Azure Rose [l.t]

27.

"So I grabbed my king and ran away to the land of death, where I reigned and people whispered that I'd been dragged" - Anonymous

"Don't do this to me,' he breathes against her hair. 'Don't turn away from me. You're the only thing I have left. You can't leave."

A sweet ache curls in her heart at his words, but Zariah does not want it there. She tries to focus on her anger, something other that burns fiercely in her chest, but she doesn't want to. She wants him. "You distracted me last night." She whispers as she pulls away from his embrace.

"How can you say that?" Louis asks, hurt. He resisted the urge to watch Zariah change back into the clothes she was wearing last night, but he couldn't help but take in her heavenly glow and flushed skin.

"I missed my wedding, Louis. I was supposed to get married this morning." She started to head over to Louis' dresser to grab her engagement ring, before Louis angrily stepped in front of her.

"You're acting as if you wanted to get married to him. How could you place that over the love we have for each other?" He snarled, clenching his fists, feeling every fiber in his body heat up with rage.

"I don't love him, I love you, nor do I wish to marry him." Zariah explained, side-stepping Louis to grab the ring off the dresser, only to be met with a sizzling shock. Zariah hissed, and quickly dropped ring to the floor. Louis, worried, quickly rushed over and grabbed Zariah's hand. He quickly examined the lightly burned flesh before he lifted her finger to his lips and gave it a small kiss. She smiled shyly, yet gratefully. "I was only freaking out because I know my parents are going to have my head, and I know Zayn is upset – he is my friend after all."

Louis sighed, defeated, and rubbed the hem of his boxers. He chewed on his bottom lip, picking at the flesh until it bled a little. He softly grabbed Zariah's hand and led her to his bedroom window, overlooking the souls of the Underworld. It was a very ghastly sight and the excessive moaning and groaning did not help, but there all the way back in the caverns was a little garden – the garden his mother loved so dearly. The mystical garden failed to produce any color besides black and a deep shade of red, but it held a certain ambiance to it that it left Louis of all people entranced. "Before you go," Louis whispered, "I want to take you there, to my mother's garden." Zariah let out a little hum in response. Intertwining their fingers, Louis led them out of his bedroom.

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"THIS. IS. A. DISASTER!" Aphrodite shrieked. She was on full rampage mode ever since Zariah left Zayn standing at the altar. The cake was destroyed, –she picked it up and threw it into the pool- the decorations were strewn about and torn, and the guests were awkwardly watching Aphrodite's meltdown. Persephone and Hades sat awkwardly in the back, trying not to focus on how their son enraged a very problematic and spoiled Goddesses plans. The couple were aware of what took place in their sons' bedroom last night, but decided not to act upon it and see what was to come in the morning – and Zariah had made her decision. Persephone cracked a smile at the thought of her son finding love, but was also deeply mortified of their fate. She squeezed her husband's hand, who chuckled lightly as Aphrodite hysterically sobbed. Persephone gave her husband a light slap on the chest and a glare, for it was not right to chuckle at others misfortunes.

"I'm worried for them." She whispered just loud enough to let Hades hear. "They can't escape their fate now." She grabbed onto her husbands hand tightly.

He grimaced and stroked the top of his wife's hand with his free one. "There's nothing we can do about it, my love. We knew about it since the beginning."

Persephone stood up slowly, dragging Hades along with her, and began to walk towards the front yard. Tears welled up in her eyes and Hades could hear her muffled sobs. "We're going to lose our son."

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"Where could she have gone?!" Aphrodite shrieked, tugging at her long dirty blond hair.  Once everyone had gone, Hephaestus had gotten his wife to calm down and to cease throwing heavy and breakable objects.