THEY DIDN'T FIGURE it out the day after. Or the day after that day. No, with no news from Marc, who still was controlling the body, if she was to trust the soulmate mark, and no news from Layla, who was gods know where, Noor had started to fall in a deep pit of anxiety and self-deprecation.
She stopped going to work. Was fired. Then wallowed some more in her bed, Zagreus trying to snap her out of it without much success. What would he do anyway? Her soulmate was missing and on a potentially suicide mission.
And she still hasn't called her father back.
Zagreus is... well, he's worried, to be honest. Noor has had depressive episodes in the past, but it got better. It's only been a few days, sure, but by that time she'd at least brushed her teeth. Though, he figures that this is getting better, as she did shower and brushed her hair and teeth that day, before going back to bed. He still believes that this is something else entirely.
Noor is, in fact, in complete denial about what's happening. About Ammit, and Harrow, and Marc disappearing, and the only way for her to keep up the illusion that nothing is wrong, is to shut herself from reality. Reality can't harm her if she can't see it.
"Do you want anything?" he asks her as if he would even be able to help.
He receives no answer. She might be asleep, so he goes back to the TV, and waits for her to wake up, show signs of life, anything. Maybe then he'd be able to help.
It's excruciating seeing her like that. He's not even watching Love Island anymore, just watching the news, trying to see if Marc is causing a ruckus of some sort.
A good thing he had the great presence of mind to do so. Because, as he sits back in the chair without it creaking under his non-existent weight, the channel switches to an emergency report.
"An out of cycle eclipse has plunged Egypt into darkness, as the moon changed its course to stand in front of the sun..."
Truly, he didn't hear the rest of the sentence. The moon changed its course, that's enough for him to know who's behind that.
"Noor!" he screams through the room, before running to the bedroom. "Noor, come on, sweetie, wake up." She opens an eye, grunting before turning in the bed. "Okay, not the time to be difficult, human!" She sighs. "I found Marc."
Zagreus has never once seen her shoot up out of bed that fast. And that includes all the times she woke up late for work, which is, surprisingly, a lot. "You what? Where? Where is he? How fast can we get there?"
Her bare feet stomp on the floor around her small room as he goes back to the living room, where the TV is still on, displaying everything that's happening right now in Egypt. He gives her time to put on some clothes while he tells her what he found.
"I don't know where specifically, but I know he's gonna be in Giza in a bit."
"Why?" she asks frantically. "Why Giza?"
Zagreus drops on the couch, Noor putting socks on and joining him. "Well, the Ennead has a place to regroup in times of crisis, or if a god interferes with humans like Khonshu just did. God, he must be desperate to pull something like this. But anyway, yes, neutral grounds. The Pantheon had Delphi, they have Giza."
Noor can't help but frown. "Why Delphi, shouldn't it be Athens?"
"Why do you think people said they could hear gods in Delphi? All those oracles?"
"Makes sense." She pushes the heels of her hands in her eyes, groaning. "No, whatever! It had to be Giza didn't it? Couldn't it have been, like, the British Museum? Half of their stuff is stolen from Egypt anyway." Her stomach drops, and her chest constricts. "Because there's no way in hell I have the kind of money to just drop everything and get to Giza."
"Don't think we'll have to." She arches an eyebrow, waiting for him to elaborate. "Oh it must be so funny, with your little brain."
"Don't think I won't kill you because I will."
"Fine." He stands up, and starts to go towards the door leading to the bathroom. "My sister Melinoë was always better at this than me, but she's not here anymore." Noor looks up at him, noting the sudden nostalgic tone of his voice. "Whatever. Thing is, those places, Giza, Delphi, even some parts of Omnipotence City, they exist between universes." She nods, as if she got all of that. "Crashed the party a few times. They're meant for gods and their knights to access, so if we're lucky enough..."
He blows into his hands, rubs them together, and puts them on the wooden door. Closing his eyes, he searches for a glimpse of power in himself, nothing big – he knows what happens when he starts using his powers. He also knows that this shouldn't happen now that he's... well, dead, but he can't risk it if Noor is around.
So he reaches for a sliver, and soon enough, he can see a glowing red slipping through the door. Noor stands up, mesmerised. She's never seen him use his powers. She wasn't even aware that he had any after his death. "You can use your powers? Why didn't you do this earlier?"
He looks away. "Just when it concerns the immaterialistic plane," he tells her. "Listen, once we're through, I won't be able to bring you back here. This is the moment you chose. Getting involved."
