Right In Front Of You (Clash of the Titans/Draco Fanfic)

05. Talk to Me

I sat in a lower level of the saddle of sorts, resting. There weren't a lot of others around, which was great. I needed the time alone. Over our time traveling, I had been around people the entire time. Though the other soldiers were fantastic, I needed time alone.

I was only alone for a half-hour before Draco came in. He laid beside me and crossed his arms under his head. He smelled like a sweaty guy but he was still attractive.

"Why are you hanging around me all the time?" I asked. "It feels like you're attracted to me or something."

Draco laughed. "Would you hate me if I was?"

"Are you?"

Draco looked at me in the eyes, his eyebrows raised. He looked away, chuckling.

I gasped, hitting his shoulder. "Oh my gods, you are! But you're so old!"

Draco laughed. "There's not much age difference between the two of us, you know. Only a few years."

"A few years?!" I exclaimed. "You're like the same age as my dad."

Draco shoved me. "You're terrible."

I laughed, holding my shoulder lightly. "I think I'm pretty great if the great Captain Draco likes me."

Draco rolled his eyes. "I don't know about that, Cassius, but you're decent enough."

It was my turn to shove him, causing him to chuckle deeply. It fell silent, everything falling into a more comforting presence between us. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him watching me. I stared straight ahead, a little smile on my face.

I finally looked at him. "What are you looking at?"

"You," Draco replied. "You're beautiful and strong. I like you."

I feigned brushing some hair over my shoulder. "I know. I wouldn't have made it this far if I hadn't been so good at what I do."

"What else are you good at?" Draco asked.

I looked him in the eye. "Besides stealing your heart?"

Draco chuckled, looking down at his legs. "Besides that and fighting."

"I don't know," I replied. "Apparently I have a really strong sense of humor. I can make anyone laugh. Like I swear if I met a god, I'd make them laugh. I'm pretty, as you so kindly pointed out. I'm one of the guys, though I'm still very much a woman with needs."

"Any that you need satisfied?" Draco asked a bit hesitantly.

I looked him directly in the eye, raising an eyebrow as I kept a mostly neutral expression. "Are you willing to step up to the plate and deliver?"

We were interrupted by a soldier calling out Draco's name. He got up first and helped me to my feet. We stayed standing close to each other momentarily, staring into each other's eyes.

"We've always got bad timing, huh?" I asked.

Draco's hand slid farther up my arm. "It seems like that, doesn't it?"

Reaching up, I brushed his cheek gently, Draco leaning slightly into my touch. "Maybe when this is all over, we can try to start something. Because I can't be the only one who feels this way."

Draco pulled my hand away, holding it softly. "Rest assured, you aren't. I will see you upstairs, my love."

I grinned. "You compliment me."

Chuckling again, Draco grabbed my shoulder and pulled me upstairs. We were at the cave of the Stygian Witches. As I started buckling my gear on with the others, I made eye contact with Draco. When he nodded to me, I nodded back.

Perseus elbowed me. "Are you and Draco a thing? I saw the two of you talking earlier."

I shrugged. "It doesn't matter. If we are, we are. If we aren't, then it still doesn't matter."

Perseus tied his breastplate on. "I didn't know he was gay."

I met Perseus's gaze. "He's not."

There was a quick look of confusion on his face as I got up. We traveled to the Stygian Witches, tension filling the air. We all knew what they could do and how bad they were if set off in any way.

I noticed Draco keeping me close to him. He knew I could take care of myself but if I was right, he was still worried about me. It was cute, to be honest, but he didn't need to be. I was a trained warrior. There wasn't a thing I hadn't seen yet.

We arrived at the witches and I stuck toward the back, hoping they didn't somehow figure out my secret from most of the people around. Perseus did as he was instructed at the beginning of the quest. The witches creeped me out though. They only had one eye to share between the three of them and their features were too disfigured to be human.

Perseus got his information and we all left in a hurry. It seemed like a shorter hike down than up. Our spirits seemed to be lifted higher every step taken away from those witches. I kept quiet, trying not to speak too much. I felt Draco's presence close by but I didn't look up to meet his gaze. He stayed within a few feet of me, keeping the same pace as me, as he stared at the ground at his feet. I stole a glance at him and found a thoughtful expression troubling his handsome features.

I looked away before he could look at me. I didn't want to bother him. He had already been bothered by my surprise gender reveal.

Since the Djinn and the giant scorpions had left us behind, we had to go to the Underworld ourselves. It was a terrifying and stupid idea. Whoever came up with the whole idea of the quest was dumb. I was dragged along so Perseus could save a city without my best friend. If I hadn't left, Draco wouldn't have found out my gender. Everything would have been fine. But things were never like that. Especially if the gods were involved.

On the long road toward an entrance to the Underworld, I fell in step with Perseus. He looked like he was lost in the many thoughts in his mind. I almost reached out to touch him to make sure he was okay but Io came up on his other side, looking me in the eye with a deadpan expression. I ignored it and sped up my pace a little.

Joining the conversation of a few other soldiers, I felt a little more at ease. Thoughts about the Underworld slipped my mind as laughter filled the air. Insults began to be thrown back and forth again, shoving following as well.

At night, we took a rest. I laid my head against my pack, watching the others. There was a fire nearby, keeping the light and warmth going far after the sun dipped below the horizon. Perseus and Io sat a few feet away from everyone, talking quietly.

As I folded my arms under my head, I made eye contact with Draco. Feeling a little playful after a tense day, I winked, grinning. Draco smiled and looked down. It was hard to tell if he had blushed or not in the firelight. I would've been lying if that didn't make me a little bit happy on the inside.

As people started to go to bed, I got up to go to the bathroom. I had barely finished peeing when Draco showed up.

I fixed my belt. "I could almost believe you're stalking me."

"I would believe you," Draco said. "I don't know why I followed you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. It was a weird day."

"It surely was," I said. "But I'm fine. You don't need to check on me every five minutes since finding out I'm a woman. I can still fight and I can still kick anyone's ass. You don't need to worry about me, Captain. I'm going to be fine wherever we go."

"I know," Draco replied. "We all know that you're a great soldier. I just worry about you sometimes."

I squinted of him, raising my chin slightly. "Do you like me, Captain?"

Draco looked down at the ground, hesitating. "I think I have already made myself clear on that, Cassius."

I started heading back to camp, pausing at his side to speak quieter. "I would figure it out soon, Captain. And in private, I don't mind being called Cassia."

I returned to the camp and settled down to go to sleep. I didn't want to face Draco when he came into camp so I turned to my side, closing my eyes. As I was half asleep, I heard Draco returning, pausing briefly as he passed by.