The decision was a hard one but not in the traditional sense. The biggest puzzle piece happened to be how she felt morally and how she actually felt. What was marriage if it wasn’t built upon the love for each other? What if you didn’t fall in love with the person for who they were but rather for what they had? It was possible. People got married every day other such silly things and before she was love she was one of them.

Angela sat out on one of the soft couches under the gazebo on the pier staring off at the ocean. Her red hair was loosely pulled back and over her shoulder in a wide braid. Even gods could have sleepless nights and it spoke widely by how bloodshot her eyes were. She held a hot cup of coffee in her hands as she brought it up and sipped on it. It was still really early in the morning.

The news of Adraejen’s fall had come as a shock but not as much of a shock as the events after. Adraejen had moved back to Iria. He would still be taking care of the children who viewed him as a father, he was still married to Ang, and no one could doubt the fallen god loved his wife. It was her who was pulling all the strings doubt.

She sat there in a nightdress and a cozy robe. Her legs across the cushions as she held onto all the thoughts of the last few days. The temple was in upheaval. All of Adraejen’s things had been moved out of Angela’s room. Her wedding band was even sitting on the dresser.

Meanwhile, Kiba had been out all these last few days on an errand for Angela. She had asked him to go pick up some alchemy ingredients she had ordered in various cities. He couldn’t have expected the conversations that would happen in his absence. There wasn’t a fight though. There were more frowns and serious talks. The true sphere of love had shined brightly in the light of Arcane and Trickery falling. It had done something she wasn’t sure of but she followed it’s whims.

Anemone had been searching and finally, she found Kiba in the Mamlak store picking up Angela’s last order. It was a hefty crate this time. Something about if she didn’t have to make the ingredients she would prefer they were naturally found. The small nymph phased into existence and ran for him. She slapped her hands on the crate and looked up at her once lover. “KIBA! It’s Lady Angela… Something has happened and I’m not sure what it is! She’s really quiet and not sleeping again.”

Always when he was away but maybe nothing would prepare him for what had actually happened in Elysia while he was gone. “She’s at the pier right now. I figured if anyone could talk to her and figure out what happened it’s you… I just know that Lord Adraejen has been moving his stuff out into another room and now he’s just gone to Iria.”

The list he had been given was extensive and yet the requested contents were simple enough to acquire. Kiba had been asked by his matron goddess to bring her some items that she needed for her alchemy work. He was compliant enough to do the running around for her considering it literally was the least he could do for all she had granted him. Several orders were placed from different cities to be delivered back to the temple. The last city that he needed to gather from was Mamlak. Kiba was partial to this city considering it was home to his daughter and most of the rest of the family. He had already made a stop at Teu’s apothecary to place an order he knew were the freshest herbs that were from her own greenhouse.

This particular order was in another shop where he needed to gather a large crate. The Champion was not certain what was in this crate, but at least it was his last stop. His list was shoved into his back pants pocket just as he finished speaking with the shop owner. A smile was upon both of their faces as the deal was struck on a delivery cost that was fair for both sides. A familiar voice called out to him that made the diowolf snap his head to the side to see Anemone slightly out of breath.

His features turned grave as he lightly touched her shoulder while she told him of what was happening back at the temple. A low curse was made under his breath. ”I was just finishing up anyway. I will go to her and see what I can do. Try not to get too concerned. This can’t be any worse than the last time,” he said with a reassuring tone. Kiba gave her a smile while tucking strands of loose locks of her hair behind her ear. ”Don’t worry too much. Let me handle this. The deliveries will all be made within the week.”

He started to walk away from the shop. With his back to Anemone, Kiba allowed his face to become like stone. There had been whispers that had caught his attention while he had been about. He had ignored it for the most part, but it had nagged at the back of his mind. A quick wave of his hand created a travel gate. Not an ounce of hesitation was had as he stepped through.

On the other side was the view of the open ocean. Using his tethered connection go Angela, he made a small tug upon it to give him a sense of where she was. Kiba walked along a short path that brought him to where Angela was curled up with a cup of coffee. She looked tired as well as lost in thought. There was almost a glazed look over her eyes that told him that she was somewhere else in her head. The diowolf stepped into the gazebo with his hands shoved in his pants pockets. ”What’s going on Ang?” he asked softly.

His mismatching eyes watched her closely as he made for a seat. Kiba shifted her so that Angela would be sitting while leaning heavily against him. The air was warm, which meant that he didn’t have to worry about her getting cold while they sat quietly.

