True Desires

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"Cheeky boy…"

"I've been… Looking for you." She said with a sensual expression, getting up from her spot as she crawled on top of the bed, the thin pink bedsheets sliding off her body as she did so

'Despite not trying, her movements were full of silent sexiness… Her angle allowed those to see a lot... And at the same time nothing, despite she being naked.'

'It made Haruhime blush, it made Hestia's face turn dark.'

'And it made Silver frown.'

'Because he could feel his body react to her, it was outside of his control.'

'Despite his disgust for this woman, his body still followed some basic rules.'

'And the being in front of him was the very manifestation of such aspects of creation.'

"Come to me boy… Let me see for myself…"

'She was now on all fours, right in front of Siver, he could see her whole slender tanned body.'

'In order to keep his image, he had to control his body with his Plasmids, otherwise, he would've been aiming toward the sky right now…'

'Ishtar was about to touch Silver, breathing softly, she said:'

"Show me… What she sees in…"

"Enough of that."

"Umm?"

'Hestia suddenly stepped in front of Silver, her expression tense, the air around her tested as she pushed Ishtar back on the bed and threw a bed sheet on top of her to cover her shame.'

'Her eyes seemed to shine, burning with some mysterious flame...'

"Have some shame!"

"My… My…"

'Ishtar finally saw Hestia... Or better put, she finally recognized her existence.'

'And she quickly forgot Silver.'

"You've always been like that Hestia… Such a bore."

"Huh?!"

'Hestia frowned, and Ishtar smiled.'

"Have you ever wondered why you were never called to the parties?"

"I…"

"So strict, so reclusive… So… Authoritative..."

"You were only above Artemis... While Athena was just boring, rarely doing anything else apart from reading her books."

"That was because…"

'But Ishtar did not stop.'

"No one would call someone just to have this person watch and not join in."

"Do you know how many tried? Yet you stopped each and every one of them."

"..."

"After the first few times, people just stopped calling you." Ishtar said as she rested her head on her hands

"..."

Humph!

'Hestia pouted.'

Their parties were a waste of time!

Nothing but the same… Food… Drinks… Gossip…

'She then became a bit pensive...'

Honestly, that seems quite tempting to me right now, but back then, I had no interest in anything aside from taking care of the flame together with the others…

No matter how many times they told me to go with them, I didn't go, after once, I completely lost interest in it.

Especially due to that terrible thing they did at the end!

'She turned her face to look at Silver.'

"Say something…"

"Me?..."

'Silver thought for a moment.'

"I don't find you boring at all." He said with a warm smile

'She became embarrassed, punching his arm.'

"N-Not that!"

'And Ishtar didn't miss that.'

"My… So it was true… You finally unstuck…"

"It just took a few thousand..."

"Hey!"

"Fu… No need to deny, it's clear…"

'She looked into her eyes and asked seductively:'

"So tell me, how was it?..."

'She approached Hestia, whispering in her ears softly:'

"Was it good enough to make you want seconds?"

"Gah!"

'Hestia couldn't think straight anymore…'

"Oh?"

'She simply pushed Ishtar aside, turning her face to look at the wall.'

'She was as red as a tomato, and this made SIlver shake his head.'

"In any case…"

'But before he could take over the situation, Ishtar looked to his left, seeing Haruhime.'

"You… Kinky girl… You're finally back to me… Your master."

"K-Kinky?! I-I'm nothing like that…"

"No need to be a stranger, I've seen you grow haven't I?"

'Ishtar approached her, touching her cheeks and scrubbing her hair.'

"From the frail child, lost inside a cage, to a young woman capable of…"

"No… You're wrong." Haruhime replied with her head down

'Her eyes rose, staring straight at Ishtar.'

"I've never left my cage."

"..."

/Chuckles/

'Ishtar looked at her with some understanding, smiling even.'

"You've truly grown."

"It even makes me a little sad… But you have to understand…"

'Her eyes became a bit darker...'

"To take her down, I need your power, and in your current state…"

"You are of no use to me."

"..."

"!"

"..."

'Haruhime's ears dropped, and her tail fell, looking at the ground as she bit her lips.'

'Hestia turned to face Ishtar, anger on his face.'

'And Silver crossed his arms, but he was visibly upset.'

"...?"

'Hestia was about to intervene, but Silver shook his head.'

'She didn't know what he was thinking, but she opted to stop, he had to have a reason for this.'

'And trusting him she would.'

"So, Child…"

"Sacrifice yourself to me… And together… Let us reign over Orario."

'She raised her hands, touching Heruhime's shoulders.'

"Doesn't that sound enticing to you, my child?"

