"no one, not even a damn celestial, is going to take my memories of you away — take you away, even if i have already lost you."

NOW

As it turns out, hiking through the Amazon with still healing wounds isn't the most comfortable thing in the world. So as the mighty, powerful, fierce Eternals trekked through the jungle, Khaos was hanging off of her brother's back. After twenty minutes of her quiet winces and gasps of pain — but refusal to actually complain — Ikaris told her to accept the piggyback ride so they wouldn't have to hear her anymore. Though really, he just didn't like seeing his sister in pain.

The cute sibling moment made perfect content for Kingo's documentary, who filled the long hike with prying questions and stories that would be included.

"Fifty bucks says Khaos kisses him when we get there," Gilgamesh said, earning a glare from Khaos.

"No way!" Kingo exclaimed, grimacing. "Druig is just the worst. She can do better. I mean, she's got Sam Wilson and Thor, but she picks Druig? The boy is a stick with a bad haircut."

Khaos liked his hair, but she didn't offer that aloud, knowing it'd lead to teasing.

"If anything, she's gonna stab him," Sprite muttered, making the others laugh.

Khaos felt her brother's chest rumbling with a chuckle, so she pinched his arm. He turned his head to grin mischievously at her. "We've all wanted to stab him at some point. Take deep breaths — that always helps me from killing him."

"She's not going to stab him," Sersi said, rolling her eyes with a smile.

"She might," Thena said, smirking. "Or I'll do it for her."

They continued through the Amazon with far too much commentary about Druig than Khaos would prefer. But really, they were trying to ease her nerves about seeing him again. She appreciated the sentiment, and the jokes did help take her mind off things. But it also distracted her from figuring out just what the hell she would say to him.

As they reached the outskirts of the small village, Ikaris set Khaos on her feet. With a nod, he went ahead of the group and they began searching for Druig while also studying the small, rustic community.

"It's very nice here, Sir," Karun said, looking around at all the peaceful people working in harmony.

"Don't be fooled," Karun said. They knew better than anyone how mindless these people were. "Ignorance is bliss."

"Did he start a cult?" Khaos whispered, raising an eyebrow. Karun's camera was on her. "This feels like cult shit. Do they even have electricity? Showers?"

"So primitive," Kingo agreed. As far as inventions went, showers, air conditioning, and coffee makers were his favorites. "Seriously, one call to Phastos and he could fix this whole place up."

As Kingo and Khaos were picking apart the somewhat archaic ways of the community, Sprite was wandering around to ask about Druig' whereabouts. And as soon as she had mentioned they were "friends from college," the man she was talking to went still, and his eyes glowed the familiar gold they hadn't seen in years.

"Hello, Sprite," the man greeted, his accent morphing into the one they were accustomed to associating with Druig.

As the man led the Eternals to a building at the center of the settlement, Khaos found herself using Kingo and Karun as a shield of sorts, staying out of view the best she could.

"Coward," Thena muttered as she passed, raising an amused eyebrow. And Khaos couldn't deny it.

As they neared the building, all of the villagers had stopped what they were doing and followed, clearly under the control of Druig. It was almost unsettling with so many still bodies lined up behind them. Khaos looked at them uneasily over her shoulder, but then she heard the door open. Against every bone in her body telling her not to, she turned back around.

There he was, sauntering toward them with his head held high, looking as if he was untouchable. A crooked smirk that was always at home on his perfect lips. Eyes that — even though Khaos couldn't bring herself to meet — were shining with happiness and curiosity, wondering what the hell could have possibly brought them all to his doorstep.

"I've missed all of you." And god, his voice. That smooth accent that had whispered sweet nothings and not-so-innocent propositions in her ear for years. "Please, make yourselves at home."

They filed into the meeting hall one by one, led by Ikaris and Sersi. Druig stood by the door, holding it open — but also for a chance to be near her. To look at her. Druig's eyes had been glued to her from the moment he stepped outside even if she wouldn't meet his gaze.

Khaos was the last to enter, which perhaps may have been a mistake. It meant he walked close behind her after shutting the door, and she could practically feel the heat coming from his body, his breath on her neck. She could certainly feel his eyes boring into her very soul.

So, Khaos picked up her pace and took a seat next to Kingo. Before Druig could even think of speaking to her or joining her, Ikaris broke the news.

"Ajak's dead."

And so for the third time, Khaos sat through the retelling of the last few days. The Deviant attacks. Ajak. The Emergence. Their memories. The whole time, Khaos stared down at her chipping nail polish, not giving any input — it was the only portion of the documentary where she was completely silent.

