Harun sat in the hot spring with his head leaning against his arm in thought. There was no way he could tell Auovin a thing, but he wanted him to stay. Truth be told, he wanted to learn more about Auovin than just his body. He was quick-witted and selfless enough to come to him to ask for his help. Many of the old ones did no such thing. They cared for nothing but themselves. However, he was different. Harun bit down on his finger as his thoughts began to linger back to Auovin and the way the water traced along his skin. How smooth and soft it must be, Harun thought until he tasted his own blood in his mouth.

"Harun."

Kaval's voice filled the emptiness, causing Harun to sink his head into the water.

"For how many more days are you going to seclude yourself in here?"

"Seclude? You are more than free to join me." Harun reached for Kaval's hand and tugged him towards himself.

"You always come here when you are in deep thought over something. Has someone asked for you to remove a memory of theirs again?"

"No, nothing like that." Harun brought Kaval close enough to kiss him. "I never understood the reasoning behind it. The good and the bad memories... do they not make you who you are? Without them, you could be someone else entirely. No matter how painful they may be, I would never want to lose them. They are precious."

"Are they? Even the ones of him?"

"Yes, I suppose those as well. But the ones of you are one of many important ones I would never like to forget." Harun caressed his cheek and smiled.

"Even as you say that, I can see the hurt in your eyes. You would like to forget him."

"I would," Harun muttered. "But I will not because he meant much to me at some point. Why must you keep bringing him up?"

"Because."

"Because?"

"I know you think of him when you come here. You take off that mask you wear only inside here where no one else can see. It is infuriating to see you acting like someone that you are not. You do not even like women. How much longer do you expect to keep up this ruse? It is cracking and your true face is beginning to show--"

"He said he would be back, so I will wait."

"It has been over nine hundred years. It would be fine if it was just waiting, but I cannot even say your name. Do you even still remember it? Do you remember the color of your own eyes anymore? Perhaps, they will stay this gray forever and not the pretty blue I remember them being. These eyes belong to a Great and you are not one."

Harun bit his finger causing it to bleed more. Of course, he knew that. He knew all of that and yet he still was waiting. He did not need to be reminded. The hot water no longer gave him the peace of mind he desired, so Harun climbed out expecting Kaval to move when he did. He did not. Instead, Kaval bent down near Harun and smiled. He removed Harun's bleeding finger from his mouth and replaced it with his lips. They were always so soft and inviting, making Harun want to taste more of him. Harun moved away and covered his lips quickly with his hand at the thought. He did not want to take any more blood for him for the time being.

"Biting your finger when you grow frustrated... it is a bad habit."

"I know. I cannot help it."

"Why not bite me instead?"

Harun's cheeks flushed. "You very well know why, Kaval. I will want more than just your body. I will want your blood and I will take too much... as I always tend to do," Harun said almost as a whisper.

"Oh?" Harun could see Kaval grinning without even having to lift his head up. Kaval liked to tease him like this. It was as bad as a habit as him biting his fingers or lips when he grew frustrated.

Kaval pressed closer, so close Harun could taste his breath on his lips. Harun closed his eyes, loving the feel of his lips on his cheek trailing down to his neck. Curious hands brushed across his wet skin along his waist. If it were not for the smell wafting from him, he would have given into his fleshy desires easily.

"I do not know why you come to me after having been with Maoz. You know I do not like him nor his smell. Some part of me thinks you do this on purpose to get a rise from me." Harun pushed him away and quickly stood. "I need to ready myself for the temple."

"Shall I do your hair then? Tie it back into a small bun as you had always liked it before you cut it?"

Harun stopped to consider the idea, but he was growing annoyed with his little antics. He ran his fingers through his hair before continuing his walk back to his chamber not bothering to give him a response. When he arrived, he shut his door and leaned against. He exhaled the breath he had been holding in and balled his hands into tight fists. It was not the idea of Kaval being with Maoz that bothered him so much, it was the frequency of the visits and his absence away from him as a result that did.

It was true. He loved Kaval dearly, but he was not in love with him. Kaval was free to fall in love with whomever. It should not give rise to such venomous feelings as the ones he felt now. Harun slid down the door and tucked his head inside the makeshift box he made with his arms at the thought. But it did, and they festered. Gods, how they festered. Without him, truly then he would be alone and that was what was hurting him the most. He was scared of being alone.

