A Change of Plans

~Rhe’ess~

The mid December sun shone coldly on the city. People bustled through the streets. Christmas lights sparkled below. Rhe’ess took a moment, taking it all in. It would be the last time he got to experience it.

A part of him had been dead for a while. Six months, three days, and seventeen hours to be exact. That’s when he found out the love of his life died.

Rhe’ess had always been told it was an accident, but that never lined up. Apate had enemies. Powerful ones at that. Even if the police didn’t acknowledge it as such, she was murdered.

What killed him the most was that she couldn’t rest easy. Four months after her murder, she was resurrected. The process of resurrection was strenuous and costly. The chance of failure was high. Somehow, she beat the odds. If anyone could, it’d be her.

However, when Apate returned, she returned without her memories. A tale was whispered in her ears, a web of lies and deception. Fire told her that she was unmarried, unwilling to settle. She was told that she hated Rhe’ess. The worst part? She believed Fire’s every word as if it were gospel.

That was his breaking point.

Bottles laid strewn around him. A cold wind tore through his hair. He didn’t remember coming up to the rooftop, but then again, he didn’t remember much of anything these days. It was all a blur of bitter cold chased by the hot burn of alcohol.

Rhe’ess knew it was killing him, but to what use was caring about death when there was nothing left to live for. The wraith once more looked over the city, a symphony of alarms and chatter strewn across a backdrop of grey. They had both hated the city.

“When we have the money,” Apate had said, shivering from the cold. “We’re getting the hell out of here.”

“Where would we go?”

She had stopped and turned to him. “Anywhere. It doesn’t matter where we go, so long as I’m with you, I’ll be happy.”

Rhe’ess felt the weight of his wedding band. It taunted him, reminded him of what used to be. What Fire had ripped from him. Sorrow coursed through his veins. Tears burning in his eyes, he slipped the golden band from his finger. He threw it into the mist below.

I won’t be needing it.

For the first time, he looked down at the drop. Normally, it would have surprised him that his thoughts would immediately turn to that of jumping, but it didn’t. He took a step towards the edge.

“Rhe’ess?” A familiar voice rang out, startling the wraith. He turned around to see Apate. No, not Apate. He reminded himself. The Apate he knew had died, what was left was merely a shell of her. A separate person haunting her body. One who didn’t remember him or their love. “Why’re you up here?”

“What does it look like?” He snapped.

“It looks like you’re about to do something stupid.”

“Why do you care?”

A sad look crossed her face. “Because, as much as I don’t like you personally, I don’t wanna see you die like that.”

“Then look away.”

“Don’t want to. Especially if I know what you’re gonna do. Come down, and we can talk about what’s on your mind.”

Tears burned hot in Rhe’ess’s eyes. “It doesn’t matter. Especially not to you.”

“It clearly does matter if you’re willing to do this.”

“No, it doesn’t, because there’s nothing anyone can do about it.”

“Who was the lucky one?”

“What?” He was completely taken aback.

“You have - or, had, it seems - a wedding band. Who is, or.. was, the lucky one?”

A sad smile slipped across his face. “A beautiful demon, eyes a stormy grey, her voice warm and loving, a smile that could light up the room.” His gaze fell. “But she’s gone. And she’ll never return.”

“There are ways to revive people, you know. You could get her back.”

“If only it was that simple,” he murmured.

“It can be, or, even if it isn’t, it’s worth a shot, isn’t it?” She outstretched her hand. “And if it isn’t, then I won’t stop you next time. But please, Rhe’ess, try this first.”

With a shaky breath, he took her hand, if not to come down, then to feel her warmth one last time.

~Apate~

Apate wasn’t sure why she cared - in a past life she hated Rhe’ess. Or at least, that’s what she was told. When she was brought back, she had no memories of her life previously. A story had been fed to her, a tale of deception and crime.

At the time, Apate took it at face value. After all - the demon had woken up in the headquarters of a syndicate. She was raised by the leader, a merciful man known simply as Fire. A life of crime didn’t seem a stretch by any means.

Over time, Apate began to notice holes in the stories he spun of her past. Dates were changed. Names left out. The demon never spoke her concerns aloud. She was sure it was in her head. Why would someone as merciful and kind as him lie about this?

Regardless, there she found herself on the rooftop with Rhe’ess, her hand outstretched. Apate’s heart raced as she spoke to him. It confused the demon - why did she fear if he took his own life? She hated him, right?

