Through Time and Space: A Love Story

Chapter Two: A Special Gift

   What did I want? A rather strange question to ask, Maeve thought to herself. Was he offering a reward of sorts? There were many things she wanted, but the thing she wanted most was something she couldn't admit to. How could she tell a god that she was in search of love? It seemed too awkward. She had to think of something else fast before he started to get suspicious.
   "Well..." she began, contemplating her answer. "I have always wanted a new pair of knives."
   "Knives...?" Jenos inquired. He seemed confused by her answer. "That's an oddly simple request."
   "The holidays are approaching, so it would be nice to have a new pair that look festive," she lied. The amount of pressure he put her under was starting to be too much. Hopefully, he'd grant her hasty request so she could leave before he started digging for answers.
   "Ah yes, Christmas. A mortal holiday that is dedicated to the wrong deity," he said. "Still, it doesn't make sense that you would request something like that from a god. I could offer you new powers, or wisdom. I could answer any question you might have." The thought of Jenos having such power made Maeve nervous. The only question she had was in regards to her being so disliked.
   "Are you alright?" he asked. "You look as if you carry a heavy burden on your heart." At this point, Maeve knew it was useless to keep secrets. She dropped to her knees and began sobbing. It was the worst time of the year: four months of misery as everyone celebrated the holidays with family and loved ones. Meanwhile, she had no one but the Magistrate. They weren't much of a family, anyways. Much to her surprise, Jenos put his arms around her.
   "I know those tears," he said. "You feel as if you are alone, do you not?" All she could do was nod her head. Without thinking, Maeve's hands clutched his robes tighter. She didn't want him to let go, not until she was completely calmed down. The two stayed that way in total silence for what felt like an eternity. When her tears stopped flowing, she stood up to speak.
   "Je suis désolé," she finally said hoarsely. "It's just that...I always hate this time of year because I have no one. My family never invites me to celebrate. They don't agree with my lifestyle. I can't find anyone to love because of my job. Who could even love a cold-blooded killer, anyways?" Maeve was on the verge of tears again when Jenos placed a hand on her shoulder.
   "Never sell yourself short," he told her. "You have many things to offer. Someday soon, the right person will find you, and they will never leave your side."
   "But I want someone now. I don't want to be alone for Christmas again," she said, her voice quivering. Jenos took a step back and began moving his hands in an unusual manner. A ball of white light appeared, glowing brighter before a snow globe appeared out of thin air.
   "Take this with you," he said. You have three days to give this to anyone you choose. If they accept this gift, they are destined to be yours until the end of time. However, if you fail to find anyone, the snow will stop falling and it will disappear. This is the only way I can ensure that you find true love." Maeve hesitantly took the snow globe and placed it in her pocket.
   "Merci," she said softly. She turned and slowly walked away. It was going to be a long three days, searching for love by Christmas. But if she was going to have someone special in her life, she didn't have much of a choice. A snow globe that will bind me to the love of my life? This is such a strange gift, she thought to herself. I am 28 years old. It shouldn't have to come to this. What was I thinking, crying in front of a god? Stupid as always. Maeve continued scolding herself as she climbed down the mountain.
   Once she reached the base of it, she climbed to the roof of the nearest building and began racing back towards the House Aico. Her first challenge was going to be explaining to Skye her reasons for stealing the rifle from her and bringing it back to Jenos. But before she could tell her why, she had to think of the real reason. What compelled her to rush all the way up to Ascension Peak just to give the rifle back? More importantly: what the hell possessed her to knock on his door and give it to him personally rather than just leaving it on his doorstep and just taking off to avoid confrontation? Everything felt spur-of-the-moment, yet something about the whole ordeal seemed...off. Was it because she knew he could help her find true love? That seemed like such an absurd explanation. But with her current situation, it wouldn't be completely farfetched.
   The Magistrate's fortress was finally in view. It was time to confess to the others why she had been acting so strange as of late. Maeve jumped back through the same window she escaped from and returned to the throne room. Lian, Fernando, and Khan were still decorating. This time, they were joined by Torvald, Kinessa, Androxus, and Seris. But Skye was nowhere to be found.
   "There you are!" Lian said happily. "Did you get the rifle back safely?" Lian's reaction to Maeve's return took her by surprise. Why was she happy that Maeve stole the rifle and ran off with it? And where was Skye?
   "Er...yes. I returned it just fine," she said. "But where is Skye?" Lian broke out in laughter as if the question amused her.
   " I was actually hoping you would steal that rifle the whole time. When you did, Skye was so shocked that Khan was able to restrain her effortlessly. He and Fernando escorted her down into the prison hold. She'll be there for a couple days as a way to teach her not to do such reckless things."
   "A couple days...?" Maeve was astounded by such a light punishment.
   "Consider it my generous gift for the holidays," Lian giggled. "By the way, Chef Xavier said he got your cookies out of the oven when they were finished. He's storing them safely in a container for you until you're ready to decorate."
   "That's good, I suppose," Maeve said.
   "You wanna help us decorate now, señorita?" Fernando asked.
   "Sure, I don't see why not," Maeve replied. She went over to where Fernando was cutting out snowflakes and emblems with various colors of paper. She grabbed her two knives and began rapidly slicing sheets of paper and making more decorations. Satisfied with her work she grabbed a ball of yarn and began threading the decorations. It was extremely tempting to bat the ball of yarn and chase after it, but she resisted as best she could to finish the decorations. She must have had a strange look on her face because Fernando and Lian began laughing.