Ari clutched at his heart as tears streamed down his face. That loneliness was the thing he feared the most. Now, he finally understood why. He was swallowed by it once before. It was because of that man. All of it was because of him. Because he left him while he stayed there for what seemed like an eternity, waiting for him to come back and when he did--. Ari was overcome with a surge of bitter emotions before they morphed into anger.

"Do you remember now? Why he left you?" Meris said. She sat cross-legged on the slab of stones.

Through his blurred vision, Ari looked up and saw his surroundings distorting. It was as if he was back in the ruins of his temple. It quickly changed back and then morphed again, causing Ari to hold his head. He was flooding with rage and angry tears and the bitter feelings that nestled deep within the crevices of his heart to care much for her words.

"He left me." Ari's voice shook as he choked on a sob. "He left me because I could not return his feelings. I loved him. I cherished him. He meant the world to me because he was once all that I had, but that was not enough for him." He wiped viciously at his tears and breathed.

"Ah, so it is finally starting to come back to you now. No need for me to continue this then--"

"No, Auovin. I would like to know about... "

"So you do not fully remember then? Just bits and pieces of that other man?" She laughed causing it to echo throughout the ruins.

"You want to know how and why you betrayed him? I will gladly share this. But this will be my last. I am growing hungry."

Ari backed away, stumbling on pieces of jagged rocks. Her blood red eyes set on him like a beast who found its prey before she smiled. "It will all come back to you in bits and pieces throughout time. Would you not like to know who the man is who caused these tears to amass in these pretty, delectable eyes of yours instead?"

"I did not... I did not betray him."

"You keep singing that tune, but it is false. You did. No matter the guise you tried to hide it under, Ari. You are a liar."

Harun walked towards the bowl of strawberries. He looked at them curiously before picking one up and taking a bite. Its sweetness caused an unbidden smile to plaster on his face. He took another and another relishing in its flavorful juice. He had never tasted human food like this before.

"Would you like some?"

Auovin shook his head no and smiled as he covered the distance between them.

"They were mine, to begin with."

Harun's cheeks reddened, causing Auovin to laugh. "But go on and have them. They are called strawberries. I thought you might like them, so I brought some back with me."

"You do not like them?"

"I like them in the taste of blood."

Harun looked down at the bowl and then back up to a pair of smiling yellow eyes. He quickly dropped the strawberry that was in hand at the underlying meaning behind his words.

"What is the matter? You said it yourself. You want my body in turn for what I want."

"I cannot give you what you want and I never said you could have my blood."

"We both know blood comes with intimacy. You cannot have one without the other."

"You could."

"Yes, you could, but it would not be as satisfying."

"So you are agreeing to what I asked for then?"

Auovin shook his head yes as he stared into his eyes, into his very soul it seemed like. It made Harun become a little unnerved.

"What do you what in return then?"

"Woo me."

"Woo... you?" Haruns ears grew hot along with the rest of his body at what that meant. "You are vulgar."

"I am?" Auovin could not stop the laugh that came over him as much as he tried to stifle it. "I am the vulgar one? Honestly, you amuse me."

Ari held his head as it pounded. He was taken from one memory to the next, disorienting him.

"The stars, do you see them? How they glitter and shine... I love looking at them the most," Harun said.

Auovin gave him a look but said nothing.

"They are the only ones who are older than we are and seemingly alive."

"I do not look up at the sky very much. There is nothing there."

"Are they not beautiful?"

"I do not find them beautiful, no."

Harun turned to look at him with furrowed brows.

"And why is that?"

Auovin shrugged his shoulders and sat beside him.

"What is there to find beautiful about them?"

"Everything," Harun breathed as he let go a smile. "In time, you will come to love them too."

Ari's head pulsed with pain now. He was remembering things too much too soon. The pain crippled him to the point to where he could barely stand. He fell on the ground, but it was covered with something. When he sank his fingers down into the pile he lurched back realizing they were not jagged rocks, but broken bones and skulls instead. Ari looked all around at his surroundings, gazing at the massive heaps of them. He could not even see the ground. His eyes widened in shock at the realization that he had been ensnared in its trap.

