Sunset Waters

they didn't speak to each other for the rest of that day, except for the times they had to. The next day, Asterion checked Zosime's wounds as he recalled the events that happened the other day. Gods, he wished he never reacted the way he did; threatening her, nearly squeezing the life out of her, the need to end…her. All he wanted to do now was to bury his head in the mud and let the bugs eat him away.

He began to rub off the expired ointment from the cold girl as she held her robe across her chest and between her thighs, 'This is humiliating', Zosime thought, knowing perfectly well he can see everything; the goosebumps on her sunless skin, the bruises from yesterday (some made by Asterion's own hands), and her annoy-angry face coated with fatigued.

'Well at least she isn't running away from me any more.' He thought as he looked at her stomach, revealing a scar above the bellybutton. Asterion moved to her face, pausing for a moment to look at the bruises on her neck with guilty eyes. He held Zosime's face like it was thin ice and wiped off the medicine from her cheek, there was two raised lines from her cheek bone to her jawline. Her scars will never heal in her life time, her face prominently damage by the evils in this world, but she is alive.

"You're completely healed," He said while standing and quickly turned away.

"How is this possible?" Zosime said as she rubbed the risen surface of her skin. "No severe wuend should heal so quickly." She covered the disfiguration with her small hand, feeling her new face. "What did you do?"

"you're welcome," he grunted. ' ungrateful woman', Asterion thought as he waited for her to cover herself before looking back at her. he couldn't read her face, was she angry at him from the other day, did she decided to hate him forever, is she thinking to escape him now that she's healed, planing to kill him? Asterion's mind wandered in darker thoughts (as he looked at the ground), guessing what she is thinking. 'Why did I save her?' He looks at her to see the hatred in her eyes.

Zosime was looking up at the living stars looking dejected. She still haven't wrapped herself up in her robes as she sat there shivering from the cold and exposed. She didn't seemed bothered by it, almost welcomed it. The beast looked at her faded copper skin. Expend the places he cleaned off, she was covered with dirt, bone dust, and dry flaky blood. And her stench… He started to gather clean(ish) robes that lade close to their bed and two blankets. The sudden movements of the Minotaur startled Zosime out of her trance and she hastily clothed herself, feeling like she had to move away for the entity.

"Zosime, come." He called to her like a master calls to his dog.

She wanted to tell him to leave her alone and walk away. Instead she put her hand out and said, "Where are you?"

"Here," Asterion, as gently has he could, took her hand and guid her to his back while giving her a blanket. "Get on." Zosime obeyed silently as she fumbled onto the monsters back and covered herself with the blanket.

Asterion took a different path, this time he traveled downward. The walls depleted drastically and Zosime didn't have to see them to know it. Every step the monster took she heard the walls rumble, the floor so unsteady Asterion had to go on on all fours. This reminded Zosime the first time she rode her fathers horse. The animal was so large underneath her that her legs couldn't hit the sides of his ribcage. Like the horse, Zosime struggled to keep on Asterion's back as she slid from side to side. The further they went down the more difficult for Zosime to keep on the beast's back. Not only she was being toast around, Asterion's fur became slippery from the cold icy air clashing with the hot air that seepped out of the large cavity.

Zosime nearly slipped past Asterion's shoulders when he abruptly stopped, his chest now covering the hole. He shook his body from the heat before diving the floor. There was just enough space for both of them to squeeze through the tunnel. After squeezing through the long tunnel, they finally came to an opening. Asterion slowly, taking extra care not to disturb a single stone or trip on any cracks. He stop and gide Zosime off his back and took the blanket.

The air was worm and comforting, Zosime's cold skin craved more of it. She smelled the humid air with delight. It was a secret quirk she had, Zosime loves the humidity. In the summer where every one would try to avoid the heat, she would sit outside with her face toreds Zephyrs, Anemoi of the West. Hitting her with the hot humid winds and she welcomed it! As Zosime mind kept wondering, so did her feet.

"Watch your step!"

Asterion rumbling voice pierce her ears a little too late as her small foot plunge into warm water. The water began to glow orange as her toes hit the flat stones on the bottom of a pool. She jumped back straight into the Minotaur's chest and curled her arms around one of his.

"What was that?" She screamed.

"This is a hidden spring underneath the Labyrinth, not even my wicked sister knows about it," Asterion held in an impulsed laugh, "the glow comes from the creatures that live in the water."

He picked up a small rack and through it into the water and the cave lit up. The orange glow mimic the same orange sunset Zosime saw before being dragged into the darkness. The warm light of the stalactites look there was sparkling fire throughout the pool of water, shimmering onto the walls of the cave. As Zosime looked around, she realized she felt very tall where she stood and a little trapped. She wonder if the walls and ceilings of the labyrinth are as claustrophobic as this cave.

Asterion quietly hung the clothes on a near stalagmite, "You need to wash, use the spring to get yourself clean, dry with the blanket." Before the light died, Asterion turn and crawled back into the entrance way to give the girl some privacy.

It didn't take long for the glow to come back. 'She must be playing with the water,' Asterion thought to himself, watching the light bounts and dance on the walls of the tunnel. She is like a child, finding amusement in the darkest parts of this wretched world. Finally he heard the water separate as she submerged herself in the warm waters. Zosime let out a huge sia, loud enough for Asterion to here. It was filled with content, something he wish he had now. Asterion felt suffocated, he had know idea what to do next. He lied to her, he scares her, he hurts her,…he is a monster to her. What was he thinking? Why did he want this? Her? Did he what that sense of purpose, a companion to talk to other then Ariadne, having the hope of humanity,… to be human.

