His house wasn't the best-I could tell that much from gazing upon it from outside of the shed where Zarek had told me to store the keys to te snow mobile. In fact, it made our little condo in Miami look like a mansion. Turning around to face him, I stared almost accusingly as he joined me on the small hill of snow between the world outside and the small home.
"You honestly couldn't have made it look any nicer?" I said with a laugh, walking toward it and succeeding in stumbling down the incline before I actually caught my balance. Zarek walked a few feet behind me, and I could tell he was trying his best to come up with an insult good enough to match mine.
"At least I own it. Have you ever owned any houses, Malibu Barbie?" I wheeled around and glared at him, my hands on my hips.
"Okay, G.I. Joe, and it's Miami Barbie to you." I turned and continued to march toward the house. He caught me on the shoulder, and I turned back to him, ready with another insult. "What do you want, you son of a-"
"Listen." I paused, and slowly, I heard a noise that sounded like boots crunching in the snow. But after Zarek had spoken, we'd both fallen silent. And since Nikitas was...
...Nikitas!
I repeated this out loud, my voice on the verge of hysterics."Where are you, Nikitas?" I said, secretly hoping he'd pop up out of the snow and yell 'surprise'!
Yeah, and Zarek was suddenly not going to hate me. I was pretty sure there was more of a chance of that happening than Nikitas showing up. Oh, God, when had I last seen him? We had been putting the snowmobile away, and...
...and I had left him with Zarek. I turned around again, slowly, dangerously.
"Zarek," I said quietly, fighting the rage which made me want to pound his pretty face in until it resembled ground beef, more or less, "Where is my nephiew?"
"How should I know?"
"You lost him?!"
"Hey, lady, you had him last."
"No, I left him with you!"
"No, you didn't!"
"Yes I did!"
"No!"
"Yes!" By this time we were inches away, yelling in each other's faces. I was too preoccupied to notice the sound, though it had started again, I noticed once I began to listen.
"Yeah?" He whispered. "Get used to it, honey. This is how the insanity starts eating away at you. Soon you're having screaming fights with walls and people who aren't even here."
"Yeah?" I repeated. "I think I can damn well handle it. I'd probably shoot the wall before I argues with it." He grinned, and I caught a flash of a sharp looking white fang backed away.
"Good girl. Your parents taught you well," He said with a dark laugh, wandering through the knee-high snow, probably looking for Nikitas. "Oh, little annoying brat from Hell! Where are you?"
"Don't say that!" I said, packing a ball of snow then throwing it at him with all of my might. It hit him squarely in the back, and he turned around, a snowball in his hand. He flicked his wrist and the ball of packed ice hit me in the chest, knocking the wind from me and forcing me back. I fell on the gound, could not get up, and felt the sensation of drowning.
Drowning. That reminds me of something... I thought, and before I knew it I found myself back outside of the temple belonging to some long-forgotten god or goddess. The torches glowed on the walls, and gave my body more of a bronze glow than it already had. That was when I realized that I was someone else.
"You nasty, lying bitch!" Someone shouted in ancient Greek. Surprizingly, I understood. Not surprizingly, they were speaking to me. Damn, why do the crazies go after me?
Someone grabbed my arm, and I looked over to see a young girl, maybe two years younger than me, holding a pitcher and glancing anxiously into a darkened hallway. "You have to leave, Goddess! He's angered tonight."
"Why?" I answered in flawless, bored-toned Greek. "Did the wars not go his way today? A pity. He should not blame the soldiers, who are out on the front dying for he sould join them- Maybe he'll actually learn what it means to respect a human being, for once."
"My lady," She murmured under her breath, motioning for me to follow her down the hallway. "It would not be wise to linger here."
"I am his wife!" I cried angrily. "I may linger however long I would like!"
"Yes, my lady, but I fear for your safety if you stay here," She murmured meekly. I felt my eyes narrow in a hatefull glare that so was not the regular me.
"I do not, Aristodeme," I said, holding my head high, "And that is the difference between you and I. That is why I am a queen, and a Goddess, and you are simply a slave."
"Yes, my lady," She said, scurrying off to do one of her chores. "But please, I beg you, heed my warning!" She turned back, looking for my reaction, which was an arm wave and an eye roll.
"Go!" I cried, pushing open one of the ornate gold doors leading into a room I probably recognized, in this state, but psychologically, I was lost. All I knew is that whoever my 'husband' was resided through these doors, and if I was ever going to get to the bottom of why I remebered this damned situation, I'd have to confront him. If only I knew who he was...
"Iccarius?" I called, not knowing really why this name came to mind. I continued to push open the door, then I found a dimly lit room, maybe an office of sorts, filled with papers and detailed maps of the terrain.
We're near Athens, I thought randomly.
"Ivory! I thought I told you to stay out of here!" Said a voice, and I turned to see an exceptionally handsome young man, about my age (Though in this state, I had no idea what that might have been), with a deep tan skin tone and gently waving black hair, muscles and a stern frown.