"Okay," she nods. "So we're doing this. Should I take a suitcase or something? No?" She notices Zagreus' painfully serious look. "I told you. I'm in too deep."
"Yeah, you also said it in the middle of a panic attack."
"First of all, this was a normal anxiety attack, no panic. Second of all, bloody period cramps give me panic attacks, that's just how I roll."
"Noor..."
"What do you want me to say?" she almost cries out. "I'm terrified. I am positively freaked out, but this isn't about Steven or Marc anymore. If Ammit is raised, billions of people on the planet will die, Layla said so." She swallows thickly. "I don't know if you've noticed, Zag, but I'm one of the idiots who live on it."
The seeping feeling of nothingness clings to his bone, and he starts to breathe heavily. "You better not die, because if you do..."
"I know, you'll go back to whatever happened during the blip." If she could, she would have patted his chest to reassure him. "Come on. We'll be careful."
He sighs, resigned. "We'll have to be discreet." Noor nods fervently. "I've crashed a few of their parties, and I don't think they've forgiven me just yet. So, we hide, wait for it to be over, and grab Marc. Then, we get the hell outta dodge."
"What did you do?" she asks, a bit suspicious.
"It was a misunderstanding. Let's not get into it now." Reluctantly, Zagreus steps away from the door. "After you. I'll follow." He always does.
Noor offers him a small smile, and opens the door.
It takes some time to adjust to her new surroundings. The second she's in with Zagreus beside her, the door disappears. "Woah. You weren't kidding," she breathes out. She feels a shiver run down her spine. "Well, the only way is forward now."
Absent-mindedly, Zagreus reaches out to take her hand. He wished he would have stopped over the years. Realising that they still can't touch everytime takes a toll on him.
Noor does her best to be silent, walking through a small corridor. She can hear noises towards the end of it. Chatter. Zagreus seems to retreat in himself.
He doesn't want them to know that he's here. Truth is, crashing the party was an understatement, and he didn't want Noor to learn about it. He was high on power when this happened, and this wasn't who he was, it wasn't.
But he'll never forgive himself for it.
They reach the end, and immediately duck for safety behind a huge rock. Noor looks up at the Egyptian mask, flanked by statues of gods she honestly doesn't know of, thrones in rank facing each other. The room is dimly lit with candles, and is already filled by half a dozen people.
"This is a tiny bit awesome, not going to lie," Noor breathes out.
Then, she feels the soulmate tingling, then burning and she knows that Marc has arrived.
And that there is no hiding from him. Noor frowns a little. "Can Marc see you?" she whispers to Zagreus.
He shakes his head. "No, only the gods can see me."
"But I saw Khonshu the other night," she recalls, confused. "So why can't he see you?"
"I gave you my Sight. Makes you see through different planes of existence. Like this place, that's why here, I won't be able to hide myself from them." Zagreus debates on the best way to say this, and settles on the worst one. "It would have been hard to make you see any other god, but Khonshu is a god of the moon. I'm a death deity. We're not playing in the same field. We're not even playing the same game."
She blinks a few times at him. "Okay, forget I asked. Geez, talk about a god complex."
After seconds, she can actually see Marc come in instead of feeling him. And going by how frantic he seems, looking everywhere, he can definitely sense her too.
"Why'd you ask?" Zagreus wonders.
"Well, because we might have a problem," she tells him. "Marc can definitely feel me."
Zagreus frowns, turning to her. "Feel you?"
"Yeah, through the soulmate bond." She turns to him, realising how shocked he is. "What?"
He keeps staring at her. "That's... extremely rare, Noor. I've only ever heard of soulmates being able to sense each other, it's..." He shakes his head. "Is it only Marc?"
Noor swallows thickly, trying to forget the blush creeping on her cheeks. "Uh, yes. Nothing like that with Steven."
"I guess the fact that you have different soulmates could have heightened the bond with the... main one? It's unprecedented, I don't know much about it." Then, he looks up, and sighs. "Well, points for trying."
"Noor?"
Noor jumps, and quickly stands up. "Marc!" She ignores how flushed she is, fidgeting with her hands. "Fancy seeing you here."
A muscle twitches in his jaw, and he can practically hear Steven rejoice that his best friend is here. Marc more focused on the fact that 'here' is Egypt, in the middle of a god meeting. "What are you doing here?"
