NEW GODS: The Awakening

A Sickness From Within

Damian had not touched his breakfast all morning, not even a crumb of bread.

"You won't get out of school today if you pretend to be sick," Helios tried to make light of the situation but Damian did not even crack a smile.

He looked only at his mother.

"Am I like him?" he asked.

"No, you are like me when I was your age,"

And that was it.

Damian might have pressed them for a bit more information if there had not been a knock on the door right that second.

Helios motioned for them to sit down and went to open the door. Isabella frankly wished she had been the one to do so, if only to escape her son's inquiring gaze.

Helios returned with Goro following after him. She raised an eyebrow but all her partner did was smile cryptically.

"His Divinity wants you," Goro explained.

"And he sent you to fetch him?" Isabella called him out.

"I am as shocked as you," Goro shrugged calmly.

This whole situation went unquestioned by Damian whose brain seemed to have shut down as soon as Leon's existence was mentioned. He smiled widely, though it diminished when he looked over at her again.

Unsurprisingly, he went with Goro in the end.

Isabella sipped on her coffee.

"I don't like this," she mumbled.

"Last time, we tried to keep them apart, Damian ended up meeting Xiris. Maybe Fate is trying to tell us something,"

"I know," she snapped "But I still hate it. This relationship won't end well."

Helios settled his hands on her shoulders and kissed her on the crown of her head.

"We shall see,"

They walked in silence. Well, Damian did at least. Goro seemed awfully jolly, humming a rhythm under his breath.

"Leon did not really ask for me, huh?"

"Well, not technically," Goro answered "But the boy needs a break. And he did not get to celebrate his birthday."

"Wow, it only took you what? Fourteen years to give half a care?"

"I cared every moment. I was simply…" Goro shook his head "Not here."

"Yes, we all observed," Damian retorted icily "Leon will never forgive you. Nor will I."

"There is no such thing as forgiveness," Goro responded "You either choose to live with the mistake the other person made or not. But you cannot look back at that bad memory and associate it with good feelings. So you can never truly be forgiven."

"Long winded way to say you do not deserve it,"

"Again, I don't believe in it. But yes, if I did, I would agree that I do not deserve it,"

"Well, at least you are self-aware," Damian groaned.

The last week had been harsh on him. He felt exhausted, as if the life had been drained out of him. Everything with Xiris… Freak Xiris. He did not care about him anymore. Not one bit. And that was without even bringing up his father!

He truly had only gone with Goro because he wanted to see Leon. He would certainly be able to break him out of his numbness and tell him what to do.

Goro knocked on Cassandra's office. Damian glared at him with suspicion.