A/N:

Hey guys! Wow, it's been a while. I've been swept up with my other works so I put Cepheus on the back burner, but I'm going to try to be more consistent with these updates. Right now, Avernus is my main priority, but if I have time, I'll try to update Cepheus as much as I can. There are only a few chapters left of this book so I'm hoping I can finish it in the next few months.

I suggest re-reading the book from the beginning if you don't remember where we left off. Sorry again for the wait!

~illiteratehomebody xoxo

~

Bay stood at the edge of the tree line; his cheeks were flushed as his tiny hands gripped the crème white envelopes that held the carefully crafted invitations.

Cepheus and his entourage had left him moments ago, but not before reminding him of certain expectations...

"What are you going to do while you're there, baby boy?"

"G-give them the invitations."

Cepheus hummed in what seemed to be approval, his eyes lighting in slight mischief as the nymph stumbled over his words.

"And what else?"

The vampire inquired as his hand ghosted over the boy's bare chest and danced over the material of his shorts to cup his bum.

"U-um.... I-I don't...I'm not sure—"

"Behave."

Cepheus leaned down to whisper the syllables into the boy's ear. But not without giving a light press to his filled hole, causing the nymph to gasp and stumble into the vampire's chest at the sensation.

Bay shivered as he recalled the events that happened only moments ago, and he was thankful that no one had been close enough to witness the exchange.

Shuffling forward a bit, he finally started to approach the falls. He wasn't sure why he became so nervous all of a sudden; after all, this used to be his home, and these people were—are his family.

But as the rush of water filled his ears, suddenly, all his nerves had dissipated into nothing. Instead, excitement was its replacement.

A wide grin set on his face, accentuating the soft blue tones of his skin and brightening his grey eyes. He almost teared up as he turned the corner and was faced with his own kind. Water nymphs filled the river that fed into the falls, all of them smiling and laughing as they played in the warm pools.

Others were lying in the grass, only allowing their feet to get wet, but none strayed too far from the river; it seemed like only he dared to do so.

"Is that Bay?"

"What? Where?"

Loud whispers replaced the previous serenity and heads started to turn in the boy's direction. Bay flushed under their wandering gazes and his eyes desperately searched for familiar faces that would make him feel like less of an outsider.

He didn't have to wait long, as he was suddenly tackled by a warm body that he knew all too well.

"Bay!" Maeve squealed as she squeezed him tightly.

"Hi" The boy giggled while returning the embrace.

"What are you doing here? How long are you staying? Where's the King—"

"Easy there Mae, let him breathe a bit, yeah?" A lower voice chuckled.

"Sole!"

It was Bay who was screaming this time, his lithe frame wrapping around the more muscular nymph.

"I've missed you guys so much." The smaller nymph murmured into the taller boy's chest.

"Maybe if you visited more often, you would miss us less." The quip was low but Bay still managed to hear it from his female friend.

"Maeve." Sole pulled back from the hug to cast a disapproving glance toward his mate.

"What? It's true! I love you Bay, but as soon as you found the King you just forgot about us. I was starting to believe that I would never see you again."

"Okay, that's enough." Sole's tone was sharp and left no room for further argument. However, it didn't reverse the damage that had already been done as Bay's lips downturned into a troubled frown.

"I-is that really how you feel?"

Maeve only looked away with a pout, her earlier excitement having disappeared completely.

"I think what Maeve is trying to say, is that she missed you too. But in a much brattier kind of way." He clarified pointedly.

The girl's already pinkish cheeks brightened further at his comment

"I wanted to come back earlier, really. B-but there was a lot going on, a-and I—"

"Bay! My sweet child, you've come home." A familiar voice interrupted.

Sole stepped away just in time for the boy to be swept up in his mother's embrace.

"Why has it taken you so long to visit?!"

Bay shrunk into his shoulders as his mother pulled back from the hug to scold him.

"I-I was busy, mama. A-And there was a lot going on..."