"You've given me a lot of bad news in one go, m'lady," Druig told Sersi after he had heard all there was to hear. No one could particularly tell what he was feeling based off his facial expression, but perhaps Khaos could if she'd just fucking look at him.

"Will you help us?"

"I am glad—"

Whatever Druig was going to say was cut off by Sersi's phone loudly ringing, Juice by Lizzo filling the room. Embarrassed, she scrambled to silence the call from Dane.

"Good song," Khaos mouthed to Kingo.

Then he leaned across Khaos to whisper to Sersi. "Hey, what's your service? I'm not getting any bars."

Sersi simply shook her head, knowing it wasn't the time. Meanwhile, Thena was nudging Gilgamesh, who had fallen asleep.

"Do you all remember this forest?"

What kind of question was that? Khaos thought bitterly. As if she didn't remember every moment in their seven thousand years at his side. As if she didn't remember the last place before everything fell apart.

"Beautiful." Even if he was talking about the forest, he was looking at Khaos. Everyone glanced back and forth between the two as Khaos continued to stare at her hands. "It was the last place we all lived together. I've protected these people for twenty generations now. From the outside world and themselves."

Then Druig passed by Khaos and looked pointedly at Karun, who had been filming the whole time. "Your kind, my friend, you will be responsible for your own extinction one day. Don't you think?"

"I think we must learn from our mistakes and do better, Sir," Karun said, still managing to be respectful despite his nervousness. "You must not give up hope."

Clearly, Druig wasn't entertained with his answer. Before any of them could stop him, he took control of Karun's mind and forced the human to throw his camera into the wall, breaking it.

"Oh no you didn't," Kingo said, getting to his feet and up in Druig's face. "New rule: no more possessing people's valets."

"Where's your sense of humor, Kingo?" Druig asked, smirking.

"I'm sorry," Karun muttered quietly.

"Don't apologize. It's not your fault," Kingo told him. Then he glared at Druig once more. "You are not a god. You know that right?"

"How ironic," Druig quipped. "Kingo, the movie star."

"I've directed some things too."

"Oh yeah, like what?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and entertaining him.

"Some internet content," Kingo muttered.

"How many views?"

"I don't do it for the views."

"Let's go," Ikaris ordered. He came to his sister's side and grabbed her hand to pull her toward the door. "He's wasting our time."

"We need him," Sersi reminded him.

"Ikaris," Druig said, intercepting him before he could leave the hall. His eyes glanced at Khaos, but again, she wouldn't look at him. "Missed you. Are you gonna charm me? Threaten me?"

"There's a third option if you prefer that," Ikaris said lowly. His hand grew tight around Khaos's.

"It must be heartbreaking to find out you're not mother's favorite," Druig taunted.

"I'm sure she'd be real proud of you," he muttered.

"Druig," Sersi interrupted. "This is serious."

"I'll tell you what's serious," he snarled. "I've just been told that I've been sent on a suicide mission for the past seven thousand years and that my entire existence is a lie — that everything I've ever felt was a lie." Again, he couldn't help his eyes from falling on her. God, why wouldn't she just look at him? And when he realized she wasn't going to, he gave up trying. "So excuse me for not giving a shit about your plan right now."

Then Druig left angrily, needing to think about everything and get away from the more annoying Eternals in the family. They watched him go, all convinced he wasn't going to help.

"Druig sucks," Kingo said flatly.

"He does, Sir," Karun agreed.

"And Khaos was no help," Sprite said, rolling her eyes. "Kind of pathetic how you didn't even look at him."

"Oh, fuck off, Sierra Mist," Khaos shot back, scoffing. "I need some air."

"Don't go far," Ikaris told her. With the Deviants out there and so many of them gathered together, they were all concerned about another attack.

Khaos wandered to the outskirts of the village, steering clear of the people. With a heavy sigh, she leaned her left side against the base of a large tree and shut her eyes. The soft sounds of chirping birds and leaves swaying in the wind could've lulled her to sleep if her mind hadn't been running a mile a minute.

All those thoughts froze like a broken computer when she heard his voice.

"My beautiful, beautiful Khaos." His lips almost brushed her ear from how close he was standing behind her. "Did you miss me?"

Then his hand fell on her waist, and Khaos flinched. And even if Druig didn't know it was because he had touched her injured side, her flinching at his touch hurt more than any of the news he had just received. Druig immediacy stepped back, his jaw clenched in anger at himself.

"Did you? Miss me?" Khaos asked quietly. She turned to lean her back against the tree. One glance to the right was all it'd take for her to look at him. How hard could that be?

