famous room in the western hall which he forbad her to go to), but she was not in the mood to leave her chambers at all. Next to her window, there was a small tea table with chairs on the side; having nothing else to do, she made her way to the chair and took seat to glance outside from her window. The landscape remain unchanged, all gray-scaled and depressing, contrasting the vivid and contrasting colors in the Land of the Remembered.

She wondered how her father and sister were doing. And her subjects, overall a certain family of bullfighters. Did they miss her? That was certain, they loved her as much as she loved them, but she had no way of knowing how they were, and she dare not ask Xibalba to take her to see them. Speaking of Xibalba, she wondered what he did everyday when he was not making deals and wagers with other Gods or mortals. Well, she might as well find out later, when she gathered the courage to step out of her room into the dark halls.

It wasn't long before her stomach growled in protest, and she was quite surprised that Emilio hadn't come to tell her that Xibalba was waiting for her to go have breakfast, but she guessed Xibalba was still asleep, and maybe it wouldn't hurt to go and look for something light to eat in the kitchen (if she found it). La Muerte stood from her chair and headed towards her door, but as soon as she turned the knob, the door burst open and two lizards fell to the floor (one was Emilio, the other was similar but with different patterns on his face) with a yelp of surprise and a cry of pain.

"Ayayay…" Emilio whined, before noticing his mistress was looking down at them with a surprised look on her face. "M-Milady! We're s-sorry if we awoke y-you…"

"What he means to say is that we stayed here since morning in case you needed anything, milady." The other lizard explained, less nervous and more fluidly.

La Muerte smiled down at them. "Why, thank you very much. I believe we've not met before."

"My name is Roberto, señora mía." The lizard named Roberto bowed politely with a friendly smile. "I must say, you look quite beautiful this morning-" Emilio quickly pulled his fin closer.

"Be careful with your words!" he muttered in a low, nervous and reproaching voice. "If Lord Xibalba saw you, he'd kill you for flirting with his wife!"

"Flirting? Are you serious? I'm just trying to be friendly!" Roberto snapped back in low voice.

La Muerte couldn't help but giggle at their argument. "Don't worry, Emilio, he as well as you may refer to me as an equal. I don't really mind."

Roberto released his fin from Emilio's grasp and smiled up at the Goddess. "Well, milady, is there anything you need?"

"I'm a bit hungry…"

"Perfect! Accompany us to the kitchen and we shall make you something tasty to eat! This way, milady!"

Before Emilio could protest, Roberto was leading La Muerte down the hall and through the castle, so he had no choice but to go after them. However, to reach the kitchen they had to go through the western hall, and pass by the room Xibalba had forbidden her to visit. It was like any of the other doors, but with claw marks on the wood; a small seed of curiosity was planted at the back of her mind, even after they had left the door behind.

"Excuse me, may I ask you something?" La Muerte inquired.

"What is it, milady?" Emilio replied gently.

"What is inside that room in the western hall? Xibalba got in the defensive when I asked him about it." She failed to see the looks of dismay in both lizards' faces.

"Uh, w-well…"

"Lord Xibalba forbad us to talk about it a long time ago. He doesn't like to talk about it either." Emilio barely managed to speak without stuttering

"Now that you mention it, where is he? I have not seen him."

"He usually spends the morning doing paperwork, but he will check on you later." Roberto explained. "So, milady, sorry if I sound intrusive, but did you enjoy dinner last night-? OW!" he yelped when Emilio smacked his head.

La Muerte giggled. "Don't worry about it, Roberto. Dinner was delicious, and I must admit, Xibalba behaved like a gentleman, for a while, at least."

"Lord Xibalba gives that impression to everyone, but once you get to know him you realize he is not that bad." Emilio said gently, and La Muerte swore there was a twinge of fondness in his voice. "Well, here we are, milady."

The kitchen was similar to that of her father's castle, but without color, and with furniture made of obsidian. There were fruit crates and boxes filled with different types of ingredients, some from Mexico, others from European lands. A few lizards were there, all similar in appearance yet different in markings and types of fins, doing different chores. Some were washing plates from last night's dinner, others were accommodating the ingredients, but they noticed La Muerte coming in, and most of them gave her a polite bow.

"Have you taken Lord Xibalba his breakfast, Lorenzo?" Emilio asked the nearest lizard.

"Eyuup." Lorenzo, a lizard much more bulkier than the rest, nodded.

"He eats while working?" La Muerte inquired curiously.

"He does, usually, before you arrived he had no one to eat with." Emilio explained. "Well, milady, what would you like? We'll do it."

"Um…" She thought for a moment. "I think I'll be fine with a small fruit salad."

"Your heard it, people!" Roberto called out for the other lizards.

In a matter of seconds, various types of fruits flew through the air and one of the lizards sliced them into delicate pieces, while a third one caught them in a plate in perfect succession, delicately accommodated. La Muerte couldn't help but clap her hands in amazement and awe. "That was amazing!"

