Crow of Flame

Chapter 28

There was a tension thick enough to smother me at dinner. We didn't eat lunch, I only slept and chatted with my friends. Hades had left sometime in between to speak with Selene. She had, apparently, woken up and was furious. He had come back to find me lying in bed curled up onto Orions chest. Theodore, Ambrose, and Nicholas were also laying in my bed. We had all dozed off. Obi and Lynx were curled up on the couch whispering sweet nothings to each other and reading a book.

Hades had woken us up with a gentle tone and a curt laugh. Obi and Lynx had dressed me in tight black pants and a puffy, oversized white shirt. I wore no shoes, only black soulless socks. There had been no objections when everyone showed up to the dining room with me. Cletus already had places set for everyone. I think they missed me.

So there we were, in the dining room. I sat cross legged in a chair between Hades and Ares. Selene sat across from me, between Persephone and Aphrodite. Kronos sat next to Orion, they seemed to be catching up. Ambrose sat next to Orion and on his other side sat Theodore. Zeus, Eliot, and Cadmus were next to Theodore and Nicholas, Obi, and Lynx sat next to them. The tension was palpable. Selene and Aphrodite stared daggers at me. I was struggling to eat.

"Are you alright, Sapphire?" Ares startled me out of my stupor placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Yeah, just... thinking... I think..." I said softly.

"You think you were thinking?" He laughed gently, "you've hardly eaten, what's troubling you?"

I took a breath and looked around the table. My gaze caught on Aphrodite. She was still staring at me. No. She was glaring at me. A shudder racked my spine and I faced Ares again. I leaned in and whispered, "does Aphrodite not like me?"

A gentle smile fell onto his face, though his eyes held sadness. "You're just not what she expected... She wanted to raise a lady, not a warrior." He said softly.

"Are they mutually exclusive?" I asked.

"I don't believe so, but many ladies believe ladies shouldn't raise a weapon." He replied.

"That is complete bullshit." I laughed lowly. "I guess I'll have to live with her distain then..."

"I'm glad to hear it, daughter." Ares said with a smirk as he took a sip of wine.

'Ambrose,' I sent through the link.

He didn't look at me when he responded, 'yeah, Crow?'

'Why do I feel like this is going to be a more complex situation than staying with Eboni?'

'Because there are two goddesses shooting looks that could kill at you, you have drama with Hades, Orion is not going to stop pursuing you, and you have to try to figure out how to stop a war before it starts... At Eboni's all you had to do was... live... We new who to not trust there.'

'What happens if Aphrodite doesn't accept me?' I asked taking a bite of the chicken on my plate. 'Ares said she doesn't approve of my fighting... He said she wanted to raise a lady... not a warrior... But they aren't mutually exclusive, are they?'

'No, they're not mutually exclusive.' He said down the link as our gazes met, 'you've lived this long without parents. Make the relationship you want from Ares, and let Aphrodite adapt accordingly.'

I nodded and shifted my gaze to Kronos. His yellow eyes were watching me intently. I could tell he had burning questions. I could tell he wanted to speak, but I think he could sense my general discomfort. I nodded my head towards him in an effort to encourage him to speak.

"Sapphire, what did you do to occupy your time at Eboni's?" He asked as he sliced through the meat on his plate.

I picked up my glass of fruity nectar and took a sip before responding. "Well..." I drew out the word, "I would train with Ambrose, and read books, and play games, and I slept, and danced and sang and staged prison breaks..." I pointed a look at Aphrodite, "the results of my prison break sit at the table."