Hades and his Lover (Part II)

Note: I apologize for all of the references to my other story I may/may not have mentioned. There isn’t much you need to know about it, as it’s mostly referenced back to this, but if you’d like to read that as well (it’s much less smut-filled), I can direct you there (message me, or something). This also conflicts with ideas from that…it’s better to just live in ignorance. Also, I don’t know if I like the end of this one. If you don’t like it either, just forget about it. I think I might.

The Story of Hades and His Lover II

Initial reaction to my relationship with the king was mixed. For the most part, only people within the castle knew, but it slowly became apparent that others outside of our realm were learning the truth. I could tell from the way the other gods and deities looked at me as I served them during their brief visits, their eyes scrutinizing me when Hades would put a hand on my shoulder, or my knee –innocent enough displays of affection, turned into morbidly grotesque things in their minds.
I knew that the information had reached the Queens ears when Acacia told me a few days after her yearly return that the Queen wished to speak with me.
“What ever about, Acacia?” I asked, unsure if I should tell my master that his wife –though no longer his lover, wanted to speak to me; most likely in private.
“I have no idea.” She shrugged. Since she had found out that the King and I were lovers, Acacia had been impartial towards me. I could see those hints of love and admiration for him in her eye every time she dared to meet my eye, but she kept her mouth shut, and her hands away from him, “She’s waiting for you in the library in the east wing.”
I nodded, “I will be there momentarily then.”
“I’ll let her know.” Acacia didn’t meet my eyes nodding at me before departing again, back towards her mistress. I turned back to where I had been pressing and hanging Hade’s shirts in his closet. I was surprised a few minutes later when I felt his hands on my hips.
“Hard at work, I see…” He pressed his lips against my throat, “You don’t have to do such menial tasks you know –that is what James is here for.”
I turned in his arms, “I told James I would take care of you personally…he does the menial tasks…I would not want him musing your clothes.”
“But it’s quite alright if you do.”
I smiled briefly, before pushing his hands away from my hips, “Your wife wants to see me…what do you think she is looking for from me?”
“Persephone wants to see you?” He repeated, “I have no idea…would you like me to see what it is she wants with you?”
“No, I will go to her if that is what she wants.”
“Don’t let her intimidate you, Marius.” He pressed a kiss to my forehead, “You should go to her before she gets impatient. I’ll finish this for you.”
“No, you can not.” I shook my head, “Just leave it, there are only a few more. I will do them when I come back.”
He raised an eyebrow, “I think I can hang a few shirts, Marius…”
“Do not touch them, they have to be pressed –you can not wear wrinkled shirts, Master.” I warned, narrowing my eyes for a moment before pressing a kiss to his lips, “I will only be a moment.”
He nodded, ushering me out of the door, and on my way to see the Queen.
I found her sitting, looking small yet elegant, perched on a window-seat, staring out of the window over the castle gardens, an unopened book in her hands.
“You wanted to see me, my Ladyship?” I bowed slightly.
She turned, “Marius, I have heard interesting things about you…and my husband. Tell me, is there any truth to them, or do I have to straight to him to get an answer.”
“That depends on what you have heard Madam. I can not agree to what I do not know.” My fingers clasped in front of me as she stood in front of me, just a few inches shorter then me.
“Do you love him?” She asked, her hands on my face tilting my eyes to look into hers. Her long blonde hair framed her face, and I could not look away from her bright blue eyes.
“I do.”
“And does he love you?”
“He does.”
She nodded, releasing my face, “And how long as this been going on Marius? Has he left me for you, has this been going on longer then these mere months?”
I blinked, thinking over how to tell her that her husband and I had been lovers long before she had reined as his Queen, “Madam…”
“You can tell me, Marius. I will not punish you for my husband’s ill-deeds.”
“This is not just Ma—my Lord’s fault, Madam.” I caught myself before I called him Master –still not letting myself use that term in mixed company, “I-he…we loved each other even before you came here.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly, “Are you to tell me, Marius, that your affair is lasting longer then our immortal marriage?”
I took a step back from her, unsure of how to answer her.
“Where is he?” Her voice was angry, and I could understand why –he had a lover, but he had still seen fit to make her his wife. Not only that, but she had never known of his other lovers. These hundreds of years, she had believed herself to be his only, and now the truth was coming out.