She scowls, crossing her arms on her chest. "Someone started a flipping eclipse in Egypt, haven't you heard? Figured you must be desperate to pull something like that, and you might need some help."
"Help?" he echoes, before looking at her, up and down. She squirms a little. "In your socks?"
"Yeah, well, apparently the whole world's at stake, so my clothes shouldn't be the main problem. Do I have to remind you that I have Zag with me? I'll be fine."
"Zag can't even..."
"Oh if he starts to call me Zag, I'm going to lose it."
"...Give you a suit, how do you want to help?"
Noor scoffs, about to answer, when Zag calls to her. "If you want to argue, do you mind doing it a few metres down? I really don't want anyone to see me."
She rolls her eyes, and takes Marc's arm, leading him away from the Greek god currently in a crouched position behind a rock. "Zagreus, despite being apparently not useful," she says through her teeth, "is the one who forced our way in."
Marc leans towards her, whispering to her ear. "Why are we whispering?"
Noor does her best to ignore the chills sent down her spine when she feels Marc's lips move against the shell of her ear. "Well, uh... well, apparently, he caused a fuss last time he crashed their party or something. So he wants to stay hidden. I'm thinking strippers were involved." Marc's movement allows her to see the left side of his face, and her frown deepens, gasping silently. "What happened to your head?"
Dry blood is covering his cheek. She tries to wipe it, but he takes her hand, not willing for her to get her fingers covered with his blood. "Long story." The corner of his lip twitches, holding back a smile. "Why did you want to come here in the first place?"
She looks around as other Knights come in, undoubtedly with their gods following. "If Harrow is going to kill more than half the population, I'd like to think that I at least got off my arse to help fight him." She shrugs a little. "I may not have... brute force, but I could definitely annoy him into backing down."
This time, Marc lets out a low chuckle. He can't help it. "You know, people would usually turn a blind eye and hope for the best."
Noor is a bit surprised to hear him laugh, losing the thread of their conversation for a second. Now that the shock of his... occupation has passed, she realises that he may not be as bad as she thought he was. A bit more level-headed, she recognises that people can't be all good or all bad.
Still, the apprehension of her father's reaction hangs around her. But best not focus on it right now, or this is not going to end well.
"Well, I have anxiety. I have to supervise everything or I'll die. So, not me."
He gives her a long look that she doesn't see, humming in agreement. "Not you."
He can't believe that he's known her – actually, known her – for two days, and she's already made him laugh more than anyone has in the last few months. He likes to think that the soulmate bond is only here to nudge people together, and let them discover why they just... fit, together. He's slowly starting to find out the reasons why Noor is perfect for him.
Cutting his thoughts short, a woman walks up to them. The soulmate bond tingles between them, and Noor realises that they kept their arms intertwined the whole time. They part, Noor blushing and Marc clearing his throat, awkward.
"Khonshu's theatrics are unparalleled," she starts. Noor thinks that she's definitely never met Zagreus. She looks at Marc. "You must be his Avatar."
Noor bites down her tongue before retorting that they're called Knights, and why wouldn't she be Khonshu's Knight? But, sure, whatever, let's just roll with misogyny.
Marc must have noticed the way she narrowed her eyes at the woman, because he steps forward with a bit of a smirk. "Hi. And who are you?"
"I'm Yatzil, Avatar of Hathor," she says, her red dress flowing around her as she moves.
He nods. "Okay."
"Goddess of music and love?"
"Cool."
"Surely Khonshu mentioned her?"
Marc shakes his head. Noor feels more awkward than when she first met Layla, which says a lot. "The gods aren't really his favourite topic," he explains.
"Not even when they are old friends?"
"Sorry?"
Noor feels the air move around her, and shivers, almost sensing gods moving. She hopes Zagreus is safe, tucked away in his corner.
Yatzil chuckles. "She says it was not so long ago, Khonshu enjoyed Hathor's melodies."
"Well, as far as I know, the only melody Khonshu enjoys is the sound of pain."
"Okay!" Noor says loudly, clapping her hands. "That's very cute and not at all making me awfully distraught." She gives Yatzil a large, fake smile. "I'm Noor, by the way. That's Marc. Since you didn't ask."
Yatzil gives her a weirded out look, and Marc coughs behind his hand, hiding his growing laughter.
"Yatzil!" someone calls.
They turn to face a man in a suit, sitting in the highest throne, in the middle. "Guess he must be important," Noor mutters, to which Marc nods.