"Is there word from the others?" I whispered. He smiled, walking forward and taking my hand.
"I do not keep counsel with the gods," He said with a dark laugh, "Is that not your duty?"
"I have fallen from Olympus, Iccarius," I told him, looking away, out to one of the windows leading out onto a patio. "You know that." I tried to reclaim my hand, but he did not let me go.
"Are you sure? You cannot reinstate contact with them again?"
"I could talk to Apollo and Aphrodite, and maybe Hera," I said, wreching my hand from his grasp. "But I know the others would hate me. I am weak. I am unfit to rule as the goddess of pain. I should not have even told you of my sister-she could truly cause damage, if anyone angers her. But I am most affraid of..." I trailed off.
"Artemis and Zeus," He finished. Ashamed, I nodded.
"They helped to banish me." My mind flashed to a night, many years even from the 2,000 + I was already away from my home, a stormy and cold night. Apparently, the goddess version of Ivory had decided to confront her sister about some punishment they'd dealt out earlier, realizing that it was wrong. I could see, ironically, it was the beating of Iccarius, someone for which Ivory had fallen. There was shouting, and hitting, and even a terrible stabbing, but before Ivory could defend herself, Ebony ran to Zeus and Artemis, their temples being closest to those of the twins. She claimed that her sister had a plan to abandon the parthenon for favor of earthly pleasures, and was going to kill Ebony to get away. Being unconsious and nable to defend herself, Ivory was locked up on the very chains, the chains that now trapped Ebony, and was put on trial. No gods or goddesses besides Aphrodite, Apollo, and Hera had voted to keep her, so they sent her down in a blaze of glory-litterally. They (Zeus and a few others) had conjoured a lightening strike powerfull enough to grab her, toss her down mount Olympus and into the sea beside Greece, where she was saved by Iccasrius. By the time everyone realized that Ebony had been lying about her sister's betrayal, and by the time she was trapped in her own sister's prison for the safety of the gods and the human race, it was too late. Ivory had become only a human with the minor powers of the goddess of pain, with no choice but to marry and live on the remainder of her sickeningly short human life as a mortal living in fear of her gods.
'My dear, you must not live in fear of them any longer," He said soothingly. "You are a mortal now. They cannot hurt you."
"I am more vounerable now more than ever before!" I cried. "And I must get away from them if I am to live without fear!"
"Fear is the lifeblood of the human race, my dear. We must thrive on it or we must perish."
"Then I fear I shall perish," I said weakly, my body shaking with fear.
"Then perish you shall, but if you are destroyed, so goes my heart. You must know that," He raised my hand, which he held again, and touched it to his lips. I smiled.
"But we musn't think of that now-it's a beautiful night. You must be tired from the toils of war, my love, but walk with me a bit. I shall not want to be alone on a night such as this."
"Of course. Come," He lead me out onto the balcony, and we gazed out at the city. Very close to Athens, I thought. I can see the lights of the city from here.
"Isn't it lovely?" I said, stareing up at the half moon. He did not respond, instead picking me up and setting me on the edge of the balcony. I giggled like a child, and he leaned over to kiss me.
"I'm sorry," Iccarius murmured against my lips. I smiled dreamily.
"Whatever for?"
"For this." And then, before I could protest, fight back, or scream, he pushed me with all of his might off of the edge of the balcony, to the sharp and jagged rocks below and the river under them. I screamed when the rocks ripped through the fabric of my dress and through my skin, and I felt the blood staining my chest. I looked down and saw, to my horror, a long sharp rock, maybe one and a half feet long, sticking through my chest, through my heart. I looked back up to Iccarius.
"Why?" I gasped. He looked down.
"Live in fear of your gods no longer, Ivory," He said, beginning to walk away."I've set you free, little goddess."
My vision faded as the waves from the river over powered me. If the impailment didn't kill me, the water would. I'd be drowned within moments- and the last thing would I hear before I could hear no longer would be the wicked laugh of my sister Ebony, mixed in with the pull and push of the waves.
I gasped, coming out of my glimpse at the past and looking around me, my eyes and mind both half-mad. I began screaming as soon as I regained my voice, and my mind raced. No wonder I'd always feared the waves and the water of the ocean and the rivers near my home- I'd drowned! Oh, God, why had no one told me?
Well, I reasoned, No one knew. I probably was not even supposed to know. What, was this Ebony's latest way of trying to make me tourture? Giving me glimpses of my not-so-happy past?
"Hey, crazy bitch? Are you OK now?" I blinked, shook my head to clear it, and saw Zarek watching me from a chair at the foot of the bed I now lay in. "No more psychological breakdowns?"
"No-no, I'm fine," I said heavily, trying to stand up.
"Don't try to move-you beat yourself up pretty damn bad." He stood, touched my arm lightly, and shuddered. "Pretty damn bad."
"Just my luck," I muttered.
"What?"
"Oh, I'm just referencing the fact that I'm the unluckiest person on earth," I replied in an annoyed voice. He stared at me, seemingly at a loss for words.
