Thank you everyone for your sweet comments on the last chapter! They really made my day. It's hard to imagine that we are finally at the last arc of Ashes. I hope everyone enjoys the ending. 3

As always, thank you so much betas. And special thanks to CrazyElf for helping me with this chapter! I really couldn't have posted without their feedback and assistance.

Also, shout out to SecretQuill, for the name of this chapter. I literally couldn't stop laughing when they proposed the chapter name.

Chapter 26: We Are (Not) Prude

83 Days post the fall of Troy

"Uggggggggh!"

Momo jerked awake at the sound of a high-pitched wail. A flock of gold and black orioles perching in the branches overhead took flight. Their wings rustled the amber and flaxen colored leaves, scattering the mid-afternoon sunlight that cascaded down to highlight Ashido Mina laying spread eagle in the middle of the cart.

The wagon bumped as it continued over an uneven path. The nymph groaned again and kicked her feet against the wooden panels. "I hate this! We've been traveling without stopping for a whole day," she groaned, running her hands down her cheeks. "I'm uncomfortable and hungry, and I want a bath!"

"Oh gods," Hagakure said, her voice thick from sleep. She sat up. A crest was etched into her left cheek. "A bath sounds so good right now."

"Right?!" Ashido shot upright. "A bath would be so nice. We could get out of this damn cart and finally wash off some of this grime." Her nose scrunched, and she shook her hands as if trying to get rid of invisible dirt.

Momo yawned. Rubbing at her face, she adjusted against something hard — and warm. She blinked, then slowly angled her head up to find herself staring at Todoroki's profile. His arm was wrapped around her waist and a pleasant heat, tinged with the faint scent of magic, drifted off of him.

He turned his head, and his gaze met her eyes. His fingers tightened around her side. "Sleep well?" he asked in a soft voice.

His warm breath ghosted across her skin, and Momo realized how close they were. A hot flush ran across Momo's face. She quickly pulled away and sat up.

What was she doing falling asleep on Todoroki? How scandalous. She was a priestess of Apollo. No matter how tired she was, it was no excuse to act so shameless. What if she had drooled?

Wiping at her mouth and trying not to imagine how undignified she must have seemed, Momo looked around. The scenery had changed since she fell asleep. The steeped-like grasslands they had traveled through earlier in the day were gone, replaced by large oak and beech trees dipped in saffron and gold. Towering above the tree line were mountainous peaks, their tops dusted white, stretched up into the crisp blue sky like giant sentries.

They were at the foot of the Rhodpes Mountains.

"Really?" Kendo's incredulous voice huffed behind Momo.

She turned back around. Kendo was leveling Ashido and Hagakure with an unamused stare from her seat at the front of the cart. "Ashido, it hasn't even been half a day since we lost our last pursuers. It isn't safe to stop yet."

"That was ages ago!" Ashido whined. "And I'm tired of sitting in this cart. It's so boring and I want a bath."

Momo cleared her throat, pushing a few strands of loose hair behind her ear as she refocused on the conversation. "It's better not to let our guard down, especially now when we are at the edges of Dicaea's territory. After last night's chaos, it is doubtful that the city guard will let us be. The city will want reparations. It wouldn't be unlikely if they sent men to watch the main roads and patrols to search for us in the mountains." She gave Ashido a long look and continued in a steady voice. "It would be best to hang on a little longer before we rest."

Ashido sighed heavily and flopped back onto the floor of the cart. "But you and Todoroki still haven't even fully cleaned the blood off yourselves yet."

Momo blinked, taken aback by the accustion. She looked down at her hands. Her skin was covered in a thin layer of ash and dirt. Wedged underneath her fingernails, to her disgust and horror, was blood and soil so thick Momo would have thought she had dragged her hands through it.

A deep heat spread up Momo's neck and over her cheeks, and she shoved her hands underneath her bottom.

Ashido watched her. A satisfied smirk spread across her face. "And I know a good spot too," Ashido continued in a persuasive voice. "It's a healing spring. And it's so, so close."

"That's not a bad idea," Tetsu-Tetsu commented from the front of the cart, where he was seated next to his wife. He shifted in his seat as if something were poking his backside. "Even my steely butt is getting rusty sitting here all day, and the oxen could use a good break. A bath surrounded by lovely ladies would do me some good," he said with a deep laugh.

Momo froze.

Her eyes widened as Tetsu-Tetsu's words processed, skidding her mind to a shaky halt. "A bath. To-together?" she asked, her voice jumping. "But-but that's…That's so scandalous!"

"Don't scare her." Kendo swatted at her husband, but Momo's thoughts had already launched themselves over the proverbial cliff.

"Yaoyorozu, are you okay?" Todoroki asked from beside her.

