Feathers and Blood (boyxboy)

Chapter Twenty-One

What the Hell was I supposed to say to any of that? I was left utterly speechless, still absentmindedly playing with Luke's tail. I used to find it disgusting, almost, but now I felt a certain fondness for it.

The day had only just begun, but I had no desire to get up from his bed. He was sitting up and I was laying down next to him; both of us were looking at each other sadly, letting his story sink in.

Finally, I cleared my throat. "I still don't get why you took my memories. I mean yeah, it was horrible, but you don't think I had the right to know?"

Luke made a noise of distress. "Because you would have hated me! And rightfully so. I lied to you about what I was, and it was my fault you killed yourself..."

I sat up and shut him up with a fierce kiss. Gasping in surprise, he reacted quickly, his arms embracing me with equal strength. We both collapsed back onto the bed, our lips never breaking apart.

"It's not your fault," I insisted him. "I mean, it is your fault you took my memories, and you're not off the hook for that yet. But you didn't force me to kill myself. Not that I'm blaming myself. I'm blaming Lyssios, and you should too."

I heard a growl come up from the back of his throat. "Oh, I am," he assured me. "That's why I'm launching this war. And why I was so afraid when he kidnapped you again."

I pressed my mouth against his cheek. "Well I'm here now. And I'm not about to let any dumb-ass demon take me ever again."

Luke pulled away, frowning. "Do I fall in the 'dumb-ass demon' category?"

I laughed. "Only sometimes."

There were still so many things I wanted to know. Who was Will? Why was The Iliad so important? Was my mother okay? But I figured enough had been revealed for the day. I could live with what I knew until tomorrow at least.

I yawned and stretched, then hopped off of the bed. "So what are we doing today, then?" I asked.

Luke shrugged, still laying down. "I don't know. Whatever you want. As long as I'm with you."

I smiled. "Tell me stories," I implored. "What was Cleopatra like? Was she really that crazy?"

"She thought I was a god," he murmured, looking up at me adoringly. "She was absolutely insane."

"Tell me," I begged.

He reached up and pulled me down to him. We kissed one more time. "Ask and I'll answer," he whispered.

Shayne

I was back in the safety of my home, the city of Hybris. Unlike Timor, which was gloomy and chaotic, Hybris was designed to look like a proper kingdom. Different parts of the city were inspired from different empires, such as the palace itself, which was modelled after the palace of Versailles in France, or the Roman bathhouses less than a mile away. It was a beautiful, sinful city.

My brother, Nikolai, and I had been charged to tell our father the news: Jesse had been returned. I wondered how my father would take it; Jesse's return meant Phobos would be at full power again, which was good for the war and bad for Hamilton. We all knew how much my father desperately loathed his youngest brother.

Nikolai was quiet, pensive, the whole way from the entrance to the city to my father's throne room. I resented him for being able to stay so calm. He was a half-breed, no one special, yet he had more resolve than I did. And Hamilton favored him much more.

My father's throne room was almost completely made of gold. Only the floor was made of marble, and the walls were white, but they were so lavished in golden ornaments they might have well been gold themselves. He sat on his seat regally, his crown glinting in the light. I noticed that Phobos' silver circlet was hanging off of the armrest.