Chapter Twenty-Two

"Absolutely not. No. No. It's not happening."

I sighed, reaching up to pinch the bridge of my nose before folding my arms over my chest as I watched my dad glare at me, putting his hands on his hips. Father didn't seem as peeved by my suggestion and actually looked relieved.

"I think it's a great idea," Father said, making dad look at him in bewilderment, "Hadrian deserves to go off and do his own thing now. He's lived with us for over twenty years now. It's time he flew the nest, Ambro."

"Hell no," dad exclaimed incredulously, "I just got you back and now you want to leave me?" I tried not to smile at that, because he wasn't angry so much as he was disappointed I wanted to move out for the first time in my life. It was sweet that he cared so much, that he wanted to be with me forever, and a part of me didn't want to go. I enjoyed living at home with my parents and sister. I enjoyed having breakfast ready for me every morning or having someone clean the house so I didn't have to do mundane things in order to further my career and personal hobbies.

I had grown a lot living at home, but it was time I got out of there and grew even further without the pressure of my parents being around. Don't get me wrong; I loved my parents. Absolutely adored them.

But I wanted to see who I was without them.

"I'm not leaving you," I said, making dad look at me sadly, "I'll always be with you. I just want to see what it's like living on my own, enjoying my own company, and seeing who I am as a person without any familial influence." Father nodded in approval, clearly understanding my argument. Dad looked at me like he was absolutely heartbroken. It almost made me feel a little guilty, but he knew he had to let me go, even though there was a part of him that ached to keep me with him forever.

Because in the eyes of a parent, it didn't matter how old you were; you were always their baby.

I loved that, but I also hated it. Because I wasn't a child anymore. I was an adult with my own personality, my own desires and my own life. I could make my own choices.

"But you're my baby," dad said at last, looking pouty. I smiled at that and came forward to wrap my arms around him. He hugged me back, cradling my head to his shoulder, his sigh long and ragged as he held me.

"I love you so much, beautiful," he murmured, "Just... Just think on it some more, okay?" I sighed, but didn't argue with him. I gave him a kiss on the cheek, which he returned, before I broke away to go have lunch. Father gave me a pat on the shoulder as I went by him out the door. I headed down the hallway to the family kitchen and was surprised to find Six in there, struggling with the coffee machine.

"What are you doing?" I asked. He jumped a little, as if I'd startled him, and he blushed lightly as he frowned down at the coffee machine.

"It won't spit out the coffee."

"Because it's not plugged in."

"Not plugged...? Oh, goddamn it," Six glared at the cord that had slipped behind the stove and yanked it out, shoving it into the plug in the wall. I smiled lightly at that and went to the fridge to get out some fruit to cut up. Six's eyes were on me the whole time as I brought my supplies to the counter and pulled a knife out of one of the drawers.

"Why do you only eat fruit?" Six asked. I shrugged.

"It's the only thing I know how to make, and it's easy."

"But you made me a fried egg."

"Barely. I did it based off memory of watching my friend, Remi, make them."

"So why don't you just eat a fried egg?"

"I don't like eggs."

"You don't like eggs," Six repeated, then paused for the longest time and I looked at him curiously before he looked up to meet my eyes, "What else don't you like?" I shrugged, slicing into a strawberry.

"I don't like limes. Something about it is too acidic. I don't like cabbage either. It smells weird."

"I don't know what either of those things are," Six admitted, coming over to stand beside me as he watched me cut, "But... I'll keep that in mind from now on." I smiled at that and stopped cutting to tilt my head at him and he blushed lightly again.

"What about you? What are some things you don't like?" I asked. Six swallowed at that, then averted his eyes, running his finger along the counter, inching it closer to me. I set my knife down and leaned my hands on the counter, stopping his hand right in its tracks. He blushed as he stared at his hand touching mine.

"Ah, uhm... Sorry, what was the question?" He asked, looking up. I smiled.

"Better question... What do you like?" I asked. Six blinked, then cocked his head. He seemed to think for a moment and I went back to cutting up my fruit, finishing up and tossing the knife in the dishwasher. I opened the fridge door to return the rest of the fruit and closed it, only for Six to be standing right there. I looked at him and he looked back at me.

"You," he said at last. I tried not to smile. Tried not to let satisfaction show on my face.

"Me?" I asked, turning to face him. Six gave me a slow nod, his cheeks turning pink now as he looked down at the floor before lifting those hazel eyes to meet mine.

