Aatrox:

"Another battle won, with ease." Aatrox mused, watching his sword with pleasure and curiosity. You merely flicked the blood off of your weapon, putting it back into the holster where it belonged.

You stared over at the demon of war as he inspected his sword with great amusement. He was passionate about merely two things: War, and the victory. This humanoid figure let his sword down from his face as he looked out onto the battlefield. His face melted into that of something serene as he stared over what was left. You, too, looked to the field. There were bodies littered everywhere. There were not many, but they were littered everywhere. And you had helped with such chaos.

You turned away from the sight and cleared your throat. "Shall we continue our journey, then?" You stared at the ground as Aatrox shifted over to you.

"You are displeased." He merely stated. "Is it getting to you?" You shake your head.

"I feel the guilt weigh on me every day. It is no different from today. But it is necessary, should I wish to continue in your name, My Lord." He merely stared at you as your brain processed the words.

In truth, you were to be the successor of such a god of war. Each battle you faced was weighing down your soul, which was forewarned to you specifically by the teacher himself. You had high hopes for a quick and (mostly) painless experience, but each time you were whisked away to battle, you felt more and more depressed. It had been a long way since then. So long, you couldn't remember if it had been months, or years.

A hand on your shoulder pulled you from your thoughts, and you looked up to Aatrox as he gave you a sympathetic smile.

"You look tired. Let's retire for today." He continued to smile at you before waving his sword in front of you. Suddenly you were in a structure that could only be described as a house, and you had no idea how you got there.

"Ah…?" You raised an eyebrow.

"Ah. Yes. I have the ability to teleport to my home at will." His hand dropped from your shoulder. It was a mess that could only be described as "organized chaos", which you thought suited him very well. That brought a smile to your face as you took a couple of steps inward.

"Its… Nice." The words slipped out uncomfortably from your lips, as Aatrox would probably be the last thing you'd call "nice". He seemed to snort his amusement, walking past you, down a long hallway, and disappearing behind a door, which remained open.

Curiosity getting the better of you, you hesitantly approached the room. Aatrox was spread across a vast bed, assorted by blankets and pillows of various sizes. You looked around the room, as it was decorated with various trophies from battles since won, and notes written in writing you couldn't decipher. You looked back to Aatrox, who had changed to be sitting up on his arm, looking at you.

"Join me?" He asked, tilting his head slightly. You raised an eyebrow to this.

"What are you saying?" You ask with an attitude to your tone. You crossed your arms and glared at him slightly. He laughed.

"Don't pout." He patted the bed. "Just come lie down and relax for once." You continued to glare at him. He rolled his eyes. "Should I command it?" You took a few more seconds to huff, but eventually took off your armor and weapon, dropping them at the floor where you stood. You reluctantly climbed into the king size mattress, putting a good amount of distance between you and him. He shook his head, flopping back into his pillows.

Regardless of awkward circumstance, the bed was quite comfy, and, after a few minutes of trying to just glare at a specific spot in the ceiling, you felt your consciousness slipping. You groaned, closing your eyes and laying your arm over your face, trying to hide your tiredness from Aatrox. He laughed gently, which surprised you. You turned your head, peeking out from under your arm. He had propped himself up on his arm, looking over at you.

"If you're tired, you should sleep." He mused. Your eyes dropped at him.

"Uh huh. With you lying over there? I think I'll pass." You huffed before turning away. His dark chuckle was more than a little intimidating, and you tried to hold back a shudder.

"You're so far." He said, the bed shifting.

"For good reas—Eek!" You were suddenly pulled to the middle of the bed, cuddled and curled up in the arms of Aatrox, who was merely snuggling into your hair.

"There…" He said quietly.

"M-my Lord…" You said, wiggling your arms up until you could push against his chest. You tried to do so, but to little avail, as his grip on you tightened. "…Aatorx..." You said skittishly. This was completely out of character for him, as well as a little more than embarrassing for you. You gulped, twisting your head until you could look up at him clearly.

For being inhuman, he wasn't half bad looking. He had a hard chin, high cheek bones, and the glow of his red eyes had dimmed to a dulled maroon. You blinked, no longer being able to find the words you wanted to say as he stared down at you. His arms, although already around you, snaked a little further.

"…I want to take away your grief." He said quietly. You blinked at that statement. "If this sort of… activity is going to continue to be too much for you, I can dismiss you from such a mission." He said a little louder than his previous statement.

"We've come so far, though… I feel if I turned around now, I'd still feel the weight of everything I had done." You said, narrowing your eyes slightly. "On top of that, the fact that I would feel like a quitter would be…" You let your sentence trail, unable to find the right emotion for that particular statement.

"…Don't fret about things like that." He tilted his head slightly. "Should you wish to stop, I will take away your pain. I… wouldn't want you to continue to suffer, long after this has passed."

"My Lord…" You looked away slightly.

"Say my name." He said, pulling an arm out from under you to tug your chin. You faced him unwillingly. "I prefer it when you say my name." You gulped. You could feel the heat rising in your face as he stared down at you.

"I…" Feel so strange. Your emotional turmoil clouded any rational thought. "…Aatrox." You said quietly. He closed his eyes, looking as if he were trying to keep some sort of composure. "Why are you doing this?" You ask gently.

"I don't know." His hand slipped away from your chin. "Recently, I've felt… different. Towards you. Perhaps it has been because of this journey, but my closeness of you feels unreal…" You could hear his heart in the silence. Or… Maybe that was yours?

"I… Don't know what to say."

"Say I am not the only one to feel this way." You felt the grip of his hand twitch, almost anticipating something he did not want to hear. You took a few moments to gather your thoughts together, trying to put together the jumble into something cognitive.

"Well…" You started, but you honestly didn't know what to say. A strange comfort had bubbled up in your stomach between all of this talking and cuddling, and that was when you realized: You never wanted to be without this.

"Well…?"

"…Can you hold me like this for a little longer?" You asked quietly, giving up on your resistance against his chest. He said nothing for a while before pulling you into his chest and chuckling.

"Of course, my dear…" He said gently. And as you lie there in his arms, you drift on the strangeness of your newfound emotions into a comfortable sleep that you never knew you needed.