“Madam, I am sorry…you asked, and I can not lie to you.” I put up my hands, to calm her.
“Where is he Marius!”
“He does love you, Madam! His choice to make you his wife was well thought out and planned...”
“Marius…” Her voice held the tiniest hint of warning.
I swallowed, “I left him in his chambers. I do not know if he is still there.”
She nodded, sweeping from the room in a billow of silken fabric, disappearing towards Hade’s chambers.
I bit my lip, before starting after her. The last thing I wanted was for her to seek retribution on Hades –especially at something that I had said.
When I approached the room, I could already hear her cries, and Hade’s soft murmurs, his voice apologetic. I bit my lip, peering through the open door, not sure whether I should enter or not. He looked up, sensing my presence, his arms wrapped around a still wailing Persephone who had collapsed into his lap where he sat in a chair near the fireplace. She looked up, knowing that his eyes were no longer on her, his attempt at comforting words having muted. Her eyes narrowed at me, and I shrunk further from the frame of the door.
“You!” She flew towards me, Hades right behind her, grabbing her arms before she could strike at me, “This is your fault, you dog!”
“Persephone…” Hades twisted her arms behind her back, “Stop this nonsense. Marius has no fault in this, I’ve already told you… I pursued him, not the other way around. If you want to find a fault with someone, talk to your own maid. She has been making advances towards me for years.”
“Don’t you try to blame Acacia for anything!” She wrenched out of his hands, “If I cannot be your wife, then I don’t wish to be here any longer!”
“There is nothing I, nor you, can do about that.” Hades shook his head, “You are still my Queen.”
“I spent years hating you –and now that I show even the slightest bit of love for you, you discard of me! What makes him different?”
Hades took her face in his hands, “I loved him long before I loved you, Persephone. I can’t help that.” I bit my tongue, watching her sink down onto her knees in front of him, Hades looked up at me, “Marius, go fetch Acacia for the Queen, would you?”
I nodded, sprinting from the door towards the Queen’s chambers where I found Acacia and Jessica sewing a new dress for the Queen.
“Acacia –The King would like for you to come and collect her ladyship.”
“What happened?” Acacia put down her sewing, brushing the spare bits of thread from her gown, “Did they argue?”
I nodded, “She is in his chambers, weeping onto his boots.”
“Oh, goodness forbid she spoil the polish.” She rolled her eyes, leading the way back towards Hade’s chambers, where he had taken back his seat near the fire, watching Persephone’s body, wrecked with sobs and convulsing in tears on the cold stone floor.
Acacia knelt beside her, “Madam, come now, this is no way for a lady to present herself.”
“I am not a lady, Acacia. I am a wretch.” She turned her face into her arm, her blonde hair cascading over her cheeks, hiding her expression, as more tears shook her body. Acacia sighed, standing again, pulling Persephone from under the arms.
“I apologize now for the abuse I am going to impart on you, my Queen…” She began to drag her, causing Hades to laugh, and Acacia to drop her, letting her head hit her legs, as the Queen grew limp at her feet again, making no effort at all to muster the strength to hold herself up.
“Do you think this is funny m’ lord? Your wife is racked with tears, and you sit there laughing, your lover cowering nearing the door...” She crossed her arms, “I don’t mean to speak ill of you, but you are a first-rate ass, m’ lord.”
He nodded, his amused smile still on his face, “So I am…” He stood up, crossing the room, picking up the Queen, throwing her easily over his shoulder, “Never mind; Marius, come in here please. Acacia, go gossip with the rest of the help, and don’t worry about the Queen for a bit. Marius and I will take care of her for awhile.”
Acacia narrowed her eyebrows, but nodded, seeing that she had been unruly enough for one day, turning to exit.
“Marius, please close and bolt the door.” Hades carried his Queen over his bed, sliding her gently from his shoulder, onto the mattress.
“What are you doing?” She asked, brushing the tears from her warm face, “Get off of me, you cur.”
“Persephone, Persephone…” He shook his head, straddling her hips, his fingers moving to undo the clasps of his shirt, “This is what you want, isn’t it? You want to know what makes him better then you? I want to show you…”
“What?” Her face was covered in shock, “You can’t be serious –stop this.”
