Ophiuchus

Chapter 9: Holds Grudges

He wakes up and does a few stretches before he goes into the bathroom. He washes his face and brushes his teeth. Hops into the shower to wash off. He leaves the bathroom and guest room to find Varvara. He bumps into her in the nook, she is eating a biscuit. "Good morning, Lali will be here in five minutes. You can have a biscuit and some orange juice for breakfast."

"Thanks!" he said and took a biscuit and a glass of juice, sitting across her. He bites into the biscuit. "Mmm, this is delicious. How do you know how to cook so well?"

"Every Earth sign is good at it, Talia is the best at it, but I know a few things. Mostly vegan recipes and Calantha is good with meats. Talia is a mixture of both. So you enjoy your breakfast?"

"I do! The biscuits are so fluffy." he said then they heard a knock on the door.

"Must be Lali, you can answer the door. I don't really talk to her."

"Oh okay, bye." he said and hugged her goodbye.

"Bye." she said, picking up the dishes and heading to the kitchen. He got up and answered the front door, with the book in his hands.

"You finally answered, bet you've been dying to get away from that virgin. She is so boring and shy, I am sorry for the way she might've behaved with you tonight. Probably didn't even look you in the eye." Lali said.

"Yeah, I think she opened up to me yesterday. She is shy, but it makes it interesting to get to know her." he replied.

"Well we can take a chariot to my house, I live in the clouds. Probably already saw one cloud house, but we will travel a bit. There's a great location right next to my place." she said and walked towards the pink chariot. "Get in the back, no god should have to drive himself, relax." he got in the back and she drove the chariot. She whistled and pink wings appeared, and they reached the cloud lands. They reached Lali's home, made of pink clouds.

'I can even stand on the clouds.' he thought to himself.

"This place was made with magic, so even goddesses who aren't air signs can stand on here. Follow me." Lali said, holding his hand. She led him to her backyard, full of clouds. "This is my favorite place on this planet. I want you to take a piece of it before you go." She took a piece of the pink clouds and gave it to him. "Keep it in your pocket, okay?"

"I will cherish it." he replied.

"Thanks." she sat back down and started to talk. "There's not much to do here, we made the best we can do. Gabriella loves it here, she never wants to leave. Salus does too, she feels like there is still more to explore, but is there? I saw the beach, meadow, forest, volcano, clouds, and city hall thousands of times. I can't understand why someone doesn't want to leave." she sat down on the cloud and he sat next to her.

"You really want to leave, don't you?" he asked.

"Yes... more than anything. I've been trapped here and those idiots look at it as a paradise. Blinded by pretty grass and sky. Not even remembering the times they cried for hundreds of days in a row, the misery. I remember it, every day, second, millisecond we spend here. The torture is just too much, I am glad you came here. So there could be an end now."

"This place does seem like a paradise at first, but I can see why it is a trap. I can't imagine spending hundreds of years here, doing nothing."

"You get it! There is nothing to do. Yes you can read, paint, talk to the same eleven girls, know everything about them, their life before being trapped here, swimming, hiking, or just wandering around. A painful memory I remember is when I started to fly straight up, to the sun to die. Then after I passed the clouds I got shocked by the force field. I was knocked out for a year. It made me stop wanting to fly."