"Thank you, milady." The lizards chimed simultaneously. The lizard with the plate approached La Muerte and handed it over to her gently. She took a slice of mango into her mouth, and it was surprisingly sweet and juicy. "This is tasty."

"It must be a surprise, considering that there's not much to grow here." Yet another lizard named Luis stated. "Well, actually, nothing grow here other than spikes."

"And where do you get all these things?"

"Lord Xibalba trades obsidian with many realms, and they send over fruit and exotic food." Emilio explained.

A few minutes later, when she was done with her fruit salad, she thanked the lizards and went back to exploring the castle, guided by Roberto and Emilio in a sort of tour. They showed her through the armory, the courtyard, the throne room, the main hall, there was even a ballroom (but it was dark, grim and it was clear it had not been used for millennia). But when they reached the library, La Muerte was amazed. It was a grandiose room, with various rows of bookshelves that housed books of different genres and sizes. There was a wide window that let light into the library, along with the candles of green fire. There was an oaken desk with a chair on the middle of the room, surrounded by rows of withered and thorny plants, though they left space for anyone to go towards the desk.

"I never thought Lord Xibalba had so many books." She awed.

"It might not look like it but he is an avid reader." Emilio stated. "He has read every single book in here."

"Not romantic novels, he hates them." Roberto muttered. "Those types are only here because of-" before he could continue, Emilio smacked his nose with his tail. "OW!"

"Would you mind if I stayed here for while?" La Muerte inquired, running her fingers along a nearby bookshelf.

"As you wish, milady." Emilio smiled, before Roberto pushed him aside.

"If you need us, just call for us and we'll come in the blink of an eye." He snickered.

La Muerte smiled kindly at the two lizards. "Muchas gracias."

The two lizards felt warm feelings at her kindness as they went through the doorway and close the doors behind them. La Muerte was left alone in the great library, looking for any interesting books to read. There were many books, tomes, scrolls, but none of them interested her; they were mostly books of dark magic, and dark genres, such as terror, monsters and ghost stories, some bloodier than others. Seriously, Xibalba had serious problems with violence. As she was about to go look in another bookshelf, she found an odd in those bunch of dark stories.

Romeo and Juliet

Her interest caught, she picked the book from the shelf and headed towards the table to take a seat. She remembered her mother reading this story once to her and Aimé when they were little, but she would change the tragic ending to a happier one. Taking a seat, she started to read.


After he was done with his paperwork, Xibalba inquired his servants about his wife's whereabouts, and Emilio told him she was in the library, reading. This made him annoyed to some extent, he had expected her to come look for him and ask him if he needed anything, but it seemed she didn't yet know her place. As he made his way towards the library, he wondered what kind of book she'd read, judging by her personality she would not like the book genres he enjoyed. He turned the knob quietly and opened one door, careful not to make any noise. He wanted to surprise her.

There she was, reading a book, her back towards the door. Xibalba glided silently towards her, when he was at a considerable distance from her, he managed to catch a glimpse of the book. But he didn't say anything until he was a few inches behind her ear. "Romeo and Juliet? Are you serious?" He contained the urge to burst out laughing when she jumped in fright from the chair and took a hand to her chest, twirling around to face him with a terrified look.

La Muerte's fright immediately turned to anger. "What was that for?!"

"I wanted to give you a surprise, my dear La Muerte." Xibalba snickered with that taunting grin of his, his teeth turning sharp mischievously.

"Well, don't do it again! You're going to give me a heart attack!" she snapped back, crossing her arms, and recalled what he had said in the first place. "What do you have against this book?"

"It's sickening, all those unnecessary shows of sickening affection." Xibalba hissed in disgust, rolling his eyes. "And throwing their lives away just because one thought the other was dead. Ridiculous!"

"They were in love." La Muerte stated matter-of-factly, taking her hands to her hips. "When people love they'd do anything for their loved ones."

"Please, no one in their sane judgment throws their life away for another, they could simply find another person to be with, and problem solved! Clean slate!"

"Love is not like that, Xibalba. You can't just replace someone you loved like you would replace a broken vase."

With an irritated grunt, Xibalba turned his head away in annoyance. "Love causes nothing but pain and suffering. It's better never to love and save yourself the pain."

"You're wrong. Love brings joy and happiness to people, it binds them together-"

"And tears them apart a few years, maybe even months, later. Besides, it makes you weak, makes it easier for others to take advantage of you."

"So you don't believe in love at all?"

"No, and I'll never believe in it."

La Muerte shook her head in disappointment, and was making her way out of the library when Xibalba grabbed her by the arm. "Where are you going?" he asked her hardly. Obviously the whole talk about love put him on a sour mood, but she didn't let it intimidate her.

"Somewhere else to read, My Lord." She hissed the last two words as she released her arm from his grip and stormed out of the library, not bothering to look back at her husband, feeling his glare drilling unto her.

She didn't see his frown softening, and giving place to an almost melancholic look.