HE PULLED BACK HIS hand so quickly it seemed like he had been burned, fingers clenching in a fist again by his side as he stepped back. She didn't know why she had told him the truth, but she had not wanted to lie either. Still, whatever Niccolo had told her, she wasn't fully sure she believed it yet. And even if she did, what did it matter? Wasn't she the master of her own fate?

Honestly, she hadn't expected him to react to it at all. With how level-headed he stayed most times a part of her had thought he would just shrug, like it all didn't matter. And yet here he was, looking at her like she had told him something terrible, like he felt guilty for cursing her with his presence now.

"I'm sorry," he said, evading his gaze," shit, I keep apologizing to you, but I am. It seems I've involved you in my mess."

"Why are you apologizing?" she said curiously," I'm the one who keeps looking for you and involving myself."

He shook his head, locking eyes with her then.

"But I should know better," he said," I've seen so much death and ruin, I should know better than to put you through something like that." He swallowed, the distance between them feeling like it was so much yet nothing at all. "You are so pure, you deserve better than me."

"Am I not the one who decides what I deserve?" she said.

When he didn't reply she took his wrist, surprising him as she tugged him along.

"Do you have an hour to spare?" she said.

"The answer is always no with my schedule," he said, before adding," what for?"

"I want to show you something," she said," can you make yourself visible?"

"How do you know I'm not visible right now?" he said," perhaps I enjoy humans seeing and harassing me."

"It's no wonder then you keep following me around," she teased.

She had expected him to deny it, but instead his cheeks tinted red as he scraped his throat.

"I am visible now," he said," what is it you wanted to show me?"

With a smile she pulled him along and he followed quietly, through the streets she knew by heart, until she reached the forest closeby. He frowned as she headed uphill a small path through the trees, but eventually dared to go on, until they reached the edge, a railing surrounding it. She stepped out from the trees, turning towards him and placing her hands in front of his eyes as he emerged from behind. The surprise at her sudden touch was clear, his hand shooting up to hers, but stopping by her wrist, softly enclosing it.

"Okay, you can only look when I tell you to," she said.

"I am usually the guide," he said," this feels wrong."

"Just trust me," she said.

He hesitated, but still stepped forward, walking blindly, but before she could remove her hands to show him she bumped against a protruding root and the next thing she knew the ground was slipping from underneath her feet. A yell escaped her lips, her arms around his neck in an attempt to grab something to hold onto. Quickly he placed his hand on the floor, turning them in time so he landed underneath, her head thumping against his chest.

Sheepishly she looked up at him, only then realizing his hand on the small of her back, her arms around his neck, the close proximity of their faces. His eyes were clouded silver, darkening for a brief second. She half-expected him to look away, but he didn't, instead holding her gaze. The silence between them felt electric, like she could burn herself on his presence alone. As if on cue she heard a soft rumbling come from the distance then, gray clouds spreading across it.

A faint frown creased his forehead at her parted lips as she looked up, a disappointed expression having fallen on her face.

"What is it?" he said, hand moving from her back to her cheek for only a second before he pulled back again.

"I wanted to show you how pretty the clear sky looks from here," she said," now it's going to rain."

"You wanted to show me the view?" he blinked.

"What did you think I was going to show you?" she asked, glancing back at him.

"I don't know," he said, pushing his hair back with a hand as he shook his head," I thought you were going to show me a ghost I had to guide along, to be honest."

"You're off work for this hour," she smiled at him, placing her hand on his forehead," I'm taking all your worries away until then okay, so I guess we'll just have to enjoy this new view now."

The dark sky reflected in his eyes as he leaned in to her touch, closing his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, she could feel her heart skip a beat. She pulled her hand back, feeling flushed for some reason, but he spoke before she could linger on it any longer.

"I prefer it," he said, low voice tingling with the cold on her skin," the rain, I mean. It makes the world quiet."

"Then I take my disappointment back," she said, collecting herself again as she smiled. "It's a sign, I suppose."