Momo could feel Todoroki staring at her, but she didn't look up. She swallowed over a dry mouth as a new trepidation, one Momo had never considered, filled her stomach.

She had never seen a naked man before.

Momo slapped her hands over her eyes in sudden mortification. She had been so focused on their pursuers and the dangers they could still be in that she hadn't even considered what else a bath would entail. "We-we should really reconsider—"

Ashido laughed. Momo heard knees scrap against wood. Then her hands were pulled away from her eyes. She swallowed and slowly looked up to meet the nymph's golden gaze.

In an impossible display, the smile spreading across Ashido's pink lips grew even wider. Momo's stomach felt as if it dropped as the nymph's expression glittered. "You're blushing!" she cooed, seeming to have forgotten about personal space as she leaned in.

Momo was positive it wasn't only her cheeks that were red. She was probably blushing everywhere possible at this point. "Of-of course! I'm a priestess of Apollo," Momo said, defensively, looking away.

It was a well known fact that priestesses of Apollo were required to be virgins. Momo had never seen a naked man before. Well — she had — but only when they needed healing, never a healthy man, nor someone as handsome as Todoroki.

To top it off, Momo was sure her body was so beaten and bruised after the battle against the head slaver that it would look like she had contracted a plague. She couldn't let Todoroki see her like this.

"Well," Ashido said, cutting into Momo's thoughts as she cocked her head to the side and raised a pink eyebrow, "You aren't a priestess anymore, right?"

Todoroki's hand tensed along Momo's side.

"That - that doesn't matter!" Momo said quickly, jerking her gaze back to meet Ashido's. Her lips turned down into a frown. "It's still unheard of!"

"Oh, Yaomomo!" Hagakure said from behind Ashido. Her voice was almost sympathetic, if not for the grin spreading across her lips. "You're so innocent! In Greece, men and women go around naked all the time."

"What?" Momo squeaked. Her stomach dropped at the thought. Would that mean, once in Sparta, she would be expected to walk around naked?

"Stop it! You're scaring her," Kendo chided, fiercely.

"Okay. Okay," Ashido said, releasing Momo's hands to withdraw back to sit next to Hagakure.

Kendo leveled Ashido with another stern look before she glanced back towards Momo. "Don't worry," she said in a calming voice. "That's only for sports or special festivals."

"Slaves too," Tetsu-Tetsu added.

"You're not a slave," Todoroki said, his voice hard.

Momo finally forced herself to look up. She met Todoroki's turquoise and silver gaze. His eyes held a strange warmth and determination that made the words that she was a slave die on Momo's tongue.

Todoroki Shouto continued to defy her every expectation. For her part, Momo realized that he wasn't the man she had imagined all those moons ago. She had thought a son of Ares would be like his half-brother, Dabi, but she had found that Todoroki wasn't anything like her first impressions.

He was still hard to read and a bit standoffish. Definitely blunt to an extreme, but the ice that had made him seem unapproachable, untouchable had melted away and underneath the cold exterior was a warmness Momo would never have imagined. He was gentle and caring and considerate. Always concerned for her needs. It almost made Momo feel special, as if she were important to him.

Momo curled a hand over her heart as she stared at him. His face was smeared with dirt and underneath his eyes were dark circles as if he had stayed up all night. Momo's eyebrows furrowed, her embarrassment pushed to the back of her mind as a sudden thought occurred to her. "Were you not able to rest?"

Todoroki's gaze dropped away from hers. He shrugged. "I'm fine. It's not like I've never stayed up a few days in a row before."

Momo frowned. Her eyes trailed down his face to where specks of blood dotted his cheek and chin. Unconsciously, Momo reached up to wipe them away. "I worry," she said in a soft voice.

Todoroki's eyes widened for a moment, before he relaxed and tilted his head against her palm, almost nuzzling her. It reminded Momo of a cat. She had to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling. It was strange how fast her mood could change around Todoroki. A few words, a couple of glances or hesitant touches, and her stomach flipped strangely. It felt as if Momo would never be lonely by his side.

There was a sharp clap across from her. Momo jumped back, jerking her hand from Todoroki's face. She turned to see Hagakure and Ashido staring at her. Their faces gleamed impishly, wicked smiles curling along their lips.

"Sounds like that's a majority!" Ashido declared. Her eyes glittered, daring Momo to disagree.

Momo bit the inside of her cheek as a sense of foreboding overcame her. She had a feeling she was going to regret this.

Momo stepped back and bumped against the smooth boulders that outlined the sides of the hot springs. A knot in her stomach tightened.

She was trapped.

They had followed Ashido through the woods to a base of a rocky cliff, where various pools of striking sapphire springs sat carved into the rocky ledges. Steam rose off the waters' surfaces, rising up in lazy tendrils of white mist, to create a low hanging fog.