He waited for a period of time to see if she would say anything first. With the rumors being spread, the Champion did not want to make assumptions based on those rumors. After some time, Kiba gave her shoulder a squeeze while holding her. ”Will you tell me what’s going on?” The question was gentle as to not push her to talk about something that she wasn’t ready for.

Anemone’s eyes lit up immediately when Kiba said he would go help. She was oblivious to most things going on in the temple. Aside from her job Anemone really didn’t pay attention to a lot. There was no way she would have known about the happenings in Elysia without someone blatantly telling her. “Thank you Kiba,” she offered a smile and felt a bit better about the situation. If Kiba said it was alright then it would be.

Back at the temple Angela barely had a reaction to his first few words. She was so lost in thought she hadn’t heard him. Finally, when he touched her she allowed her red and green eyes to look him over. He was worried and she could see that. “Adraejen’s fallen.” They were two simple words. Obviously it wasn’t everything that was going on but Ang allowed herself to shift a bit and snuggle into her champion.

Kiba was smart. Had he already noticed there were things missing on her person? Her finger itched from where the ring had sat for some long but she didn’t bother to draw attention to it. “Adraejen and I had a long talk about what we both want in life. Each other is one thing but…” Her voice dragged off for a moment. “We both know he isn’t a straight-laced family man. He’s busy and I do love him but he’s never here. When he is here we’re just constantly at odds with the kids. That’s not his fault.” She sounded selfish. “I miss attention and affection so… We agreed that maybe I should go back to multiple lovers again.”

It came out hard and she felt like she would choke. “The sphere of love is so vast. Now that he isn’t a god anymore it’s gushing. He’s going to drown in me and that isn’t fair. I’ve just come to realize that maybe I was not made to love just one man. Not since I got this new sphere. There’s just something always missing and I’m never happy. It wasn’t like this before.” Her eyes looked up at Kiba as she took a sip of her drink. “It’s telling me something and I didn’t want to listen to it. Adraejen thinks it's his fault for the lack of attention over the years but we were both so busy.”

She rubbed her neck now as she cracked it softly. “He’s gone back to Iria to deal with the black market again. He always loved doing that and he was never really a man who could stay tied down. We were kidding ourselves thinking we could hold like this.” There was a laugh as she closed her eyes. “He couldn’t stand me when we met. The only reason we ever ended up loving each other was because he loved my children… We can’t survive on that alone.” She pat Kiba's leg and smiled. "I'll be fine I just need a little bit of time before I have that jump back in my step. I moved Adraejen out of my room and closer to his workshop yesterday."

The Reztreal settled in his eye socket immediately did an analysis of the goddess’s energy. There was nothing off when it came to her power. In fact, Kiba noticed a calm that was in her chi. It had been a while since he had seen that in the red head. As the champion stepped further into the gazebo he noticed that her finger was missing a rather specific piece of jewelry. He couldn’t help the noticeable flinch that gripped him. Things had become more serious than he had imagined. And yet, Angela was shrouded in that calm. What had happened while he had been away from her presence? If it had been serious, there would have been a significant pull on him to summon him back to her side. Nothing had been felt.

He frowned for a moment as he got Angela situated while leaning on his chest. Kiba wrapped his arm around her while the other rested on the back of their bench. Just as he was getting settled the news was delivered. The muscles in his jaw slackened from shock before clenching them again to get himself back in the right mindset. A god falling was not a small matter. Least of all that it was Angela’s husband. ”I’m sorry, Ang,” he responded quietly. There was a small squeeze on her arm as if that were enough to reassure her. He had Fallen. It had not been an easy thing to recover from.

Protector Vitae could not find the words other than what had been spoken to his goddess. Instead, he listened to the logical conclusions that they couple had come to. When the far gone conclusion of Angela taking multiple lovers…Kiba had to clamp his mouth shut. If he hadn’t, it would have dropped from shock. Thankfully her back was to the diowolf as his eyes had widened quite a bit from the shock. He had been able to keep his mouth closed, but that was all the control he had been able to keep.

Angela was the goddess of Life and Love. In the connection between that, Kiba could feel that drive from Love. It was not the easiest to keep under control, but it had to be worse for her. If her husband was not around as much…well then it would make for a difficult build up. When his matron looked up at him, Kiba managed a soft chuckle. ”I am not really sure how to respond to all of that.” He was not able to cover up the light blush that had heated his face to down his neck. The idea of multiple partners had never been something to drive Kiba. It was just not in his makeup. Everyone was different. Besides….now that he was with Kaya…she would kill him if it was even contemplated.

