Disclaimer: Inuyasha is sooo not mine.
Chapter 18
Niobe barely noticed the others as she rushed to her beloved's side. Her desperate grief would not allow her to see anything or anyone else, save the bloodied and mutilated body that was once the love of her life. In her anguish, she screamed at her brother, but could do nothing else. She had never experienced such helplessness, such despair. To lose him yet again and once more in such a horrendous fashion was simply too much for her to bear.
Thanos spoke to her, with tenderness or scorn she knew not. All she knew was that she wished for death. To live through yet another lifetime without her beloved Timeus would be nothing less than absolute torture.
When she felt Thanos' heavy hand on the back of her neck, she did not fight him. Even as she heard him speak in a voice like thunder, and even as she watched the body of the man she loved being devoured by the earth beneath her, she did nothing. And when she felt her brother's hands wrap around her throat, she did not try to stop him.
He yelled obscenities at her, shook her violently, all in an attempt to elicit a response from her. But still she uttered not a word; she made no sound whatsoever. Thanos leaned down to glower in her face, but all she saw was the sweet countenance of her sweetheart— and those blue eyes! Although his looks had altered from when he had been Timeus, his eyes had never changed. Those vivid and lively orbs had remained exactly the same, in the very same shade of startling blue. Blue, she thought with a terrible pang of great loss shooting through in her chest, a lovely hue of blue that rivaled the bright, cloudless afternoon skies in summertime.
Thanos had ceased his tirade and stood, staring in confusion at his sister's face. Tears swam in her eyes and spilled down her white cheeks.
"Please," she begged him in a hoarse whisper, "Please, Thanos. If you have ever truly loved me, kill me now. I—I cannot go on any longer." Her lips trembled. "I beg of you."
For a moment, Thanos appeared horrified. "Kill you? I would never—"
"Just keep doing what you're doing and you'll get there eventually!" Yuki yelled angrily.
"Shut up, damn you!" Thanos turned away to ignore the blond elf and instead turned his attention onto his sister, who was now grabbing at his hands to keep them from leaving her throat. "Stop this, Niobe! Let go of me!" he cried and shoved her away from him, taking a few steps back. "What on earth is the matter with you?"
She fell, sobbing, on her side on the grass. "Grandfather, help me!" she wailed piteously. "Please!"
A derisive snort erupted from Thanos. "Grandfather? Oh really, Niobe, get a clue already. Grandfather, mother, father— they're all dead. Got it? Look at the facts. If they were still around, wouldn't we have sensed them by now? I, for one, have sensed none of our race for a very long time."
Niobe lifted her head slightly to stare up at her brother. "Then if that is the case, I wish I was with them. I want to embrace death and let it take me." She sat up slowly, her eyes gazing wildly up at him. "You can deliver me to them— to mother, grandfather and the others. Let me join them, brother. Please?" With more tears streaking down her face, Niobe stretched her hands out to him. "Again I beg of you, Thanos, end my life and free me from this tormented existence."
Hearing her beg for her death at his hands infuriated Thanos. His first instinct was to throttle her, to punish her for speaking like this, but he quickly shoved that thought from his mind. That was exactly what she wished for! No, she was not herself, but what was the matter? Was she hysterical? Yes, she was hysterical! That must be what was wrong with her. She was hysterical and nothing more. But, how was he to deal with a hysterical female? Ah, yes, that was it! Now he remembered. He'd had it right the first time.
Cocking his arm back, he prepared to strike her, only to find a steely grip on his arm, restraining him. A pair of furious green eyes glared levelly back at him.
"Do not lay a hand on her," Yuki snarled at him, his hand itching to snap Thanos' wrist like a twig.
To everyone's surprise, Thanos actually grimaced in pain. No one appeared to be more surprised than he. "Ouch! Release me at once, you filthy peasant!" he yelped in an attempt to remove the painful grasp on his arm.
"Release you?" Yuki spat venomously. "I would rather kill you."
Gritting his teeth through the pain, Thanos studied the blond male's face. A moment later, his eyes widened. "You look— familiar." His look of surprise quickly changed to loathing. "Or perhaps not. He would not dare lay a finger on me for he would not have the balls to do it. So you think you can save Niobe, elf? Did you actually believe you could keep her from me?" Gingerly, he rubbed his sore wrist.
With a scowl, Yuki shoved Thanos away from him. "I do what I must. Anything to keep her safe and out of your slimy grasp would be enough for me."
"Yuki, please don't interfere. This is between Thanos and me." Niobe got hurriedly to her feet and taking his arm, she pulled him back. When he turned to look at her, she placed her hands against his abdomen. "I do not want you hurt in any way."
Ignoring Thanos' evil glares, Yuki covered her hands with his own, pressing them harder against his body. "He won't hurt me, Ka—I mean, Niobe. I promise."
She frowned. "But how can you be so certain? He has already— already—" she broke off, her eyes filling with tears. "I have lost the love of my life today and as you can plainly see, he cares little for the feelings of others."
The fair elf smiled tenderly down at her. He felt invincible, seeing her glorious eyes turned up to him, glowing with concern for his well-being. Gods above, she was so beautiful! "I don't know how I can be certain, my lady. I just am." His smooth brow furrowed slightly, but only for a brief moment before disappearing. "So do not trouble yourself on my account. Trust me; I am fully able to fend for myself."
Thanos, who had been watching the tender little scene with growing ire, clenched his fists. "Is that so?" he thought to himself and threw his hands up in the air. A devastating blast of energy shot from his body and headed straight for his golden haired rival.
Niobe screamed and threw up her hands to defend herself, but Yuki moved her behind him, fully intent on taking the brunt of the blast. Too late she realized this and with a horrified shriek, grabbed at him to get him away from her. But he was immovable and she could only clutch at him.
The wave of her twin's power rushed over the two of them and as soon as it was over, Niobe looked sharply up at her savior and gasped. Yuki remained standing; indeed, he did not appear to be harmed in any way.
"Yuki? Are— are you okay?"
The elf stood quite motionless for a moment, then turned to glance at her over his shoulder. "I," he began, in a confused whisper, "am still alive."