"I don't care for signs," he said, pushing himself up fluidly in one motion and keeping a hand on her back so she wouldn't fall after. He lifted his hand beside his head, never breaking eye contact once as he snapped his fingers. "There's no higher power at work here, there's only me."

The clouds were gone at once, all that was left now a lilac sky glittering blue at the edges. Delilah gasped in awe, excitedly pointing upwards.

"I didn't know you could do that," she exclaimed," that's amazing."

"I control everything in this world, even the gods," he shrugged," changing the weather isn't a big task to me."

"But why change it?" she said," I thought you preferred the rain."

"Yeah," he said, following her gaze upwards," I do." He was quiet for a second, his voice soft in the small space between them. "This is what you wanted to show me, right?"

"You have to turn around to fully appreciate it," she said, jumping to her feet and tugging at his wrist to get him to follow along," look, at the edge here it's stunning."

He let his gaze wander across the sky as she playfully bumped her shoulder against his, voice amused.

"Honestly, at this point it feels like you're the one showing me the view," she mused.

"Should I change the weather back?" he said, glancing sideways at her.

"I wanted to show you something pretty," she smiled," to get your mind off things, so you can choose what you like to see. Everything's alright for me."

"You think of me too much," he said, eyes clouding over again as the mist around him clung to him like smoke. He had sounded confused about it at first, but when he spoke again his voice wavered, like he was unsure what to say. "Niccolo's predictions are always true, his prophecies bind us all."

"It's fine," she said, leaning her elbows on the railing," I mean, I can't say I wasn't surprised initially, but in the end I was supposed to die when we first met. Whether I die now or after, it doesn't matter to me, I believe in the afterlife anyway."

"Aren't humans normally more attached?" he said," don't you have a family or friends who you want to see longer? Things you want to do?"

"I do," she said, voice trailing off as she looked in the distance.

The more she thought about what Niccolo had said the more it seemed to ring true. Perhaps she didn't truly care for anything, because the thought of leaving forever wasn't such a horrid one. It wasn't like she wanted to die, but everything had become a routine at this point. She wouldn't call her life boring, but maybe it was if she was willing to risk ruination simply to spend some time with a tired idol of hers.

"I just want to feel intensely," she said suddenly, hand on her heart," I want to live intensely, love intensely. All this money, online stuff, I don't care for it. I would be satisfied enough with enjoying every moment to it's fullest, no matter how that might be."

"I don't think myself someone who feels much at all," he said," if you're searching for comrades to do so you're with the wrong deity."

"The only time I'll need a comrade is when I'll ride into battle in another world one day," she chuckled," I'll be plenty happy to have you as a friend."

She was already expecting him to protest, but he nodded at that moment, catching her off-guard.

"I wouldn't mind so either," he said," even if it's selfish to think so."

With a smile she turned towards him, tilting her head to catch his eye. "As my new friend I grant you permission to be selfish more often, okay?"

His lip twitched, but he concealed his amusement with a cough, changing the subject after.

"Speaking of selfish people," he said," when Niccolo comes to find you again, and he will, don't listen to what he says, alright? His prophecies will always ring true, but everything else he says beside that is ninety-nine percent of the time complete nonsense."

"And how will I discern his prophecies from his nonsense?" Delilah said.

"You will," he said, pulling his cap up again," I pick my friends wisely."

"Do you?" she teased.

"No," he said," you're my only friend."

"Then I have a high standard to uphold," she said, glancing away at the sky then. "I think I've kept you for too long, our hour's almost over."

"It's fine," he said, tugging a lock behind her ear," I'll see you soon."

She blinked and he stepped back at the same time, seeming just as surprised as her at the movement. Still, neither of them said something about it as he turned to open a portal, scraping his throat as he looked back at her. His touch was still warm on her skin, but she ignored it, waving at him as he let his scythe materialize into his hand.

"I'll try not to be ruined in the meanwhile," she called out after him.

As he stepped through she thought she heard him chuckle.