CHAPTER 11.
The day of the Dionysus' party had arrived, and Sakura was nervous and excited at the same time. She was finally going to do something different than being within those four walls, and she was also going to meet other gods and probably creatures that appeared in mythological books. Would she meet nymphs, graces, cyclops, fairies? The truth is that Sakura was impatient. While she was rambling, someone knocked on her door, and Sakura approached the door to open it.
Karin entered carrying several items that Sakura recognized among all were dresses. Which made her even more excited, of course, she was going to have to dress appropriately, since apparently her clothes were not suitable for the presence of the gods, she thought while rolling her eyes. But she was still excited thinking that she was going to dress like a princess.
"Sakura, I brought you some dresses that Lord Morpheus told me to bring you, and I also brought you other items, such as shoes and hair ornaments," Karin said as she placed everything on the bed and sighed.
"Has Sasuke chosen the dresses?" Sakura asked as she approached with a disappointed voice.
"Yeah, well... I helped him a little," she said as she winked. "Lord Morpheus tries to be nice, but he really does have old-fashioned tastes," she separated some items from the dresses and arranged them properly so they wouldn't get wrinkled. "Thanks to me, I was able to choose some pretty modern ones," she said with a mischievous smile, and Sakura laughed.
"What do you mean by modern?" Sakura asked. "Clearly what is modern here is not modern to me since I was raised in the mortal world, or is it that in the world of the gods there are also trends?" she laughed sarcastically.
"Not at all, gods are boring, that's why I've been researching what things you might like by looking at the latest trends in your world..." she stopped for a moment and said "Well, in the world where you grew up," she spoke as she pulled a dress out of a bag that protected it. "This one, for example, was chosen by Lord Morpheus," she explained as she pulled out a light pink dress.
"It's beautiful," said Sakura, "I'm going to try it on!" and within a few minutes she was wearing a silky dress with a high neck, short sleeves, and behind it she wore a cape that started from her shoulders, her waist was hugged by a gold belt with leaf ornaments with black pearls.
"You look beautiful," said Karin, "the truth is that Lord Morpheus has good taste, but it's still very classic," said rolling her eyes.
"What are you saying, it's beautiful, Karin!" replied Sakura as she looked at herself in the mirror and kept spinning around, she felt like a princess.
"It's very pretty, yes. But it doesn't show off your hair color," Karin said as she looked her over from head to toe, "Try this one on!" said as she handed her another bag containing a dress. "I think this one will look great on you."
The dress Karin had chosen for Sakura was maroon, with a fine texture and it fell fluidly from her shoulders to her feet. A small piece of fabric that went up from the neckline surrounded her neck and then went down to the floor in a silky way at the back. The neckline was asymmetrical, but with bare shoulders, and the belly part was half-open, leaving the waist narrow and then the fabric went down fluidly to the floor dragging part of the dress. Her back was completely bare, the piece of fabric she wore around her neck fell elegantly at the back. In addition, leaving an opening almost to her waist on the left side of the dress. That dress had definitely been chosen by Karin, since Sakura had not expected Sasuke to choose such a daring dress for her. Comparing both dresses, Sasuke wanted complete discretion. Sakura was clear about which one she was going to choose.
"I love it Karin," Sakura said almost with tears in her eyes, she felt like someone special in that dress. She was no longer a princess, that dress screamed power and confidence, she looked almost like a goddess.
"You are going to represent the Realm of Dreams; you must stand out." spoke Karin looking at her with bright eyes "You are going to be the most beautiful woman at that party as Lord Morpheus' partner. Make us proud," Karin said as she looked at her proudly.
"Sasuke's partner?" Sakura asked arching a thin pink eyebrow, and Karin laughed.
"Well, the companion, you know what I mean," Karin said as she waved over her hand to not give it much more importance. And Sakura looked at her with a frown. "So, you like it?" she asked excitedly because she knew she had made the right choice, thinking that Lord Morpheus was going to be angry with Karin for letting her dress like that.
"I love it Karin, I'm going to choose this dress," Sakura said convinced with a wide smile.
"Really? You don't want to see the other dresses?" she asked happily because she chose the dress she had brought for her, "The truth is that this color suits you, and it highlights your pink hair. Now we are going to choose what to put in your hair, and put on some makeup!" she said excitedly, getting down to work.