“Shh…” He pressed a soft kiss to her lips, before turning to me, where I was leaning against the door, unsure of what his plan was, “Don’t just stand about, Marius…”
“Master, I…I am not sure I understand what you are trying to do here.”
“You pig!” She beat a fist into his stomach, “How sadistic of you –having him call you master!”
He ignored her, holding out a hand toward me, “I’m proving to my wife that you are far superior to her.”
“What I am seeing from you right now, Master, is that you want to punish her…unfortunately, by dragging me into this, you are punishing me too…and yourself. Stop before you do something you regret.”
He looked at me for a moment before shaking his head, “Why would I regret this? I love you both, Marius... I want you both to understand this.”
“Master, if you just want sex…” I shook my head, “her Ladyship is not a willing party. Please, let her go…I will take care of you.”
He looked back at Persephone, brushing his fingers over her hair, before, pressing his forehead down onto hers again, staring into her eyes for a few moments, “Is that what you want, Persephone?”
She nodded, “I’m sorry I got angry with you, Hades. I simply do not understand what makes a shade better then your own wife.”
“He is not just a shade to me, Persephone.” He shook his head,
She nodded, pushing him off of her, standing to smooth out her dress, and brush her hair back into a presentable fashion. Before making a fluid motion towards the door, pausing as she wrenched it open, “Just remember Hades…the moment he steps outside of this castle, he is just a soul…he will never be flesh and blood.”
“That hasn’t been a problem so far, my sweet.” Hades winced, his eyes closing as she pulled the door loudly shut behind her.
“I am sorry, Master,” I moved to the bed, kneeling on the edge in front of him, “I should have just kept my mouth closed, I know, but she asked me, and I can not bring myself to lie to her, she is still my queen—” His mouth against mine silenced me, and he smiled against my lips.
“I’m not angry at you, Marius…this was bound to happen eventually. I’m afraid…Persephone and I have not parted as mutually as I had told everyone.”
“I am sorry…you obviously still care for her.”
“I do,” Hades nodded, “but she is making up these feelings for me so that I can feel badly for letting her go.”
“Master…if you knew she could not, would not love you…why did you take her for your wife? Why go through all of these years of trouble for a sullen, unloving marriage?” I bit my lip, wondering if I had possibly asked the wrong question, but he laughed, “I did it to hide you better, my beautiful little slave.” He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me over top of him as he fell back into the soft pillows, “—You said you would take care of me, Marius…are you going to keep that promise?”
I took a deep breath, steadying myself on my palms, “I have so much to do, Master... Now that you got rid of all of the extra help, I find that I can not spend as much time with you as I previously have…”
“Let the castle fall to ruins –as long as I have you here in my bed, Marius.” He shook his head, “That is all that I ask for.”
“Master, you are insufferable.” I sighed, kissing him again, “And do not think that I do not know what you want to do to me either…”
He pouted, “Oh, but Marius, I haven’t done that to you in such a long time…and it would really be a perfect ending to a perfectly wretched day, wouldn’t it?”
“Do not be mean.” I pouted back, “You are always mean to me…”
“I do nothing but love you, Marius,” he scoffed, pulling me down to whisper in my ear, “I only spill so much seed when I’m with you…”
“Should I feel special?”
“You are special.” He sighed, before tucking an arm under his head before nodding, “All right, so I won’t climax in your mouth; is that what you want to hear?”
I nodded, moving to untie his boots, letting them clunk loudly on the floor, then unclasping his trousers to pull them down over his hips, past his knees, and onto the floor before lowering my mouth to him. He groaned, his hands moving to cradle my head, before I grabbed them, holding them back up against his chest, lapping my tongue against his scrotum, peering up to watch his expression.
“You are a tease, Marius-love.” He groaned as I freed one of his hands, moving away from him to suck on one of my fingers. He raised a curious eyebrow, before groaning softly as I pushed it into his rectum, pushing his thighs farther apart, my tongue moving back to his hardening member, “A very, very bad tease.”
I laughed softly, pushing my finger deeper into him, before pulling away from him for a moment, biting his ear softly, “Fuck me, Master. Please?”
He kissed me, pushing his tongue into my mouth, discarding his shirt, before pushing me onto my stomach and contorting me into the position he wanted, lifting me onto my knees, and down on my shoulders, reaching around me to untie the cord of my trousers, pulling them down around my knees, giving no warning or preparation before penetration. His hand covered my mouth as a loud cry burst from my throat, stifling the noise.
