Son of Night and Daughter of Stars

Chapter 12: The Winter's Chill

Azura whistled. "Wow. You're sure in some shit, huh?" 

"This is serious, Zuri," Nyx reminded her. Azura laughed. 

"I mean, yes, it is, but Amren's right. Our family takes things waaaaay out of proportion," She drew out the word as she stood, her heavy book in both hands. "However, yes, I do know it's serious. I actually thought..." She lowered her voice, and Nyx leaned in to hear her. "To be honest, I had wondered if Amandla was Artemis's mate." 

"Really?" Nyx straightened, surprised. "What makes you say that?" 

Azura shrugged as she led them both back towards Clotho's desk. "Just a feeling. The way those two looked at each other... it was like they were singing a song only they could hear." Her voice turned wistful. "Like they understood a language that hadn't been spoken for millennia." 

"But wouldn't they have been able to tell by now?" Nyx asked. "Surely one of them would have felt it." 

"Again, it was just an idea," Azura reminded him. "But you never know. That might be one of the reasons Amandla left Artemis. She might've thought she wasn't good enough to be her lover, much less her mate." 

"Well, what should I do?" Nyx pressed. He leaned in front of his cousin to push open the heavy door leading to the entrance, and she grunted her thanks. 

"My advice?" She hefted the heavy book in her arms and blew some of her hair out of her face. "Go find Amandla and tell her you were wrong." 

"That's not advice," Nyx griped. " She won't believe me." 

"You do mean it, though?" Azura asked, stopping to turn and look at him. "You don't truly believe she doesn't deserve our cousin's love?"  

To his own horror, Nyx hesitated a fraction of a second. Azura noticed. Her eyes narrowed. "Nyx." 

"No, I suppose I don't," He finally relented. "I don't think anyone deserves her, but Amandla is a good person. She..." He paused, trying to find the right words. "She and Artemis look out for each other." 

Azura nodded. "Like I said. Find Amandla. Tell her you're sorry, and that you didn't mean it. Convince her she made a terrible mistake, breaking Artemis's heart the way she did." She turned away and began walking again. "Then come back and tell me if Artemis kicks your ass all the way to Hybern." 

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Nyx paced anxiously outside the edge of the Valkyrie camp. If he was being honest with himself, he wasn't actually waiting for his cousin or Amandla. He was waiting for an excuse to leave. 

He sighed and turned to the camp, flexing his shoulders in preparation. "Come on, Nyx. Don't be a coward." 

"Too late," Nyx nearly jumped out of his skin when Delilah appeared next to him, her arms crossed and her eyes pointed anywhere but him. 

"Delilah," He said, letting out a breath. "What are you doing here?" 

Delilah's eyes flicked to him, then snapped forward again, as if she'd looked at him on instinct. "Same as you, I'd guess. To find Amandla." 

"Look, Delilah, I know I-" Nyx started to say. Delilah made a noise at the bottom of her throat. 

"Save it," She said. "Nyx, I know you're sorry, okay? But that doesn't change this." 

"But I can fix it!" Nyx protested. "That's why I'm here! I need to talk to Amandla." 

Again, Delilah turned to him, her breath steaming in the chilly air before her face. She kept her gaze pinned to his neck, where Nyx knew his tattoos peeked out of his jacket. "What are you talking about? I thought you were here to help find her."