"How is that possible?" she breathed, staring up at him in awe. "You absorbed his energy like it was nothing."
He studied her for a bit before turning around to look for Hiro. "Hey genius!" he yelled at his brother. "How did I live through that?"
Peeking cautiously around a large bush, Hiro scowled. "Hell if I know. Why are you asking me?"
Yuki turned from Niobe and presented his family with his front side, which he patted profusely. "Look at me!" he cried happily as relief washed heavily over him. "I took on a god and lived!"
Niobe smiled… only to have her mouth open in a blood-curdling scream. Thanos had seen the elf turn his back and took advantage of the opportunity. He sped towards her, his movements a mere blur, and grabbed her by waist before taking off.
"Let's go home, beloved," he cooed to her, just as they flew into a swirling portal that Thanos had opened the instant he had snatched her up.
As the screams continued to pour from her lips, Niobe watched as Yuki whirled around and attempted to give chase, the look on his beautiful face a mixture of anxiety and anger. With a dreadful sinking feeling, she watched as the portal closed behind them, shutting Yuki out.
When at last they came to a halt, Niobe had ceased her cries. Her brother set her down but her legs trembled badly and she stumbled, falling to the ground. In her fright, she tried to scramble away on her hands and knees, but he caught her by the ankle and pulled her back towards him.
In the semi-darkness, Thanos knelt down and joined her on the cold, hard stone floor. "You need not run away from me, Niobe. I shall not hurt you." His hand wrapped warmly around her slim ankle as his thumb rubbed gentle circles against her skin.
"No, of course you wouldn't hurt me," she spat sarcastically at him and swiped at his encroaching hand. "You would only throttle me and slap me around, and oh! Don't forget that you've murdered the only man I have ever loved! Twice!! If that is not hurting me, then I don't know what is!"
His body stiffened and his hand slowly withdrew from her ankle. "Do not speak of such things," he muttered quietly.
Jumping to her feet, Niobe moved a safe distance away from him. Well, as safe as she could be for the moment. "I cannot believe that speaking of such a trifling thing as murder would disturb you in the least bit," she retorted airily, waving a dismissive hand. But beneath her mocking façade, Niobe was very nervous. She wished desperately that someone was around, anyone, to keep her from being alone with her obviously psychotic brother.
"I would do anything to keep you free of another man's touch," came Thanos' eerily quiet reply.
"That is not for you to decide," Niobe shot back irritably. "For the last time, it's my life, Thanos! I can love whomever I choose!" She saw the look of forlorn as he glanced down at her wrists and for the life of her, she could not hide a triumphant smile. "I am free of your touch, Thanos, and for that, I am eternally thankful."
Thanos' pained gaze slid up to her face. He took a tentative step forward, then stopped. "You have no idea how long I have looked after you, little one. Ever since our mother and father warned me of the dangers that could befall a gentle young goddess, I have always made certain that you were kept safe. Although I must admit there was one instance where I very nearly failed in my duties."
Niobe frowned. "What are you talking about?"
He gave her a rueful half-smile. "You wouldn't remember. It happened so very long ago." Thanos paused, and looked away for a moment. "I have always wondered if I should tell you this, but I feel that I should. I want you to know everything. How this all began, I mean."
She said nothing, only nodding for him to continue, which he did.
"I wanted to tell you of the day that I first realized how much you meant to me. It was the day I fell in love with you." He lunged forward to grab her hand when she tried to run from him. "No! Please don't go. I must tell you. Perhaps you will understand—"
"You can't be serious! You know that I have no wish to listen to any of this, Thanos!"
Thanos squeezed her hand gently. "This is important to me, sister. Please listen."
She ceased her struggles and nodded, bowing her head in submission.
"Good girl," he said and began his narrative. "Mother and Father always told me to stay by your side, to watch out for you. They did not want some unscrupulous male to take off with you, as Uncle Hades had done with Persephone. You were very precious to them, you see. Of course they wanted someone to always be near you, to keep your innocence intact for as long as possible." He put his hand over her mouth when she opened it to speak. "No. Close your eyes."
Against her better judgment, Niobe complied. Wind blew past her and in her ear Thanos whispered for her to open her eyes. She did.
They were no longer in the darkened room. Instead, they had been transported to a large, grassy meadow that sat at the foot of a mountain. It was Mount Olympus. It seemed to radiate pure energy in the bright, late spring sunshine.
"Wha—" she breathed. "What are we doing here? Why did you bring me here?"
Thanos moved behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "Say nothing. Just watch." He lifted a hand and pointed off into the distance.
Two people were making their way towards Niobe and Thanos. After a moment, Niobe opened her eyes wide. She gasped. "That's us!" she cried, stunned. Thanos said nothing, but put a finger up to her lips to silence her.
It was indeed Thanos and herself only much, much younger. They were in their early teens, perhaps? Possibly, but Niobe could not tell for certain. She had no recollection of this scene. Leastways, Thanos appeared to be in his late teens, but then he had always looked much older than she due to his height and powerful build.
The younger versions of themselves came to close where they stood. Teenage Thanos, looking quite uninterested, waited for her teenage self to set her flower basket down before he flopped down on the ground and propped himself up on his elbows so he could watch her.
Niobe then turned her attention to herself, watching in fascination as the girl she had once been flitted excitedly about, gathering wildflowers. Her gaze went back to the lounging figure of her brother, who was now chewing on a long piece of grass, his dark eyes glazing over from boredom. It was very obvious that he wished to be elsewhere, anywhere, rather than be here with his childish, simple little sister. Forgetting for the moment that Thanos was embracing her from behind, Niobe stifled a giggle. She almost felt bad for him, having to play babysitter.
All of a sudden, the brightness of the day dimmed. Niobe glanced up and noticed that clouds had, at least for the moment, hidden the warm face of the sun.
"Helios! Come back!" cried the teenage girl and Niobe glanced back at her. The look of distress on her child's face confused the adult Niobe. Calling for the sun to come back? Holy crap, had she really been as dimwitted as all that?
From his spot on the ground, the teenage Thanos made a grunting noise. "Don't make a scene, Niobe. The zephyrs will drive the clouds away, you'll see."
