Ares And Mia

Chapter 38

I run my finger against the spike of the cactus. I can feel it, it's real. I prick my finger, the jolt of pain making me laugh. Shallow enough for it to hurt, but not deep enough to draw blood. It's real, it's all real. I hold my hand out against the square of sunlight leaking through the window. It's warm. I cup my hands together, the dainty shadows spreading across my fingertips, yet the light pools in my palm. "Are you ready?" 

I turn, my eyes connecting with silver irises. Ares has always been gorgeous. With fair locks of hair, symmetrical features, and a fit body, he's the personification of the word, 'perfect.' The sleeve-less turtleneck that I wore let my bare arms feel every inch of the air. I smile at him. This is real. 

"Poseidon is a piece of shit." Ares laughs, his eyes gleaming. I walk to him and he guides me outside, my hand on his sleeve. He'll tell me everything today. I slept for two days, that's what I heard from Ares. Through the two days of being unconscious, I felt like the years that I spent in Poseidon's cell began to squeeze together. 

Everything was cramped into a timeline of hours, perceived as months. The 'years' were actually only three days. That much I understood. So, somehow, Poseidon was able to change my sense of time. By making me live through things that would normally take hours to complete, in milliseconds. My imprisonment felt like a heartbeat. Each beat was close together, repetitive and quick. 

Each beat was a moment where Ares would show up. In order to move onto the next beat, he'd have to die. Or, I would outright reject his presence. 

The smell of grass feels overwhelmingly nostalgic. Despite the fact that the last time I smelt it was only four days ago. It's warm. I head toward the tea table, sliding into the chair. Ares takes the seat across from me, before whispering a few words under his breath. Then, it was silent. The birdsong is gone, the sound of the wind, the rustling of underbrush. 

This was the same barrier that Hera had. No one outside can hear what we're saying. Nor can they see us anymore. He waves his hand and a cup of tea appears in front of me. Plates of desserts, light dishes, and snacks appeared between us and I blink. I've eaten breakfast an hour ago, but I wasn't opposed to anything in front of me. "How fancy." I take a sip of tea, the taste a lot less floral from Hera's selection.

"I'm glad I have your approval." I laugh, setting the cup down onto the dish. Ares rests his chin on his palm, watching me. "Tell me everything from the moment we got separated." I gulp hard. I nodded. 

"Poseidon was aiming for me since the beginning. He teleported me to the Bermuda palace, I think. I stabbed him a couple of times but he dunked me into some sort of tank." Ares raises his eyebrows, smirking.

"His right arm, right?" I paused for a moment, before nodding. I tilted my head at him. How did he know? "Good girl. Go on."

"I woke up in the cell that you found me in." I swallow hard, fiddling with the handle of the tea cup. "Poseidon started sending in illusions of you coming to save me. The second we ever stepped foot outside, you would..." I rub my face slightly, furrowing my brow. "Die. Arrows, swords... You know." I bite my lip. "Poseidon looked through my memories, I know that much. He would visit me occasionally and talk to me." 

"What did you two talk about?" I freeze. I looked up at Ares, before dropping my eyes to my hands. The words fight their way out but I press my lips together. "Mia?" 

"He said that I-I was just some Stockholm Syndromed girl. And that you didn't care about me and... The demoralizing stuff." Ares nods slowly, letting me speak. I was nervous, I'll be honest. It took three days for me to believe what Poseidon was saying. Three days. That was all.

But he was right. Ares was the reason that I was here. But... I wasn't a captive, was I? 

The walls of Olympus don't feel big anymore.