“Did I hurt you?” He whispered, pulling my shirt up to press a kiss to my back, letting his hands trail from my mouth along my back, wrapping his arms around my waist, holding himself inside of me, “I shouldn’t have done that…”
“No, you should not have.” I groaned, closing my eyes.
“I’m sorry,” He whispered, pressing a kiss to my cheek, “Do you want me to stop?”
“You’ve already done it now.” I rose up onto my arms, “You might as well continue, Master –besides, I am just your simple little slave, are I not?”
“Don’t belittle yourself, Marius.” He pressed another kiss to my shoulder, beginning to ride me, pushing in and out.
My eyes squeezed shut –this pain, it was nothing new to me, so why did it still bother me? It was times such as these that made me wonder why I enjoyed this bottom position so much –especially when he was in one of his more cruel moods, physically. The slightest whimper from my lips, and his apologies would run rampant –and I felt special, because I knew I was one of the only people he would ever ask for forgiveness from.
When we had both quite finished, he pulled me tightly beside him, unbuttoning my shirt the rest of the way, to push it back off of my shoulders, and tossing aside my trousers from the bed.
“Master, I have other things I need to do today –I really should not lay here with you all evening.” I kissed his cheek.
“Nonsense –I tell you what to do anyway.” He leaned on his elbow, staring down at me, “And I’m telling you to stay exactly where you are.”
“Master…”
“Don’t argue with me, Marius.” Hades shook his head, “You can be so impudent sometimes, and I think you tend to forget your place.”
I raised an eyebrow, “Do I?”
“You do.” He nodded, “Maybe I should discipline you better…” His lips nipped softly at my neck, “Shall I bring out the shackles and a whip? Many have already accused me of being sadistic…and your face is beautiful no matter how contorted I may cause it to be.” His tongue was in my mouth again, holding a long kiss before he shook his head, “but I cannot bring myself to hurt you on purpose.”
“Really, Master? You do not seem to have a problem doing it on an almost nightly basis.” I teased, “I think hearing my whimpers makes you harder then you would like to admit to me.”
“Any sound that comes from your mouth makes me want you, silly Marius.” He kissed me again, pushing my shoulders back into the soft pillows, stroking his fingers down my chest.
“I really should be getting back to work master… I still have your shirts to press, and to get wood for your fire this evening…”
“Let James do it,” Hades sighed, pressing his mouth in soft kisses down my throat, and chest, “you can stay here with me…”
“Even if I did want to allow James to do such a thing, I would not feel comfortable allowing him to observe us in such a way.”
“Let him, it’s no secret. Besides, I’m ordering you to stay right here where you are.”
“Are you going to chain me to the bed if I do not obey you, Master?”
“That’s not a bad idea, Marius. Don’t tempt me.” He sighed, moving back, to lie on his back, putting a comfortable distance between us. “Hmm…the cold air feels good.”
“It does.” I nodded, pressing another kiss to his cheek, “I am getting up now, Master. Do not get to cold.”
He made a soft whining noise, grabbing my arm, as I moved from the bed, “Marius…”
“Master…” I mimicked, “Come on now –we agreed that nothing about my position would change. I am still in your employ, just as much as I am your lover.”
“I can fix that.” He mused, “You can be my lover full time, and we can make love every hour of every day.”
“I think we would tire of each other, Master.” I shook my head.
“I don’t think it possible, Marius. I could never tire of your beautiful face, your rippling muscles, ivory skin, your perfect phallus…”
“Hmm,” I nodded. “You are a very debonair with your words, but I am still getting back to my work.” I slid off of the bed, moving around the foot of it to pick up my trousers and shirt from the floor.
“I am not finished praising your attributes yet…” Hades grabbed me by the hips as I leaned over to pick up the garments, “I also will never tire of your always taut sphincter,” his tongue lapped at my anus, causing a moan to pass my lips. I felt him smile against my skin, before he raised his head a moment later, “and the noises you make when I excite you.”
“Again –well and good, but I am afraid I still can not stay…” I grunted as Hades pulled me back again, one arm wrapping tightly around my waist, holding me, his other hand pushing me down effortlessly as his tongue entered me again, “Master! Please!”