Niobe frowned. This was not her twin brother the way she remembered him. Hadn't he always been thick-headed? An idiot? If this vision from their past was to be believed, then he was not quite the fool she had thought him to be for he seemed— almost — intelligent. What the hell was really going on?
A pitiful snuffling came from teenage Niobe's direction and Niobe looked back at her. Dear heavens, why was she crying? Was it because the clouds had covered the sun? How irritating she had been!
Another grunt. "Oh, please don't cry, Niobe. There's no need for that. Come now, keep picking your flowers so you can fashion a chain of flowers to put in your hair. We'll show mother how pretty you look. How does that sound?"
Young Niobe, wiping away her tears, quickly nodded and flashed him a trembling little smile. Then she went back to picking her flowers. Thanos, who decided he was through with his blade of grass, spat it out of his mouth out, then lay back against the grass and shut his eyes for a moment.
The moment stretched into several minutes. While he slumbered peacefully, Niobe sat on the grass and made her flower chain as her brother had instructed her to do. Adult Niobe smiled softly when her younger self smiled at the reemergence of the sun from behind the clouds. She looked so young, so innocent sitting there, bathed in that splendid golden sunlight.
Humming softly to herself, she entwined the chain of flowers through her windblown, obsidian curls and rose to her feet. With laugh, she lifted up her arms to the sun and closed her eyes in ecstasy. It was at that moment when young Thanos stirred from his sleep. After a yawn and a stretch, he sat up, bleary-eyed, and glanced over at his sister. Young Niobe lowered her arms and turned to her brother, a sweet, dreamlike smile on her face.
"How do I look, brother? Do the flowers suit me?" she asked him, reaching up to fix her hair. A long, glossy black curl slipped free of its confines and tumbled over one slim shoulder.
Niobe felt Thanos' arms tighten around her and suddenly she felt was aware of a change. No longer was she staring at the two teenage gods from an outsider's angle. She realized that now she was staring at herself from Thanos' point of view. More than that, she was watching herself from inside his mind, for she could feel every emotion and hear every thought running through his head.
Thanos stared at his twin, stunned. Never had his little sister looked so beautiful, so unbelievably lovely, as she stood before him in the waving green grasses, bathed in the glow of the warm springtime sunshine. Her body was not as he remembered it to be. Gone was childish, sexless figure he was used to and the sudden realization of her physical maturity slammed into him like a Sisyphus's boulder.
Now she possessed the soft, curvaceous figure of a woman, complete with long, slender, rounded limbs and… what? The answer was on the tip of tongue, but that seemed to be unable to function at all. Well, that and his mind. Both had been effectively stilled. But his eyes were able to move… which they did. They slid down and nearly bulged from their sockets when he discovered that he did indeed know the answer which had eluded him. When had she gotten those?! Dear heavens above, his sister had breasts—!
Unbidden, his mouth began to water. Although they were covered by her tunic, the linen could not hide their soft, round shape from view, especially when she had her arms raised like that. Worst of all, the fabric of the tunic she wore was so fine that he could make out the outlines of her nipples.
"Ni- Niobe," he stammered.
"Hmm?" Lowering her arms to her sides, Niobe tipped her head back so that her face was turned upwards to the sun. In the light, she appeared golden, her porcelain skin glowing as though a light had been turned on underneath her flesh.
Thanos swallowed hard. When had his twin grown up, he wondered to himself while he continued to stare up at her. Hades' balls, she was exquisite! Her neck, he thought, made him want to nuzzle his face against it and press soft kisses along that swan-like and delicate expanse of flesh.
"What is it, Thanos?" she asked, turning back to look at him.
He did not reply immediately. He did not trust himself to say anything appropriate to her. All he wanted to do was make hot, passionate love to her— to explore her sweet little body with his lips, tongue and fingertips—
She watched him with curious dark eyes— eyes that were identical to his, he thought with a hint of pride— and smiled quizzically at him. He saw her confused, innocent face and instantly felt ashamed for thinking such impure thoughts about his pure sister and—
What was wrong with him? He couldn't be thinking such thoughts about her! He shouldn't be! Look away, he screamed in his head. Look away!
But no matter how hard he tried, he could not bring himself to avert his gaze. Indeed, he felt as though he might die if he took his eyes off her stunning beauty. Or she might vanish and he would never see her again. Such unbearable, painful thoughts—
It was then that another thought hit him, and a very unpleasant one it was. If the very sight of her was enough to drive him insane with want and longing, what would she do to other males? Be they mortal or immortal, they would all desire her.
A flash of some strange emotion rippled through him like one of Grandfather's lightning bolts and the longer he thought of another man touching her, the more overwhelming the odd feeling became. At long last, he figured out what it was that he was feeling. Jealousy. He was jealous. Of course he would be jealous. He did not want another male anywhere near her! Would they not try to seduce her and defile her? They would touch her, make her gasp and moan with pleasure, and she would forget all about him. But Thanos wanted her to want him, to long for him and only him!
He thought of how lovingly she smiled at him. Perhaps she already had feelings for him? Why wouldn't she? Was he not handsome? Physically perfect? Already he had females throwing themselves at his feet. He tried to take comfort in those thoughts but the persistent nagging doubt would not leave him be. She would long for the touch of another; she would go to another man, slip into his embrace and ask him to take her to the highest plains of ecstasy.
Thanos covered his mouth with his and gripped his face tight. No, no, no, no, that must not happen! Oh by all the gods, he must not allow that to happen! He had seen gentle women lose themselves over men who only ended up breaking their hearts. To let that happen to his sister, to let some beast of a man hurt her, was more than he could stand. He vowed he would protect her tender little heart with all he had. He would protect her with his life.
Then the rage and jealousy flooded his senses yet again and he nearly fell over from the onslaught of these raw new emotions. Horrible images flitted about in his head, showing him scenes of what could be, tormenting him with the sight of watching his precious Niobe being pleasure by nameless, faceless males.
Hot tears of anger and despair began to spill down his face. As a child, Thanos did not like to share. That was doubly true now.
No man was worthy enough touch her. Not now. Not ever. She was perfection itself. No man would ever deserve the chance to even look upon her glowing, incomparable face.
