The goddess of fate watched her granddaughter smile at something her mate had said and couldn't help the smile that shot past the worry that held her heart. They were so perfect together, Andre so controlled, dominant, exuding power, quiet mostly, and Cari shy but outgoing with a strong sense of right and wrong and a calming nature. They'd always had that perfect balance, but so many people had fought to keep them apart. Not just in this lifetime.
Not one to take chances when everything was going the right way, she'd brought them to her realm outside of time until their mating was solidified. Since there was no time in this realm, it'd taken a bit of existence for their bond to be what Fate guessed would be the equivalent of a month. All that mattered, though, was that the young couple was finally settled. When they'd go back to the real world, no time would've passed and they could do what they were intended to do.
They still had a long way to go, but now Fate had to focus on her other granddaughter. Dani was a little more stubborn than Cari ever had been, but she knew her granddaughter enough to know how to bend her to her will. She smiled again at how fiery the relationship between Dani and Eric was going to be. He was too used to being in control, to manipulating things around him. Eric saw life as a game that needed to be won. On the other hand, Dani lived for others. She'd sacrifice for them where Eric did not know it was even a concept.
"You're plotting again." Her mate admonished with a smile in his voice.
Her smile widened as she turned away from the young couple to look up at his beloved face. His eyes held so much love as he looked at her that she sometimes felt she didn't deserve. Of all her lifetimes, he was the mate that had entrenched himself in her heart more than any other. She couldn't bear leaving him behind, so she'd taken him along in her punishment, selfishly. But in all the aeons they'd lived, he'd never wavered in his devotion.
"How is it plotting if it's my nature?" She teased.
The smile now appeared on his face, amused, indulgent, and she couldn't help the flutter that bloomed within her at it. "It just means you're always plotting." He teased.
She laughed out loud as his arms wrapped around her and she placed her hands around his neck. "Then you should've known better than to ask, my love."
A throat clearing rather violently intruded on their intimacy and unsurprised, the goddess of fate turned to face her granddaughter. "Yes, dear?" she questioned, and hid her amusement at the sour look that flashed across Cari's features. Young people took everything so seriously. She noted Andre was his passive watchful self, his eyes sharp despite the relaxed demeanour he held.
"You said you'd explain everything, but even with all the time we've had here, you haven't."
She gave her granddaughter a raised a brow at that, her hand loosening from around her mate as he let her go. "Even in a timeless realm, you're still worried about time?"
"It's the burden of youth love." her mate said with mock disappointment.
"Grandpa!" Cari complained in frustration.
"I wanted you to become more settled, dear. The secrets of the past are difficult to bear, especially when they put such a burden on the young." Fate replied, straightening her shoulders. "Let's sit." she indicated the table that hadn't been there a moment ago.
That was the beauty of her realm. Things were whatever she and her mate wanted. Which meant they needed no servants and so could never have to restrain themselves. The other gods might have thought they were punishing her instead, they'd given her back her true power and so much more, they'd given her back eternity when they themselves remained transient mortals.
"Now," she said once they were all seated and had their drink of choice and snacks. "I told you a bit about the Primes."
"Yes." Cari agreed. "But you didn't say what they were."
"They were born at the point of creation, primary forces that were necessary for the continuance of the worlds."
"That's not the first time you've said worlds," Andre noted.
She nodded her head in acknowledgement. "Yes, there were parallel earths that were created at creation. They started off populated by duplicates of each person, but choices have resulted in different people existing in each. The rules of each world are different. In one world, everyone is a werewolf, another has dragons that cannot shape-shift, and in another, the paranormal races live in secret from humanity or they don't exist.
The gods in each of these worlds differ and are sometimes duplicates, but the Primes could access all of them with a thought and were singular. The oldest of the Primes was Power," she noted Andre, taking in a surprised breath. "The second one was Chaos. He wanted to be the first Prime and would try to undermine Power. He started the war between the Primes because he wanted Power's mate, Serenity.
Song knew she was Chaos' soulmate, but after that, she rejected him and vowed never to allow him into her heart even if he came to his senses. "
"You can't be serious." Andre denied, his face becoming thunderous as he balled his fists.
Confused, Cari turned to him, concern on her face. "What, what is it? What is she saying?"
"She's saying I'm the first Prime." He grit out.
Cari turned wide eyes to her. "You can't be serious?" she asked, though Fate could already tell that a part of her believed.
"The third Prime was Time. He wanted to stay neutral but couldn't help answering both his brothers' needs. While he accepted Sympathy as his soulmate, he never got the chance to be with her because of the rift between their siblings. Both lived with that pain until their end and they've been reborn to it. You two have to fix this?"
"What? How are we going to do that?" Cari asked, incredulous.
"I already made sure Dani and Eric are bonded together. You two just have to help them realise they were meant to be together."
As Fate had expected, her granddaughter argued. Cari wasn't a fan of Eric and all she wanted was to break the bond and take Dani back home. Something that Dani herself wanted too. But then life was never about what you wanted, especially when Prime powers were at play. She didn't want to tell the children, but they had more power between them to set the universe ablaze. And when the other couples were settled and awakened, she didn't want to think of what the six could do.
"The bond between Eric and Dani is permanent, dear," she informed her fuming granddaughter. Cari folded her arms and looked at her with that stubborn look she rarely had. Fate knew when her granddaughter got that look, nothing would budge her. She looked at her silent mate and they exchanged their amusement.
She continued trying to reason with Cari. "If Dani and Eric are not settled, then Mikhail and Annie will never find their happiness and the gates will open and unleash hell on earth. But not just on this earth, on all of them."
"Who's Mikhail?" Andre asked.
"Ilya Mikhail Yaroslav, prince of the reapers."
Cari's face became outraged. "You really love playing the puppetmaster, don't you?"
Fate took up her cup and sipped from it, enjoying the lemongrass tea before settling the cup back on its saucer. "Yes, dear," she agreed with a small smile. "I am the goddess of fate. It is in my nature to drive life into what it should be. How can I do anything else when my children are caught in the threads of fate?"
"You did that on purpose, made us your descendants." Cari accused.
Keeping her face innocent-looking, Fate blinked her surprise at her granddaughter. "I thought that was the most obvious thing here."
"Were you responsible for the oracle who lied to Claire too?" Cari demanded her look mutinous.
Fate shook her head slightly. "Cari," she chided. "You know an oracle speaks from the voice of truth. She told Claire that the older of the Mason twins would be greater. Your sister just assumed it was her."
"Claire is the older twin."
"No dear, I just confused things at your birth. You're older."
Cari's mouth hung open for a few seconds. Andre shot Fate a reproving look before turning to his mate. "You...I...you...ahhh, you're impossible!" she shot up from her seat. "How could you lie to me like this, to everyone?"
"To ensure you didn't die. Any of the dark gods who tried to find your destiny would get Claire's, otherwise, they'd have killed you."
"You have an answer to everything, don't you!" she shouted before storming off with Andre behind her.
"If you're leaving, don't forget to take the reapers who kidnapped you with you. They'll be needed if you're to succeed! And make sure to tell no one about the Primes." she called out and was rewarded by another frustrated scream.
Her mate chuckled, an intimate sound that she wanted to bask in. "You loved doing that, didn't you?"
Fate grinned back at him. "What's the point of being fate if I can't tweak my descendants?"