They had settled on two pools, separated by a natural partition of smooth looking boulders, that stretched up high enough for not even Todoroki to see over standing.

Kendo had then quickly shooed the men away. And now Momo was alone, among three women that looked like lions about to pounce on her.

She swallowed nervously. Momo wondered if Todoroki would come if she called for assistance. She supposed he would, but then he would be naked and her heart wasn't ready for that.

It was a lose-lose situation.

Momo sank further down into the water, wishing to disappear.

"So," Ashido began. Momo stiffened. "What's this I see between you and Hunky-dori?"

Momo avoided her piercing gaze. Despite the warmth of the springs, a cold shiver ran down her spine. The smiles plastered across the three women's lips widened as if to mock her distress.

"Nothing," Momo said. Her eyes skirted around the lake, trying to find an escape route. However, before she could move, Hagakure stepped forward, blocking her path.

"Don't 'nothing' me." Hagakure wagged her finger at Momo like an angry older sister. "Don't think I didn't see that new beautiful –"

"And expensive," Kendo added, eyes glinting.

"And expensive hair ribbon," Hagakure echoed. Her voice hardened. "So, spill! What's the story, Yaomomo? Friends don't keep friends in the dark!"

Momo flushed. Her legs felt weak under her. She wondered if Athena had ever allowed someone like her to borrow the helm of invisibility to escape these types of situations. "It's-it's just a gift."

"A gift," Ashido repeated, her voice dripping with disbelief. Her golden irises narrowed. "From Hunky-dori?"

Momo licked her lips. The back of her neck felt sticky from the steam. "Yes," she said softly, before quickly adding louder. "It was a gift to keep my hair up for when fighting."

The confirmation seemed to be what the other three women were looking for as they all began talking over one another in delight.

"Congratulations!"

"Aww! That's so cute."

"How did he give it to you?"

"I don't know. He just handed it to me. And then…" Momo's words fizzled out. Her heart was beating faster and faster in her chest as the memory she had shoved to the back of her mind resurfaced. She drew her chin down as her cheeks grew unnaturally hot.

"And?" Hagakure repeated.

"I kind of…"

"You what?" Ashido egged.

"Kissed him," Momo whispered in a voice so soft she could barely hear herself.

The three women surrounding Momo squealed.

Momo dropped her head into her hands. She couldn't believe she had admitted it. It wasn't as if she forgot the kiss. She probably could never forgetthe kiss. But with everything else that happened after, the kiss had been the last thing on Momo's mind. And that was perfectly fine with Momo. She didn't have to think about it. She was content to forget the whole incident until she was certain her heart could handle the stress. That was, until the three other women made her remember.

The way his slightly chapped lips had felt against hers. The surprise that shone in his heterochromic eyes, which were normally so guarded, and the way he had smiled at her after… It had made her feel — powerful. And Momo was mortified at how much she liked that feeling.

She didn't know if she wanted to scream or cry. Maybe both.

"So you slept with him?" Ashido asked excitedly, cutting into Momo's thoughts.

"I - what?" Momo blinked, lifting her head out of her hands. She thought back to waking up on Todoroki in the cart before. Technically, she supposes she slept…with him…

But what does that have to do with kissing him?

Kendo groaned next to her. "Do you think she'd have slept with him given how embarrassed she was just thinking about men and women walking around naked?"

"She could have," Ashido said eagerly.

"What do you mean?" Momo frowned as she turned to look at Kendo for an explanation. "I was sleeping with Todoroki in the cart. Did you not see me?"

For a moment, Kendo stared at her, then her eyes widened as if a realization occurred to her. "You're serious, aren't you?" she gasped.

Momo tilted her head in confusion. "Yes?"

Ashido burst out into peals of laughter, closely followed by Hagakure.

"What — what is it?" Momo asked hesitantly. She felt her face grow hot as she looked between the women surrounding her. It was as if there was an inside joke being made at her expense that Momo didn't understand.

"No! Silly, Yaomomo," Hagakure said between giggles, her eyes were glinting. "Ashido meant, have you slept with Todoroki?"

Momo furrowed her eyebrows, growing more perplexed. Hadn't she just clarified that she had slept with him in the cart?

Next to her, Kendo sighed and rolled her eyes. "They are talking about whether you have had sex with him."

"Baby making," Hagakure sniggered.

Momo choked and jerked back. "No! We didn't – we aren't like that," she stuttered as realization came over her.

How could — why would Ashido even think that? About her? And Todoroki? Momo could barely breathe as a hysterical feeling of mortification washed over her.

Ashido pouted, like Momo had just ruined an exciting surprise. "Boo. It's more interesting if you've slept together."

"They aren't married," Kendo said steadily.

"Oh, yeah..." Ashido looked unabashed and smirked. "I forget you mortals like to be married before you get to the good stuff. So prude."

