The Urbem (Completed)

(Lyra)

"She just left you?" I was saying, horrified. I looked at Lexio sympathetically, full of a fair amount of anger at the same time... Nephele was really starting to piss me off. Insulting Dolosus and I was one thing, but now she was deliberately leading my brother on, like he was some sort of toy? She had the nerve to just leave him there alone with all those slaves to watch? He had been injured, for God’s sake… Nephele being there with Dimitri would have had no impact on whether his Bond failed or not... This was completely beyond what I could or would tolerate. As I was thinking this, Nephele appeared out of some bushes, Dimitri standing nearby. Leaving Lexio, I walked over to her casually. I didn’t really want to start a fight, but I couldn’t let this go lying down.

"And what have you been doing?" I asked. I was agitated that she hadn’t even bothered to let me know the she was okay; I had been a bit worried before the anger came. She frowned, unsure why I was asking, but shrugged off whatever reserves she had and smiled.

"Nothing much. Why? What's happened?" I cast a quick glare at Lexio, who had joined us, fuming quietly.

"Oh, I'm sure you were enjoying yourself," he sneered at her. The crease in her forehead returned. I could definitely feel the tension that was about to escalate.

"Excuse me, but I have no idea what's going on here," she snapped. I gave Dolosus a quick look and he nodded slightly, as if telling me to say what was on my mind.

"Why are you leading my brother on?" I asked blatantly.

"What?" she said, pulling a strained smile, trying, with failure, to hid a growing anger and shock. "I must be hearing things, because you can't have just said what I thought you did."

"Can't I?" I asked. "Or are you just using your annoying gift of selective hearing once again?"

"What is with this attitude suddenly?" she said accusingly. "I literally just return to camp and I get this?"

"Oh, I think you know what this is about, Sexy," Lexio sneered, putting a spiteful emphasis on his old nickname for her. "We all know what you and Mr. Bad Boy over there were doing," he added, gesturing to Dimitri. She glared at us.

"What is this? Is this some kind of pathetic joke you're all playing? What does it have to do with any of you what I do in my spare time?" She turned her glare to Lexio. "And as for you,-"

"You should just keep your nose out of it," said Dimitri, stepping up to the side of Nephele. "We don't live to please you."

"You're the one that needs to keep their nose out of it," Lexio snapped. "This has nothing to do with you."

"It has everything to do with me," he growled. Lexio opened his mouth to argue more, but I cut him off.

"Please, Dimitri," I said, trying to keep us from falling farther down the slope we were already teetering on, "I'm not looking for a fight; I simply want to know what's going on." Dimitri, still staring at Lexio, seemed to calm a bit, but Nephele, however, did not.

"It's none of your business!" she hollered. "If you're not looking for a fight then keep your stupid accusations to yourself." I looked at her slowly.

"It is my business when my brother comes to my doorstep crying because he feels like one of his friends has turned her back on him." My expression darkened. “I am also the leader here and have a complete right to know where you are.”

"If anything, he turned his back on me," she said, quickly glancing at Lexio. "Ever since I returned from Uxor-America he ignored me until I happen to accidentally bump into him and even then he was beyond rude."

"Rude?" Lexio laughed. "I wasn't 'rude' until he started it!" Lexio gestured at Dimitri again. "As far as I'm concerned, he can go back to Uxor and take his pony with him. I'm sure she'd make a nice glue stick." Dimitri snarled and strode over to him, shoving him with all the force he could carry. Lexio stumbled back, a livid expression on his face.

"This has nothing to do with feeling like a friend turned her back on you, does it?" Dimitri laughed dryly. "This is all because this little boy can't get his way, isn't it? Because he can't have his way with Nephele, and you know what? The whole time I've been here she," he turned and pointed back to Nephele, "hasn't mentioned you once. What does that tell you, child?" I had been annoyed with Lexio for threatening Athena like that and I knew that Dimitri had every right to be angry, but my desire to defend my brother couldn't stop when I did next.