They walk towards him, looking around to look at the statues representing the different gods. Noor can feel worry growing in her. How exactly does this work?
"Did Khonshu say anything about how this is supposed to work?" Noor asks him.
"Not really." He turns to Yatzil, who's walking to her own throne. "Is there somethin' I should know?"
"I try not to fight it," she tells him. "It's a strange sensation, but you'll get used to it."
"That's what she said," Noor breathes out.
She finds herself reaching for Marc's hand, and sighs when she feels his knuckles brush against hers. Comfort floods their bond, temporarily calming the usual fire.
"In attendance," Yatzil starts, but her voice sounds different. More firm, severe. "Horus, Isis, Tefnut, Osiris and Hathor." As she pronounces their names, Noor can hear wooshes of power around her. "To hear the account of Khonshu."
Marc's hand suddenly grips Noor's as his head is thrown back, eyes glowing white. She frowns, worry washing over her, but can't think about it for long.
"You've been banished once for nearly exposing us, Khonshu," the man in a suit – Osiris' Knight, says. "And you know we despise your garishness, your showy masks and weapons. Now, you've brought an outsider to our sacred grounds." Noor almost physically folds on herself. "But manipulate the sky again and we will imprison you in stone."
"I came here on my own–" Noor starts, before Marc interrupts her, loudly so.
"Spare me your self-righteous threats!" Noor's head snaps to him, eyes wide in surprise. Despite being the one to yell those words, Marc seems completely confused and a tiny bit scared. "I was banished for not abandoning humanity unlike the rest of you."
Noor blinks. "Fuck was that?"
"I don't know," Marc whispers back, panting.
"We have not abandoned humanity," the man next to Osiris' Knight says. "They abandoned us. We simply trust our Avatars to carry out our purposes, without calling undue attention to ourselves. Not like some of us, who dare to bring humans here."
Aforementioned human kicks an invisible stone with her socks. "Well fuck you too," she whispers to herself.
"Avatars are not enough!" Marc screams again, making her jump. "We need the might of gods. Return to the opulence of the Overvoid before you lose this realm."
It finally clicks that the person talking with Marc's mouth wasn't him, but Khonshu. "Oh that's weird."
Marc breathes heavily, folded in two. "Yeah, tell me about it."
"For the last time, Khonshu," Osiris, she figures, says, tiredly. "The Avatars that remain here are simply meant to observe. We decided long ago we did not wish to meddle in the affairs of man."
"We will decide our best course of action," a woman – Tefnut, she thinks, says. "Speak your purpose."
Marc seizes again. "I call for judgement against Arthur Harrow!"
"The charges?" another god asks.
"Conspiracy to release Ammit!" Can the dead pigeon quit yelling?
"That is a heavy accusation, Khonshu," Osiris says. "Let us summon the accused."
Noor can feel apprehension cling to her bones, and Zagreus, all the way across the room, loses all his colour. This is bad.
From behind them, they can hear a surge of power before Harrow walks out from a door, without his cane, for once.
"So, I see by the presence of Khonshu's current makeshift Avatar" – asshole! – "the purposes of our meeting must be nefarious."
Harrow tilts his head to the side, walking to Noor. She takes a step back, almost stumbling on her own feet – fucking socks – before Marc steps in front of her. "You're close enough," he warns.
Khonshu takes control again, harshly. "You know exactly why we are here!"
"I must admit I do not miss the sound of that voice."
"No, you much rather like the sound of yours," Noor can't help but snare from behind Marc's large figure.
Harrow takes a deep breath, before sparing her a look. "Noor Dhawan, was it?"
Marc stiffens at the thought of Harrow knowing his soulmate's identity, and Noor can't help but retreat. She's not a hero. She's not cut-out for this. She's a coward.
"Don't say her name," Marc warns again, stepping closer to Noor.
"See, Khonshu let his Avatar bring his soulmate," he adds, gesturing to their hands. "But she is no normal human, is she?"
Her blood runs cold in her veins. They've been so careful, how would Harrow know about Zagreus? It's not possible. Still, she can't help but let out a low, surprisingly strong, "Stop talking."
"She was able to see Khonshu, a feat not achievable by a mere human," he goes on.
"I'm warning you, Harrow, shut your mouth."
"But only if she was an Avatar herself."
There it is. Noor can almost hear Zagreus scowling and protesting in the back of her mind.