   "You're certainly trying your best not to play with that ball of yarn, aren't you?" Lian asked. Maeve just simply stuck her tongue out at her. Torvald snuck up on her and snatched the ball, then launched it like a cannon ball from his gauntlet. Instinctively, Maeve ran off after it, jumping through the air to grab it. It slipped from her hands and the last moment and rolled across the floor. She continued chasing it and batting it around. The others laughed as she did so. When she finally caught it, she rolled onto her back and started tossing it up and down.
   " I knew you couldn't resist," Torvald wheezed. He and the others looked as if they would pass out from laughing. That's when it dawned on Maeve what had just happened. He intentionally launched it because they wanted to watch her chase the ball of yarn like a cat. She immediately dropped the ball of yarn and grabbed her knives, throwing them directly at the others. Their expressions rapidly changed from humor to fear. They knew she was serious when she threw her knives as a warning.
   "You are all assholes," she said, her face red with anger.
   "My apologies, Miss," Torvald quickly apologized. Maeve was about to curse them out again when her stomach softly rumbled. All that running left her famished. She looked outside and realized the sun was already setting on the horizon.
   "My, it certainly is rather late," Kinessa said. "I say we call it a day and pick up tomorrow."
   "Agreed," the others said in unison. Still embarrassed from the whole ordeal with the ball of yarn, Maeve was the first one out. She returned home where she decided to make her favorite anchovie pizza recipe. The saltiness of the fish was pleasant to Maeve. It went perfectly with the sweetness of the pizza sauce and the earthy flavors of the peppers and mushrooms.
   As the pizza baked in the oven, she headed into her room to get out of her clothes. With nothing more than a purple lace bra and matching panties left on, she felt relaxed. Soon, the timer went off, letting her know the pizza was ready. Today had been a long day. She definitely earned this kind of reprieve. She grabbed the pizza from the oven with her new Christmas-themed oven mitts and got her pizza cutter to cut it into eight slices. Then she turned to her fridge to pour her usual tall glass of milk.
   With the plate in one hand and the glass in the other, she settled onto the sofa in her living room to watch her favorite show Whose Realm Is It Anyway? As she sat eating, she thought about her conversation with Jenos. Could she really find someone worth giving that snow globe to by Christmas? There was always the guy from the store she ran into. But what were the odds she'd ever find him again? It didn't seem very likely. She brushed off the idea and stared intently at the snow globe where it sat on her coffee table.
   Only two more days to find true love and I'm sitting on my couch eating anchovie pizza and watching a stupid show. I really am pathetic. How could anyone love me? When she finished her dinner, she shut the TV off again and made her way into the bathroom. She needed a shower after a long day of constantly running around. She took off her lingerie and waited for the water to heat up. She went into her bathroom closet to grab her favorite lavender body wash and Japanese blossom shampoo. Surely enough, there was steam rising out of the top of the shower.
   She tentatively stepped in and let the hot water soak her body. While she stood there, she recalled why she showered in such hot water: it was the closest she could come to warmth enveloping her body. Once again, she was overcome with feelings of loneliness. And once again, she found tears rolling down her cheeks. Being single was the worst. She'd never get to know how it felt to be held. To be kissed. To be loved. She was never going to give the most intimate part of herself to anyone. Why did life have to be so unfair to her? What did she do to deserve this?
   Doing her best to change her thoughts, she grabbed her pink loofah and squeezed out her body wash onto it. The pleasant scent almost instantly calmed her down. After lathering and rinsing, she picked up her bottle of shampoo to wash her hair. When all was said and done, she shut off the water and stepped out of the shower to dry herself off. With her towel wrapped around her body, she returned to the bathroom closet for her hairdryer. She picked up her lingerie and headed to her bedroom.
   During the process of drying her hair, she thought about the snow globe. If people were just gonna break her heart, then she should break the snow globe so it knew how she felt. That's when she thought about what Jenos might say about it. He'd be disappointed in her, and Maeve didn't wanna risk that. Wait, why should I care how he'd feel? He doesn't know me and I don't know him. Then again, he was the only person to ever offer her any kind of help in the love department. Perhaps it was a bit selfish to think that way. But no matter.
   With her hair dry, she returned the hairdryer to her closet and grabbed her toy from under her bed. She was in the middle of pleasuring herself when she thought about Jenos again. Wait, what the fuck? Why him? He's a god. Gods don't have sex....do they? It was a strange thing to consider, but Maeve's hormones made her all the more curious. She imagined what it would be like to have sex with an immortal deity. Strangely enough, the idea was enough to arouse her even more. She envisioned herself in bed with Jenos, his cock sliding in and out of her pussy while she wrapped her legs around his back. She wanted to sink her nails into his back for a better grip while he fucked her. That kind of sex would be so hot. Almost....heavenly. And she would certainly let him unload all of his hot cum inside of her pussy.
   The fantasy brought her to her climax, her own fluids flowing out of her. Maeve hadn't had an orgasm like that in a while. It only reminded her that she needed to have sex. Maybe she'd have to be desperate enough to convince Jenos to sleep with her, but only as a last resort. Pushing those thoughts to the back of her mind, she placed her toy back in the box under her bed and fell asleep.