The nymph's grey eyes remained fixated to the right to examine a lone branch, in an attempt to escape the impending lecture.

"Well, now that you are here, we have a lot to talk about, don't we?"

"Mama" He whined in slight annoyance, but she did not relent.

"And what are these that you're holding?"

She plucked the envelopes out of his unsuspecting hand before he even had a chance to protest.

"Hmm...you're invited..." She read the gold cursive print on the back of the envelope. "Invited to what, dear?"

Bay looked down at his feet and fiddled with his hands nervously, unsure of what her reaction would be to his next words.

"Um...to the castle for our...for my crowning ceremony."

The boy's ear twitched slightly as he heard Maeve gasp behind him, a reminder that they weren't alone. In fact, almost all of the other nymphs had stopped what they were doing to listen into the conversation.

"You're being named Prince?! Oh, by the Gods Bay, why didn't you tell me?!"

Bay's brows pushed together in confusion; the purpose of this trip was to tell her, and he just did. It was to tell all of his closest loved ones. But of course, the boy didn't get the chance to rebuttal as she handed the envelopes off to Sole, before whisking him away towards the water.

"You disappear for Gods knows how long, and you reappear with this news? And while it is good news, don't get me wrong, I would've appreciated being told sooner!"

"Mama, please." He protested as she cupped water from the river and released it atop his head. Her fingers combed through his hair and untangled every invisible knot she could find.

"It was only decided recently, I came here to tell you in person."

Bay was effectively ignored as she continued to examine his appearance.

"Is he taking good care of you over there, Bay? You look a bit paler than usual—are you getting enough water? Does he take you out to swim at least? You know how important it is to remain close with your element, Prince or not it's an essential part of your being."

"Mama! I'm fine, please stop worrying. I'm sorry I didn't visit sooner but Cepheus and I have been spending a lot of time together. You know...to get to know each other better."

Finally, his words seemed to reach her, and her expression softened.

"Well of course; of course, you've been doing that. Forgive your mother Bay, I'm not used to going so long without seeing you, and you know I can't help but worry about you—my only child."

With a small smile, he wrapped his arms around her in a comforting hug.

"I know mama. I promise that we'll see each other more, okay? I'll make sure of it."

The two smiled at each other before breaking off into conversation—catching up on almost a month of events and activities that the other missed out on.

Of course, Bay made sure to leave out the less glamourous parts, particularly the day that he was attacked and wounded by a rouge wolf. She didn't need to know such unpleasant details, especially since he was fine and well now.

"I'm sure Sole has already handed out the invitations by now. Have you been able to talk to everyone already?"

Bay shook his head, a small smile rising in his amusement.

"How could I have possibly spoken to everyone when you've kept me all to yourself over here." He jested playfully.

His mother gave him a look before offering a laugh.

"Fine, you're right. I have been hogging you." Her eyes seemed to scan their surroundings for a moment. "Look, Blaise is resting by the lilies over there, go say hi to him, he needs a bit of a pick-me-up. Go now, before I change my mind and decide to hide you from everyone else."

Bay giggled at the threat, but he did as he was told, not wanting to see if there lay any truth to her words. He did wonder though, why she thought that Blaise wasn't in the best mood.

He swam over to the corner of the falls, which held a little hidden cove where the water was the stillest. It was his favourite spot as the fish would often find themselves gathered below and the water lilies bloomed due to the calmness.

The nymph entered the cove and slowly neared his friend, who was already watching him from where he sat on a rock that slightly elevated him above water—it was probably how his mama was able to spot him, otherwise, their surroundings kept them well hidden.

Bay watched as Blaise moved from the rock to re-enter the water and rested his triceps on some of the flat stone that lined the edge of the cave walls instead.

"Hi" Bay whispered.

"Hey" Blaise responded, his green eyes lazily scanning the nymph.

Bay felt nervous under his friend's gaze; it was almost like he was being analyzed.

"H-how have you been—"

"So, you're going to be a Prince."