"Every day for five centuries," he admitted. "Is it foolish of me to assume the same of you?"

Tears welled in her eyes, refusing to even entertain his question. "I needed you, and you left."

"You've never needed anyone," Druig said softly.

"You're right," Khaos said, biting the inside of her cheek. "I wanted you, and you left. If you ask me, that's much worse."

"You wouldn't have come with me, left Ikaris—"

"Ikaris had Sersi!" Khaos snapped, growing angry. "You could've let those humans go, taken my hand, and I would've ran with you to the ends of the Earth. And you knew that because we knew each other better than we knew ourselves."

"I suppose I don't know you anymore, is that it?"

He sounded so sad, and Khaos's heart wanted to betray her so badly, her very instincts screaming at her to comfort him. But she was allowed to be angry. And she had changed more in the last five hundred years than in the thousands they all spent together.

"I guess not," she mumbled, staring down at her boots. "I was out there learning how to be myself without you in my life while you were here, playing God, knowing damn well we have no right."

"We may not be gods," Druig said, stepping closer, "but I have always worshiped you as one."

"Then how blasphemous of you to leave me on the steps of Tenochtitlan," she said coldly.

Now it was Druig's turn to flinch. "Even we Eternals do things we regret," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"You know, you said something to me when you left," Khaos said, focusing on a leaf that was slowly falling to the ground. "You said that I'm his soldier, that I exist for Arishem. Despite what we know now, you've still never been more wrong in your entire life."

"I exist for myself, and that means game nights in New Asgard and Christmas mornings with Ikaris and giving that spider kid a churro when I spot him slinging around. It's concerts and sitcoms and Kingo's movies and Sersi's museum exhibits. And when you hide away in the middle of fucking nowhere, you're the one not existing. You're missing out on all the beautiful things this planet has to offer — things I'm prepared to fight a Celestial for in two days if it comes to it."

Druig studied her silently for a moment. "I suppose this is the big speech the others asked you to give me."

Khaos shook her head. "No. I'm not going to beg you to help if you don't want to. You don't even like humans unless they're under your control. Why would you fight for them?"

"I'll fight, but not for them," Druig told her, moving closer. "I'll fight until my dying breath for you."

Khaos dug her nails into her palms and mustered all her courage to turn her head. Blue eyes that held so much pain and regret and love. Blue eyes that took her breath away and made her knees weak. Druig's eyes that rivaled all the blue of the planet that was meant to end in two days. And though it hurt to look at him, he was still the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen.

"You're the only one real thing I've ever known, Khaos. And no one, not even a damn Celestial, is going to take my memories of you away — take you away, even if I have already lost you."

"You really think you've lost me?"

"Haven't I?" Druig asked, his voice full of longing. Full of hope.

Druig dared to move closer until he was right in front of her, their chests almost touching. Khaos held her breath as he brushed his knuckles across her cheek gently. Her eyes fluttered shut on instinct, her body missing the feeling of his touch.

"I did miss you, Dru," Khaos admitted softly. "And no matter how badly you hurt me when you left, I still couldn't bring myself to hate you — and trust me, Ikaris tried very hard to make me hate you."

"Does that mean I still have a chance?"

As he asked the question, Druig's other hand sought out Khaos's waist. His hand landed on her right side, and she immediately flinched again, cringing away from him.

"Are you injured?" he asked, immediately becoming worried.

Khaos lifted the bottom of Sersi's sweater that she was still wearing, showing Druig the bandages that were wrapped around her side and disappeared under the waistband of her white shorts. The bandages were even peeking out of the hem of the shorts that stopped mid-thigh, but he hadn't noticed them.

Druig's hands hovered over the bandages, knowing there was nothing he could really do. "You left this bit out when they said you fought a Deviant in New York."

"The only important part of the story is that I killed the Deviant," Khaos said, shaking her head.

"And that you're one up on Ikaris."

Khaos couldn't help but grin, as she always did when Druig, or anyone, made fun of her brother.

"There it is," he said, his blue eyes crinkling as his own smile formed. "That breathtaking smile."

Khaos opened her mouth to speak but was stopped by a loud crashing sound. Then the animalistic growl that chilled them the bone followed by screams.

"Deviants," Khaos said, looking back at the camp with wide eyes.

Then she was gone, dissolving into the shadows of the trees.

☽︎

sorry if you wanted her to be colder to him longer but it's been 500 years and i'm tired of writing slow burn books all my stuff used to be slow burn. i just want them to be back in love again