She continued smiling at him, but after a minute or two she decided that he would not answer her, so she turned back around to gather her basketful of flowers. As soon as her back was turned to him, something dark inside him snapped and in an instant, he was on his feet, lunging for her. He shoved her to the ground, knocking her unconscious.
How dare she turn her back on him! How dare she avert her face from him! Could she not see how much he desired her? Could she not sense how hotly his body burned for hers?
The next minute, Niobe found herself once more an observer, with Thanos still holding onto her from behind. But she did not care about that. All that interested her at the moment was watching the young Thanos circling around her unconscious self, slowly, like a predator. She couldn't bear to watch.
"No! Let go of me, damn you! I have no desire to watch you rape me!"
"Watch," was his only reply.
With disgust and horror she watched as the young Thanos dropped to his knees beside her unconscious form. She wanted to scream when she saw his hands reach out slowly for her—
But he did not ravish her. Niobe's breath caught in her chest as Thanos' hands hovered in the air above her still form before he gently turned her over onto her back. His hands, she noted curiously, were trembling. Trembling badly. Could it be possible that he did not mean to touch her inappropriately at all?
That notion was soon tossed out of the window as his hands came to rest on her abdomen and for the next few moments she looked on as his hands roamed all over her body with an exploratory touch. She shook her head in confusion. It was almost as if he had never seen a female figure before and he was simply being curious. But then the hot light of passion flared in his eyes and she was suddenly afraid for her teenage self.
"I did nothing to you," Thanos breathed hotly in her ear.
Niobe turned her head away so that she could not feel his lips against her ear. "Not then you didn't," was her reply. She glanced back at the scene in front of her and cringed in revulsion. Young Thanos had pulled her tunic up above her breasts and was letting his hands glide over her smooth, ivory skin.
"Please stop this!" she cried frantically, squeezing her eyes shut. Without realizing it, she turned in his embrace and hid her face against his shoulder. "I can't bear to watch you molest me!"
"Molest you?" Thanos buried his face in her hair and inhaled. After a moment he sighed with content and said, "I do not believe that I was doing any such thing."
Anger surged through Niobe. "What?!" she yelled and tore herself out of his arms. "First you looked at me in the way that no brother should look at his sister! Then you knock me unconscious and took of advantage of my incapacitated state by feeling up my naked body!"
With a pleased laugh, Thanos grabbed her arm but his joviality did not last Furious beyond reason, Niobe delivered a loud, stinging slap which successfully erased the smile from his face. He glared heatedly at her but she did not back down.
Her voice rose to a shriek. "How dare you touch me without my permission! You are a disgusting, revolting pervert! I hate you! Words alone cannot express just how much I loathe and despise you!" Narrowing her eyes, she hissed at him, "I wish you were dead. No, I take that back. I wish that I had been the only one in Mother's womb. I wish you had never even existed, Thanos."
Obsidian-hued eyes stared at her for a long moment, during which time Niobe wished she had been able to read his thoughts. But his dark eyes gave nothing away. Instead of replying, he merely took hold of her again and crushed her to him.
The world swirled about them, turning from light to dark. Niobe shut her eyes against the dizzying sight and opened them again when she felt them come to a stop. Turning in Thanos' arms, she glanced around them.
She knew this place; she had been in this part of the gods' palace many times before. It was a sort of ballroom, where the gods held magnificent parties almost every night.
The ballroom was a very large, spacious, rectangular room with a high, vaulted ceiling and a balcony that at once overlooked both the earth below Mount Olympus and a fantastically flourishing garden just below the balcony. A flight of steps led down into the garden from the terrace.
No sooner had Niobe wondered why he had brought her here, than the ballroom came suddenly to life. The light from a myriad of candles lit up the marble room, causing the walls and the partiers within to glow a warm shade of gold.
To one side of the room stood a familiar figure and she quickly realized that it was her. She had grown somewhat; her hips and bosom were both fuller. How old was she here?
"In human years, we were eighteen," her brother murmured in her ear, startling her. She had nearly forgotten he was there.
But she did not respond and set herself to watching what was about to happen.
The coast was clear. At least, the coast seemed to be clear. He was most likely out carousing with that unsavory mortal boy he usually hung around with. But at least he was not here to follow her or keep her from her appointment.
Urgency, or perhaps it was anticipation, set her small sandaled feet in motion and she quickly headed for the fragrant, moonlit gardens just outside the crowded room. Soon she would be headed down Mount Olympus to meet her latest love interest. She was very anxious to leave to keep her appointment with him. However, on her way out of the ball room, something caught her eye. Or rather, someone caught her eye and fear slithered its way up her spine.
Her brother stood on the other side of the ballroom and after a moment, he leaned back against the wall in the most nonchalant manner possible. His tanned, sinewy arms were crossed over his sturdy chest; his body was lean and quite powerful for one his age. She felt a tremor of hesitation as she stared at the young god. Had he seen her? No, he hadn't. From his stance, he seemed to be lazily scrutinizing the room just as she was.
But then the dark head turned and a pair of blazing black eyes stared right at her as if he heard her thoughts. Withering fear shot icily through her. He straightened and with an amazingly stunning smile settling across his lips, he began to make his way across the room towards her. 'Damn it!' she thought testily. 'Now I will never get to out of here on time!'
She backed up a little ways then skirted around the dancing gods and goddesses in an attempt to get as far away from her twin as she could. But just as she neared the doors leading out to the gardens and to her freedom, she found him standing before her, blocking her path. With a sickening lurch in her belly, she noted that the beatific smile had remained on his angelic face. Only recently had she begun to hate his smile. It was a dangerously hypnotic smile; one that hid a multitude of sins—
"Niobe," he said sweetly, taking her hand in his. "I have been searching for you. Will you dance with me?"
Damn and double damn! Her attempt to escape had failed.
Her attention returned to the good-looking young man before her. There was nothing sweet about him, she thought as she looked into his glittering black eyes. To anyone else he appeared to be a courteous young man asking her permission to dance with him. To her, he was a vicious predator who had just cornered his prey.
"N-no," Niobe stammered and gave him a pathetic excuse for a smile. "I'm exhausted, Thanos. I just want to watch the dancing, if you don't mind."