"With every memory, it brought you deeper and deeper inside." Its voice was the same as it once was before, deep and menacing. Ari could not see it anywhere even though his eyes had grown accustomed to the darkness. Its red eyes shined as it rose from the pile of the dead.

"You should have been warned. Memories, if not careful, can devour you whole."

Ari pushed himself up against the cave wall as it rose to its full height. It was a gargantuan creature. The horns of its head could almost reach the ceiling. The smell of rotting flesh that came from it made Ari nauseous. Chunks of itself came sliding off. Its skeleton could be seen where the flesh had fallen off.

"Meris... oem... Memories," Ari mumbled. He did not know how he knew, but he knew it was the thing that man created when he took the bad memories of his followers.

The beast flashed its teeth and lunged for him, but Ari dodged it. He picked up a sharp fragment of bone and stabbed it in one of the beast's eyes, causing it to howl in pain. Ari ran not knowing in which way to go. He kept tripping and fumbling over the bones allowing for the beast to quickly catch up to him. Since he could not run for much longer, Ari hid in the piles of bones.

Bugs crawled out of the eye sockets and openings of the remains. Ari kept still even when some slithered inside of his shirt and up his neck. The rancid smell of the rot and decay was endless, but Ari did his best to hold his breath for forever long possible.

"Let me show you one last memory. The one you asked for." The beast sniffed the piles of bones before smacking them away with its claws.

Ari held his hand over his mouth and nose as it grew closer.

"Or shall I tell you the name of the man who made me? Give you the memory of his face back? Of the man who stripped you of everything you once held dear. I promise I will not hurt you. Bring me him and I will hurt him instead."

Ari did his best to ignore him, but its words were eating away at him. There were unbidden tears amassing in his eyes. He did not know what for. His memories were scattered like broken glass that he could not put together because they were so fragmented. At least, not now. The beast was playing on that.

As the beast continued to walk, Ari quietly shuffled through the bones. He peeked outside of them and realized there was a faint light of fire coming from a small hole. There was no way of knowing if he could fit through it from the distance he was at, but he would have to try. It would find him sooner or later if he stayed there for much longer.

Ari steadied his heart. He watched the beast as it raked through the bones, waiting for the most opportune moment. When one did not come, Ari decided to make one himself. He threw a bone in the opposite direction of where he was headed and hid back inside the pile of bones. It ran towards where he had thrown it. Ari clawed his way out and ran.

It darted after him, but Ari was faster. He slid into the hole just as its hand was coming down upon him. However, it grabbed his leg with human hands and pulled before he could make it all the way inside. Ari kicked at it, but it was much stronger. He dug his hands into whatever he could find until someone came and yanked him forward. It tore into his leg causing it to gush with blood. The stone wall collapsed, closing the hole before Meris could get through.

"I will come for you and I will devour you." Ari heard it whisper in Meris' voice.

When he looked up, Ari was met with a pair of yellow eyes. Instead of thanking him, Ari's voice stayed stuck in his throat. He did not know what to say to him. There was an ache in his heart where butterflies used to be. He should have listened to him. He should have stayed. And the words he said to him that day-- they were unforgivable. Time and time again, he came when he needed him the most. There were no words he could say to him to relieve him of the guilt that was consuming him, but he would try. It was the least he could do.

Auovin tore off a piece of his shirt and wrapped it around his leg. He picked up the candle he had and stood.

"I--"

"There is no time for this. It will be looking for you, so we must hurry. Cyrus is waiting" Auovin pulled him to his feet and dragged him behind him when he did not keep up. It hurt to put pressure on his leg, but he did not bother to mention it.

Ari continued staring at the back of his head, wanting to wrap his arms around him and hold him tight. It had been so long, he swore he had forgotten what he smelled like. More than anything, he wanted to press his lips to his and apologize for the words he said to him. He wanted to say and do everything he could before it was too late. In time, the rest of his memories would reveal themselves and Ari was afraid of what they would show. Subconsciously, Ari tightened his hand in Auovin's, causing him to look at it then back to Ari.