”If you are not happy, then this is the way it needs to be. Your happiness is important. A relationship built on love for the children….it is not taking the pair of you into account.” Kiba lightly flicked her nose with a laugh. ”And…though I’m not entirely sure how this will work…..if this idea of yours is going to help, then I guess that is what is going to happen. You are the goddess of Love. So it would make sense. Just, be careful. I’m not going to go easy on any that come in through those doors. Your safety is the first concern.” He laughed again while placing a kiss on the top of her head. It felt odd essentially condoning a harem to be started up. Definitely did not imagine that while being a Champion. Certainly an odd turn.

”Oh! Your orders have all been placed. They shall arrive within the week.”

Angela looked to Kiba and she gave him a sad smile but it didn’t last for long. “We should have known Kiba. We are just too different and besides, you can’t tame a homewrecker.” She did a chuckle as she spoke about Drae. “Not forever at least.”

Once more she found herself laughing towards Kiba as he told her he didn’t know how to respond. “It is an unusual thing, my dear.” She could see the blush and she chuckled. “Before I settled with Drae I did it out of the need to not get close to someone. Maybe perhaps I’ll find someone who can be my everything… but the more I think about it and the more I feel it out… I think my love is as vast as the ocean. No person can be that vast Kiba. They would have to put their whole being into being my lover twenty-four seven and that isn’t fair.”

Angela rolled her shoulders as if she was challenging him and she began to laugh. “I’m well aware you aren’t going to allow just anyone. You are the protective sort and I do appreciate that.” She accepted the kiss on the head and gave a gentle smile. “Oh, good! I really do need all those things now since I have the time.”

She pushed herself off the couch and left Kiba there for a moment. “I’ll be right back. I need a drink and so do you, probably,” she added as she thought about it. She phased out and came back with a variety of different drinks as she put them on the table in front of them.

Grabbing one of the wine glasses she brought she started with that first as she poured two glasses. “I do hope things in Revaliir calm down. I don’t know if I can handle being shanked again.” She smirked at Kiba. “Always seems to be me who gets shot down first.” She knew it was strategic to do so but must they always ruin her good dresses? "Here's to the next chapter and hopefully some peace and quiet for a while."

As Angela spoke, Kiba squeezed his arm around her form a little tighter. The diowolf dipped his head to slightly nestle his face on her shoulder as she leaned back on him. The pair of them fit well together as a team. Kiba wondered how fate had brought the pair together despite all that had happened over the years. She was his goddess, and he was her Champion. ”I didn’t know Drae and you before being together. Unfortunately, there is nothing I could have done for you. But now? I think that I can. I will always have your back.” He smiled as he attempted to bring some sort brightness to the conversation. Kiba did not want to see Angela in pain, and hopefully he would see the end of that with this separation.

His brows raised as she described her ‘love,’ which made sense. Now that she had absorbed another aspect to Love, it would only be more interesting to see how it affected her. As he thought about it there was a difficulty for deities to be in full relationships. He remembered what it was like, and it had not ended well. Few had the capacity to understand the responsibilities that fell upon the shoulders selected to hold such mantels. Angela had a more hefty responsibility considering all Life was edged on her survival. Kiba inwardly frowned at the thought before shoving it down deep.

He laughed in return as she ‘accepted’ his protection. The goddess hadn’t been one to need it, but the Champion wasn’t about to leave her without that shield and sword needed. Drinks were mentioned that helped perk his interest. It had been a while since he had been able to sit down to enjoy a good drink. Bourbon and whiskey were his favorable drinks of choice. Angela gave a wide variety for them to select from, which meant that they would be drinking for a while…at least that was Kiba’s conclusion.

”Yea, you really need to stop getting stabbed. It would be beneficial for us all. So….just stop,” he chuckled while taking his glass of wine. ”I think you just make yourself an easy target with such recognizable red hair! Dye your hair, and I’m sure you would confuse all future enemies.” Kiba lifted his glass to clink with her’s in response. ”A nice quiet period would be nice for a change. We could both use a little rest before our next endeavor that is certain.”

From time to time he would wake up in a cold sweat as his nightmares woke him with the feel of stabbing through his chest along with a quick snap of his neck. Thankfully, he was settled quickly with Kaya by his side. The dreams were starting to ebb, but it was something that would never fully go away. His death had affected many in his family quite negatively (to be expected), to the point where Isleen shifted incorrectly. That shift had thrown her into a coma for a period of time to allow herself healing. Watching his daughter lay unmoving had been the worst.

”Besides all of this…situation, how are you feeling? It has been an extreme set of months. How is the baby?” His calloused fingers circled the rim of his wine glass as he glanced between Angela and the ocean out before them.