He bowed to her, his dark eyes never leaving her face. Niobe wondered if he already knew of her plans to meet her newest mortal plaything later this evening. "If that is what my lady wishes," he murmured courteously over her hand. In one swift motion, he tucked her arm under his and led her away off the dance floor and out onto the terrace which overlooked vast gardens. "Come view the night sky with me, Niobe. Let me hold you and—"
"No!" This time she yelled and pushed him away from her. "Stop it, Thanos! Please stop acting like this!"
"Like what?" he asked her with feigned innocence.
She moved away from him. "You know like what. Don't play innocent with me. You know as well as I do that nothing about you is innocent."
The sweet, charming smile vanished instantly. "I wouldn't have to act like this if you would stop looking at other men, Niobe. You know I don't like it when you lust after them."
Inwardly, she grimaced. With a defiant lift of her chin she retorted, "So? I am a goddess! I can do what I like!"
His hands were around her throat in a trice and he gave her a hard squeeze. "No," he hissed at her, "you can't do what you like! You know how I feel about you going off with those human males, Niobe! As your brother, I can't stand idly by and let you throw yourself away on some pitiful little mortal man. I won't stand idly by."
"Don't be ridiculous! It's not as if I sleep with them!" Niobe struggled against the hold of his hands. "Let go of me! Let— go!" Throwing her hands out in front of her, Niobe managed to shove Thanos away. As he staggered back, she grabbed her throat and cried, "Why? Why are you doing this to me, Thanos? You were once kind and gentle to me. What have I ever done to deserve your ill-treatment?"
While she spoke she backed away from Thanos, who stood like a statue, staring hard at her. A moment of silence passed between them and suddenly, his demeanor changed and he smiled tenderly at her. "You're right, Niobe. I have been treating you badly and I apologize. I haven't been myself lately." He held his arms out to her. "Will you forgive me?"
The goddess stared at the other for a moment before she went to him, allowing him to embrace her. "Of course, Thanos, you know I would forgive you. How could I not forgive my own flesh and blood?"
"Oh good, I'm glad." Thanos' voice was right in her ear and it was all Niobe could do to not pull away from him. His hands slid around her, one caressing the small of her back, the other cupping her bottom.
Niobe gasped and pulled out of his arms. "Stop it!" she cried and slapped him. "Don't you ever touch me that way again, Thanos!"
Thanos' eyes hardened and he grabbed her by the hand and dragged her out into the gardens with him. "And as for you, my sweet sister, don't you ever dare hit me again! Got it?" He shoved her up against a tree, his body pinning her to the trunk.
Tears spilled down Niobe's cheeks as she gazed up at her brother in confusion. "Why are you like this? You used to be a brother I could look up to and who treated me with the utmost respect, but now— I don't even know who you are anymore."
The tears coursing down his sister's cheeks softened the expression on Thanos' face. He stared down at her with sadness in his eyes. "I—I don't know, Niobe. It all happened so fast."
"What's happened so fast?" she asked, eyeing him warily.
Shaking his head, he released her arms but reached up to cup her face in his hands. "Us, growing up. All of a sudden, our bodies were different and we no longer looked like children." He pressed a kiss on her forehead. In a trembling voice he said, "Then one day, it just— it just happened. I saw you, not as my sweet, child-like twin sister, but as a beautiful, desirable woman. A woman that I would kill for in order to claim as mine."
"No, Thanos, please—"
He leaned forward and pressed his forehead to hers, as he used to do when they were children. "I—I can't keep it from you any longer. By the gods, I'm so in love with you, Niobe! I realize it is a foolish and desperate love, for I do not even know if you feel, or will ever feel, as I do. But I do know this. I know I am the best choice of husband for you. After all, no one in heaven or on earth knows you as well as I do."
With a smile, he bent down and kissed her. His lips moved softly against hers, gently coaxing her mouth open so that his tongue could slip inside. The suddenness of this new sensation frightened and yet, intrigued the inexperienced young goddess, since she had never been kissed like this before. The mortal men with whom she flirted with gave her chaste kisses on the cheek now and then, but they were nothing like this! And as Thanos deepened the kiss, Niobe felt his arms snake around her, pulling her to him and his hands began to roam—
"No!" she gasped, wrenching her face away. "Let me go, Thanos!"
But his grip on her body only tightened. Ignoring her plea he told her, "You were meant to be mine and I will let no man have you, be they god or mortal."
What a terrible situation, she thought sadly. He was in love with her all this time and she had not even known! "Brother, please don't speak like this! You are too young to know what you are saying. We both are. So let us live and experience the world around us first! You may change your mind about me and—"
Releasing her body, he brought his hands to again cradle her head and smashed her lips to his in a brutal bruising kiss, leaving her to taste her own blood. In a low, guttural voice he snarled at her, "Change my mind? I'm too young? No! It's you who doesn't know what you're saying, Niobe! You cannot even begin to imagine the depths of my feelings for you! I want you, my dear sister. I desire you."
With a growl, he gave her an irritable shove and moved a little ways away from her to gaze up at the star-dusted night sky. "I have wanted you for a long time now," he began quietly, "and I've bided my time, wondering if I should let you know how I truly feel about you. I have even tried to suppress my feelings for you! But that only seems to make it worse. For all my efforts, I have not been able to stop thinking about you or wanting you. Since the day I fell in love with you, my life has been thrown upside down. I cannot go about my day in a carefree manner any longer because whenever I see you, I have these vivid daydreams about you. My nights are sheer torture simply because I can't see you and all I have are the images of you in my head that won't go away no matter how hard I try!"
His dark head whipped around and Niobe flinched in response. The tormented look on his face was nearly too much for her to take.
"And then there are the times I catch sight of you flirting with those filthy mortal males!" he bit out scathingly. "Do you realize how difficult it is for me to keep from murdering them before your very eyes? It would teach you not to dally with them anymore, wouldn't it?"
Swallowing hard, Niobe shook her head. "No, Thanos. It would only teach me to fear you." Fear you even more than I do already, she added silently.