"Good stuff," Momo echoed disjointedly.

She knew, of course, the basics of what occurred between a man and a woman who became bonded through marriage. But she had never given it much thought before since she was a priestess and would never marry or have such relations. However, she was no longer a priestess, so she supposed it was something that was possible.

An image of Todoroki's naked torso appeared in her mind. Momo wanted to scream as she quickly shoved the idea away. She felt faint and wondered if it was possible to die from embarrassment. Kendo reached out and placed a comforting hand on her back as Ashido continued, seemingly unaware of Momo's spiraling thoughts.

"Well, at least you won't be disappointed when you do get to it. I snuck a peek earlier, during one of our stops, and got a good look, and it's definitely–"

"Stop!" Kendo said loudly. She held up her hand to silence Ashido. Her cheeks were a bright red to match her hair. "We don't all need to know that." Her hand tightened on Momo's shoulder.

"So, do you like, like him?" Hagakure asked.

"I," Momo averted her eyes down to the water. The steam rose up, misting her face with warm tendrils. "I don't know. I don't even know what this is. I've never liked someone before."

"Well, does your heart race when you're with him?"

"I don't know…"

"Explain!"

The corners of Momo's mouth twitched. "It's just —" Momo's throat tightened. She didn't know what to say. Did she like Todoroki?

Todoroki was kind, caring, and awkward. Even when Momo didn't follow his instructions, he never grew angry. And the way he always asked for her opinion and believed in her abilities made something stir within Momo's chest like an expanding soap bubble. It was as if he was truly on her side.

She reached up and pressed her hand over her heart. Was this feeling of contentment love?

"It's just…" Hagakure encouraged her.

Momo opened and closed her mouth before looking away. "It's just easy," she finally said, watching the ripples of water expand around her. "Being with Todoroki, I mean. He's so kind to me. We hardly ever fight, and sometimes I feel he understands me better than I understand myself."

A strange feeling took hold of Momo, wrapping her in warmth and comfort and making her almost giddy. The more she spoke, the more she realized how secure and understood Todoroki made her feel. She licked her lips and continued, her voice growing stronger. "And he is always there for me. He believes in my abilities and doesn't try to hold me back, nor does he make me nervous about what I say or do. I don't know if you'd call this love," she looked up, "but it's the first time I've felt so safe and comfortable with someone and I feel…I feel that I can be me. And I like that me."

Momo paused, her heart racing.

Was this love?

She had always thought love was dynamic and all consuming. In stories, it always occurred instantly. Love was seen as a tidal wave crashing onto a person so abrupt and powerful that they couldn't move, couldn't breathe without the other. And although Momo did rely on Todoroki and had been afraid to think he would leave her, the way she felt around him was different than in the stories.

Instead of a wave that suddenly and unexpectedly crashed onto her, her feelings had grown steadily over time. Like the pitter patter of rain accumulating over weeks to create a clear lake, Momo's feelings had grown slowly, influenced by their time together. It was only now, when she stopped to consider her feelings that she realized she felt warm and comforted by his presence. She felt —

Belonging.

Like she had found a place for herself that was made just for her. For the first time, Momo allowed herself to imagine a future with Todoroki and she wanted it. She wanted to stay with him and be a part of his life more than anything she had ever wanted before.

Momo squeezed her hand over her heart as all the moments with Todoroki twinkled like stars across her memories, beating in a steady thrum within her chest, making her heart feel as if it were so full it was about to burst with affection.

But could she really be that happy? With him? Todoroki was a warrior. A demi-god, the son of Ares, god of war. Despite the way he made her feel in the short time they had been together, was he really the kind of man that she could see herself being happy with for… forever?

And what about Todoroki? He was so strong and confident. He deserved to be with someone who could stand by his side as an equal. She was only a priestess of Apollo. Could she really be the one to stand next to him?

'You're my god slayer,' Todoroki's voice rose in her memories, and with it the confidence and power she had felt at his words returned.

Yes.

Her fingers tightened. She deserved him.

She won him. She had defeated a god and saved Ashido. If Momo wanted to stay by Todoroki's side, she had every right to. He was hers. As much as a person could possess another, at least. And she had already promised herself to never leave his side again.

Swallowing, Momo looked up at the three women surrounding her and gathered her courage. "Y-yes. I-I like him. I like Todoroki."

This chapter was fun to write. I always imagine that, once Momo recognized that she was in love, she would own her feelings. I believe that would be especially true in Ashes because of how much her confidence has improved. Anyways, would love to know your thoughts! All comments are welcome. :D

Notes:

Hot springs - Due to Greece's unique geology, there are more than 700 natural hot springs dotted all over the country — and 84 of them are officially recognized as having healing /

Athena's Helmet - is a helmet or cap that can turn the wearer invisible.