"A lot," he said after a moment, "Like... a lot, a lot." I smiled and stepped in close and he lifted his head to stare up at me, hazel eyes sparkling in the lights. I dipped my head down, drawing my hand up to lift his chin just a little more so I could capture his lips in a gentle kiss. No tongue thrusting, no gasping for breath, just a gentle little kiss on the lips before I pulled away. He blinked a few times, his expression asking why there wasn't more. I simply smiled and went to grab my fruit.

"Where's Three?" I asked. Six looked dazed for a moment, then blinked and scowled.

"Still in bed. He won't get his ass out."

"It's the heated blanket, isn't it?"

"Yeah. He looks like a fucking burrito up there," Six snorted, then shrugged, "But, we're not used to things like that. Heated blankets, big beds... beds."

"You didn't have beds?"

"We did, but they were... Flat. Hard. Not comfortable. Not like these beds that just seemed to swallow you the moment you lay down in it," Six admitted, then sighed long and happy, "But I like it. I can see why Three won't leave."

"Three won't leave what?" Three asked, coming into the kitchen. We looked up and I choked on my fruit to see him just standing there in his boxers, scratching his buttcheek, like it was no big fucking deal. Six didn't seem startled by his appearance and just gave him a deadpan stare.

"Finally leave the bed?" He asked. Three yawned and gave a slow nod as he came over and took some fruit from my bowl, making me scowl.

"That shit is comfy. I could spend all day there, except I got a leg cramp, so now here I am."

"Stealing my food," I added dryly. Three gave me a droll stare.

"I thought we were a throuple. We share our things."

"I don't have to share everything."

"No. No, I think you do."

"Wait, are those my boxers? How did you even--"

"The sizing spell worked great."

"Where did you get my boxers--"

"Doesn't matter. Now where's the real food? Your bunny stuff is nice and all, but I want meat," Three said, looking around the kitchen. I looked at Six in disbelief and Six grimaced, but also appeared to be trying not to smile.

"Ah, Jo said that... Well, he's coming to make lunch," Six said after a moment, looking uncomfortable now. I looked at him. He was still having difficulty saying Zeus's name. I suppose it made sense when you were punished any time you said it. I just hoped he got over it soon. Otherwise, Zeus was gonna end up with a complex.

"Oh good," Three declared, "I'm starved. I want another burger."

"You know there's other food aside from burgers, right?" I asked. Three scowled.

"Baby steps. I'm gonna eat burgers until I get sick of them."

"No, you'll ruin it," Six argued, "Just sit down and eat whatever he makes you."

"Uh, what happened to not eating what I don't wanna eat?"

"You're just being a baby," I deadpanned. Three wrinkled his nose.

"Waah, gimme burgers," he responded, walking over to the table to sit down. I looked at Six, who shrugged and held his hands up in front of himself as if to say no i'm not dealing with him. I shook my head and came over to sit down as Six went to get himself a pot of coffee. Not too long after Six came and took a seat did Zeus walk into the kitchen. As per usual, he was looking high class with his perfectly straight navy suit and his slicked back hair. He was pulling off his jacket, though, revealing the double buttoned vest underneath.

"Alright, what are we thinking today for lunch?" He asked. Six looked up, then looked at me helplessly. I smiled and Three looked up.

"Burgers," he stated.

"How about something else," I said, making Three look at me, "I want you to try different foods, not the same food over and over again."

"Fine... Two burgers."

"God, you're a smartass," Zeus said, then shook his head, "Okay, so we're feeling burgers, but not a burger. I can work with that. Sit back, shut up, and let the magic work." I smiled as Three scowled and Six sipped his coffee shyly. Just a few minutes later, Jo came into the kitchen, wearing only an oversized sweatshirt and sweatpants, nothing at all like he normally wore.

"Making lunch?" Jo asked, coming over to peer over Zeus's shoulder.

"Yup, it's a surprise," he added in a whisper, making Jo grin. Jo leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, then paused and kissed him again... and again. Zeus growled low in his throat and turned his head to capture Jo's lips in a kiss. Jo kissed him back and I watched him stretch his arm out behind himself so he could get a better angle, and in the process, his wedding ring flashed in the light. A perfectly smooth ring on the outside... with rows of little sharp pins on the inside, making it impossible to pull the ring off without ripping the whole finger off.

It was... certainly a special piece, I'd say that much. Everyone had their hobbies.

"How'd we sleep last night?" Jo asked, turning to the rest of us. Three was staring at him, clearly absorbed by his kiss with Zeus. Six was too busy looking into his coffee, like he was uncomfortable with the public display of affection.

"Yeah, uh, great," Three said at last.

"Fine," Six said softly.

"That's good," Jo said with a smile, then came over and took a seat at the table after grabbing himself a cup of coffee, "Those beds are wondrous, aren't they?"

