The Reaping [malexmale]

Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

Cerberus's house was gigantic.

It was made entirely of some kind of sleek black stone with a very sharp tall roof to the left while the rest of it was flat, and tall tinted windows running across the taller part of the structure. An arched triangle shaped door with two very colorful trees on either side of it. In fact, now that I looked around, there was a ton of plant life everywhere. Trees towering high into the cloudy sky, rows of tangled clovers, and as we crossed the small bridge over the River Acheron that ran around his property like a moat, I noticed bright green vines creeping up along one corner of the house and spreading out across the smooth surface of the house.

"Let me knock. Stanton, keep an eye on Alaric." Akin added under his breath as he turned to the door. Hannibal hung back at the rear of our group, probably because he didn't get along with Cerberus, or so it seemed from the way he eyed the place like a foreboding shadow. Stanton kept a grip on my elbow, making me glare at him before I became entranced with the nearby bush of dark violt flowers that bloomed open to reveal a vivid yellow center.

"Stanton," I whispered excitedly, "There's little suns in those flowers!" Stanton ignored me and I gave his sleeve a tug, but he still wasn't listening. I think he was too worried about Cerberus, but fine, whatever. I could look at the suns all I wanted. I wanted to touch it, but when I reached for it, Hannibal caught my wrist and I hissed at him for it, but he didn't react to it.

"Those are poisonous." He stated. I furrowed my brow and looked down at the flower.

"No way. It's way too pretty." I muttered and went to touch it again, but this time, Hannibal almost crushed my wrist and made me squeak in alarm.

"Danger seldom appears so," He told me sternly, then looked at Stanton, "You'd do well to watch him. He's going to kill himself sooner rather than later." Stanton passed him an unimpressed glare, which was only creepier due to his entirely black irises.

"And you'd do well to get your hand off him. I'm watching him just fine." He replied sternly. Hannibal stared at him and for a moment, I swore they were having one of those weird telepathic moments, except it wasn't sweet like Akin and Hannibal's had been. This one was awkward and full of tension, so I chewed on the sleeve of my sweatshirt and tapped my foot on the cobblestones until someone finally answered the door.

Blaine answered the door. Petite and delicate with pale green eyes and chestnut brown hair pulled into a ponytail over his shoulder, he wore a cropped tank top and loose exercise pants. He cocked his head, sniffed once, then his eyes widened.

"Akin? What're you doing here?" He asked. Akin pouted for a moment, then just smiled.

"Sorry to drop in on you so suddenly. We're actually here to see Cerberus. We have a bit of an emergency. Please tell me he's home." He added hopefully. Blaine paused, frowning as he tilted his head slowly before perking up.

"Ah, no, but he's gonna be home any minute, so come on in." He said, stepping aside. Akin came in first, gesturing for the rest of us to follow, and Blaine made a humming sound as I passed, making me look at him curiously.

"You're Alaric," Blaine said, closing the door behind Hannibal and pausing to hold his hand out so he could find me and I reached out to bump my hand into his, "So you finally found Akin?"

"You've met?" Akin asked, confused.

"Long story." Blaine assured. I scrunched up my nose at that and took his hand in mine, poking at his palm in awe.

"Your hand is totally soft." I exclaimed. Blaine snatched his hand back, scowling in confusion and Akin cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"Actually, I kind of have a long story too. Mind if we sit down and talk?" He asked. Blaine hesitated for a moment, then reclutantly nodded and led us through the large gaping foyer with four different openings along with an L-shaped staircase that went up onto a catwalk that disappeared into a hallway upstairs. We went through the opening beneath the catwalk and entered a very nice kitchen designed with white and black marbled counters, everything modern right down to the large fridge. Two pairs of sliding glass doors opened out onto a huge patio that was neatly decorated and surrounded by yet more plant life.