The more timid boy didn't know how to respond to the statement, only being able to stammer out a few words in short succession.

"Y-Yea, I-I guess..."

Blaise rose a blonde brow at his hesitance.

"Do you even know the first thing about being a Prince? Or how about responsibility? You didn't have much of that around here."

His words sent a painful shock through Bay's chest, and the boy looked away to avoid the unwavering judgement.

"W-well, no...b-but I'm learning—"

"I can't imagine what that must look like."

Bay's bottom lip quivered at how his friend was treating him. Sure, he could be a bit crass at times, but he was never malicious. What had he done wrong?

"W-why are you being so mean?"

Blaise clenched his jaw before pushing himself away from his place against the cavern wall to move closer to where the smaller nymph was floating in the water.

"I'm being honest. Everyone else may prefer to lie to you, and pamper you, and tiptoe around you to avoid hurting your feelings, but I won't—I never have."

His green eyes locked onto grey, not before taking in the displeased pout that dimmed the boy's otherwise bright features.

"And in my most truthful, honest opinion Bay, you're not ready for this kind of position. You're not ready to handle that kind of responsibility and you weren't nearly ready enough to leave your home here."

A lone tear found its way along the path of Bay's blueish cheek. He couldn't understand the reason for any of this—was Blaise mad at him?

"I-I know I'm more sheltered than most, a-and I may not be the brightest, b-but I'm trying my best—r-really, I am. A-and if I upset you in some way then I'm sorry, just know I didn't mean to."

The two looked at each other for a quiet moment, the sound of water lightly hitting the stoned walls of the cave the only thing audible aside from their breathing.

"It was supposed to be me."

Bay's brows pulled together in confusion.

"W-what—"

"Before you turned of age, I was certain that you were going to be mine—we all were."

The nymph's eyes were wide, his lips parted slightly as his mind reeled in shock from his friend's words. But his silence allowed Blaise to continue.

"It made the most sense at the time—I'm 20 summers and one of the only nymphs without a pairing. I didn't mind it either; sure, you're a bit more immature than most but it was...becoming of you—cute even."

Green eyes lingered on the mark that was placed neatly in the crevice of the boy's neck for a moment, but almost as if he couldn't bear to look at it any longer, he averted his gaze.

"You were supposed to be mine, and now you're not—now, I have no one. So no, I'm not upset with you; I'm upset at what I could've had—an end to this indefinite, painful wait, an end to not knowing. I know you're sensitive and take everything to heart, but don't. It's my problem to deal with, so I think it's best for you to just leave me be."

Bay could only produce silence as Blaise distanced himself and took his place on the cave rock once more. The boy didn't know what to think—he was the epitome of shock, he was full of the feeling.

He had never known that Blaise had wanted him, had thought them to be mates. And apparently so had their peers. He felt guilty, even though he knew he shouldn't because who he was paired with was out of his control. And of course, he couldn't see himself with anyone besides Cepheus, he didn't even want to think about that possibility.

But still, watching his friend, seeing him this way was not enjoyable. He wanted to say something to comfort him, but he didn't know if any words could satiate the pain he was feeling.

"Blaise...you have a mate, I'm sure of it. It's only a matter of time before you find them, but you will, find them. I-I didn't know that you thought...I didn't know...I'm sorry."

The older nymph clenched his jaw, before shaking his head; Bay only knew he did so by the blonde strands that lightly brushed against the top of his forehead.

"Don't...don't feel sorry for me. Just don't."

Bay frowned, not knowing what else to say—what else could he do?

Drawing blanks, the boy decided to listen to his friend and let him be alone for a while. He didn't particularly want to, but the least he could do was give him that.

"Okay...I...I can go now then, but I'll be around all day if you want to talk again. I...I would like it if we did."

Blaise didn't respond this time, only watching the boy in silence with observant eyes.

Bay frowned but accepted his withdrawn demeanour, and finally left him to his thoughts in the cave.