"Fucking clouds in the sky," Three groaned, "I want one when we move into a house. I want two."

"Why the hell do you want two beds?" Six asked, looking up in annoyance. Three looked at him.

"I don't know, maybe I want to sleep downstairs one night."

"That's what a sofa is for."

"I don't want a sofa. I want two beds."

"Gods above, you are so whiny today."

"Me? Says you--"

"How about we don't do this right now," I said dryly, "Let's all take a breath and pretend Three is an adult and not eight." Six laughed at that, covering his mouth. Jo smiled and Three wrinkled his nose in distaste. He reached across the table and stole a couple pieces of my fruit. I picked up my fork threateningly and he squinted, like he was debating whether or not to try stealing more.

"I'm glad you all get along so well," Jo commented, "You've gone through a lot together, though, so I'm not surprised. It must have been very scary there." Three looked down at the piece of fruit in his hands, rolling it around before he popped it in his mouth.

"Not scary. Just dumb. You can only eat in this two hour window. Beds are flat and hard. You only have like two outfits to choose from. No kissing in the hallways. No making out. No sex anywhere, but your room with the door locked. No shoes in the bedrooms. No this, no that. And don't get me started on what we ate for meal times, ugh," Three ranted. Jo frowned a little at that, cocking his head, then his expression softened as if he were understanding something.

"Did my kiss with Zeus make you uncomfortable?" He asked. Three blinked, then looked awkward now.

"Well. No, I mean... It was just weird. We don't see that shit around the compound. I was never allowed to stop and kiss Six. Even if I really wanted to. I'd always have to drag him back to the room just for a kiss," he muttered. Six nodded.

"It was... a hassle. We were always heading back to the room," he added dryly, "Then a kiss led to another thing and then another and suddenly we were both in the infirmary."

"Infirmary?" Jo asked. That was not at all where I was expecting this story to go either.

"Because we get into fights," Six replied, making Jo's frown deepen, "It's just dumb shit."

"Like, Six didn't like the type of lube I used, or he didn't like that I bit him, or he didn't like that I spanked him or--"

"Oh my god!" Six exclaimed in horror. Three looked at him.

"What?"

"Shut up!"

"What?"

"Gods, you're so embarrassing!" Angry, Six shot to his feet and left the kitchen in a huff. I watched him go, then looked at Three, who scowled as he looked after him.

"What'd I say?" He asked. I shook my head at him. Three was completely clueless sometimes, but I supposed he just didn't come from an environment where manners and discretion were taught. I cut him some slack, even though I wanted to strangle him for a moment.

"I'm going to check on him," I said, getting up. Jo nodded in understanding. I left the room and went down the hallway to find Six leaning against the wall with his arms folded over his chest, his eyes glued to the floor in a glare.

"Are you alright?" I asked. Six looked at me.

"Why does he have to say that in front of them?"

"Who? Your parents?"

"Yes! Now they're going to think I'm some kind of deviant or--or a pervert or something..."

"They absolutely won't," I assured, making Six look at me doubtfully, "Trust me. They're not going to look at you any different." Six looked at the floor again, but seemed to be settling down now. We were quiet for a moment before I spoke up about something that was bothering me.

"Three's spanked you before?" I asked. Six stiffened and his cheeks flushed.

"N-No, I mean, yes, but it wasn't-- It wasn't like when you did it," he said, stumbling for words, "His really hurt. Yours were just... I mean, they hurt, but it was a good hurt. Gods." He covered his face with his hands. I smiled.

"Six... You know it's nothing to be ashamed of, right? Having particular things you enjoy doing during sex? It's perfectly normal," I added. Six peeked at me between his fingers.

"Spanking is not normal."

"Sure it is. For you."

"But not for everyone."

"I could name a few if you like, including--"

"No! No, that's okay, I don't need to know," Six managed, then cleared his throat, lowering his hands, "I just... It's not something I'm completely comfortable discussing outside just... you know, maybe just Three, you, and me." I smiled and inclined my head.

"I will respect that then."

"Thank you," he mumbled. I stepped forward and leaned in to his ear, at the same time slipping my hand down his back to his ass, making him stiffen.

"I will also respect your urge to do whatever it is you want in the bedroom. Absolutely anything. Just name it," I added, then pulled back. Six blushed right to the tips of his ears, his lips parted as if he had something to say, but wasn't sure what. He snapped his mouth shut and quickly brushed past me to head back to the kitchen. I laughed quietly, then turned and followed him back just as Zeus was finishing up the meal and placing the plates on the table.