After spending several hours getting ready with Karin's help, she was finally ready to go to the party. Sakura looked at herself in the mirror for the last time, seeing how her hair had grown since she was there and now reached her shoulders, so Karin had made her hair up with a braid decorated with gold ornaments as if they were leaves. Leaving several strands of hair falling over her face to look like a casual updo. Since the dress was flowing, she was not going to have a perfect updo. On the other hand, her makeup was naturally, not wanting to put on too much makeup, simply highlighting the beautiful features of Sakura. And to top it off, she was wearing black-colored high-heeled sandals that were strapped at the ankle. At first glance, they didn't look comfortable, but they were very comfortable. When she looked at the final result, she sighed, placing her hand on her belly. This is where all my anxiety builds up, she thought. And she told herself that she was ready.
As she walked down the stairs, she saw Sasuke waiting for her in the hall. When he turned around, he kept looking at her until she got down the stairs. He didn't want to hide it, he devoured her with his gaze. Sakura gulped nervously as her legs almost started to shake. He looked gorgeous; he wasn't wearing his elegant-formal clothes that he almost always wore, this time he had opted for something a little more classic. He was wearing a kind of closed, almost dark violet grey kimono-shirt that opened across the chest, but underneath he was wearing a black turtleneck shirt, and black Nikka-style pants, with black ankle boots. Always in dark clothes, Sakura thought. This time, his hair was tied up and a few strands were falling out on the sides. She couldn't believe that someone like him could exist, and that this person was looking at her with such interest.
When Sakura got to his level her heart raced, he was more handsome than ever, and she thought that was almost impossible. Meanwhile, Sasuke was devouring her with his eyes from top to bottom. He didn't seem bothered by the way she was dressed, in fact, he was even amused to see her dressed like a goddess. He knew she was beautiful, but seeing her like that reminded him of how perfect Sakura was for him. He imagined himself doing a thousand things to her in that dress, he had the urge to take her to his chambers and ravaging her.
"You look gorgeous," he said after clearing his throat and evading any thought.
"Thank you," Sakura said, looking away from him. "You too," she replied as she looked everywhere but at him.
"Didn't you like the dress I picked out for you?" he asked as he looked at Karin who was standing on the stairs looking at them curiously. And Sakura looked at him in surprise.
"Yes, I really liked it, but this one..." she said, not quite knowing what to say.
"It looks much better on you," he interrupted her without looking away, and Sakura didn't know what to answer so she gulped again. She felt like a lamb facing a nearly two-meter-tall wolf. "Shall we go?" Sasuke asked her, interrupting her uncertain thoughts, Sakura nodded.
To get to the place where Dionysus' party was, Sasuke had to summon a kind of portal that opened out of nowhere. Sakura looked at him scared because when she looked at the spiral shape in front of her it seemed like it was going to absorb her and take her to the depths of the universe and get lost forever. Sasuke calmly reached out his hand to her as if asking her to take it, and she took it timidly while Sasuke went in there and Sakura followed him with fear, but knowing that if she was with him, she was certain that nothing bad would happen to her.
.
.
.
The place where they appeared was totally different from what Sakura was used to. It looked like they were in Venice, but it was unclear whether this was actually the real city of Venice. That place was more alive, with much more light and more colorful landscapes compared to the realm of Dreams.. The sky was painted a light blue, with clouds that looked like cotton. In the distance, some stone stairs, or rather marble, could be seen. Everything was elegant, and the building at the end of the stairs was like a palace decorated in gold. Sakura couldn't believe what she was seeing, it seemed like a fantasy world seated in Italy.
They were still holding hands, Sakura didn't take his hand away, and Sasuke looked at her with curiosity, her face was shining with amazement. Sasuke couldn't help but smirked a little at seeing her like that.
"Nervous?" he asked as he looked at her and they walked towards the stairs holding hands.
"A little," she looked at him, and in that light, Sasuke's beauty was even clearer, at that moment Sakura's breath was almost taken away. He continued to look at her almost amused, and Sakura couldn't believe that he was going to be her companion. She had probably never been with such a handsome man, much less publicly. Although later she thought that among the gods there would be no room for mediocrity.
Sasuke continued to observe her, the color of the dress now looked much better, the maroon color suited Sakura very well, her pink skin peeking out between the pieces of fabric on her torso. In addition, her back was elegantly bare, and every time she climbed a step, she revealed her left thigh, which Sasuke was not getting used to, and he looked tentatively at her smooth skin.
When they reached the end of the stairs there were several extraordinary creatures at Sakura's eyes waiting for them. Those creatures had a seemingly human body from the waist up, although they had small horns, and from the waist down the body of a goat. They were of medium height, and Sakura did not know if they were harmless or dangerous. Although Sasuke seemed indifferent to their presence.
"Welcome Lord Morpheus. I see that you have finally come accompanied by the beautiful Miss Sakura, the guest of honor of this party," said one of the creatures while handing them both a kind of pamphlet.
