THESE CELESTIAL BODIES (Demetre)

Chapter six

Perhaps this was the worst idea Dean had had in seven hundred years. He honestly would have had better luck if she were a Vampyr or a mere human prisoner he'd gut within a few hours. In fact, he'd had more success with the rogue Ytgir his sister gave him on his five hundredth. He found Alke and Afet bickering quietly before Rose's door, the twin's clipping at each other in hushed whispers, gesturing to the door.

     "Is something wrong?" they bowed at his voice. He'd never get used to the bowing, he had no idea how his predecessors groveled in the reveling and blind loyalty. But then again, it was all an act, half his predecessors got slaughtered in brutal squabbles over the Flesh eater throne. The bone throne. Most of which occurred because the current Flesh eater king did not partake in the rites as instructed of the High Arches. He didn't intend to fall into that category of disobedience, but marrying was a silly mortal thing. Unnecessary for creatures of the undead.
     "I think she's dead, your grace," Alke said.
     "She can't be dead Alke," Afet shot back.
"She hasn't moved for three days!"
     Dean glanced at the door. "Three days?"
Afet grimaced, her grey skin turning a bolder shade of grey. The twin's had a unique ability to change colour when they feel threatened or strange. Dark grey for disgust or hunger (it was hard to tell which one was which sometimes) a paler stormy grey for fatigue and a sickly, bland grey for unease.

     "She smells like she's going off."
     Afet nodded. "She smells like she's dying."
"Shit," Dean swept past them quickly and lunged himself over the door, throwing it open and nearly breaking it at the hinges. "Rosalie—"

The girl whipped her head around, her eyes widening, mouth agape. Stood in the middle of the room stark naked, Rose began screaming. Panicked, frightened screams. "Get out! Get out you fucking creep!" she grabbed a couple trinkets from the table and hurled them at him. Grabbed a rotten orange and threw that too.
     Even her shoe. It slapped him right across the face.
     Seeing her lift her arm to hurl another object at him, Dean ran out and slammed the door shut. Noises and curses flying within the room, his name caught in between. Dumb fuck, pervert. Mother's tits she had a good aim, his forehead bruised for a moment and then vanished as it healed.

Alke and Afet giggled.
     "Don't tell Thalia about this."
     "Of course your grace," they sniggered.
He straightened the lapels of his jacket.
Rose's door flew open, and an angry looking red head stood with bright tomato cheeks, with a crude snarl and venom in her eyes. She had changed into a white tunic and pants, swept her wet hair into a tight coil atop her head.
     Was she tapping her damn foot?
     "Has anyone ever told you that you should knock before you enter a woman's room? Clearly not!" and the door slammed again, reverberating against the walls.
     Dean stood there stunned for what felt like centuries. The image of her angry, flushed face skimming across his mind like dancing girls.

Afet leaned in, "I think you should knock this time your grace."
     He gave her a stern, pointed look, as he lifted his hand. Three skull shattering strikes that rasped along the wall. He heard an exasperated sigh, followed by a, "Come in."
     He poked his head through the door to make sure no objects were in her hands before slipping in and closing it. She faced him with hands on her hips, still frowning with anger, but when she looked at him, really looked at him, she dropped her hands. Her face twisting into partial shock and partial embarrassment, and her thoughts, those delicate things, began screaming at him.
     Who the hell is this man? No, it can't be. Is that really what he looks? He's...so beautiful. Are those wings tucked behind him. Oh my god. They went on, a reel of thoughts. She went through every single feature, his exquisite jawline, the shimmer and glow of his pasty, dead skin. Ethereal she called him. From his face to the unnerving set of his red orbs that looked like they 'could devour the world whole' and his cropped brown hair, light like feathers.