For once in their entire goddamn lives together, the secret really is out.
"An Avatar?" Osiris, echoes.
Noor clears her throat. "Well I wouldn't really call it that," she tries to save. "I'd say it's more of a partnership."
But it's too late. "Where is your god?"
"You know... around."
"Where?"
"Okay calm down please geez – Right here." Noor stops, feeling a weird surge of power flowing through her body, dropping Marc's hand as her lips move on their own. "I've always liked to make an entrance."
She doesn't like this feeling. Everyone is looking at her, while she's not able to control her own body. Zagreus knows that she hates it, but it's that, or being turned to stone.
Osiris tilts his head. "I know you, God of the Underworld."
Noor, actually Noor, frowns and asks, "What gave it away?"
"Your eyes glowed red," Marc tells her, the tiniest bit freaked out.
"Oh that's cool, actually."
"Yeah I thought so too."
"Which one are you?" Osiris asks, cutting their conversation short.
She can feel Zagreus take control of her body again. "It does not matter," he says through her. "Khonshu had a good reason to risk getting turned to stone. We should hear him out first."
Without much hesitation or room for it, really, Khonshu speaks again. "Arthur Harrow seeks to release Ammit from her tomb!" he screams out.
It captures the attention of the Egyptian gods again.
Harrow speaks as if it was nothing. "I was in the desert. But if visiting the sands were a crime, the line of sinners would be longer than the Nile. Khonshu has searched for Ammit's tomb since he ensnared me to his service, and now has another god helping him."
"That is such bullshit!" Noor erupts.
"Is that you or your god speaking?"
"It's your mom–"
"Nonetheless," Harrow says, speaking over Noor, "his vision is obscured by jealousy, paranoia, and his..."
"He is a deceiver!" Khonshu screams, trying to regain control of the situation.
"Do not trust the word of a shamed god." He looks at Marc, sweating and panting from resisting Khonshu's control. "No, Khonshu is unhinged, and his servant, unwell."
Something drops in Noor's stomach, and her jaw clenches abruptly, resisting the urge to pummel Harrow to the ground. Cripple or not, she'll have his head. Marc looks pained, exposed, and Noor about to commit bloody murder.
"How do you mean?" Hathor asks.
"This is a man who literally does not know his own name," Harrow states. "He has a divorce certificate under the name Marc Spector..."
"Liar!" Khonshu yells.
"Employment records, under the name Steven Grant."
"Stop!"
"I've seen him speak to himself..."
"Shut up!"
"Threaten himself," he says, before chuckling. "I have no idea how many personalities he must possess. Even the soulmate mark of his soulmate keeps changing back and forth, I've seen it. The man is clearly insane."
One would expect Marc to punch Harrow in the face, yes. However, it's Noor who shoves past him, and throws her punch towards his face. Marc is too late to grab her waist and tug her back.
White rope wraps itself around her wrists, and suddenly, she finds herself kneeling on the ground, panting, unable to move her arms tied behind her back.
Marc, in trying to get her free and deal with Harrow himself, ends up in the same situation.
"We will not tolerate violence in this Chamber," Osiris proclaims.
Noor and Marc share a look, huffing. Well, at least they're in this together.
"It brings me no pleasure to tell you that this is a deeply troubled man," Harrow goes on. "Khonshu is taking advantage of him, and his soulmate's god, the same way that he abused me, the way he inspires to abuse this court." Noor shuts her eyes tightly. This is not happening. "Take action now, before it's too late."
Horus nods towards Marc. "Let us speak to Marc Spector."
He unties him. Marc drops to the ground, panting, breathing laboured. The first thing he does, is check on Noor. "Untie her."
Isis shakes her head. "I recognize the soulmate bond, but we won't until we know which god she is associated with."
Noor can't help the small whimper from escaping her lips, and Marc's head snaps to Isis. "Untie her."
Horus is about to say something, but Horus nods, and sets her free. Noor drops to the ground too, suddenly unbalanced, Marc catching her. She tries her best to master her breathing, knowing the right respiratory exercises. "I'm fine, I'm fine."
Marc takes her face in his hands, checking to be sure, looking deep in her eyes for any traces of lying. When he deems that she's in fact, fine, he turns back to the gods.
"Are you unwell?" Horus asks.
Marc looks at him, then Harrow. "I am," he says, voice broken. "I am unwell." He looks around, before looking at Noor right in the eyes, where he can see compassion and not hatred, for once. "I need help."