He closed his eyes and his mind wandered. He thought the first time he smelled Zosime's sent, the first time he saw her in that pile of bones, the taste of her blood, her rare smiles. All plesent thoughts, until he saw golden hair flowing off fragile shoulders. Past bruised hips, and touching the floor next to blistered chipped toenails. Pleasantry turned nightmarish, remembering her sweet smell became rotten, he wish he never saw her beautiful face, her sweet blood was now putrid to him, the thought of her glowing smile turned his stomach with remorse. Thinking about that filthy stalactite dripping with her blood in her small hands brought tears to his eyes. Will it be the same for Zosime? The same as...

Suddenly, he heard Zosime get out of the water, wringing out her hair, and dried with the blanket. Asterion could smell the spring water in her hair, it is what he imagine a meadow by a river filled with cold mountain water would smell like. Fresh and clean.

When she was clothed, Zosime called out to him and Asterion massive form appeared. He hands her a dry blanket, "Lets go."

"Wait!" Zosime suddenly grabs his hand but quickly let go and cleared her throat, "I- I mean I would appreciate it if you took a bath as well." She put her chin up but wasn't abel to look in his eyes.

He looks at her with a stern face. "You took a long time bathing, I don't have time to bath." He lies, he wasn't a big fan of water. He saw bathing pointless because he never needed to. "Lets go." Asterion repeated.

"Then may we come back tomorrow?" Asterion gave her a look that made her stutter. "Its j-just that… We both smell and I need you to bath too." She said awkwardly.

Asterion grunts. "Fine, I'll get what I can and then we leave." Zosime agrees to this. Asterion ripped whatever garments he had on and slid into the pool that lit up like the dying sun, all in front of her. She tried to leave the room as fast as possible, but was stopped by the Minotaur. "Sit where I can see you, I don't want you to wonder off." Zosime squeezed her eyes shut before sitting on a balder, she set the blanket on her lap, looking at the walls as the orange light hit them. It wasn't long before she was splashed.

Zosime was about to yell at him, but she stopped and laughed a little. Asterion couldn't reached to his upper back, thrashing around to get the spot. Zosime got up and put the blanket on the set and walked to the pool.

"I told you to sit down."

"You told me to sit were you can see me," she sat next to him"let me get your back " Zosime offerd and Asterion slowly gave her his back. Zosime began scratching and washing off the filth from his fur, the unusual creatures began to sworm the mud and crusted blood that floated on the water's surface, making pockets of orange light. Once she washed off a portion of Asterion's upper back she discoverd a circular scar, the area was darken with twisted corrugated skin. Zosime placed one of her hands flat on the furless scar, it was as big as her hand (5.5 inches high). "How did you get this?" Zosime asked as she trace the crevesses and divits of the skin.

He felt uncomfortable with her unnecessary question, but answered. "I was young and small enough to found away out, it went strate to the royal hall. The king nearly pissed himself when he saw me. the guards rushed at me. I was able to injured one of them before they pinned me to the ground.

"My punishment came in two parts. The first punishment they beat me half to death then they dug a torch in my back and through me back in the hole with broken bones." He laughed deeply like it was a happy memory, it made Zosime uneasy as she continue scratching off the festering filth on his back. "The second…" He stopped laughing and rubbed his left hand. His mother tried to fix his busted hand, it never healed right. But that wasn't what bothered him. "My mother found me in a broken mess, she healed me the best she could before… the King took her away."

Zosime stopped scrubbing as her hart stopped only for a moment, "What happened to her?"

Asterion started to scrub his chest viciously, "I don't know."

"But there is a chants that she's alive?"

"Why do you ask these aggravating questions?" He blurted, turning his head to the side showing that it is not wise to continue on with the subject. They kepted silent as they scrub the filth off and listen to the glowing creatures sizle as they ate the muck. They both stood in the water in silents, regretting their words to each other.

Asterion was about to leave the pool until Zosime spoke. "I'm sorry, I know how hard it is to lose someone important to you. I lost my mother two years ago… you must miss her dearly." she put her hand to her chest where her mother's amulet used to be knowing that she will never see it again.

"How did she die?" Asterion asked

The question cot her off guard. "O,… from sickness. My father said it was Apollon and Artemis enraged by King Minos and his people, so they shot their arrows in the sky and from them came down Nosos that brought on a plague. Some people died quick and with little pain." She curled her lips to fight off tears and keep her composure. "Some suffered for a long time, my mother was one of them. She was sick for a hole year before dying in my father's arms." Asterion could smell her salty tears running down her face; she couldn't hold them in anymore.

"What was her name?" Asterion said softly, forgetting how annoyed he was.

"Elpis." A short burst of sad laughter came out of her lips. Hope, the thing that Asterion had given her by saving her life and the promise of leaving this place, to feel the hot sun again. And she thanks him like a spoiled child, she was raised better then this. Zosime dried her face and continued scratching his back until all the filth was gone. "She used to sing to me when I was sad, to give us hope in the darkest times, it always seemed to work." Zosime began to faintly hum a song that filled her head, she hardly knew she was humming in the first place until, he too began to hum.

They continued to hum to each other until Asterion was finely clean and dried. They head back feeling clean and good about them selves, they kept humming all the way to the dwelling.

They said nothing to each other when they finally got to the den it was time to eat there rations and go to sleep. And for the first time, sense Zosime woke up underneath the moving stars, they both went into a deep sleep in each others arms. But before she drifted off into a peaceful dream, she could hear a quiet but deep thumping sound coming from below the den.