Page 114 of Styx

with something unnameable.

The sight of him had filled

a thirst deep within my bones.

I stood up from the stairs

and smiled, walking toward him.

‘Hyperion has blessed us with beauty.’

He gestured to the rosy and orange sky.

‘Shall we walk for a while?’

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.

We began walking away from my father’s

palace. After a few moments of quiet,

Perses spoke softly. ‘I have missed you,

Asteria.’ I opened my mouth to speak

but he shook his head, his face creased

with what looked like worry and… fear?

What could possibly make

the God of Destruction afraid.

‘I have not been able to stop thinking

about you in days. When I close my eyes

it is your face I see. When I listen

to others converse, it is your voice I long for.’

He stopped abruptly and turned to look at me.

His golden eyes were gleaming with such

desire, that I felt a flush creep into my face.

‘Tell me I am not alone. That you too have

some kind of yearning for me.’

He waited for me to speak.

It was strange how suddenly I found my voice.

That all that unnameable pain of his absence

suddenly had a name. Yearning.