Noor nods once, shyly cups his cheek, before standing up. "Take over pal."
There's a flash of red glow in her eyes, before her lips stretch in a coy smile, and she claps her hands. "Right," Zagreus says. "All fun and games, enslaving my human, isn't it?" he adds, voice light despite the underlying anger. "From what I seem to recall, she and her soulmate aren't on trial, he is. And if you could listen to what they have to say, you'd know how dangerous he is."
Osiris doesn't even ponder the question. "He has committed no offence. We don't even know who you are."
Zagreus swallows thickly, gutted. Revealing who he is would not help. But if he doesn't, they'll never believe him. Noor's life would be at stake.
"I am Zagreus, the God of Rebirth."
Gasps fall from their mouths, horror written all over their faces. Noor can feel Zagreus leave her body, not willing to put her in more danger when facing their reaction.
Osiris almost goes red with anger. "How dare you? After what you did? After all the lives you've killed?" Noor stops breathing for a moment, Marc turning to her with a concerned frown. "Hypocrite, claiming to be against Ammit when you once entertained her plan." Osiris turns to Hathor. "This matter is concluded."
"Wait!" she tries, but it's too late.
The gods have left their Knights' bodies, and they're slowly retreating back to where they came from.
Arthur walks straight past her, and she bites back the urge to make him eat his whole fist, focusing back on Marc, still trying to regain a normal breathing and calm down the beating of his heart, after fighting so hard against Khonshu.
She helps him up, letting him weigh on her to keep him upright. The bond hums between them when they lock eyes, and the fire is back, stronger than ever, almost turning Noor bright red, and forcing Marc to look away.
"You okay?" he asks.
She forces a trembling smile. "Better than Zagreus will be when I'm done with him."
"Yeah, I don't think strippers were involved," he says, and a chuckle forces its way up her throat. "Where is he anyway?"
She looks around, but nothing. "Moping."
What did Osiris mean, that he shared Ammit's beliefs? He would have told her that. He would, right?
Then, Noor realises that she knows nothing of his life, only his death. Nothing of what he was like, as a god, what he did. Sometimes, it's like his life started when he met her.
"Hathor's never seen a soulmate bond like yours," Yatzil says, only remaining Avatar. Noor looks up at her, still holding Marc up. "It's quite extraordinary, so let me tell you this. There is another way."
They meet in the corridor leading to Marc's exit. He softly pushes Noor away, standing on his own, and ignores the tingling feeling when their hands brush against the other.
Yatzil notices how unfocused they are. "You must listen to me carefully," she reminds them.
"Yes, yes."
"Right, go on."
"Ammit was buried in secret," she tells them, "the location hidden even from the gods. Ammit had many followers. I didn't know who to trust." She looks at Noor. "You can't fake the betrayal in your eyes when you learned about your god."
Noor looks away. "Let's not get into details. Someone must have known something, right?
She nods. "One man. A medjay named Senfu. He was tasked with recording the location of the tomb, in case the gods ever changed their minds and decided to show mercy. Find Senfu's sarcophagus, and you'll find your tomb."
"Okay," Marc says, frowning. "How are we supposed to do that?"
"His sarcophagus was stolen and sold on the black market. You might want to start there." Yatzi offers them a polite smile, before stepping away. "That is all I know."
She retreats, leaving the two together to go back to the real world.
Walking through the corridor, Marc turns to Noor, sending her careful glances. She keeps looking around, in hopes to see Zagreus. She needs to make sense of what she heard back there. Needs to know why he would hide this from her. But he just doesn't seem to want to show up.
As one should know by now, not knowing doesn't agree with Noor. And Marc seems to notice that.
"Thanks for having my back, back there," he tells her.
Surprised, Noor turns to him. "Right. Yeah, no, it's nothing."
"It's not," he maintains. "So, thank you."
She gives him a lopsided smile, looking down. She's not that used to people acknowledging her and what she does, so she's not sure how to react, but it definitely helps to soothe the sting of betrayal from Zagreus.
Because even most of this went south, maybe they can take a good thing out of this.
She bumps into Marc's shoulder, a smile growing. "Not so bad, having a soulmate, uh?"
He considers her, the bond sending warmth through his chest, before his lips stretch into a smile.
"Not so bad."
She blushes, before wiggling her feet in the sand. "We might have to stop to get some shoes first."
Author's Note: Zagreus apologists now is your time to shine!