"This smells amazing, baby," Jo murmured, looking at the plates with delight before looking up at Zeus, who seemed to almost puff his chest out in pride, "But of course, I'm never surprised. Your cooking is perfect." Gods, if Zeus could glow anymore, he'd look like the sun.

"It's classic meatballs with a tomato vodka sauce and homemade pasta noodles," Zeus said. Three cocked his head from side to side to study the meal before he grabbed a fork and did what he did with the burgers; poke it around on the plate, sniff it a little, test the texture, then seemed to enjoy the way it tastes and stabbed a whole meatball that he stuffed in his mouth.

"This... tastes so good," Six said from beside him, having bitten a meatball in half and dredged it in the sauce.

"Thank you," Zeus said, "I... could always show you how to make it sometime. If you're interested. No pressure. I know you're still trying to get comfortable. Just... You know, if you ever want to learn how to make this, or anything, I'll be happy to show you. Is all." He looked a little awkward now and Jo put his hand over his, their rings touching as they held hands for a moment. Three stared at their hands together, then looked over at Six, who was eating his food. He looked across the table at me and I looked back at him curiously, wondering what was going on inside his head.

We settled for just enjoying our meal, at least for a little while until Hades came into the kitchen, looking thoroughly exhausted.

"What's wrong with you?" Zeus asked dryly. Hades rubbed at his hair before he twisted it up and pulled a hair clip off the side of his sweatpants to clip it up out of his face.

"Everything," he answered, then came over and sat down, grabbing a meatball out of the main bowl, making Zeus scowl at him, "That kid, Four, isn't doing so hot. I managed to get his legs properly in place and I managed to heal up most of the physical damage, but every time he starts to come out of the coma, he comes out kicking and screaming. To top that off, Bait's not doing well either."

"Bait isn't?" I asked, alarmed. Hades frowned.

"I mean, he's alive and he's able to do things on his own, but his health is just not peak yet. He's still anemic. He won't use the wheelchair we gave him. He insists on walking on that stupid leg. He only eats bread and potatoes. It's like having a daycare center, which I did not sign up for," he explained in frustration, looking down at the meatball between his fingers.

"There's more of them, you know," I said softly, making Hades glance up, "More artificials who need us... There's babies." Hades froze at that, so did Jo and Zeus.

"Did you see them?" Jo asked after a moment. I shook my head.

"No, but..." I looked at Three, who frowned.

"Yeah, Fourteen and Fifteen," he answered, "I've seen 'em a couple times. They're just fat little babies, nothing special. Yet anyway." Six stopped eating to stare down at his food, like he'd lost his appetite.

"But they're gonna grow," he said, his voice haunted, "They're going to grow up just like we did." Three frowned, but didn't say anything to that. He stared at his food. Everyone was silent now as we sat there, contemplating the fact that the Mother had two infants, so far, who were artificials. What if she made more before we could rescue the others? What if she found the scientist who helped her and forced him to make more? Infants? Whose were they? What DNA did she steal to make them?

What if we didn't get to them in time?

"We'll get them," Hades said at last, making everyone look at him as he rose to his feet, licking sauce off his fingers, "We'll bring them home. Just like we did with you guys." He turned and left the room, our eyes following him out. Three and Six exchanged stares.

"It'll be alright," Jo said at last, "Hades is right. We'll bring them home soon. We're taking this step by step. It's a cautious mission, especially when young children are involved. But we'll bring them home where they belong."

"I hope so," Six murmured. We continued eating our meal, more subdued this time, before we headed out of the kitchen to check in on Bait, who was in a room not far down from where we were.

Bait's room was as extravagant as the rest of the palace. Plush fluffy sofas, thick comfortable bed with a comforter and heated blanket, heated jacuzzi tub, the works. Except when we walked in, he wasn't in the bed and he wasn't in the tub and he wasn't on one of the sofas.

He was sitting on the floor by the door, his knees drawn up and his arms resting over them. He looked up the moment we came in, almost hitting him with the door.

"What are you doing there?" I asked curiously. Bait looked up with a frown, his greasy hair hanging in his face. I frowned.

"You haven't showered?" I asked. Bait stared at me.

"I don't know how those things work," he answered.

"Gods above," Three grunted, "Just turn the water on and go inside."

"It's too hot," Bait muttered, "And it smells funny in there. I want food."

"Hades says you only eat bread and potatoes," I said. Bait shrugged.

"I'd eat fruit if they offered me any, but I'm only getting strange meals."

"Those are meals to help boost your strength. You can't eat rich foods right now."

"I just want bread, and fruit," Bait added, wrinkling his nose.