"Never go to Vegas," was his advice when he spoke again. I laughed.
"I wasn't planning on it," I said, nearly smiling. "What did I do to earn these injuries?"
"Let's see- you threw yourself down a hill, hit your head on a rock, called me Iccarius and screamed that I was going to burn in the hottest, most rotten pit of Hell. You're probably right, by the way- Oh, and I found brat-boy. He was hiding in the shed with the snow mobile, and now he's sleeping...again." He motioned to the small form of Nikitas, huddled in the corner on a pile of blankets. Then again, from what I knew about Zarek from other Squires, they could right well be human skins, like something out of SIlence of the Lambs. Hannibal, anyone?
"What is he sleeping on?" I croaked. Zarek looked up.
"Oh, what?" He glanced over at Nikitas. "Bear skins."
"Ew!"
"What?"
"Bear?"
"So?"
"Ever heard of PETA, buddy? They're gonna be knocking down your door and reclaiming those some time soon, I can bet you." He frowned.
"What the hell are you talking about, lady?" He said. I sighed, rolling my eyes.
"Never mind," I muttered. "Just to think, this all started when you hit me with a snowball."
He rounded on me. "Listen, lady, I don't have all night to argue with you about who started the damn War of the Snowball. I have work to do, OK?"
"Why do you always call me 'lady?" I snapped.
"What, you're a guy now?" I ignored him.
"Well, why do you have a female squire in the first pl-" I paled. "You're gay! I knew it! Man, the best ones always turn out to be gay!"
He almost blushed. "Keep your voice down, why don't you?" He hissed. "And no, I'm not gay. Being gay would mean I like guys-and there are several women who can tell you quite the opposite."
I tired my best to ignore the little hole in my chest the jeslousy made as I shook my head. "Ew. TMI, buddy."
"Why do you always call me 'buddy'?" He snapped back. I flinched, knowing that in the highly likely event that he snapped and attacked me, the pillows and blankets I lay on would be no defense. I readied my fists to punch, and my feet and legs to kick (I still knew to aim for the groin-it may not hurt him very much, but it sure as hell distracted him). I sighed nonchalantly.
"Well, I'm not going to call you 'Lady'," I replied sardonically. He glared at me.
"You know, I should throw you out right now," He muttered. I sat upright, ignoring the pain in my head and chest. And that's about the time I noticed that I was not only shirtless, but braless, as well. I blushed neon pink, covering myself with the sheet again. He noticed too, and I swear to this day that he almost blushed as he looked away, toward the window. "Your shirt ripped when you fell, and you had some bruising on your chest. I...just wanted to make sure there was nothing serious broken. I didn't look at...anything, I swear."
I nodded. "Can I have my clothing?" I looked down. "Am I still wearing pants?"
"Were you wearing pants to being with?" He replied, moving to one of the cabinets near the back of the room, near Nikitas. "If so, yes, you still have your pants."
"OK, at least I still have part of my dignity." He nodded as if in agreement, tossing me a black shirt. It was a thick winter sweater, certainly not my red and black striped Jack Skellington tee shirt, which I'd gotten from my brother when he'd last gone to Hot Topic, a store horrifyingly absent from the malls in the Greater Miami Area. Then I remembered-my shirt had ripped. With my luck, probably into a million pieces. Damned snow and damned views into my not-so-happy Greek Past Life.
"What's this?" I asked, holding the sweater at arms-length and simoltaiously keeping the sheet up over my torso.
"One of my old ones," He said, not looking at me. "It's either that, or you stay toppless." He pulled a cigarette from his back pocket, lighting it with an antique gold lighter and taking a long drag. "Frankly, you can obviously guess which one my vote is on."
"2,000 years isn't enough time for a guy to grow up, is it?" I muttered, pulling the sweater on, not oblivious to the way he stared. "You're a pervert, and you shouldn't even have a female squire. What would happen if I reported you?"
"I'd get no squire and you'd be out of the job," He remarked, puffing again. "We're a right perfect match, you and I."
"We are no such thing," I snapped. "And would you get that away from my nephiew?" I motioned to the cigarette.
"It's not like I'm dropping the thing on him!" He said, but he snuffed the cigarette out anyway. "Jesus H. Christ."
I fell silent. "Can I go back to bed, now that I'm fully dressed?" I asked. He looked over at me again, at my pitiful form, shivvering in the oversized sweater, and he nodded gruffly.
"Be up early, though," He muttered. "I need to set some ground rules."
"Sure thing, boss," I said sleepily, snuggling back down into the blankets which I sincerely hoped were not bear skins. I was sure that they were, though, and I was too tired to move and too unwilling to sleep on the ground. "Nikitas?"
"Yeah?" Said the sleepy little voice.
"Do you want to sleep up here?" His answer was jumping upright, running over on small socked fete, and jumping onto the bed beside me. He snuggled against my side, his quiet breathing on my cheek, calming me and helping me fall into a deep, thankfully dreamless sleep.