Thanatos : The Black Dawn

(28)Ebony Intrusion

I woke to the sound of birds.

In Olympus, the chirping of birds was few and far between. Often Nyx's new gothic peacocks would escape her estate and fly across to my gardens to feast on the many fruits. I'd normally throw a book or two at them to shoo them away from ruining my strawberries. Other than those annoying fowls, there weren't many other birds around the palace.

Thus, I was rather confused when the sound of cheerful chirping woke me. It definitely wasn't Shadow's chirping- he had a very distinctive tone. I knew it well.

Where am I? I thought suddenly and opened my eyes to peer up at a white ceiling. It wasn't too high, which meant I wasn't in my own bedroom.

Immediately upon fully opening my eyes to adjust them to the morning light, I remembered where I was.

Aurora's bedroom.

My heart leapt into my throat, but in a very good way. I tried to move so that I could sit up and access the situation, but something weighty kept me down. I adjusted my head down so I could see it. It was her.

Aurora was fast asleep, her head resting on my bare chest. She was snuggly nestled in between my chest and my arm; my hand resting on the side of her hip. I could feel the soft rise and fall of her chest against the side of mine. Her eyes were closed and her soft breathing brought a warm rushing sensation to my heart.

She looked so peaceful...

So serene and beautiful.

Then, upon further reflection, another great realisation crossed my mind. I had slept.

I had slept throughout the night.

There were no dreams. There was no nightmare keeping me awake. There had been no restlessness- no worries. I remember us getting into bed together. We'd spoke about her lesson in the morning, about her time with Conrad and the academy. I'd told her a funny story about the first time Conrad and I had met and then, before I knew it, she was asleep; passed out and off to visit her dreams.

I had moved closer to her and closed my eyes. All I wanted at that moment was a sense of peace. A sense of intimacy with her that we hadn't explored yet. I let my guard down- nearly haven forgotten what the mere notion felt like. I'd nearly forgotten how to, but with her, it was foolishly easy.

I didn't think I would fall asleep, because I knew that there was little chance of it happening. I also thought it would be best if I didn't. The last thing I wanted to do, was wake Aurora in the middle of the morning with my screaming.

But I hadn't? How was that even possible? Hypnos didn't tend to me, nor did he try a new spell to 'fix' my sleep. I just... I'd fallen into slumber by accident.

The mere fact that I had not woken once during the early morning, not until the birds had served as a bell, was miraculous.

I didn't really know what to think at that very moment. I was overwhelmed with questions, but more than that, I was overwhelmed with new vigour. When last had I slept so well that I truly felt energized the following day? My sleep usually left me feeling more fatigued than I was before I'd gone to bed...