"..."

/Slap!/

'Against expectations, Haruhime slapped Ishtar's hands away.'

"No."

"No, it doesn't!"

"Child… Are you rebelling against me?"

"I-Y-Yes!"

'With tears in her eyes, she gazed at this Goddess defiantly.'

'Mortal defying the will of the divine.'

"How… Deplorable." Ishtar said in a heavy tone

"Child… I took you away from those slavers, who knows what they would've done to you had you stayed there."

"I fed you with the highest quality food."

"I gave you the highest quality house."

"The highest quality clothes and teachings…"

"I know." She replied, looking at her with a straight expression

"However… Did you really free me?"

"You said you saved me, but you're no better than those slavers."

"You said you gave me a roof, food, and clothes, but..."

"You made me… A whore."

"! Haru…"

"No… Goddess… Let me finish…" She said with a small tear in her eye

"..."

'Silver stayed silent, while Haruhime turned her face to stare at Ishtar again.'

"You did nothing… You didn't take care of me."

"The Berbera did… They taught me."

"Not you."

"But I… I don't want it… This life."

"I don't want to be a flower in a box."

"To see the world… That is what I wish for, with my own hands."

'Ishtar rolled her eyes.'

"Is that so? How weak."

"Measly dreams in comparison to what stands in front of you."

'Haruhime… Smiled.'

"Yes, they may be mere dreams and small aspirations…"

"But that is, what I wish to do."

"To walk outside… On my own… Perhaps not by myself, but with those…"

"I hold dear."

'As she said that, she became a bit flushed.'

"No… Not you too." Ishtar proclaimed with a frown

"Abadon these futile thoughts, they'll bring you nowhere."

"It's always the same, every one of them."

"They'll sing tales clad in roses and bashing in sunlight…"

'She then smiled mockingly.'

"But one look at what's beneath my clothes, and they'll all…"

"Bend."

/Silence/

"Now… While you still can, while I still have the patience."

'Ishtar looked at her with heavy eyes.'

"Go. Back. To. Your. Room."

"NOW!"

'Despite screaming out loud, Haruhime didn't move.'

'Albeit she had her tail between her legs, her legs trembling slightly.'

"..."

/Grab/

'It was at this moment, Silver touched her shoulder, giving her a slight nod.'

'And amidst heavy tears, she said:'

"I'm sorry…"

"But I've already been saved…"

"Sniff… And I have no intention of… Going back!"

"You…"

'Ishtar was visibly pissed, but she still did not act.'

'No... She did.'

/Poof.../

"You're all the same!" Ishtar said as she grabbed a pillow, throwing it at her

"Traitors... Disgusting..."

'The drink's effects were still holding strong, and for her, this was more akin to a dream.'

'So the moment she turned to face Silver, everything she just discussed vanished from her mind.'

/Lick…/

'Licking her lips, she turned to face Silver…'

"I'm a bit stressed right now, so…"

'She lifted the bedsheets on her body.'

"How about we have some fun?"

"Don't you think… It's rather cold?" She asked with a seductive smile

"###!!!"

"No it isn't!" Hestia said as she slapped the bed, making Ishtar flinch backward

/Hiss!/

'While the two bickered at each other, with Hestia even hissing at one point, Silver talked with the shaken Haruhime.'

'It had taken all of her courage she had gathered over the 2 and a half months they stood together to say those words, and for a few times, she almost submitted.'

'But she felt that doing so would be a betrayal… Not only upon herself, but also on the people that were there for her, everyone that helped her…'

'The Amazons, the people who trained with her every day.'

'The Goddess that tried to motivate her, despite not knowing how…'

'And the knight that saved her.'

/Blush…/

'Although… It would still be a long way before she gathered the courage to assume that.'

"Sit here for now, it'll be over soon." Silver said as he grabbed Haruhime's hand, pulling her to a chair

"Uhum…"

'With slight embarrassment, she sat on the chair, grabbing her long golden hair, letting it fall in front of her shoulder.'

'As she did so, Silver said one more thing:'

"Also… Take off your shirt."

"?!?!"

'She blushed, almost freezing in place, while Silver felt she was very cute.'

'Under the faint moonlight coming from Ishtar's large window, Silver felt that this young lady…'

'Was truly beautiful.'

…

/Chatter!/

"Enough." Silver said as he grabbed Hestia's hand

"We don't have time to waste, let's start."

"Humph!"

'She looked at Ishtar with an attentive gaze, clearly on guard.'

'At the same time, Silver turned to Ishtar.'

"Let's perform the exchange ceremony."

"Hm?..."

'Ishtar frowned a little, but she then smiled.'