My plea was ignored as he moved onto the floor with me, abandoning my rectum to put his mouth over my hardening member, the two fingers of his right hand replacing his tongue. His other hand fondled my scrotum, and I groaned, torn between holding him tighter, and attempting at pushing him away –something I knew was not possible, given his ungodly strength, which he enjoyed using when it meant a slight torment on me.
“Master—Master, really…” I made a poor attempt at crawling out of his grasp, which resulted with me ripping my tunic, and being pulled against the cold stone of the floor underneath him, my knees drawn up over his shoulders, and his member being pushed into my anus again. My head hit the floor with a thud as my back arched, and Hades leaned forward, pressing another kiss to my lips.
“Watch your head…” He cradled my head, his knuckles scraping the floor as my knees nearly pushed against my shoulders. Every muscle along my back, stomach, and legs screamed as he rocked the two of us back and forth. One of his hands left my head, moving between our bodies to stroke my member as he felt his own climax nearing. Both of us reached our peak just a few moments part, him filling me with his warm seed, mine splattering across our chests. He sat back, lowering my knees, my body aching from the position he had forced me into.
“…Master,” I groaned, caressing my fingers across his slick chest and stomach, “I think you have successfully broken me. I can not move.”
He kissed me, tugging my torn shirt under my head, moving to look at his knuckles, having scraped them against the stone floor, now bleeding slightly. He touched his tongue to the blood, before shaking his head, “I have not broken you, Marius. You’ll be better in a few minutes.”
“I think you’ve done something to me over the years –worked some kind of magic…I do not remember feeling this much...aching after a brutal attack from you.”
“A brutal attack? I am surprised by you, Marius…that wasn’t an attack. I was forceful, yes, brutal no.”
“You attacked me, and you know it, and now I can not move.” I sighed, lolling my head to the side, “Broken, Master…I am broken.”
“Then I shall just have to fix you.” He lapped his tongue against my stomach, already rubbing his own member again.
“No, no, no…not again –I can not Master, I simply can not!” I cried, pushing him away, “You are forgetting that while you are godly-virile, I can not just keep going and going like a common rabbit! I already ache; please do not make it worse!”
He laughed, nodding, “Alright, alright, I won’t; not yet.” He stood up, picking me up quite effortlessly, carrying me gently to the bed, laying me on the soft mattress, “Stay here…I’ll clean you up.”
“I doubt very much that will be a problem.” I followed him with my eyes as he moved towards the water-pitcher and bowl, near the door to my servant room. He poured water into the bowl before dipping a rolled cloth into it, wringing it out before making his way back.
“What are you planning on doing with that?” I asked, sitting up a little straighter, as he straddled me, his knees against my hips.
“I told you –cleaning you up. You’ve made quite the mess of yourself, Marius-love.” He rubbed the damp cloth across my chest, leaving trail of spotless skin.
“And what about you, Master? You are not exactly spotless yourself.” I grunted as he passed the cloth over my genitals.
“Don’t worry about me…I’m a big boy, I can take care of myself.” He pressed a kiss to my lips, before moving to wring out the cloth again, standing near the bowl while he cleaned himself off. When he had finished, he threw the cloth back into the bowl before sitting on the edge of the bed again, “Are you still in pain?”
I murmured a yes, groaning, picking myself up into a sitting position, “I never thought my knees could touch the floor past my shoulders, Master.”
“Don’t be over dramatic, Marius; you enjoyed yourself.”
I nodded, moving across the wide expanse of the bed towards him, pressing a kiss to his cheek, “I did enjoy the act, Master; very much so, and I hope to do it again…but hopefully next time, you will not attempt to make a contortionist out of me.”

Late, a few evenings later, Hades had already pulled me into bed, and underneath the covers when James knocked softly on the door. I hid my face against the pillows near Hade’s shoulder, slightly embarrassed for him to see us in such an awkward position –one I had never liked seeing my Master in with his wife, though it was something I couldn’t very well avoid, most times.
“Acacia asked me to come and start your fire, my lord.” He hovered in the doorway, trying not to gawk at our obvious state of undress.
“Go ahead.” Hades waved him into the room towards the fireplace, “Be quick about it.”
James nodded, closing the door softly, padding in his bare feet to the large brick fireplace, kneeling to start the fire. All was quiet for a few moments, while he outfitted the fireplace with kindling, striking a match to set the wood to flame. While this was happening, Hades tried to tempt me, pressing kisses against my exposed skin; annoyed to find that my eyes were keeping an eye on James. My mouth dropped open as I observed him stick his hand into the burning orange and blue flames.