"Miss Sakura, I hope you like what we have prepared for you at your welcome party," he said cordially and Sakura didn't know what to say, she simply nodded politely and nervously kept the pamphlet she was holding in her hands.
"Sakura?" said a female voice from behind them, and Sakura turned around to see a beautiful woman with light brown hair waist-length, curly and decorated with golden ribbons. The dress she was wearing was the same texture as Sakura's, but it was light blue and had touches of gold.
"Artemis..." said Sasuke and Sakura looked at him in amazement, Artemis? The goddess Artemis? Okay, she was starting to get to know the gods of Olympus.
"You seem a little nervous, darling, do you want to come with me for a while?" she approached Sakura with a worried face and hugged her from behind motherly.
"I-I'm fine," said Sakura, clearly surprised and not knowing very well what to say.
"No, you're not okay, you're clearly uncomfortable, what's wrong?" Her touch was warm and motherly. Artemis, among one of her qualities, apart from being the best hunter, was also the protector of girls and young women. So, seeing Sakura in such a way worried her almost exaggeratedly.
"Artemis, Sakura is fine, she's just still adjusting to all this," Sasuke replied, exasperated by the goddess' behavior.
"Oh, is that so, dear?" she asked while looking at her warmly. And Sakura, without hardly saying a word because she was being hugged by the goddess Artemis herself, nodded, giving her a reassuring smile. And Artemis then relaxed and moved away from her. "At any time if you feel insecure and uneasy you can look for me, okay?" she said.
"Okay, thank you," she was finally able to articulate words. And apparently her answer was enough to stop her from worrying, so she turned around and entered the palace with such grace that it seemed she was floating. "W-was it really the goddess Artemis?" Sakura asked, and Sasuke couldn't help but grimace.
"Today you're going to meet the twelve, and many more," Sasuke replied while gesturing for her to grab his elbow, and Sakura without thinking hugged his bicep, feeling safer being closer to him, to which Sasuke was surprised by her gesture. He didn't say anything, since having her so close and being able to smell her was breathtaking.
"Sasuke..." Sakura said as they entered the palace and looked around in amazement. Everyone there was gorgeous, although there was some strange creature like the two at the entrance and others with different shapes, but in general, they were all elegant and beautiful.
"Mmh?" Sasuke replied as he also looked around, but more cautiously, seeming to be looking for someone.
"Don't leave me alone," she replied as she continued to look around nervously and curiously without moving away from him. Sasuke turned to look at her.
"I wasn't planning on doing that," he replied seriously, in a calm voice. At which Sakura turned to him and met his dark gaze which impressed Sakura, but at the same time gave her security and warmth. Sakura simply swallowed and nodded at his words.
During the following hours, some gods approached them to introduce themselves and meet the woman for whom the party had been organized. Many told them that Eros had spoken very well of young Sakura, the new lover of young Morpheus. Sakura never protested or contradicted the words of the gods for fear that something might happen to her. She just accepted all that without having talked about it with him. The relationship that both had was strange, although Sakura was not surprised by it either because everything that had happened to her since she had arrived in the world of dreams was strange. So, Sakura accepted everything as it came, because she thought that everything that was different for her would be normal and usual for them like breathing.
For Sakura, being there was like being in a country with another culture, another language, and another social code. And since she had no choice but to adapt, she accepted and listened to everything they said passively. Was she Lord Morpheus' partner? Well, okay. That party was planned by the god of love and the god of wine and party as a welcome party for her? Well, why not?
"Hello lovebirds," said a calm voice that approached them. Sakura turned around and it was a man who looked familiar to her, as if she had seen him somewhere.
"Itachi.." Sasuke greeted the man who was almost identical to him, now Sakura remembered; he was one of the people she had seen in that painting. Probably his brother.
"Nice to finally meet you, Sakura," he said as he took her hand and gave her a kiss. Sakura blushed at the gentlemanly gesture.
"Sakura, this is my older brother, Itachi, also known as Phobeto, the lord of nightmares," Sasuke explained, putting her in context. He was aware that all of this was new to her, so every time Sakura met a person, he would put her in context.
"N-nice to meet you," Sakura replied, not quite knowing what to say.
"How are you doing in our world? Are you getting used to it?" he asked. Itachi gave her the same confidence and security that Sasuke gave her. She could tell that Sasuke and Itachi were close, so Sakura felt she could trust him too.
"Little by little... it's all very overwhelming," Sakura replied, to which Itachi laughed.