"Will I get you in exchange?~"

'He rolled his eyes.'

"Whatever you want."

"..."

I know he's just tricking her, but it makes me…

Urg! This situation is so… Just what is going on!

'On the other hand, Hestia frowned, but she understood right there he that Silver was lying.'

'Although she didn't understand what was going on, by the actions Silver has displayed so far plus the smell of alcohol on Ishtar, she could somewhat piece together what was happening.'

"Then…"

'Ishtar approached Haruhime, looking at her back.'

'She saw the symbol of her Familia, a prostitute, together with her status.'

'This was the fiscal manifestation of her blessing, and it was time to alter it.'

'With a small nail, Ishtar let a drop of her blood fall on her back, where it was then absorbed by the Hieroglyphs.'

'The Divine Runes started to shake, and the image of the prostitute slowly vanished.'

'It was at this moment Hestia quickly let her own blood fall onto Haruhime's back.'

/Shine…/

'And with a small spark of light, the image of a brazier of fire took place on her slender back…'

'Haruhime was now part of the Hestia Familia!'

"It's done…" Hestia said in surprise

So… Simple?

Nothing… Just like that?!

"Now… How about…"

'The moment they were done, Ishtar turned to Silver, but instead of a hot time, she was blasted with some purple smoke…'

/Thud/

'And the moment she took a wif of the smoke, she fell down, unconscious.'

"It's over." Silver said with a relieved sigh

Although… The War is still ongoing.

I might've won a few fights, but that is not enough.

This will continue until Ishtar falls.

For now, she won't realize her connection with Haruhime was broken, since, in the first place, her Falna was being suppressed with the use of items.

But soon enough, her personnel will make their moves in my Familia, and at that time, they may realize something is wrong.

"Is it done?" Haruhime asked faintly, still embarrassed

"Yes… You can put your shirt back now." Silver replied with a smile

'In truth, Haruhime's shirt did little in hiding anything.'

'It was semi-transparent after all, he could easily see her body and her bra...'

/Grab…/

'When he said that, Hestia grabbed his face, pulling his face down to meet hers.'

"Where do you think you're looking?"

'But Silver wasn't flustered, replying with his own question:'

"Are you really going to bring such a matter up in this circumstance?"

"But! You just watched her, and now…"

/Pat…/

'Silver merely patted her head, silencing her.'

"Now now, enough fuss."

"#!"

I'll let you be for now!

But don't you think this is the end of this matter!

/Creak…/

'He raised his hand to the side, turning a table onto a tall door.'

"It's time to leave... Before they realize something is wrong."

"Uhum."

'Haruhime was the first to walk, leaving Silver and Hestia behind.'

"Mn… Unfair…"

'Enjoying Silver's caress, Hestia took one last look at Ishtar before saying in a low tone so Haruhime wouldn't listen:'

"We'll have to fight her don't we?..."

"... Yes, it is inevitable."

"She'll keep going after us, and the only way of making sure everyone is safe is by taking her down."

"Sigh… I now understand why they say peace is hard to earn…"

We are all Gods...

But why do we fight all the time?

Even more than...

"Let's go then, I'm tired…"

Although I don't think I'll be able to sleep well…

I'll need to hear it from his mouth first, just what happened exactly.

'Silver nodded, but he didn't move.'

"You 2 can go first, I have something to…"

"Huh?"

"I-Is that so...?"

'The two of them stared at Silver with questioning gazes.'

'Haruhime's tail was up high, showing she was severely startled.'

'While Hestia's hair was starting to float on its own as her eyelids twitched…'

"Wait… I think you two are severely misunderstanding something." Silver replied as he turned to the side

"I have no intention of doing anything… I just want to check something."

'As he said that, Silver walked to the side, pushing aside a few things aside, revealing a hidden safe on the wall.'

"Silver… You aren't planning to…"

A-Again?... I'm starting to feel bad now…

"No, no… Really now, what do you take me for?"

"..."

"..."

'Hestia had a deadpan expression, while Haruhime looked at the side awkwardly, scratching her cheeks…'

"Sigh."

These 2… I expected Hestia, but even Haruhime?

Perhaps it's time for me to review my public image.

/Unlock…/

'Like last time, Silver easily opened the safe.'

'Gems of many kinds, items of unknown origin and use, even a bottle of rare wine.'

'This was Ishtar's most private collection.'

"This is what I came here for." He said as he ignored those things

'On his hand was a long pile of papers.'

'They were all similar to each other… These were…'

"Is this… A Status?" Hestia asked as she looked at the papers

"Yes."

"The Status of every child of the Ishtar Familia."

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Notes