"And here I thought Six was picky," Three said dryly. I shook my head, then held my hand out to Bait, who eyed it suspiciously.

"Let's go sit down," I said. He hesitantly reached out and took my hand and let me gently lift him to his feet. I led the way over to the sitting area where we sat down. Bait sank into his seat and rubbed on the arms, like he still couldn't wrap his mind around the fact that a chair existed.

"So what now?" Six asked.

"We live," I replied, making him look at me curiously, "We get comfortable, we settle for a bit, and we see what the next step is to get the artificials away from the Mother. And punish the Mother for what she's done."

"Punish her," Six echoed warily, "You don't mean kill her, do you?"

"Yeah, I don't know how I feel about that one," Three muttered.

"I'm fine with that," Bait deadpanned. Three and Six scowled at him. He simply stared back blankly, like he couldn't comprehend their desire to keep the Mother alive.

"I don't think they'll kill her," I admitted, "She's Hades's sister. I can't imagine him wanting to kill her."

"He killed his own parents," Three pointed out.

"Not by choice, exactly," I said slowly, making Three give me a droll stare, "It wasn't. They kept pushing and Hades had to put them down before they killed anyone. I think Hades will try and find any way possible not to kill Hera, but to put a stop to her."

"Don't get me wrong, she's a cunt," Three said, then paused for the longest time, as if he wasn't sure how to word his thoughts, "But she did bring us into this world and she did sort of take care of us. We may not have had fancy beds or nice sofas or delicious food, but we were alive."

"Not all of you got that," I said, glancing at Bait, who looked down at the floor. Three frowned.

"Maybe if he wasn't born fucked up, he would've gotten it," he admitted with a shrug, making me frown.

"It's not his fault."

"I know. I'm just saying," Three sighed, then shook his head, "Whatever. Doesn't matter to me anymore. I just want to be left the fuck alone so I can live in a nice house, with my husband and his weirdo boyfriend, with burgers, and maybe a TV or two."

"Why do you always want two of everything?" Six asked, blushing lightly at the husband comment.

"Why do you always gotta bitch about things I want?"

"Because you don't need two of everything."

"I don't need it. I want it. Besides, I got two partners now, so might as well have two TVs, two beds, two, I dunno, houses? That might be too much."

"Oh, two houses is where you draw the line," Six drawled, then shook his head before looking at Bait, "What about you? Where are you going after this?" Bait blinked and looked up, then shrugged and looked down at the floor.

"They're sending me to some place in Styx," he replied, "An orphanage or something."

"An orphanage?" I asked. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing, especially in Styx. All the orphanages were personally funded by Theo, Hades's son, and a prince. In fact, several orphanages had recently closed because there were simply no children to fill them. Except...

"You're not a child," I said. Bait looked at me.

"According to Hades, I can't live on my own," he answered dully, "I'm too handicapped." I didn't know what to say to that. I hadn't thought Bait's condition was so bad he couldn't live alone. But, what about his parents?

"And your parents? Did you find out who they are?" I asked. Bait looked bored.

"Oh, I'll be fine without them, better than fine."

"But who are they?"

"Doesn't matter."

"Just tell us for curiosity's sake," Three groaned, "Goddamn. You people really hold your breath about shit around here. Who are your parents? Is it Hades? Is that why you're so pissy about it? Cuz that would be kinda cool, actually."

"Hades wouldn't send you to an orphanage if you were his son," I said, matter-of-factly. Bait frowned, but didn't say anything. At least, not right away. He just stared at the floor while Three changed the subject to a new house, something about a penthouse apartment he read on the Internet.

"She's your mother, isn't she?" I asked at last, silencing Three and Six. Bait looked up. Those mismatched blue and brown eyes were suddenly ancient and exhausted.

"Some of us don't win the parental lottery," he answered at last.

"Wait, the Mother is your mother?" Three asked for confirmation. Bait looked down at the floor.

"I need a yes or no, man," Three pressed. Bait gave him a deadpan stare.

"Why does it matter to you?"

"Because that just makes the bitch even more fucked up if she seriously turned her child into bait."

"I was born bait," Bait answered hollowly. Three stared at him, then looked away, raking a hand through his hair before dropping it on the sofa.

"Okay, that's just depressing as fuck," he said at last, "Goddamn. Forget what I said about not killing the psycho. Go ahead and off her for all I care. That shit's fucked." I closed my eyes before looking down at the floor, a wave of despair washing over me. I had so hoped Bait would find his parents here, in Hades, or even Atlantis, or Hell, anywhere, but right in his own backyard, but that wasn't the case.

Hera was Bait's mother.

And she was also the one who created his hell.