"Yes, I can't imagine what you must be going through. Not knowing about your family and friends, I hope that at least my brother will make your stay easier and make you comfortable," Itachi said, clearly trying to indirectly lecture his brother, to which Sasuke sighed while rolling his eyes. And Sakura watched both brothers interact, which she found funny, she saw that family relationships were the same for mortals and gods alike. And both brothers began to argue in a low voice.
"Excuse me, I'm going to the bathroom for a moment," Sakura said with the intention of giving them some space to talk, and also because she needed to be alone for a few minutes, meeting so many people in such a short time was tiring for her. Both brothers nodded.
"Sasuke," Itachi said as he noticed Sakura walking away. "There's something I don't like," he said while looking around.
"Do you notice it too?" he asked while both brothers looked around surreptitiously as if searching for something. "Ever since we arrived, I've noticed a different aura,"
"As if something is going to happen," he took Sasuke's words away and he looked worriedly at Itachi.
"Do you think it could be related to Sakura?" Sasuke asked him uneasily.
"It's possible, you know that, among the gods, greed is their greatest virtue. And I remind you that you are not the first God to kidnap a beautiful girl,"
"Tch," Sasuke replied, clearly irritated by his brother's words, "For the last time, I have not kidnapped Sakura, I have brought her to the place where she belongs," he said while pinching the bridge of his nose irritated.
"Yes, and that's why you have her locked up in your castle," Itachi told him in a tone that seemed to be lecturing his little brother.
"I have her there to protect her, the last time she went out she was almost killed, or... worse," he replied remembering how he had found her, the fury returning to him.
"Well, well, calm down. You have to keep an eye on her, okay?" Itachi told him before leaving, and Sasuke nodded.
As the two brothers talked, all the guests' attention went to Dionysus, who was standing in front of a long table full of food and drink. He held a glass of wine in the air, as a sign of toast.
"Morpheus, I am flattered by your presence at this happy celebration of your future wife," he said, raising the glass in the air while nodding with a smile at Sasuke. Both brothers stared at the god who still had the glass raised, and everyone present imitated his gesture, except for the two Somnia. Sasuke simply nodded towards where Dionysus stood, cordially observing the scene.
At that moment Sakura was in the bathroom sitting on a sofa in the large and elegant women's bathroom. Hardly anyone came in, so she was quiet and alone, without anyone bothering her. A young woman with shoulder-length blonde hair, dressed in beige, approached her with a worried face.
"Are you okay? You look pale," the girl said as she sat down next to her.
"I'm fine, just a little overwhelmed by this party, but I'm glad to be here," Sakura said, not wanting to worry the girl and afraid of saying something that could hurt Sasuke or her, so she didn't want to be disrespectful since they had done all of this for her.
"It's normal for you to feel that way, you're new among us," the unknown girl told her. And Sakura nodded, giving her a relieved smile. "Do you want to take a walk and get some fresh air?" she asked as she stood up and took her by the hand. More than a question, it seemed like an order, but Sakura accepted, thinking that if she left there for a moment, she would calm down a bit.
They went out to the gardens that were around the palace. It was full of exotic plants, trees cut into animal shapes. There was a large fountain in the center, and in the distance, you could see some tall bushes. As they walked, the girl chattered about love affairs, apparently, she was in love with a prince from the mortal world, and they had had several encounters, but her parents forbade her to have any relationship with him because of what could happen to them. Sakura listened to what she said, barely paying attention, although it helped her calm down and focus and avoid her intrusive thoughts.
Without realizing it, they were in front of the giant bushes she had seen in the distance, and they were quite far from the palace. Sakura realized and looked back with a little fear, she had moved too far away from Sasuke.
"Come, follow me, I think you'll like it," the girl said amused. And Sakura hesitated for a few seconds, but went inside, which when she started walking, she realized she was entering a maze.
"Do you know how to go back?" Sakura asked a little nervously.
"Who told you we're going back?" the girl answered, this time her voice changed. And Sakura stared at her in horror, turning around she noticed that her face had changed as well, now she was no longer a beautiful girl, she was a man, equally attractive. A man she had already met.
"Eros.." she said surprised with a thin voice. And he grabbed her tightly, Sakura let out a scream, but everything happened so fast that Sakura thought that probably no one had heard her, without realizing it, she was already somewhere else. That place was just as beautiful, or more than where she had been. But she felt vulnerable and alone, desperate and afraid. She regretted having separated from Sasuke, and at the same time she hated that Sasuke was right, she did not know that world, and only he could protect her, tears came out of her eyes. What does Eros want from me? She thought despairingly.
A/N: I will start posting just one chapter on Mondays,
Next Monday i will post Chapter 12 and so on.