"Really." He turned towards her. "Perhaps killing them would be a good thing then. If you feared me, then you would submit to me and if you did that, I would have no reason to be jealous." His face softened and he kissed her. Earnestly he said, "I want you, Niobe. Please be mine, my little love, and only mine. I swear I would worship you for the rest of our lives."
But she did not respond immediately. Indeed, she turned her head away, as though she could no longer bear to look him in the face. "I'm sorry, brother, but I can't. I can't be what you want me to be."
Silence. Then, "Is that your final answer?"
She nodded and turned to look at him. His eyes were in shadow. "Yes. I'm sorry, but I can do nothing else." Putting a hand on his arm, she lightly squeezed him. "Please understand. I have no wish to hurt you."
"And yet you have hurt me, Niobe." His dark head turned and Niobe could feel his burning gaze on her. He studied her for a long moment in silence, which was broken by a choked, mirthless laugh. "I don't know which is worse, the fact that you are not mine or the fact that you do not love me."
"I never said I didn't love you," she retorted gently. "It's just that— that—"
"It's just that you aren't in love with me," he finished for her.
Niobe, already feeling guilt spread throughout her body, looked sharply away from him and bit her lip to keep from saying any more. She wished that he had never said anything to her, that he had never revealed to her just how he truly felt about her. Her guilt was made worse when a moment later, she heard him weeping quietly.
"Say something, Niobe." A heavy, shuddering sigh. "Please."
Her eyes welled with tears until they spilled down her face. "And what is it that I'm supposed to say, Thanos? Should I lie to you to make you feel better? Is that what you want me to do?"
"I love you," he whispered. "Zeus help me, I love you so much. I wish you could understand just how much. But no, I wouldn't want you to lie to me." He reached over and brushed his fingers against her averted face. "You wouldn't be able to lie anyway. You've never been very good at that, have you?" he asked with a watery chuckle.
She gave him a watery chuckle of her own in reply and quickly wiped her tears away. "No. It seems that you can always tell if I'm lying or not, almost as though you can read my thoughts." Upon taking the hand that caressed her face, she cradled the large appendage to her chest. "If I could, I would tell you that I wish to be yours, if only to keep from hurting you. But my heart tells me that the man to whom I will give myself is yet to come. I am sorry, but he is not you. Forgive me, Thanos, but that is what I feel and Mother taught us to always do what we feel is right."
"And I want you more than anything in heaven or on earth. That is what I feel and I do not ask for your forgiveness on that score. I have done nothing for which I need to be forgiven for."
Niobe was taken aback by his words. "I never said that you should ask for forgiveness. I only asked you to forgive me because I hurt you. That's all—"
He glared at her in the dark. "One never asks for forgiveness unless they have done something to cause themselves to feel guilty." He paused then added quietly, "What is it you have done, Niobe? What sin have you committed to—?"
"Nothing!" she burst out. Quickly she turned away from him, hating the way his eyes looked at her so accusingly. "I too, have done nothing wrong! I only hated knowing, that by my rejection, I had hurt you! That's all!"
"Such fire! I do believe I have hit a nerve with you, sister dear."
Niobe bristled at his words. She realized that he was doing this to provoke her and she did not appreciate it. "Nonsense! You are just a very infuriating man. May I go now?" Turning to glare at him, she added acidly, "I have had enough of your presence for one night, Thanos. You got the answer you required. So sorry that it was not the one you wanted. Honestly, I don't see us spending eternity with each other and most definitely I cannot fathom spending even one night in your arms. I'd rather lick Uncle Hades' balls first!"
She backed up quickly when she saw her brother's powerful body tense. "Bold words, my dear, bold words. You will regret you said that," he replied coldly. "And just so you know, I have been told that I am a magnificent lover. Just ask the scores of women who have screamed my name in the dead of night."
"No thank you, Thanos. And just so you know, I care not about these scores of women you claim to have screwed so senselessly. By all means, screw the entire mortal plain for all I care. But when it comes time for me to meet the man I am destined to be with—the man who is not you— I hope you will give me the courtesy of staying out of my business. The last thing I want is a jealous, interfering brother. Now Thanos, I bid you good night."
Ignoring his rigid body and furious face, she turned and began to walk away. She had not gotten far when felt a pair of hard hands go around her waist. They yanked her back so that she was crushed beneath his arms and pinned to his body.
"Do not walk away from me, Niobe! I was not finished with you!"
In a trembling voice she said defiantly, "But I was finished with you, Thanos. There is nothing more to say."
His breath was hot and heavy in her ear. "You are wrong, my tiny darling. There is so much more to say." He picked her up effortlessly and carried her to her rooms. "You have made me very unhappy, sister dear," he told her, setting her on her feet. "It's time I let you in on a little secret, beloved. You see, you have no choice of man, unless that choice is me. Any competition I may have, be they real or perceived, will be eliminated." He took her by the face and kissed her. "Then I will bring you their scalp and their genitals, all wrapped up in pretty ribbons and silk. Just a little reminder of whom you belong to."
Horrified, Niobe pushed at her twin's chest, but he did not budge. Instead, he took hold of her neck and shoved her down onto her bed. As she lay there, petrified with fear and confusion, he began to remove his clothing. "If there is something you should have remembered about me, it is this. I do not like to lose, Niobe. I never have liked losing and I will do anything to win, especially win the woman I desire more than life itself."
Now naked, he climbed on top of her and began removing her clothing. "I understand that you are virginal and inexperienced, my little flower. I promise I will do nothing to hurt you."
Slowly regaining her composure, Niobe stared hard up at him. To fight him off was impossible; he was twice her size. He could easily crush her. "You promise?"
He nodded benignly. "I promise."
"What you are doing now is hurting me, Thanos. Forcing me to do this with you is hurting me."
Straddling her body with his powerful, bronzed, naked thighs, Thanos studied her for a long moment. He appeared to seriously consider her words and she began to feel slightly relieved. But when a dark, lecherous grin crossed his face, she felt the fear return in spades.