But then she took his hand and everything changed. Memories flashed before her eyes. Sweeter times spun around her.

Her and Rhe’ess dancing in the pale moonlight. Conversations until the sun peeked through the curtains. The way their fingers intertwined perfectly. A kiss that felt like it lasted forever.

She took a step back, unable to process fully what just happened. What she just remembered.

“What’s wrong?”

“Memories, they were memories, but they make no sense.”

“What were they of?”

“Of you. And me too. We were dancing and we kissed,” Apate paused. “We were in love, Rhe’ess.”

“You were the lucky one. The one who had my heart.” His voice was barely above a whisper, as if he were scared someone would hear.

Joy fluttered in her chest, weighed down only by a question. “Where’d my ring go?”

“Fire has it.”

“Why the hell would he have it?” Apate’s mind began swimming. “He was kind, and merciful. He helped me piece together my past.”

“He didn’t want to see us back together.”

“Is there a reason?”

Rhe’ess nodded before looking around. “It’s not safe to talk here.”

“Then take me somewhere safe.” Apate stepped closer to him. “Take me somewhere that we don’t need to whisper. Somewhere that you can explain.”

“Where? He has eyes and ears all over the city.”

She paused. “Then let’s go out of the city.”

Rhe’ess nodded. “I know a place we could go.”

~Rhe’ess~

The countryside sparkled with fresh fallen snow. Icicles hung from the trees dotting the horizons. Sitting next to Apate, the cold didn’t feel bitter anymore. Instead, it felt freeing. When he was by her side, he felt like he could do anything.

Fire didn’t have eyes and ears in the country. It’d be safer out here in the isolation. Safer with her.

“How did we meet?” Apate leaned her head against his shoulder. His heart fluttered at the sign of affection. He missed this.

“At a party. I was on a mission for Fire. I had to gather information about someone or another. I quite literally ran into you. Spilled something on your shirt.”

She giggled. “So graceful.”

“I know, it’s one of my many talents,” Rhe’ess grinned. “But I apologized, you said it was all fine, and we ended up spending the rest of the party together. I didn’t gain the information needed, but I did gain something I never thought I’d find.”

“And what was that?”

“Love.”

Apate blinked, a blush creeping across her face. “Stop being so sweet. It’s making me feel bad for not remembering.”

“Don’t feel bad. It just means that we both get to fall in love with each other all over again.”

----

When they finally got to the house, it was barely standing. The tired building seemed to sway in the wind. The life inside it had died out many years ago. However, it was shelter, and Rhe’ess just wanted to get Apate out of the cold.

As the worn door creaked open, he was hit by the heavy smell of must. The inside was better than the out, but only by a small margin. Sheets covered old furniture, and the floorboards were warped by moisture. A hearth sat abandoned in the middle of the living room.

“Let’s start a fire,” Rhe’ess suggested, draping his coat around Apate’s shoulders. He was now cold himself, but he’d adjust. He’d hate for her to be cold.

She nodded. “What should I do to help?”

“You don’t have to do anything, I’ve got it, highness.”

“Highness?”

Rhe’ess paused. “It was a nickname I had for you. You’re a royal blood.”

“I’m a what?” She cut him off.

“A royal blooded demon. Did Fire not tell you that?”

She shook her head. “Apparently not. Add it to the list of things you’ll need to explain to me.”

“I don’t entirely know what’s up with that one. Probably something about you not knowing your power, so you won’t know how easy it’d be to just leave. I can explain why he kept our marriage a secret though.”

“Do tell.”

“Well, a long time ago, me and Fire,” Rhe’ess paused. “We had something. What that something is, I’m not even sure. He thought I was his. I wasn’t. When I fell for you, he was jealous. He tried to get you killed quite a few times. Eventually, he succeeded. I guess he thought that I’d crawl back to him. When I didn’t, he revived you and made you hate me. And that’s when I went up to the rooftop.”

“I hope the Fates have mercy on him, because the next time I see him, I won’t.”

“Don’t do anything rash, highness,” he reached for her hand. To his joy and surprise, she took it.

“I won’t. But is revenge really rash?”

Rhe’ess nodded. “Against someone like him? Yeah.”

“What should we do? I highly doubt we could keep the fact that I remember a secret for long.”

He considered this a moment. “Maybe we could get away from him? Stay out here in the country?”

Apate nodded. “That sounds like a good plan.”

“Then it’s settled.”

“I guess it is. Now pass me that firewood.”