“What on earth are you doing, James?” I sat up, Hades surprised at my sudden outburst.
“Hmm?” James looked up from where he had been watching the flames, “One of the pieces of wood was stuck –I was just fixing it before I put more in.”
“You stuck your hand into the fire place.” I repeated.
James looked blankly at me, nodding, “Yes…”
“And you did not burn yourself?”
He looked confused, “No.”
I turned to look at Hades, who was looking away from me, trying to appear nonchalant, “You may go. I will take care of the fire.”
“It’s really no trouble –I just ha—”
“Get out, James.”
“Of course,” he nodded, making a slight bow before slipping past the door.
“Alright, Master…what is the meaning of that?” I poked him in the stomach, “Why can James not feel pain? Come to think of it, Acacia can not either –not after the number of tumbles I’ve seen her take in her moments of clumsiness…in fact, I do not believe I ever remember anyone every making any reference to—” His mouth pressed against mine, and I pushed him away, “No, Master. Kisses are not going to shut me up.”
He sighed, “I’m sorry, Marius…”
“What have you done?”
He sighed, “Marius, you’ve been different ever since you first came to work here. I’ve known that, you know that…I wanted you to be able to feel... Do you think that we would be so in love if I had not returned these sensations to you?”
“What are you saying?”
Hades sighed, “Being a god has its advantages. Being the God of the Dead, I returned some of your more human-aspects to you once I realized that I was in love with you.” He bit his lip, looking up at me, “Why do you think your body has never accustomed on our love making?”
“You told me it was because I was a shade!”
He shook his head, “Shades feel no pain, Marius. The magic over the castle gives you a solid form, I gave you your missing senses back –without them you would be like all of the rest –a mind, but no true feeling, Marius. If I hadn’t, you would not be able to…enjoy our time together, as a partner. You could be a tool, yes, but…I didn’t just want you as a tool.”
I nodded. I understood what he was saying –it was true. Looking back over our time together, other shades in the castle’s employ were constantly doing things that would probably either kill a living human, or at least injure them quite badly, and I hadn’t batted an eye. It was something about the way that James had just so bluntly stuck his hand into that fire place…not even flinching as the flames wrapped around his hand. If Hades hadn’t allowed me to feel those sensations –the pain of my Master entering my body, the pleasure of climax, those other menial little twinges that reminded me that I was once human… Our relationship wouldn’t have been what it was.
“Are you angry at me?” He asked, “I know it must sound silly, Marius. If you like, I can un-do it.”
I shook my head, “No, of course not. What would be the point in making love to you if I could not feel the pleasure of it?” I kissed him, “But…if I can feel…what is it that is keeping me from being mortal? Is that not what makes you human, Master?”
He pondered for a moment, “I am not making you breathe, Marius –you do that on your own. No blood flows in your veins, no heart beats in your chest. Those are things I can not give you. I would adore to feel a heart beating in your chest, Marius, but that would be highly unethical for me to restore life to you. If you want full life, I suggest you go to the fields for reincarnation.”
“That would mean leaving you, Master, and I made a promise.” I shook my head, “I do not want life.” I kissed him again, “I just want to be by your side.”
He smiled slightly, “Then you understand why I did this?”
I nodded, “It is a bizarre gift, Master…but I hate to think of what we would be with out it. I really would just be your pretty little slave boy, would I not?”
“Hmm,” he neither agreed nor disagreed, pulling me down into the pillows, “speaking of being my little slave…”
I raised an eyebrow slightly, “Master, I know much to well what you are thinking and I must decline. You have already abused me far to much, what with forcing me onto floor more times then I can count, and pulling my heels over my head just the other day… I like to breath through my nose and throat, not cough up your seed for days after taking torture from you.”
He laughed, “Alright, alright…you will never do this for me again, will you?”
“Never say never, Master; just not tonight,” I pressed a kiss to the tip of his nose, “Good night!” I turned over onto my side away from him, tugging the covers up over my shoulders.
“What do you…Marius, I wasn’t finished…” He sighed, “Fine, I understand.” He pressed a kiss beside my ear, “Good night, sweet Marius.”