"How clever of you to try to trick me!" he chuckled. Instead of gently removing her tunic, he grabbed a fistful of material and ripped it violently off of her. Gone was his joviality; in its place was sheer rage. "I will never let you go! You hear me? You're mine, damn it! All mine!" he thundered at her and ignoring her sobbing cries, ruthlessly pried her legs open. "I have waited too long for this moment—"
Niobe screamed and screamed, pulling violently away from Thanos.
"There's no need to see more!" She felt her body grow cold and she shuddered. "I know all too well what happens next! That night was the beginning of my nightmare existence." With a shuddering sob, Niobe jabbed an accusing finger in his chest. "You stole my innocence that night! What you took from me was something that you had absolutely no right to take!"
He grabbed her hand but was struck across the face in retaliation. "Damn it, Niobe," he muttered, "stop it. I grow weary of you hitting me."
"Then stop touching me!" she cried and shoved him away. He staggered back, his hand going to his chest and covering the spot over his heart. Feeling bold, Niobe sent him a withering glare. "If you stop touching me," she said softly and slowly, as though to a child to help him understand, "then I would not have to strike you. Do you understand what I am telling you?" Without waiting for an answer, she turned on her heel and walked away. Thanos had returned them to the darkened room where they had first arrived. She did not know where she was, but she was determined not to spend another moment in the same place as her idiot brother.
Just as she located a doorway, she felt a tug around her middle. Before she could look down to see what it was, she was yanked backwards, hard, and skidded on her back across the cold stone floor. When she came to a halt, she looked up and saw her twin looming over her. He looked terrifying standing there like a statue in the near darkness. But she did not need light to see the cold anger on his face or the forbidding ebony eyes that burned like fire in their sockets.
Instead of yelling at her as she fully expected him to, Thanos merely knelt down on one knee to help her to sit up. When he spoke at last, Niobe shivered.
"You know, I learned long ago that people of intelligence were regarded with suspicion. Others of lesser intelligence would be guarded at all times in their words or actions. But on the other hand, if you allowed people to believe that you were a simpleton—" He tilted his head to the side and spread his hands out in front of him. "Then they would let their guard down around you and all their dirty little secrets would come tumbling out. For who in their right mind would believe the ramblings of a fool?"
Niobe was confused at his words. "Forgive me, but I have no idea what you are talking about."
The smile that curled his lips sent a shudder of revulsion through her. "Of course you wouldn't, my dear," he said, not bothering to hide the patronizing tone in his voice. He patted her head and got to his feet. "But did you truly believe that I would have no backup plan?"
Frowning, she shook her head. "Backup plan? I don't understand."
He sighed and this time, it was he who spoke slowly and carefully to her. "Did you really imagine that I would be so foolish as to suppose that those bewitched little gold trinkets would be enough to hold you to me? Even back then I knew you didn't love me and I knew that one day you would destroy them in an attempt to be free of me. And that's where my little pretense came into play. If you thought that I was so shortsighted as to believe that that pitiful bit of jewelry would keep you linked to me, then you are a bigger fool than you thought I was. You are not free, beloved. You never were." He grinned down at her and let one of his fingers trail down her throat, the side of one heaving breast until he reached the side of her waist. Once there, his fingers drifted to the front of her belly where they balled themselves into a fist, as though he was grabbing hold of something.
Niobe, who had watched the progression of his fingers down her body, gasped in horror when a slim chain of metal materialized out of nowhere. The metal was spider web thin, but wide and surprisingly strong. On the front of the strange metal belt was a rope of the same material, which, to her horror, was attached to a similar belt that was secured around her twin's waist.
"Oh no," she breathed and in her terror, foolishly tried to scramble away from him.
Thanos laughed and tugged on the rope between them, yanking her back. "Oh yes. Alas, this is something that you cannot break, no matter how hard you try." He laughed again as Niobe frantically attempted to remove the belt from around her waist. "Slipping it off is also futile. Hephaestus himself forged it from a metal that today is called titanium." Thanos heaved a petulant sigh and shot her a rueful grin. "Unfortunately, he did not approve of my forcing you to wear it and in consequence he created it with one fatal flaw. Shall I tell you what that flaw is?"
Niobe's head jerked up and she stared wildly up at him. "Yes! Tell me how to remove this wretched thing!"
A smirk curled his lips, making him appear even more depraved than usual and Niobe's heart dropped. There was a cold, calculating look in his dark eyes that she had missed before. Dear gods above, how could she have been so stupid? His idiot act had had her completely fooled. Never had she felt so deceived.
Another tug on the chain brought her face to chest to Thanos, who immediately cupped the back of her head in his free hand and tilted it back so that she was forced to look up at him.
"My, my, so eager you are, dearest! But have you stopped to think about why I want to tell you about the belt's one and only flaw?"
Niobe could only stare up at him. No, she had not stopped to think about the reason he was so willing to tell her such a secret. She shook her head slowly, forcing herself not to cry. Tears threatened to fall, she knew, but steadfastly she held them back.
Her brother frowned suddenly and pushed her away. "Oh come on, Niobe. Think! You're not stupid; we both know this. Now can you think why I should wish to divulge—"
"Give me a moment, for pity's sake!" cried his sister angrily.
The evil, yet beautiful smile returned once more. "Of course, my sweet. Take your time. After all, we have all the time in the world."
Quickly, Niobe's brain turned to the puzzle he had given her and mulled over it. Why would he want to tell her how to break the belt? A belt, moreover, that was made of very strong material. She could not break it, or begin to know how to break it. He knew that she couldn't remove the belt, but perhaps—
"Only an outside influence, such as you, can rid me of this cursed belt since you were the one who put it on me. But since you are not about to remove it, then it must be something or someone else who could." Niobe thought a bit more then added softly, "And that something or someone else is no longer around to foil your plan, otherwise why tell me the secret?"
His smile glowed in the darkness. "Very good, little sister. I knew you could figure it out." He grabbed the front of her belt, pulled her to him and kissed her mouth. "And now you know."
At his words, a sick feeling began in the pit of her stomach. "I know? I know what, Thanos?"
He tilted his head to the side, that hideous smile never leaving his lips. "Why I had to kill him, of course. Well, for the most part anyway; he was such a bloody nuisance. But I couldn't have you running off with him, now could I?"
"Him?" Niobe felt faint. The queasy sensation in her belly intensified.
"Him. Yes, him. That silly mortal boy you were allegedly infatuated with." He tightened his grip on her belt and pulled her further into the darkened room.
Niobe did not want to go into that darkness any further and dug her heels into the floor in an attempt to impede his progress. "Infatuated?! I was in love with Timeus and you knew that full well!" she exclaimed, trying to push his hand off of her end of the belt. When did not respond, a thought struck her. "Oh my god," she whispered in a shocked voice. "You killed him because he was the only one who could destroy this stupid belt! That's why you're not worried I will escape from it!" Tears slid down her cheeks in a torrent. "I can't escape because he's dead!"
Thanos ceased walking but did not turn around. In the dark, Niobe glared hatefully at his broad back. "Answer me!" she shrieked, striking him on the shoulder blade. "Answer me now, you loathsome monster!"
"I did not want to lose you again," was his soft reply. He turned around and the look of heartbreak shook her to the core. "He was so close to remembering who he was and I couldn't have that. And I couldn't have him fully aware of your true identity."
"But why kill him again?! He didn't know about the belt!"
"No," Thanos mumbled with a shake of his head. "But you did."
"What?" Niobe stared up at her brother with bewilderment. "No I didn't; that's impossible. I had no idea it was even there until you showed it to me just now."
He looked away for a moment then returned his gaze to her. "You would have remembered eventually."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Remembered what?"
"What really happened that night in your bed chamber. The night that I paid off your handmaiden to drug your wine. It did not happen the way you remember it for the simple fact that I tampered with your memory of that night. Also, I tampered with your memory of our first night together. What you saw just now was really what happened. If you knew all I'd done to you that night, well, you'd be even madder at me." He shot her a guileless grin.
Bracing herself for another disturbing revelation, Niobe took a step back. "What about the belt?"
"Well, after I carried you to your bed, I got out the belt and slipped it onto your body. You couldn't fight me, of course, so I had no trouble getting it on you before Aphrodite and Eros came into the room. As I said, I knew that you did not love me and that whatever spell she put on you would not last." He turned his back on her and continued into the dark room.
But she would not follow him into that mysterious blackness. "All of this you have done to make me yours," she whispered, allowing her tears to fall as she dropped to her knees. "You were willing to take a life to have me. I am not worth all this, Thanos. I beg of you, please find someone else worthy of your love."
Thanos, who had disappeared into the darkness, chuckled softly. "Nice try, beloved, but that won't work. Just be thankful I will allow you to keep that distasteful thing growing inside you."
The baby! Hers and Kouga's! A tiny smile appeared on her lips and she hugged her belly. She could not wait for their child to be born! But her happiness died as quickly as it appeared. Kouga, or rather, Timeus, would never see their child. He would never hold the baby or play with it or watch it grow up. Then the memory of his violent death at the hands of her twin brother washed over her and she began to weep.
He emerged from the dark to help her to her feet. "There, there, my dear, it's not as bad as all that! Dry your tears, beloved. Since I am allowing you to have this baby, you cannot say that I am not a kind and loving god. Am I not showing you just how thoughtful and selfless I can be? Allowing you to bear another man's child? Now come this way and stand right here. Don't move! I have a big surprise for you and you must remain in this spot to receive the full effect."
She began to shake. "Are you going to kill me now?" she asked of him, half hoping that he would accede to her request. Only half hoping; she had the baby to think of. If he was going to allow her to keep her child, then her request for death would no longer be on the table.
Another laugh. "Don't be silly, little one! I wouldn't harm a hair on your lovely head." Thanos pulled her into his arms and kissed her. "I really wish you would cease speaking of death, Niobe. You're bringing me down." With a gentle swat on her rump, he disappeared once more into the surrounding darkness. "Now stay right where you are!"
Niobe peered into the pitch blackness of her surroundings. She couldn't hear or see which direction he had gone, or was presently, and she couldn't help but wonder what he would do if she made a run for it.
No, that would be silly, she thought to herself. Heaven knows where he was precisely and she had no clue as to where they were. She wondered if perhaps he had brought her to the ballroom, but no. From memory, she was fairly certain that the acoustics were not quite right for the ballroom. No, this room they were in was different, much larger. Cavernous, from the sound the echoes of their voices made.
She glared into the darkness. If only she could remember what all the rooms in Olympus looked like!
Niobe paused, still thinking hard. Well, there was one room that extremely spacious and it most likely would fit the dimensions of this unknown place. The throne room of the Olympian gods was the room that came to mind. It was a gigantic place, enough to frighten her when she was a tiny girl. Her grandfather's throne was a massive piece of marble, encrusted with gold, silver and precious stones. When he was in a good humor he would hold out his arms to her, and she would run to him. And with an earth-rumbling laugh, he would scoop her up and sit her gently on his lap while he discussed matters with the other gods.
"Why did you do it?" Niobe could not control the tremor of nervousness in her voice.
"Why did I do what?" Thanos' voice seemed to come from everywhere.
She steeled herself. "Why did you tamper with my memories? Did you do it for some sick, cheap thrill? We both know I am no match for you physically or mentally, so what was the point other than to reiterate your superiority over me?"
"Part of that is true."
"Which part?" she shot back.
"Well, it was when I put the belt on you," he began candidly. "I told you how to rid yourself of the belt and I nearly laughed out loud. The look of defiance in your eyes told me that as soon as my back was turned you'd be off, looking for that fool Timeus. As soon as I saw your little mind working, I erased what I just told you from your memory. Sorry about that, darling."
Niobe wrapped her arms around her and shivered. It was cold in here. "You're not sorry, Thanos. You're not sorry for any of the reprehensible things you have done, so save it for one who is more gullible than I."
Thanos' hideous laughter rang out. "Oh, I have."
Light flooded into the room, instantly dispelling the darkness. "But there was not just one who was gullible. There were twelve." He made a sweeping gesture towards the far wall.
Still blinking madly, Niobe glanced over in the direction he indicated.
She screamed.
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A/N: Omg, I am soooo sorry to have taken sooooo very long in posting the next chapter. My steam has just about run out on this story. -_-
One more chapter to go! ^_^